Clip Colors on Timeline

The colors of the clip are defined during capture/import. When adding a clip to Timeline, the clip bars are displayed in your predefined colors:

use_color

You can disable the use of different colors on Timeline by deselecting the "Use clip color" option in the Timeline preferences:

use_clip_color_preferences

When this option is disabled, the video and audio tracks bars will be displayed in two predefined colors accordingly:

no_color
Important
Refer to the Colors section in the Cinegy Archive Manager Manual to get more information on assigning colors to the clips.

Clip Thumbnails

The thumbnails of the clips and graphic images are displayed on Timeline within the corresponding video tracks:

clip_thumbnails

To disable the display of the thumbnails, deselect the "Show thumbnails" option in the "Timeline Preferences" dialog box:

show_thumbnails

Timeline will be displayed as follows:

no_clip_thumbnails

Audio Waveform

To display the audio waveform on Timeline, check the "Show waveform" option in the "Timeline Preferences" dialog box:

show_waveform_preferences

The audio tracks waveform will be displayed as follows:

show_waveform_timeline

Match Frame Indicator on Timeline

TL_MatchFrame

If two adjacent clips come from the same capture/import session and can be played seamlessly, yellow triangle markers are displayed between the clips to indicate seamless playback.

Removing match frame indicators from Timeline will merge the adjacent frames and extend the clip to the entire. To do it, simply use the "Remove match frame edits" command from the Timeline menu:

RemoveMatchFrame
Note
The "Remove match frame edits" command is disabled for the match frame with a mix effect applied.
Note
This command is not available for multiclip objects inserted into Timeline.

24-Hour Boundary for Sequences

The Sequences cannot be longer than 24 hours as this would make any EDL or AAF export impossible. A red line marks the 24-hour boundary on Timeline.

boundary

Moving the Time Slider

To change the current position of the time slider, simply click the time ruler.

ruler

The current frame will be displayed in Sequence Viewer; the Sequence Viewer and Timeline time sliders will move synchronously. The two lines represent the edges of one frame (the beginning and the end). The gap between the lines corresponds to the zoom level. Usually, all actions are applied to the beginning of a frame, marked by the white line. (Exception: "Mark Out" applies to the end of the frame.)

time_slider

Setting the Time Scale

In the bottom left corner of Timeline, there is a time scale control.

scale_control

Drag the slider to change the time scale on Timeline. You can also use the and keys to step the time scale up and down accordingly.

The minimal scale is selected to fit the entire Sequence into Timeline.

You can also scale the zoom factor by scrolling with the pressed mouse wheel.

TL_Zoom

In the Timeline menu, you will find the zoom commands: "Zoom In", "Zoom Out", "To project", "To selection" and "Maximal".

Note
Right-clicking the time scale control also gives you the zoom options mentioned above.
Shortcuts Zooming

Up

Zoom out

Down

Zoom in

Ctrl+Up

Zoom to project

Shift+Up

Zoom to the selection

Ctrl+Down

Zoom to the current position

Shift+Down

Zoom to the previous zoom level

Changing Track Height

Simply drag between the tracks in the left part of Timeline to change the height of the desired track.

track_low
track_high

To reset the height of all the tracks to the default value, right-click the track selector on Timeline and choose the "Reset height" command.

Reset_Height

Selecting Clips

You can select a clip or multiclip on Timeline by simply clicking it.

Note
If the video and audio tracks in the clip are linked, all the corresponding tracks will be selected.

Selecting a Range of Clips

You can also select a range of clips and/or multiclips at once by dragging the mouse from the empty space on Timeline. A rubber band appears. All the clips intersecting with the rubber band will be selected when you release the mouse.

Selecting Multiple Clips

You can use Ctrl+click to select several arbitrary clips and multiclips on Timeline.

A repeated Ctrl+click deselects the clip/multiclip.

Selecting from Timeline Menu

You can also select a range of clips and/or multiclips by choosing one of the commands from the Timeline menu. The "To end" and "From start" commands depend on the cursor position.

Note
You can also use the Ctrl+A> shortcut to select all items on Timeline.

Dismantling Sequence

You can gather all clips (including placeholder clips) you have used in the Sequence in one bin via the "Dismantle" command from the Timeline menu:

dismantle_command

Define the ClipBin used for dismantling:

Dismantle_ClipBin

As a result, a new ClipBin will be created containing all clips used in the Sequence.

Show Metadata

To view the clip metadata on Timeline, select the desired video or audio track, right-click it, and select the "Show metadata" context menu command:

show metadata_command

The following metadata dialog box appears:

timeline_clip metadata

Aspect Ratio Changing

Cinegy Desktop supports the ability to change the aspect ratio for any clip within the existing Sequence. To do this, select the required video clip on Timeline and open its metadata properties as it is described in the previous section. Then locate the "Target aspect" field and choose the required format from the pull-down list:

Metadata_aspect
Note
Changing the aspect ratio affects only the Timeline project and does not modify the original master clip.
Note
If the "Default" value is selected, it means that the target aspect ratio is the same as the physical clip aspect.

Aspect Ratio Conversion

The effective picture area of the clip will look different after the aspect ratio conversion. See the table below for a detailed and pictorial explanation of all possible cropping scenarios:

Original Aspect Ratio Target Aspect Ratio Description 16:9 Sequence Aspect Ratio

4:3

4:3

The 4:3 video is placed in the center of the 16:9 screen. The vertical black bars (pillars) are added on each side of the frame.

43_43_169

14:9

The 4:3 video is placed in the center of the screen. The top and bottom of the original frame are cropped to 14:9, and black bars are added to either side.

43_149_169

16:9

The top and bottom of the original frame are cropped to the 16:9 aspect ratio.

43_169_169

Anamorphic

The original frame is stretched horizontally to fill the entire frame resulting in distortion of the image.

43_anamorph_169

Original Aspect Ratio Target Aspect Ratio Description 4:3 Sequence Aspect Ratio

16:9

4:3

The widescreen video is cropped on the left and the right. Only the main part of the image is shown.

169_43_43

14:9

The widescreen video is placed in the center of the screen. The sides of the image are cropped to 14:9 and narrow black bars are added to the top and bottom.

169_149_43

16:9

The black pillars are added above and below the image preserving the entire 16:9 video.

169_169_43

Anamorphic

The original frame is stretched vertically to fill the entire frame resulting in distortion of the image.

169_Anamorph_43

Moving Clips

To move a clip/multiclip on Timeline, just drag and drop the selected one to a new position.

Snap to Edges

SnapToEdge

When enabled, this feature pulls the mouse pointer to the events on Timeline (i.e., clip start and end). For a multitrack Sequence, when dragging the edge of one track, it snaps to the position of the static edge of the other track.

Note
When moving a group of multiple objects, snapping is performed for the object under the mouse pointer the moment you grab the group. The behavior may differ depending on which object of the group was grabbed.
Tip
Use the Ctrl+E keyboard shortcut to enable/disable "snap to edges" mode.

Deleting Clips

Delete

You can delete a selected clip/multiclip with the "Delete" button in the toolbar or by selecting the "Delete" command from the right-click menu of the clip.

Add an Edit

Add_an_edit

The "Add an edit" command allows you to cut a clip/multiclip at the current time slider position. You can also use the P shortcut to add a new edit. If the clip/multiclip has linked audio, it will be cut too.

Moving to Next and Previous Edit Point

previous

Use the "Previous event" button to navigate through the previous edit events (i.e., clip start / In point / Out point of clips or multiclips). You can also use the A key to jump to the previous event.

next

Use the "Next event" button to jump to the next edit event (i.e., clip end / In point / Out point of clips or multiclips). You can also use the S key to jump to the next event.

Markers

Markers can be used to mark specific events in your project, making it easier to find a certain point or helping to place objects.

Add Markers

1. Move the Timeline slider to the position where you want to place a marker.

Marker_add_button

2. Press the "Add a marker" button or use the H shortcut. Alternatively, you can right-click the Timeline ruler and select the "Add a marker" command:

marker_rightclickmenu

The marker points to the beginning of the frame:

marker_sample_black

Edit Markers

Right-click the Timeline ruler and select "Edit markers" or double-click a marker. Double-clicking a marker will select the marker in the "Edit markers" list automatically.

The following window appears:

marker_editmarker

Add a Marker

Press the "Add" button, enter the timecode, and hit the Enter key.

Add a Comment

Click into the desired comment column and enter your comment. The comment will be shown as a tooltip (including the timecode) when you move the mouse cursor over the marker.

marker_tooltip

Delete a Marker

To remove a marker, select it and press the "Delete" button.

Changing Timecode

To move a marker, select it in the "Edit markers" dialog and enter the new timecode. Alternatively, you can point to a marker on Timeline, hold the left mouse button, and drag it.

Changing Marker Color

marker_colors

The standard color of the marker is black, but it can be changed – choose between 10 different colors to highlight an event.

marker_colors_ruler

Markers and the Timeline Event List

The markers are included in the Timeline event list. This means it is possible to snap to them and that they are recognized by the "Next event" and "Previous event" navigation features.

Snap to Marker

To enable this feature, select the "Snap to markers" option in the "Timeline Preferences" dialog box and enable snap-to-edges mode using the Ctrl+E keyboard shortcut.

marker_snap

To deactivate snapping, remove the selection of the "Snap to markers" option.

Preserve Markers after Insertion

To preserve the In and Out points of the copied element on the Timeline, select the "Preserve In/Out markers after insert" option in the "Timeline Preferences" dialog box. If this option is deselected, the In and Out points of the copied element are not displayed after the "Paste" operation.

preserve_markers

Managing a Multiclip

Switching the Angles During Playback

The multiclip inserted into Timeline can be processed to display various angles during different periods of time.

To switch the active angles of the multiclip on Timeline, follow the steps:

  1. Double-click a multiclip on Timeline. This will open the multiclip in Clip Viewer.

  2. Start playback of the multiclip. During playback activate the desired angle by clicking it.

  3. Close Clip Viewer.

The vertical lines in the multiclip mark points where the angles switch:

Multiclip_with_edit_points_in_timeline

Switching the Angles within Timeline

You can change a multiclip active video/audio source directly on Timeline. To change the active video (or audio) source on Timeline, select the desired video (or audio) angle from the context "Multiclip" menu:

Timeline_menu_multiclip
Note
The "Multiclip" command is only available when the Sequence is active.

To change the active angle for the clip, double-click to open it in Clip Viewer. Select the angle you wish to be activated.

Grouping and Ungrouping Clips

When a video clip is added to Timeline, any corresponding audio will be grouped to the video clip. This is to prevent unsynchronized video and audio on Timeline. It is also possible to add further video and/or audio clips to a group. Moving a group of clips means that all the grouped clips will be moved on Timeline. This is very useful for preventing audio from getting out of sync and clips from being separated when playback needs to be seamless:

Group_Commands
  • Select more than one video/audio clip and use the "Group" command to combine the selected clips into a group. The "Group" command also works when selecting an existing group plus other clips; alternatively, you can select several groups to form a new group. Use Ctrl to select multiple clips.

  • The "Ungroup" command releases all clips (video and audio) from a group.

  • Use the "Remove from group" command to release only the selected clip(s) from the group. To select clip(s) to be removed from the group, click it(them) holding the Ctrl key down.

Note
It is also possible to add empty parts of Timeline, "holes", to a group. In this case, the "Remove from group" command is unavailable.

Moving Segments

To move clip segments on Timeline, simply left-click a segment and keep the left mouse button pressed while dragging it to a new position. Usually, video and audio are linked together and will be moved correspondingly. Depending on the track selection (the track selection is mentioned in the next chapter) you can move video and audio tracks individually. The resulting offset is displayed in the clip segment.

Segment

It is possible to move a single clip horizontally and vertically on Timeline.

You can move two contiguous audio tracks selected together either vertically or horizontally.

Besides adding video and audio segments to the selection, it is also possible to include "holes". The empty part of Timeline, the "hole", is then grayed out to indicate that it is selected and will then also be moved along with other selected segments.

SelectedHoles

Extracting Material

There are several ways to remove a segment from the project.

To extract (i.e., remove and close) a segment of your project on Timeline, do the following:

1. Mark the segment with the In and Out points.

Extract

2. Press the "Extract" button.

Note
Insert/overwrite mode currently enabled does not affect the result of this operation. To exclude certain tracks from the operation, deactivate them with the track selector.

Lifting Material

To lift (i.e., remove and leave an empty space) a segment of your project on Timeline, do the following:

1. Mark the segment with the In and Out points.

Lift

2. Press the "Lift" button.

Handling Segments and Gaps

If items (clips, CG templates) are not adjacent on the Timeline, a gap exists between them and is handled as an independent object. A gap may also appear between two segments after lifting the previous material.

You can select and delete, but neither move nor copy a single gap, as well as it is not possible to select two or more gaps.

Tip
When you select several segments on the Timeline with a gap in the middle, the gap is selected automatically, but you cannot select segments and unconnected gaps together.

To remove the gap, right-click it and choose "Ripple delete":

ripple

All the items placed further from the starting point of deletion will be shifted to the left by the duration of the deleted gap.

Ripple_delete_beginning

If the gap duration exceeds the possible shift, the "Ripple delete" command is disabled:

Ripple_delete_disabled

When overwrite mode is on, moved and pasted items replace the corresponding parts on tracks. If two or more discontinuous items (with gaps between them) are inserted, parts of existing objects are overwritten by inserted items where they overlap each other. Parts of existing objects are preserved at gaps between inserted clips. The relative position of inserted clips is preserved.

Setting In and Out Points

In

Use the "In" button to set up the In marker in your Timeline. The keyboard shortcuts are I or E.

Out

Use the "Out" button to set up the Out marker in your Timeline. The keyboard shortcuts are R or O.

The In-Out interval is shown in gray on the Timeline ruler, as well as in Sequence Viewer. You can use the interval for various operations on Timeline.

The In and Out points in Sequence Viewer are always the same as on Timeline.

In_Out_points
Note
You can hit the 6 key to play from In to Out.

Automatic In and Out Points

The T shortcut automatically creates In and Out points at the beginning and the end of the selection of objects.

Note
If selected, gaps are considered as objects.

Deleting In and Out Points

In

Use the "Delete In" button to remove the In marker. The keyboard shortcut is D.

Out

Use the "Delete Out" button to remove the Out marker. The keyboard shortcut is F.

Sequence Synchronization

When a subclip is inserted into a new blank Sequence, its start timecode inherits the Sequence start timecode. You can synchronize the start timecode of a Sequence with the start original timecode of a clip using the "Sync Sequence" command from the Sequence context menu:

Sync Sequence command

The following dialog box will appear:

Sync Sequence

Here you can see the clip name and start the original timecode. In the "Offset TC" section choose one of the following options:

  • NONE – no offset is used, so the start original timecode obtained from the clip is used.

  • 01:00:00:00 – the start timecode of the Sequence is 01:00:00:00.

  • 10:00:00:00 – the start timecode of the Sequence is 10:00:00:00.

The "New sequence start TC" field below displays the new start timecode of the Sequence.

Extend to Entire

The "Extend to entire" command is used for replacing the reference of the selected clip to its "Entire" clip, while keeping the segment as a fragment of the "Entire" between the In and Out points.

Right-click the required segment on Timeline and select the "Extend to entire" command:

ExtendToEntire
Note
This command is unavailable with the required segment being open in Clip Viewer.

The In and Out points can be adjusted or removed if necessary.

This command can be applied to the currently selected segment(s) or to grouped segments on Timeline.

Caution
Often clips can be a result of manual trimming; so, trim removing can be dangerous as some unwanted material can squeeze itself back into the project.
Note
This command is not available for multiclip objects inserted into Timeline.

Locating a Sequence

HighlightInExplorer

The "Highlight in explorer" command opens the corresponding folder in the Explorer window and highlights your Sequence.

Closing the Sequence

CloseSequence

Choose the "Close" command to close and deactivate your Sequence. Timeline will be empty after selecting this command.

Most Recently Used Sequence List (MRU)

MRU

Select your recent projects from the drop-down list. Use the Alt+Insert keyboard shortcut to access the MRU list.