Slow motion

[Edward Troxel]

So you want to slow down the footage, add a counter, and then speed it back up??? Or do you want to just slow it down so that the project ends up being 4 hours long?

If it’s the first one, I wouldn’t slow it down and then speed it back up. Instead, I’d just add a counter that counts faster so that it goes through 4 hours in that one hour.

An easy way for you to change the speed of the footage is to hold down the CTRL key and resize the clip as desired. This is the same as going into the properties and changing the “Playback Rate”.

Edward Troxel

[David Shirey]

Like Edward suggested, you can ctrl+drag out the file to 4 hours long. If you really need all four hours on one dvd-r, would it be simpler to just leave it as one file and put 4 chapter stops on the hour marks then add a menu for the four chapters? That way you don’t have to render out 4 separate files. As for the counter you can use one of the Timecode presets from VideoFX.

I have this mental image of whoever has to sift through this footage just sticking their dvd player on 4X play mode to get through it quicker 🙂

[Robert Lees]

Thanks for your responces. Maybe if I describe the project. I am training for a marathon (Honolulu). I want to view the course on a monitor as I train on a treadmill. I am going to drive the course at as even a speed as I can such that I finish the route in an hour. But it will take me like 4 hours to run the course. I wont be running/watching the entire 26 miles 385 yards or 4 hours in one session. I might want to run/watch hours 1 to 2 one day, and hours 3 to 4 another.

[Robert Lees]

Edward. You say ‘hold down the CTRL key and resize the clip as desired.’ but how ? My clip will be an hour long. What do I drag ? If ‘this is the same as going into the properties and changing the “Playback Rate”‘, this sounds an easier way, but I could not see this in the project properties.

[Mike Kujbida]

Place your cursor at the very end of your clip.
Now hold down the Ctrl key (you should see it change from just a box to a box with a ~ under it).
While holding the Ctrl key, drag the clip to the right until you can’t go any more.
Be advised that, since it’s a one hour clip, it’ll take a while to drag out.

The drawback to changing the speed in the Properties window (right-click the clip, select Properties and change the Playback Rate to 0.25) is that you don’t see the entire clip stretched out like you do using the Ctrl-drag option.

For a counter, just add the Timecode FX using the Video Output FX (top left of the Preview window).
It’s not the clock you want but it’s quick and easy and you already have it.
You can centre it as well as increase the size for readability.

Place markers at the 1, 2 & 3 hr. marks and render the entire 4 hr. as one clip for DVD.

Be advised that, if you don’t have a dual-layer burner, the quality will be pretty bad for a 4 hr. DVD.
My bitrate calculator says a CBR of 2,000,000 or a VBR of 4,300,000 / 2,100,000 / 1,600,000.

Once in DVD Architect, drag it to the timeline 4 times.
Double-click clip #1 and set the In and Out points (I=In and O=Out) for the first hour.
Repeat for clips 2, 3 & 4 but set the In & Out points accordingly.

Let us know if you need more help.