AVID 6 FOR FCP EDITORS MOVIOLA WEBINAR
One of the major differences is Avid is cross platform. A FCP project can be put in any folder I want to put it in. AVID HAS 3 LOCATIONS WHERE IT SAVES IT PROJECTS FOR ME. When I first launch Avid, the first thing I see is the Select Project window, which allows me to choose 1 of 3 locations. #1 is the Private location and on a Mac thatÕs the Avid Projects folder and on the Select Project Window pop up I will see the names and if I go to the finder on a Mac in the Avid Projects folder in the logged in users Documents folder I will see folders with the same names as the Select Project Window pop up. #2 is a Shared location and if I open up that in the Mac finder itÕll be in the Users folder – Shared folder – Avid Media Composer folder – Shared Avid Projects folder. Shared is meant to be shared with all the logged in users on the computer I would be working on, as Private is just in that particular userÕs folder.
With a PC it's the same thing. The Private location is in Documents – My Documents – Avid Projects folder and the Public location is in Avid Symphony (if I'm using an Avid Symphony) – or Shared Avid Projects
Avid wants to manage my projects for me! Avid also likes to manage my media. The media can be on any hard drive which I would set in the Avid and then all of the files would go into the folder, Avid MediaFiles, which is kind of like the Capture Scratch folder, only the Render and Audio Render files also go into this one folder. Every Avid MediaFiles folder has a folder called, MXF and in that folder lives a bunch of numbered folders and each folder has a bunch of mxf files in them along with some Avid Database files (which is a list of everything that is in that particular folder). Instead of Avid having to read each folder, it just reads the database files in the folder. Avid manages it's media through a database. Same thing with a PC.
WHEN STARTING NEW PROJECT, click one of the three where I want to save it and click on New Project button and then I would set the project setting here and once I choose them I'm locked into them. Name my project and click OK and my new project will show up in the Select Project pop up, which I can select to open up.
EVERYTHING IN AVID NEEDS TO BE SAVED INTO A BIN, RATHER THAN INTO THE PROJECT WINDOW ITSELF. I can rename a Bin in the Avid interface and when I do, it renames the Bin file in my Finder window Avid Projects folder to match it as a .avb file.
I can also create a Folder for example named CUTS or Sequences and name my bin Current Cut or Final Cut and put that into my CUTS/SEQUENCES folder. Bins can be inside folders, but folders cannot go inside of bins. I can add another bin named, Older Cuts and add that to my CUTS folder.
In FCP, the entire project is one file. Avid is different. Each and every Bin is a separate file. Other editors in Avid can open up my Bin files to access some of my material without opening my project up. Avid's project sharing is much better than FCP's.
Avid vs FCP Interface Comparisons – 11:22:20
AVID CAN ONLY HAVE ONE PROJECT OPEN AT A TIME. If I hold my Option Key down when opening a project in Avid, it'll open much faster but it won't open any of the Bins up along with it and I can just open them up on my own. (this also works in FCP).
In Avid, I can go to Windows – Workspaces to change how my interface looks. I can make custom workspaces and label them to look like FCP, with the audio meters (Audio Tool) to the far right of the timeline and the Tool Palette
EVERY WINDOW IN AVID HAS THE LITTLE HAMBURGER WHERE I CAN CHOOSE OPTIONS FOR THE WINDOW IT'S IN. For example, after I drop a clip into the timeline, I can choose to show the audio waveforms and I can put the Wa button for Waveform on my tool palette.
If I press the CAPS lock key, I can scrub with my playhead.
If I have an individual Bin or Tab that I want to save, I can go to File – Save Bin. If my project is the active window and I want to save it and go to File it will say Save All.
Cmd/Ctrl + L will make the thumbnail clips in a bin larger and Cmd/Ctrl + K will make them smaller. I can select a thumbnail and press J, K or L to play the thumbnails and I can make in and out points on the thumbnails too.
I can set up my thumbnails in order from left to right and continuing down to a 2nd and 3rd row and I can lasso them all and then choose either Splice In or Overwrite and then drop them into the timeline
Add LD (less detail) or Cmd/Ctrl & Minus Key and MD (more detail) Cmd/Ctrl & Plus Key to the tool palette which will zoom in and out of the timeline.
Avid's Show Entire Sequence (SE button in Tool Palette) in the timeline's hamburger menu is the same as Shift + Z in FCP.
The Focus button will show a larger portion of where my playhead is in the timeline.
ZI button makes a lasso where I can drag it in the timeline to zoom into that area. ZB button Zooms Back to take me back to how it was before I zoomed in.
To take a clip and switch it out with a clip in front of it, DO NOT click on the Red/Segment/Overwrite Mode as it was just overwrite the clip, click on the Yellow/Segment Mode button
To SNAP something I have to hold down the Cmd/Ctrl Key while doing what I'm doing. Hold down Option + Apple Key or Alt + Ctrl Key and it will SNAP to the tail of clips.
I can add the Yellow Splice In and Red Overwrite buttons to the Tool Palette. Avid has a SMART TOOL, which is to the left of the V&A area on the timeline. With Smart Tools, I can enable more than one tool at a time. I can toggle on and off the entire Smart Tool Palette by clicking the Bracket or pressing Shift + Tab. If I'm on the top part of the Video track I will be able to Overwrite but if I'm hovering over the bottom part of the video track then I can Splice In
TO MAKE MY TRACKS IN THE TIMELINE TALLER hold down the Option/Alt Key and drag a border to make it taller or shorter or I can use the shortcut Cmd/Ctrl + L for larger or Cmd/Ctrl + K for smaller.
IS THERE A WAY TO CLOSE A GAP
TRIMMING
The Yellow Trim Tool is like FCP's Ripple tool. Select my edit points and perform the ripple.
Avid has a feature called SYNC LOCK, which if it is off will prevent other clips on other tracks from moving when I do ripple edits. If I have sync lock on for all of my tracks, whatever I do to one track, all the other tracks go along with it. FCP seems to have a sync lock type of feature which is always on. ALWAYS keep Sync Lock ON.
LINKED SELECTION (Shift + L) – same exact function as in FCP. When it's on, if I select the video of a clip the audio will automatically be selected too. Always keep it on and if I don't need it, I can toggle btwn using it.
The SMART TOOL aspect works like if I have the Red and Yellow tools selected at the same time, the top half is my Red Overwrite tool (in FCP it's the Roll Tool when going into another clip) and when I select an edit point and drag to the left it will create a empty gap in my timeline. If I drag to the right with the Red Overwrite tool, I can drag over the next clip and cover it up with the clip I'm making longer.
If I hover over the middle of the edit point the Avid Trim tool will have tails on both side and I can select both sides of the edit point and the rollers will be purple and I can perform a Roll Edit, which Avid calls a Dual Roller Trim. If I select one side only then I'm making that one side longer or shorter. When I choose Trim tools the Composer window will change from Segment Mode to Trim Mode and I can use the buttons below the window to trim frame by frame or I can use the same keyboard shortcut as in FCP (comma key and period key.
The BEST thing in Avid's Trim Mode is the ability to select an edit and play it in real time. Hitting the Space Bar will play a loop in Trim Mode. In the Trim Mode window under the Viewer window I can type in my pre-roll and post-roll durations. I can click on the canvas window which will select the incoming clip (B side) which is a lot easier than doing it in the timeline trying to get the little tail to go on the right side of the edit point and I can also click on the image to the left (A side) to select that clip and there will be a pink colored trim counter which will highlight which side of the edit is active.
If I want to turn off or unselect my video track but not my audio track, in the timeline I can click on the V1 button to the left of the timeline and I can affect the audio edit points without the video being affected
When I'm in Trim Mode and I want to trim, I can drag my Playhead, I can press buttons under the windows or I can type in a + or – number and it'll move forward or backward.
IN FCP if I want to slip or slide a clip I select the clip and do it. IN Avid it's all about what edit points I select. So if I want a clip in the timeline to move left or right between two other clips, enter Trim Mode and make sure to select what I want to trim (Video and Audio if that's what I want to do) and to enter Slip Mode I can double click one of the inside edit points
EFFECTS 46:18
In FCP if I have an edit point selected to add the default transition (Cross Dissolve) press Cmd/Ctrl + T and Option/Alt + Cmd/Ctrl + T puts on the default transition. Avid doesn't have a default transition, it has a Quick Transition. Position my Playhead next to the edit point and press the Backlash Key or press the Quick Transition button it'll open a Quick Transition Window where I can choose how many frames and where I want to position it and I can choose what drive the render file goes to and Press Add. If I want to edit the transition, park my playhead at it and push the Quick Transition button.
Transition Manipulation button/tool puts handles on the transition in the timeline and I can drag to make it longer or shorter and I will get a 6-up display window, which I can turn off by pressing the Transition Corner Display
I can also go to the Effects Tab (if effect mode?) and grab an effect and drop it on the edit point or on the clip itself. If I want to affect the video duration and not the audio duration, just deselect the audio tracks on the left side of the timeline.
To Hide a track, select the track and press Shift + Cmd + H. I won't see it, but it's still there.
If I want to add audio transitions to multiple edit points, set a range by marking an I and an Out point and then click on the Quick Transition button, there's a box I can select that will allow me to Apply To All Transitions (In – Out) and Add.
When going into Effect Mode, try to make it look like FCP so I won't be confused. Make the Effect Editor go in the Viewer space, with a very thin Browser type window all along the left from top to bottom. Customize it and name it FCP FX. When I select a clip or edit point in the timeline, it will load the effect in the Effect Editor and it'll look like it's in the Viewer Window with the Filters Tab open.
In Avid, once a parameter is active I can use my keyboard Arrow to move one increment at a time and Shift Arrow will move at 10 frames at a time or I can just type in a number and press Enter. Pressing the Tab Key will tab me through parameters within an effect. Some parameters will allow me to open up a visual graph.
If I want to manipulate multiple keyframes, set an in to out point and when I move them, they all move and I can delete multiple keyframes at once.
Animatte Effect
Some Finishing Techniques
I can shift and drag on the Audio Selectors to highlight and select a bunch of them and Cmd+ L to make them Taller. Avid 6 has a Track Control Panel button (which looks like a Play button next to the TC on the top left of the timeline area) which gives me per track controls to turn on Audio Waveforms, Clip Gain and Volume.
When using/selecting Clip Gain & Volume, open the Audio Mixer Window, I can drag the slider up, ie for A3 and then lower A4. Clip Gain responds to the mixer
Color Correction – 01:06:11
Choose Windows – Color Correction. I can
The Smart Tool is an option.