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editing backwards on a magnetic timeline ?
Hi everyone.
I’ve edited a 6 minute peice and now want to add a few minutes to the start of it.. Not as an intro but literally make it run for 8 or 9 minutes by adding more clips to the beginning with both A and B roll shots as well as music and dialog.
Now I’m trying to understand the workings of a magnetic timeline and the only way I can think of to edit the beginning of this is by adding a gap clip with maybe the position tool and then using connected clips for my edit and once done to simply ‘overwrite to primary storyline’.
Now is this the right and maybe easiest way to do this?
Other methods I can think of would be to edit a beginning in another project and then join the two, or to make my existing edit a compound clip but I want to see what other methods there are and probably the best way to go about what I’m trying to acheive.
Is there anything wrong with just using a gap clip and using the position tool to move the new clips around so that none of my previous edit gets disturbed?
-Frankie
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6 Replies
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You got it. That’s what gap clips are for. But if the new opening chunk is already edited, simply copy and paste/insert at the beginning of the timeline.
But also: you can just start editing in the new clips into the very beginning of the piece. Select them from the browser, position the playhead at the beginning and then cut them in. The rest of the video will “push” down to the right automatically. That is one benefit of the magnetic timeline.
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Adding clips to the front of the timeline is as easy as the w key.
As long as there are no clips selected, you have a constant trt of your timeline at the very bottom of the screen.
Conversely, if you do have a range selected, fcpx will give you the duration of that range.
When you insert clips to the front of the timeline, the rest of your edit will not be disturbed.
This is an advantage of the magnetic timeline, so why not use it?
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Seems like you could just edit your extra 3 minutes or so at the end of what you’ve already done, then just drag it to the start and let the existing beginning dance out of the way … or something.
Caveat: I mostly don’t know what I’m talking about with respect to FCPX so take any advice from me with a pinch of salt.
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Everyone above is correct. And it works just like it would in just about any NLE. Nothing new there. Insert is insert. In legacy you had to lock a track to get it to NOT move down with an insert. With Avid, I just assume everyone edited with sync locks on like myself (they work opposite of the lock buttons in legacy).
Adding to the beginning really has the same options in any nle. Insert a gap to create space. Or grab move everything with the position tool (creating a gap). Or insert edit your shots in. Or even as Andy said, edit the stuff at the end and then drag it to the front. Event THAT would work the same in legacy, you just had to hold down the option key and everything would move out of the way for you. They called it a swap in FCP legacy, and it’s 50% of what they market the magnetic timeline about. I guess many don’t realize the main difference with X’s timeline is the vertical moving about magnetics. The horizontal stuff is just the reverse default mode of legacy, plus an extra tool to move stuff without it rippling instead of a modifier to to make it ripple.
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[Bret Williams] ” I guess many don’t realize the main difference with X’s timeline is the vertical moving about magnetics.”
Quite true. For folks who’ve cut on an Avid, the X timeline isn’t very different at all. Well, Other than the vertical magnetics, which apparently drives some folks batsh*t crazy. 🙂 I think it’s more of a stretch for folks who aren’t used to gap clips as actual media. You can, of course edit only using connected clips in a “legacy like” fashion. But what’s the fun in that? 😉
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~”It is a poor craftsman who blames his tools.”~
~”The function you just attempted is not yet implemented”~ -
Bret said “Everyone above is correct.”
That is one of my favorite aspects of the magnetic timeline, you can make it into whatever you are comfortable with. I still yell at the screen to do what I thought it should be doing, but less and less the more I get used to it.
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