User manual ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO 5

User Guide Ulead Systems, Inc. November 2000 First English edition for Ulead VideoStudio version 5.0, November 2000. © 1992-2001 Ulead Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or storing in a retrieval system, or translated into any language in any form without the express written permission of Ulead Systems, Inc. Software license The software described in this document is furnished under a License Agreement which is included with the product. This Agreement specifies the permitted and prohibited uses of the product. Licenses and trademarks ICI Library © 1991­1992 C-Cube Microsystems. Ulead Systems, Inc., Ulead, the Ulead logo, and Ulead VideoStudio are trademarks of Ulead Systems, Inc. All other product names and any registered and unregistered trademarks mentioned in this manual are used for identification purposes only and remain the exclusive property of their respective owners. GoMotion (c) 2000 Ligos Corporation. All rights reserved. Ligos, the Ligos Logo, GoMotion and GoMotion logo are trademarks of Ligos Corporation. Sample files Files provided as samples on the program CD can be used for personal demonstrations, productions and presentations. No rights are granted for commercial reproduction or redistribution of any sample files. North & South America: Ulead Systems Inc. http://www.ulead.com E-mail: info@ulead.com International: Ulead Systems, Inc. http://www.ulead.com http://www.uleadasia.com http://www.ulead.com.tw E-mail: info@ulead.com.tw Europe: Ulead Systems GmbH http://www.ulead.de E-mail: info@ulead.de Japan: Ulead Systems, Inc. http://www.ulead.co.jp E-mail: info@ulead.co.jp Table of Contents The big picture ....................................................................................................................................... 4 An introduction to Digital Video ................................................................................................................. 4 An introduction to MPEG ........................................................................................................................... 5 How VideoStudio works ............................................................................................................................ 6 Whats New? .......................................................................................................................................... 8 Hardware checkup before using VideoStudio ..................................................................................... 10 Installation and DV configuration ....................................................................................................... 12 Getting around Ulead VideoStudio ...................................................................................................... 14 The Library ............................................................................................................................................ 18 Library Manager ......................................................................................................................... 19 Steps to create your movie .................................................................................................................. 20 Start ...................................................................................................................................................... 22 Capture ................................................................................................................................................. 24 Checklist for successful video capture .......................................................................................... 24 Capturing MPEG video ................................................................................................................ 26 Split by scene ............................................................................................................................ 27 Capturing still images ................................................................................................................. 27 Video file size in Windows ........................................................................................................... 27 Batch capture ............................................................................................................................ 28 Storyboard ............................................................................................................................................. 30 Storyboard mode ....................................................................................................................... 30 Timeline mode ........................................................................................................................... 31 The Tracks ................................................................................................................................. 31 The Options panel ...................................................................................................................... 32 The Play project button .............................................................................................................. 32 Working with clips ...................................................................................................................... 34 Using image clips ....................................................................................................................... 38 Capturing still images in the Storyboard step ............................................................................... 39 Using color clips ......................................................................................................................... 39 Using video filters ....................................................................................................................... 40 Effects ................................................................................................................................................... 42 Transition magic ......................................................................................................................... 43 Title ...................................................................................................................................................... 44 Rolling & scrolling ....................................................................................................................... 46 Fading in & out .......................................................................................................................... 47 Putting it all together .................................................................................................................. 48 Using video or image clips as titles .............................................................................................. 48 Voice & Music ........................................................................................................................................ 50 Voiceover narration .................................................................................................................... 51 Background music ...................................................................................................................... 52 Working with background music .................................................................................................. 53 Mixing it up ................................................................................................................................ 54 Fade away ................................................................................................................................. 55 Finish .................................................................................................................................................... 56 Sending a movie by E-mail .......................................................................................................... 58 Putting a movie on the Web ........................................................................................................ 58 Electronic greeting cards ............................................................................................................. 59 Make Movie Manager .................................................................................................................. 60 Projects, templates & video save options ..................................................................................... 61 MPEG-1 file for VCD ................................................................................................................... 63 MPEG-2 file for DVD ................................................................................................................... 64 Recording back to DV camcorder ................................................................................................. 65 The Internet .............................................................................................................................. 66 Glossary ............................................................................................................................................... 68 Index .................................................................................................................................................... 70 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE The big picture Editing video in computers used to be dominated by professionals only. Nowadays, with the introduction to video editing software programs such as Ulead VideoStudio, editing video in your computer is easy and fun, even if you're new to the digital video world! An introduction to Digital Video Tens of millions of camcorders have been sold around the world and computers have become standard fare in the home. It hasn't taken long for video capture cards to make the connection between the two. So what's the big deal with Digital Video (DV)? The viewing area of the DV is big in 720x480 pixels, with more than 500 horizontal resolution and PCM 16 / 12 -bit stereo sound. For the DV camcorders themselves, they are usually compact and lightweight. In addition, the tiny DV tape is easy to carry, and its digital record and playback format, are superior to analog ones such as High-8, 8mm, S-VHS and VHS. What's more, capturing DV data into your computer or recording back to your DV camcorder is simple through the IEEE 1394 (also known as FireWire or i.LINK) interface card, in a purely digital form without loss of quality. No wonder DV has taken the world by storm, becoming the format of choice for enthusiasts. That's why Ulead VideoStudio fully supports DV editing. You can even control your camcorder with Ulead VideoStudio and the mouse! (See page 13 for details on setting up VideoStudio.) DV camcorders Video storage media 4 THE BIG PICTURE Yet, what about those long existing analog camcorders, tapes, as well as other analog video sources like TV and VCR? VideoStudio doesn't leave them behind. Through an analog video capture card, you can still capture, edit and record your video in VideoStudio. Ulead VideoStudio An introduction to MPEG Another recent development is MPEG. Ulead VideoStudio gives you the power to edit MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 movies with amazing frame-accurate technology. The wide availability of CD-Recordable (CD-R) allows anyone to create their own Video CD (VCD). Ulead VideoStudio lets you create WhiteBook standard MPEG-1 (Video CD 2.0) movies that are ready to be written to a VCD. Ulead VideoStudio also allows you to create amazing DVD quality movies using the MPEG-2 format, which is also used in the upcoming digital television era. Start by capturing MPEG-2 video straight from your camcorder (depending on your video capture card's capabilities, see page 26), then trim and edit your movie with frame accuracy. Finally, take advantage of DVD quality (see page 64) to create your final MPEG-2 movie. 5 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE How VideoStudio works VideoStudio follows a step-by-step paradigm. By working on one step at a time, editing tasks remain uncomplicated throughout the entire process, from start to finish. What's more, editing your video on the computer offers the ease of mouse clicks, drag and drop operations, as well as cut and paste operations. VideoStudio also offers more than a hundred transition effects, professional titling capabilities and simple soundtrack creation tools. Learn in seconds, create in minutes. Ulead VideoStudio workspace Getting video off your camera and onto your PC's hard drive is the first step in creating digital video. This process is known as capturing video. You will also need a video capture card, so your computer can receive and interpret the video data from your camera. To make sure that everything works properly, follow your capture card's installation instructions. A section of video captured to your computer is known as a video clip. You can scroll through your movie as easily as you do a Web page in a browser. With little effort, you can edit frame by frame, as well as change the order of scenes using the drag and drop method. A video clip 6 THE BIG PICTURE Putting a transition effect between clips is as easy as select and apply. Adding Title with customized text titles or even video clips. And with a few more clicks, you can animate your titles to scroll or fade. Transition effect and title Ulead VideoStudio breaks your movie up into separate tracks, which gives you broad creative freedom. While your video probably already has a sound track, adding a voiceover narration brings clarity to your personal videos. Better still, add background music off your favorite music CDs to set the mood in your movie. These tracks are independent, so changes to one track don't affect the other. Voiceover and music All of the tracks in your movie are organized into a video project file. This project file (*.VSP) contains all of the information about how your movie is put together, including all video and audio files made within VideoStudio. Yet, the project file itself is not your actual movie. All of the edits you make in your project do not affect the original clips themselves. This means that you can trim and edit without fear of making permanent changes to your original clips. When it is all ready to go, your computer collects all of the information together to create your final video file at your designated location. This process is called rendering. A movie clip sample So just follow along in Ulead VideoStudio's step-by-step path. You'll find that your friends are amazed at the professional quality of your home movies. The only question you'll hear more often than "How'd you do that?" is "When's the sequel?" 7 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Whats New? Find out the latest features and enhancements in VideoStudio and take advantage of them right away! · Reusable template from a video file - When you're opening a new project, you can directly take the settings from an existing video file such as an AVI or an MPEG file. This avoids the hassles about getting the right settings, and helps to maintain the same quality of the movies you make. Automatic plug-and-play capture device detection - Whenever you change to a capture device source that uses Microsoft DirectShow driver (applicable to most DV camcorders), VideoStudio instantly detects it as a new capture plug-in. So, you don't have to change the plug-in manually, as well as close and reopen VideoStudio. Fast batch video capture - If you need to capture a number of sections from a DV tape, this feature is your best choice. All you need is to set the Mark in and Mark out points for all the sections you want, and capture them all at once! Scene change detection for video capture - Breaks a video file (DV formatted AVI only) into several clips automatically whenever there is a recording date and time change. This helps you better manage your video, because in many cases the scene change is the beginning of another theme on your DV tape. Seamless capture - If you're using Windows 98, Me or 2000, capturing DV is no longer limited to maximum 4 GB at a time. Once the size of a captured DV has reached 4 GB, VideoStudio automatically continues the capture process by saving the captured video to another file. So, no matter how long your video is, capturing is a one-time process. Customized library folders - Lets you create personal folders in libraries for managing files. Next generation processor compliant - Supports improved multimedia capabilities such as digital video decoding and encoding, if your computer uses the Intel's next generation processor (Williamette CPU). Powerful video filters - Besides the effects to be inserted between video clips, VideoStudio now provides video filters that can be applied to clips themselves directly. These filters change the appearance or style of clips, giving you more varieties in presenting the clips. Enhanced titles - In VideoStudio, the Title step is no longer limited to plain text only. You can also place video or image files into your movie. These inserted files can even have transparent background, or blend with the original video clip in a special moving path. For normal text titles, shadows and borders are now included to give you more choices in changing text appearance. Better streaming video support - Creates a movie that uses the latest streaming video technologies, including the Streaming RealVideo (*.rm) and the Streaming Windows Media (*.wmv). These formats replace the previously known active streaming format (*.asf or *.asx), and help to maintain uninterrupted transmission of video files over networks such as the Internet. · · · · · · · · · 8 WHAT'S NEW? · · · · · Convenient right-click menu - Provides quick access to commands such as copy, paste, delete and properties when you right-click a video clip, title, or audio track. The rightclicking commands are available in both Storyboard and Timeline modes, as well as the libraries. Improved workspace - Provides better organized program appearance when the screen uses high resolution: 1024 x 768. Under this mode, you can see more thumbnails in the library at the same time for your convenience. Make Movie Manager - Displays a customized list of video file format templates. You then, don't need to spend time in setting options every time you make a movie. Flexible project settings - Once you have set the properties of a project, you can still change them later at any time. This gives you worry-free flexibility whenever you need to make property changes. Mark in / out during playback - Now you can directly set the beginning or the ending point even when a video clip is being played. To do so, just click the Set mark in / out buttons or the F3 / F4 key respectively to trim a video right away. 9 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Hardware checkup before using VideoStudio With the advent of Digital Video (DV), it has never been easier to capture, edit, and record video on your PC. Follow the installation instructions of your IEEE 1394 (also known as FireWire or i.LINK) interface card, and consult your camcorder's manual for the proper hardware installation procedures. This is crucial as correct hardware settings are a must to ensure VideoStudio runs properly in your computer, especially if you're using a DV camcorder and an IEEE 1394 card. So, find out which operating system (O/S) you're using and then go to the Control Panel: Systems - Device Manager from your O/S. Here you need to check if all the listed devices below have been properly installed. Windows 95 VideoStudio does not support Windows 95. Please upgrade to a newer Windows version like Windows 98 Second Edition or Windows Me. Windows 98 If you're using the first edition of Windows 98, it can detect the installed IEEE 1394 card. But, it works with Texas Instruments DV driver only. What's more, this version of Windows does not come with this driver. So, you need to find it first. For example, usually you can get it from the drivers (if bundled) that come with the IEEE 1394 card. Below is the checklist: · · 1394 Bus Controller Sound, video and game controllers: 1394 camcorder (This device appears only when the DV camcorder is on, and it's connected to the computer through the IEEE 1394 card.) If you are using Windows 98 Second Edition, it fully supports the IEEE 1394 card and comes with the Microsoft DV driver. Yet, you can still use the Texas Instruments DV driver. Check if you have the following devices: · · 1394 Bus Controller Image Device: Microsoft DV Camera and VCR (For Microsoft DV driver only. This device appears only when the DV camcorder is on, and it's connected to the computer through the IEEE 1394 card.) Sound, video and game controllers: 1394 camcorder (For Texas Instruments DV driver only. This device appears only when the DV camcorder is on, and it's connected to the computer through the IEEE 1394 card.) · 10 HARDWARE CHECKUP BEFORE USING VIDEOSTUDIO A device list on the Device Manager in the Systems Properties dialog box, Windows 98 Second Edition Settings tab after clicking the Properties button when a hard drive is selected. Access this from Control Panel: System - Device Manager. Windows Millennium Edition (Me) Windows Me fully supports the IEEE 1394 card with the following devices detected: · · · · 1394 Bus Controller 61883 Device Class AVC Device Class (Brand name) DV Camcorder: The brand name depends on the DV camcorder connected to the IEEE interface card. (This device appears only when the DV camcorder is on, and it's connected to the computer through the IEEE 1394 card.) Windows NT 4.X and 2000 Windows NT 4.X does not support IEEE 1394 card. For Windows 2000, it fully supports the IEEE 1394 card with the same devices as detected in Windows 98 Second Edition. (See the illustration above or the previous page for the checklist.) Notes: · In Windows 98 and Me, please select the DMA option in the Device Manager: Disk drive: Settings tab. In Windows 2000, the DMA option is hidden but it's always enabled. DMA avoids possible drop frame problems later when you are capturing video. · In addition to commonly used Texas Instruments and Microsoft DV drivers, there are other drivers available. Consult your camcorder's manual for suitable drivers. 11 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Installation and DV configuration Installing Ulead VideoStudio: 1 Place the Ulead VideoStudio CD into your CD-ROM drive. 2 When the Setup screen appears, follow the instructions to install Ulead VideoStudio onto your computer. Note: If the Setup screen doesn't appear after loading the CD, then you can manually start it by double-clicking the My Computer icon on your desktop, then double-clicking the icon for the CD-ROM drive. When the CD-ROM window opens, double-click the Setup icon. Please also install the following applications, because they are very important in making digital video work well on your computer. The installation program will walk you through installing: · · · · QuickTime Windows Media Format RealPlayer Acrobat Reader Ulead VideoStudio installation screen Running Ulead VideoStudio: · Double-click the Ulead VideoStudio icon on your Windows desktop. OR · Select the Ulead VideoStudio icon from the Ulead VideoStudio program group on the Windows Start menu. Running Ulead VideoStudio from Windows Start menu 12 INSTALLATION AND DV CONFIGURATION Setting up Ulead VideoStudio for DV: 1 Connect your camcorder to your IEEE 1394 capture card. 2 Insert your video tape into the camcorder and turn it on. Make sure it is in the playback mode (usually named VTR or VCR). See your camcorder's manual for specific instructions. Note: When your camcorder is in the record mode (usually named CAMERA or MOVIE), you can still capture real-time video directly in VideoStudio, even if there's no video tape inserted. 3 Run Ulead VideoStudio. 4 Click the Global commands button and select Change Capture Plug-in. 5 Select the appropriate DV Capture Plugin. Though this varies depending on your hardware, the most commonly used one is Ulead DirectShow Capture Plug-in. 6 Click the Global commands button and make sure the detected device is listed. This is located below Change Capture Plug-in with a black bulleted mark in front. You also need to set up how Ulead VideoStudio will control your camcorder through the IEEE 1394 interface. The appropriate settings depend on your particular capture card. Setting up DV device control: 1 Click the Global commands button and click Select Device Control. 2 Select from the Current device list. For example, if the detected device is Microsoft DV Camera and VCR, please select MS 1394 Device Control. Similarly, if the device is DVcam Capture (Texas Instruments driver), select TI 1394 Device Control. 13 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Getting around Ulead VideoStudio The Ulead VideoStudio interface has been designed to make the sometimes complicated task of editing movies on your PC intuitive and enjoyable. The illustration on this page shows an overview of the entire program, while the next few pages detail more specific features. Note especially the Options panel, which is highly context sensitive (meaning that it changes depending on the program's mode) and contains a ton of information. Options panel Contains controls, buttons, and other information. Preview window Shows the current clip, video filter, effect, or title. Folder button Click to switch between various library folders. Load media button Click to add video or audio files to the Library. Library Stores and organizes all of your media clips. Timeline Represents the period of time that a clip appears in your movie. Track buttons Each activates a track to edit. Clicking a button changes the Preview window and available options accordingly. Trim bar Used for trimming, editing, and cropping video clips. 14 GETTING AROUND VIDEOSTUDIO ToolTips While moving the mouse over a button or object, you can see a balloon that pops up with the name of the item. Example of ToolTips Selected range Zoom controls Change the view to zoom in/out or fit the entire project on the screen. These color bars represent the trimmed or selected part of a clip or project. Trim handle Click and drag to trim a clip. Time units Represents the timing of clips in hours : minutes, seconds, and milliseconds Clip navigator Click and drag these controls to scroll through a clip. The position is shown in the Preview window's contents. Project scroll controls Use the left and right buttons or grab the scroll bar to move around your project. Insert media button Displays a menu allowing you to place video, audio or image clips directly on the project. Switch mode Toggles viewing mode between Storyboard and Timeline. Continued... 15 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Global commands button This button pops up a menu that contains many useful tools such as online Help and preferences. You can also setup device control and capture plug-in from here. Clip navigation buttons These can be used to move around a project or a selected clip. See next page for details. Context sensitive help Undo and Redo Any changes you make that you don't like can be instantly fixed or undone by clicking the left button. And if you change your mind, simply click Redo. This button activates the Context sensitive help feature. After you click on it, your cursor changes to a question mark. Move over an object in the program and click again. Trash can Drag and drop clips here to delete them from the project. You can also select a clip and press the Delete key on your keyboard. Global commands popup menu 16 GETTING AROUND VIDEOSTUDIO Next Moves to the point right after the present one of a project, clip, or selected area. Previous Moves to the preceding point of a project, clip, or selected area. End Moves to the ending point of a project, clip, or selected area. Home Moves to the starting point of a project, clip, or selected area. Repeat Plays a project, clip, or selected area continuously. Play project / Stop Click to render (create) your project. Once the project is rendered, click this button to play the project. Holding the Shift key down while clicking, rendering or playback is based on the selected duration (between Mark in and Mark out) on the Trim bar. To cancel the rendering process, press the Esc key. Or, click it again to stop the playback. Volume Click and drag the slider to adjust the volume of a clip's audio output or music. This adjusts the volume of your speakers at the same time. Play / Play clip / Stop Click to play a DV tape, or a selected video or audio clip. Note that holding the Shift key while clicking the button, playback is based on the selected duration (between Mark in and Mark out) on the Trim bar. During playback, click this button again to stop. 17 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE The Library The Library is a storage depot for everything you need to create a movie: video clips, video filters, audio clips, still images, transition effects, music files, titles and color clips. These are collectively known as media clips. You can think of the Library as a general manager for all of the pieces of your project. Adding media clips to the Library: 1 Click the Load media button to open a dialog box for locating the media clip to insert in the Library. 2 Select the desired file. 3 Click Open when you are finished. Load media buttons These allow you to locate the clip you want to add to the Library. A media clip can be a video, color, image, or audio clip. The type of clip that can be inserted depends on which step you are working on (such as Title or Music). The most convenient way of working with clips is using your mouse. If you want to add clips to, or use clips from the Library, first select the desired clip, then drag and drop it to its destination. You can even drag and drop files right from Windows Explorer into the Library panel. Deleting media clips from the Library: 1 Select the clip that you want to remove from the Library. 2 Drag the selected clip to the Trash can or press the Delete key. 3 When prompted, verify whether you also want to delete the source file from your hard disk. Trash can Note: Deleting source files from your hard disk permanently removes them from your computer. You may not be able to recover them again. Please make sure that those source files you are about to delete are unnecessary. Deleting thumbnail dialog box (Source file will not be deleted.) Deleting source file dialog box (Source file will be deleted.) 18 GETTING AROUND VIDEOSTUDIO You can also right-click any clip in the Library to open the quick menu for viewing clip properties as well as copy, paste, or delete. While holding the Ctrl or the Shift key, you can also click various clips for multiple file selection. Library Manager The Library Manager organizes your custom Library folders. These folders help you manage and store all kinds of media files. Using the Library Manager: 1 Select Library Manager by clicking the Global commands button, or the downarrow button in the Library area. 2 Select a media type from the Available custom folder list. 3 Depending on how you want to work on these folders, click New, Edit, or Delete accordingly. Select a specific folder from the box below, when at least two custom folders exist. 4 Click Close. The down-arrow button Library Manager dialog box 19 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Steps to create your movie Ulead VideoStudio itself is similarly laid out in a step-by-step format, following the items in the menu bar at the top of the program, from left to right. Click a step item on the menu bar to move directly between steps. The step you are currently in is highlighted in green. It's not necessary to work through every step every time, but these steps can serve as a guide to creating a complete movie. These steps don't necessarily need to be followed in the order that they are presented, either. Your work is saved in a small project file (*.VSP) that organizes all of your media files together. A project file is NOT the same as a movie and changes made to it do not affect your media clips. It is possible to have a number of different projects using the same clips. Start The Start step is for creating a new project file or opening an existing one. This is the very first and required step whenever you want to work in VideoStudio. See page 22. Capture Once a project is opened in the program, new video can be recorded onto your computer's hard drive in the Capture step. See page 24. Storyboard The Storyboard step and the Storyboard section of the program under the Preview window are the heart of Ulead VideoStudio. This is where you arrange, edit, and trim your masterpiece. Video filters can also be added to create unique appearances of video clips. See page 30. Effects Transition effects between scenes are fun and easy. Thumbnail animations and drag-and-drop operations put dozens of cool effects at your fingertips. See page 42. 20 STEPS TO CREATE YOUR MOVIE Title No movie would be complete without opening and closing titles. Not only can you use text in any Windows True Type font, color and size, but you can add video or image clips. This gives you the power to animate them just like the pros. See page 44. Voice & Music Steps 6 and 7 deal with audio. Background music is probably one of the most important factors determining the mood or feel of your movie. Add ambiance with tunes from your favorite CDs or record a voiceover narration to effectively clarify important parts of your video. See page 50. Finish The final cuts have been made and the music has been synchronized with care. Now it's time to put it all together and make a master copy of your newest movie. See page 56. Notes: · When moving between steps, Ulead VideoStudio Guide - a real-time online Help - appears to give you quick reference and tips. You can decide whether to show it in the Preferences dialog box (by pressing the F6 key). · Since video rendering usually requires a large hard drive space, use the Preview tab on the Preferences dialog box to assign proper space and folders in the hard drive(s). Do this before opening a project in VideoStudio to ensure enough space for rendering and previewing. 21 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Start The Start step is where you create a new project file (*.VSP), or open an existing project. A project file is a small file used by Ulead VideoStudio to store all of the information about your movie such as clips used, trimming information, duration of movie, size of frames, and type of movie to make. A project file is not the finished movie and can only be opened in Ulead VideoStudio. The actual process of creating a movie from a project file is called rendering. Creating a new project: 1 Click the New project button. 2 Enter a Project name, and choose a folder Location on your hard drive. The project name later will be used to create a subfolder under this location. 3 Select a template from Available project templates (including all templates you created previously, see next page for details). Select the one that most closely matches the type of movie you want to create. 4 Click OK. Opening an existing project: 1 Click the Open project button. 2 Select the project file (*.VSP) you want to open. If you are not sure where the file is, use the Browse button and then click the Scan button. This finds all *.VSP files under your assigned folder or drive. 3 Click Open. Note: A fast way of opening an existing project is to use the Recent file list. Just move the mouse over the project to want, and then click it to open. However, VideoStudio cannot open a project if it was moved or removed. Open dialog box Browse dialog box 22 START Templates save many complicated settings for capturing video and for creating your movie in the Finish step. They are an extremely important part of your project and should not be overlooked. More information about template options can be found starting page 61. Creating a new template: 1 Click the Global commands button. 2 Select Templates Manager from the menu. 3 Click New. Here, enter a name for your template and select a file format. 4 Set up the details of the template. (See page 61 for details.) 5 Click OK. Note: Templates Manager also allows you to modify templates. To do so, select from Available movie templates and click the Edit button. Tip: Press the Ctrl+ S keys to quickly save your project from time to time in VideoStudio. This ensures that all project settings and file links are always up-to-date. 23 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Capture The process of recording video to your computer is called capturing. When everything is ready to go, the video feed from your source device should be visible in the Preview window. If your card supports a television monitor, you should also be able to watch your video there. Checklist for successful video capture Capturing video is one of the hardest things you will ever ask of your computer. Video takes up a huge amount of disk space and, because of the high data rate, is difficult for your hard disk to handle. Here are a few things you can do to ensure success: · · · Shut down ALL other programs that are running except Windows Explorer and Ulead VideoStudio. Also, disable Screen Saver to avoid possible interruption during capturing. Best results can be achieved by using a dedicated video hard drive, preferably with the capabilities of at least Ultra-DMA/66, 7200 rpm and more than 30 GB space. For better manipulation of batch capture (details on page 28) and camcorder device control, correct timecode on the DV tape is a must. To do this, before actually shooting your video, use the standard playback (SP) mode and shooting a blank video (for example, leaving the lens cover on while recording) without interruption from start to end of a tape. Options page controls Capture audio Captures original audio tracks from your source to your hard disk. Capture to Library Captured video is placed into both the workspace and the video library. Split by scene Automatically separate captured video into several clips whenever there is an obvious scene / frame change. Video menu Displays a menu allowing you to modify your capture settings. Switch mode Toggles between Capture mode and Playback mode for instant previews. Dropped frames The total number of lost video frames while capturing. Click to toggle between Capture Settings (Page 1) and Batch Capture (Page 2). The middle number indicates the current page number. Capture video Records video from your source to your hard disk. Capture image Captures a single frame as a still image from your source to your hard disk. Capture duration Sets the length of time for the capture. Captured frames The total number of captured video frames. 24 CAPTURE Capturing video (analog capture card with audio / video jacks or S-video): 1 Hook up your video source device to your capture card. On some cards, you also have to connect the audio cables to your sound card. 2 Use your device's controls to move around and find what you want to capture. 3 Click the Capture video button to begin recording. 4 When you have recorded what you want, click the Capture video button again or press the Esc key to stop capturing. Confirmation dialog box Tips: · The Capture menu item is grayed out or unavailable in the Playback mode. Yet, in the Capture mode if you still encounter the same situation, check whether your video capture hardware is correctly installed. · In step 3, a confirmation dialog box appears. Click OK to start actual capture process. · Delay of capture might occur due to the prompt of confirmation dialog box or the connection between hardware. To avoid this delay, clear the option "Enable press OK to capture" on the Capture tab in the Preferences dialog box. Also, rewind your video tape to an earlier point and then start capturing. Remember that you can always trim the video later in VideoStudio. · The normal number of dropped frames is zero. If there's any dropped frame, check if the DMA setting is enabled. See page 11 for details. Capturing DV video: 1 Turn on your camcorder and set it to Play (or VTR / VCR) mode. See your camcorder's manual for specific instructions. 2 Run Ulead VideoStudio. Then, open a project and go to the Capture step. 3 Correctly setup the DV plug-in on the Global commands menu, and then click the Play button in Ulead VideoStudio. 4 When you get to the part of the video you want to record, click the Capture video button in Ulead VideoStudio. 5 Click the Capture video button again (or press the Esc key) to stop recording. Note: For setting up DV plug-in, see page 13 for details. 25 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Tip: When you connect a new video device (such as a DV camcorder) that uses Microsoft DirectShow driver to your computer, VideoStudio detects it automatically with a confirmation dialog box asking you if you want to use the newly detected device. Just click OK to accept the change, without the need to restart VideoStudio. Capturing MPEG video Capturing video directly from your camcorder straight to MPEG is one of the most exciting developments in computer video. Ulead VideoStudio gives you the flexibility to choose MPEG-1 or MPEG-2, depending on your needs. MPEG-1 is usually recommended for older computers or people who want to create VCDs. For MPEG-2, it is more suitable for those with faster computers or people who want excellent DVD quality. Notes: · This feature is only available if the analog video capture card supports RGB 24 or YUV capture. (Please see the manual for your capture card.) Once you have configured your hardware and software, you can capture video using the standard procedures described on the preceding pages. · IEEE 1394 interface card does not support MPEG video capture. Setting up MPEG capture: 1 Connect your camcorder to the capture card. 2 Turn on your camcorder and set it to Play (or VTR / VCR) mode). See your camcorder's manual for specific instructions. 3 Run Ulead VideoStudio. 4 Click the Global commands button and select Change Capture Plug-in. 5 Select Ulead MPEG DirectShow Capture Plug-in (or Ulead MPEG VFW Capture Plug-in). 6 Click the Video menu button and select Video Properties. Choose the type of MPEG you would like to capture. 7 Capture your video as you normally would. (See page 25 for details.) 26 CAPTURE Split by scene This divides a captured video file (DV formatted AVI only) into several video clips based on the recording date and time change between video sessions. A video session is a period of video which is filmed continuously. The feature is very useful when you have lots of video sessions recorded on the same DV tape at different times and you want to separate them into different clips. To do so, select Split by scene on the Options panel, and then start capturing (see page 25). Once a video is captured, the Scenes & Recording Cuts dialog box appears where you can preview, check, combine or split all video sessions. Once you're done, click OK. Notes: · Though the captured video is separated into several clips in VideoStudio, there is only one captured video file on the hard drive. To actually divide the video into several files, go to the Storyboard step and save each clip as an individual video file. · You can also split an existing video file (DV formatted AVI only). Simply load it from the hard drive into the Library. Then, right-click the thumbnail and select Split by scene. Capturing still images In addition to video, VideoStudio also allows you to capture still images. Simply follow the procedure for DV video, but in step 4, press the Capture image button on the Options panel instead whenever you see a frame you want. For details, see page 39. Capture image button Video file size in Windows Windows operating systems have some limitations of video file length when capturing and rendering. Since VideoStudio runs on Windows, the same situation is therefore unavoidable. So, when you need to capture or render a very long video, do this several times and note the following limitations of a file size. · For all Windows systems (except Windows 2000 with NTFS formatted partition in hard drive) while the DirectShow driver is used, the maximum captured or rendered file size is 4 GB. For all Windows systems (with analog capture cards) while the VFW (Video for Windows) driver is used, the maximum captured file size is 2 GB. 27 · ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Batch capture Overburdened by a lot of stuff to capture from your DV tape? You can get peace of mind through VideoStudio's Batch capture. This new feature captures all the video clips you want in just one click and saves your time considerably. To do so, simply keep watching the video. At any time, press the F3 key as the Mark in point and then the F4 key as Mark out. Repeat press F3 and F4 as many times as you like, as long as you feel you want to capture a particular section on the DV tape. Note: Batch capture can be achieved only when you're using a DV tape and the IEEE 1394 card for computer connection. Options page controls Click to toggle between Capture Settings (Page 1) and Batch Capture (Page 2). The middle number indicates the current page number. Start batch capturing from the Tasks list Captures the listed tasks all at once. Play all or only selected tasks Edit the tape's name You can give the tasks to be captured a name. Once they're saved to video formatted files, it's easy to trace them later. Previews the selected tasks before capturing. Mark in a new task Tasks list Displays all the tasks you created in the timecode format. Click to select a task. Multiple selection can be made just as you would in Windows Explorer. Uses the current frame you saw as the starting point of a task. Mark out a new task Uses the current frame you saw as the ending point of a task. Cut the selected task(s) Deletes the selected task(s). Clear all tasks Deletes all tasks on the list. Modify a task Changes the timecode of either the starting or the ending point. 28 CAPTURE Using Batch capture: 1 Turn on your camcorder and set it to Play (or VTR / VCR) mode. See your camcorder's manual for specific instructions. 2 Run Ulead VideoStudio. Then, open a project and go to the Capture step. 3 On the Options panel, click the rightarrow button (or the middle button and select Batch Capture). This moves to the 2nd page on the Options panel for Batch capture. 4 Click the Play button in Ulead VideoStudio. 5 When you get to the part of the video you want to record, click the Mark in a new task button (F3). Click the Mark out a new task button (F4) to end the task. 6 Keep watching the video, and then repeat step 4 as needed. 7 If you feel these tasks are what you want, click the Start batch capturing from the Tasks list button. Otherwise, adjust the tasks by using modification buttons. (You can also directly double-clicking a task, and then enter new timecode.) Once you are done, click the capturing button. 8 Batch capture starts based on all or selected (if any) tasks. The process stops when the last task is captured. A report appears also for your reference. Note: It is up to you whether to click the Stop button before starting Batch capture. Yet, if you need to modify some tasks, clicking the Stop button first helps VideoStudio find tasks to be captured earlier. 29 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Storyboard A storyboard is an outline for a movie. It contains a chronological order of the events that occur in your story. The bottom half of the Ulead VideoStudio interface is simply an electronic storyboard. Click the Switch mode button to change between the two display modes. Storyboard mode presents an overview of the entire project's video track. Timeline mode allows frame accurate editing of individual clips. The Storyboard can be viewed in two distinct modes by clicking the Switch mode button. Which mode you use depends entirely on personal preference, but most people find both modes to be useful at different times. For example, the Storyboard mode is the fastest and simplest way to add clips to your movie. Clips can be moved around by simply dragging them. After arranging your scenes in the Storyboard mode, some people prefer to switch to the Timeline mode to fine tune their effects and perform frame accurate trimming and editing of individual clips. Switching to the Timeline mode, Ulead VideoStudio show exactly when and where events in your story occur (based on frame and timecode relationship) and you can see at a glance the contents of various media clips. A clip can be a video file, an audio file, a transition, a colored background or a title. If you're starting from scratch, you can drag clips from the Library and simply drop them on the Timeline. Storyboard mode You may find that starting out in the Storyboard mode is the easiest way to get your project rolling. After starting a new project, switch to the Storyboard step and take a look at your project. Each picture represents an event in your movie, an event being a video clip or a transition. The thumbnails reveal at a glance the chronological order of events in your project, but do not tell you much about the clips themselves. 30 STORYBOARD You can drag and drop clips to arrange them, and transition effects can be inserted between clips. Selected clips can be trimmed in the preview window. See page 35 for more information on trimming. Timeline mode When Ulead VideoStudio is in the Timeline mode, clips are placed on the workspace as short sequences. The length of these clips accurately represents the duration of the clip in your project. The ruler units can be adjusted to your convenience. Setting the ruler units to fractions of a second gives you precise control over trimming and editing, while longer ruler units allow you to view more of your project. You can control ruler units by using the Zoom control buttons. Click the Fit project in window button if you want to see the entire project displayed on one screen. If you have a mouse with a scroll button, the scroll button can be used to zoom. Zoom control buttons Storyboard mode Selected clip Transition effect Fit project in window button Timeline mode Ruler units The Tracks The Timeline is divided horizontally into four tracks. The Video (including filters & effects), Title, Voice, and Music tracks all correspond to the Ulead VideoStudio steps of the same name. Switching to different tracks: · Click the Step menu item on the top that corresponds to the track. · Click the track, the clip, or the icon located to the left of each track you want to work on. Video Title Voiceover Music The tracks 31 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE The Options panel Ulead VideoStudio offers different controls on the Options panel depending on the step or track you are working on. This way the workspace is kept simple and uncluttered. Just remember that if you can't find a control that you are sure you have seen before, try switching to the type of editing you want to do first. Video duration Video mark in / out Displays the starting / ending point of a video clip (after trimming). Volume Click the arrow or enter digits directly to adjust volume. Save current frame as a new image file Saves the currently selected frame to an image file in the Library. Save selection as a new video file Applies any trimming modifications to a clip and saves it to a new video file. Clip properties Click to display specific information about a clip. Reset Cut video clip Deletes a selected video clip. Sets all values back to defaults. Displays the length of time of the clip. Click a digit or an arrow button for modification. Set mark in / out Trims and sets the starting / ending point of a clip during playback. Fade in / out Gradually increases / decreases the volume between zero and full. Export video clip Saves a selected video clip based on the chosen method in Output options. Output options Click the arrow to select a method for sharing your movie with others. See page 58 for details. Apply changes Applies new settings made on the Options panel to the selected clip. Any changes that you have made on the Options panel are applied to the clip when you click the Apply changes button. All of the settings can be restored to their original values by clicking the Reset button. As with any changes you make in Ulead VideoStudio, you can always undo them by clicking the Undo button or by pressing the Ctrl+Z key. The Play project button While you are editing, there are many times that you will want to preview your work to see how your project is progressing. The row of buttons below the Preview window are used to navigate around your project, play clips, and create previews of your entire project. (See page 17 for a specific description of each button.) 32 STORYBOARD A Ulead VideoStudio project (*.VSP), cannot be played until it has been rendered, or created. Click the Play project button to begin the process of rendering your project for previewing. Clip navigation buttons, with the Play project button circled Rendering is easy, but it can take some time. Fortunately, Ulead VideoStudio offers SmartRender technology, which optimizes the rendering process by not re-rendering the parts of the project that have not changed. Ulead VideoStudio performs this magic with heavy use of temporary files. These files are stored in a location that you can set in the Preferences: Preview tab, found on the Global commands menu. By efficiently allocating disk space for temporary files, you don't need to worry about "Out of Memory" error messages. However, the space in your hard drive reduces as the number of temporary files increases. From time to time, you need to delete these temporary preview files of the current project to speed up rendering or previewing. To do so, use Preview Files Manager on the Global commands menu. Global commands menu Preview Files Manager dialog box So the best advice we can offer is that you edit for a while and then when you need a break, hit the Play project button and let Ulead VideoStudio render your project. By doing this fairly often, render times should be very reasonable. Rendering a portion of your project, instead of the whole thing, can save you time and give you a quick preview of important sections. This is especially useful for rendering across transitions, title sequences, or to check the timing of audio clips in relation to the associated video. If you only want to render the part of your project, hold the Shift key on your keyboard while clicking the Play project button. For details on partial rendering, see page 57. 33 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Working with clips The best part of editing your movie on your computer is the ease with which you can snip and trim with frame by frame accuracy. Trimming a clip with the Trim bar: 1 Select a clip from the Timeline or the Library. 2 Click and drag a Trim handle to set the trim position. 3 When you've selected the area you want to trim, click the Apply changes button. 4 You can selectively play only the trimmed portion of the clip by holding the Shift key and clicking the Play clip button. Notes: · The green bar beneath the preview window represents the selected portion of the clip. If the clip has not been trimmed, the green bar extends for the entire length. · Watch the Video mark in / out figures on the Options panel to monitor your trimming. The Mark in / out points can also be set by pressing the F3 and F4 key, respectively. · For precise control, click on a Trim handle, hold it, and use the left or right arrow keys on your keyboard to trim one frame at a time. Video mark in / out area Inserting a video clip onto the Timeline: · From the Library, drag and drop the clip to the Timeline. · To insert a clip directly to the Timeline, click the Insert media button, located to the left of the Timeline. Insert media button 34 STORYBOARD The key to making highly accurate cuts and edits is controlling the ruler scale in the Timeline. When each unit represents one second, you can get pretty close in estimating your edits. Zoom buttons Trim handles Scroll bar Trimming a video clip that has been inserted onto the Timeline Trimming a clip from the Timeline: 1 Select a clip by clicking it on the Timeline. 2 The yellow Trim handles on either side of the clip can be dragged to change the length of a clip. 3 The Preview window reflects the position of the Trim handle in the clip. 4 Watch the Video mark in / out displays on the Options panel to numerically monitor your trimming. 5 Other clips in your project automatically reposition themselves according to your edits. Note: The time unit on the ruler scale changes accordingly when the view is adjusted by Zoom controls. While trimming and editing, you may sometimes need to adjust the view of the clips on the Timeline. Use the Zoom controls to control the view. The Scroll bar makes navigating through your project quicker and easier. A wheel mouse can also be used to scroll, and you can zoom by holding the Ctrl key while using the wheel. Don't forget that you can always undo just about any changes you've made in your project by pressing the Ctrl+Z keys. You can set up the levels of undo by pressing the F6 key to open the Preferences dialog box. 35 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Trimming a clip with the Options panel: 1 Select a clip on the Timeline or in the Library. 2 Click the time in the Video duration box. For example, click the seconds ("), and the numbers begin blinking. 3 Enter a length of time for the clip. The Mark in shows where the clip begins and the Mark out point displays the end of the trimmed clip. 4 Click the Apply changes button. Note: Changes made in the Video duration box only affect the Mark out point. The Mark in point remains unchanged. Video duration Displays and sets the length of time of the clip. Arrow buttons Use these to fine tune your trimming. Video mark in / out Displays the points in the original clip where the trimming takes place. Reset Sets all values back to defaults. Apply changes button Applies new settings made on the Options panel to the selected clip. The Library can store multiple versions or copies of a single video clip. This means that you can break large clips up into a number of smaller clips using the trim tools and save these clips to the Library as separate entries. The source video file itself is not physically altered, nor are actual copies made of the original file. This is very useful since it allows you to manage your production very creatively, but it does not take up any more disk space since you still have only one video file saved on the hard disk. Creating multiple versions of a single clip: 1 Select a clip from the Library. 2 Grab and drag a Trim handle to set the trim position. 3 Click the Apply changes button. 4 Reinsert the original clip into the Library by clicking the Load video button. So, currently there are two versions of a single clip in the Library. Repeat steps 1 to 4 to create more versions as needed. 36 Note: In step 1, if you want to use an existing clip in the current project, drag a clip from the Timeline into the Library first. STORYBOARD The method of trimming illustrated here allows you to use your original video file as the source for a number of different clips in the Library. This type of editing does not affect the source file anyway. This clip is a trimmed version of the original video file saved on the hard disk. You can see at a glance that it has indeed been trimmed by selecting the clip and checking the Options panel or the Trim bar. Once the clip is trimmed, you can rename the thumbnail in the Library to avoid confusion between the trimmed and the original. (See detail on renaming in the notes below.) This Library contains five versions of the same clip. Selected clips are highlighted in blue. When the original clip is reinserted into the Library, the Mark in point is zero and the Mark out point is the last frame. The duration is the entire clip. The Trim bar clearly shows that the clip has not been trimmed. Many times, when you make an edit, you may wish to make a permanent change to the clip and save the edited file. Again, Ulead VideoStudio gives you a margin of safety in that it saves the trimmed video to a new file and does not alter the original file. You can press the Delete key or drag the thumbnail to remove it from the Library, or even remove the original file to recover disk space when you are sure of your changes. Breaking a clip into multiple files: 1 Select a clip from the Library or Timeline. 2 Grab and drag a Trim handle to set the trim position. 3 Click the Save selection as a new video file button. 4 You now have two different physical video files on your hard disk, the original file (such as SOURCE.AVI), and a trimmed copy (such as SOURCE-1.AVI). Notes: · To rename a thumbnail, click on the name of the thumbnail and modify it in the same way as you would in Windows Explorer. · Dragging a clip from the Timeline to the Trash only removes the thumbnail. The original video file on the hard disk is not affected. 37 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Using image clips While Ulead VideoStudio by definition is primarily used to put together motion pictures, you shouldn't underestimate the value of still pictures in your video productions. You can use images or pictures from any source, and even use individual frames from a video file. Inserting an image clip: 1 Switch to the Image Library by clicking the list and selecting Image. 2 Click an image in the folder, or click the Load image button and browse for the picture you want to store in the Library. 3 Drag and drop the image onto the Timeline just like any other clip. Load image button This button changes depending on the type of Library folder. Once an image is on the Timeline, you can set it to any time span you like by dragging its Trim handles, or by entering a duration in the Image duration box on the Options panel. Still images provide excellent backgrounds for title sequences. Since you can precisely control the duration, images provide an easy way to control the total length of your project. You can even create very effective "slide show" movies composed entirely of still image clips. Images that are the same size as your video frames work best. You can resize your pictures in an image editor like Ulead PhotoImpact, or have Ulead VideoStudio do it for you when the movie is created. Note: Since VideoStudio automatically resizes the still image based on the current project settings, possible image distortion might occur if the original image has to be resized considerably. To improve this situation, try to adjust the image to the 4:3 ratio (same as TV screen) in an image editor and save it to another file. Then, load it to VideoStudio. Trim handles Information about an image clip 38 STORYBOARD Capturing still images in the Storyboard step Though capturing still images is available in the Capture step (see page 27), you might want to do it in the Storyboard step. This is because you can, in the Storyboard step, move to a specific frame precisely. It also avoids possible undesired vibrating effects as the video keeps running when still images are captured in the Capture step. Capturing still images: 1 Select a clip in your project. 2 Drag the Preview bar to a single frame you want to capture. 3 Switch to an image folder in the Library. The folder can be the default Image folder, or the one created by yourself. 4 Click the Save current frame as a new image file button on the Options panel. The new image file is saved in the hard disk and is represented as a thumbnail under the image folder you assigned. Note: The still image format can be BMP or JPEG, and the size is the same as its source video clip. To choose a file format to save, press the F6 key and go to the Capture tab in the Preferences dialog box. Using color clips Color clips are simply solid colored backgrounds that are useful for titles and transitions. For example, black clips can be used for an effective fade to black transition. They are added to a project by selecting the Color Library, inserting a specific color clip into the Library and dragging and dropping the clip into your project. The duration of a color clip can be controlled just like an image clip. Inserting a color clip: 1 Switch to the Color Library by clicking the list and selecting Color. 2 Click a color in the folder, or the Load color button to choose another one. 3 Set a Duration and click OK. 39 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Titles set against solid backgrounds are often easier to see than if set against an image, especially a moving one. Once a color clip has been inserted into the Library, you can drag it to the Timeline to put it into your movie project. Color clips are great for beginning a movie. Place your opening credits over the top of the color clip and then use a cross fade effect to create smooth transition into your movie. See page 44 for more details. Using video filters Video filters are effects which you can apply to video clips in order to change their style or appearance. For example, you can improve the color balance of a clip, or make the video look like a painting. Filters are applied over each frame in a clip. By specifying the different start and end values, you can control the intensity and speed of a filter as it moves from the first frame to the last. Inserting a video filter: 1 From the Library list, select Video Filter folder. 2 Click the video filter you want. 3 Click the Advanced options button for filter customization. (Before this, click a specific thumbnail on the Options panel if you want to do detailed customization later.) Available options depend on the filter selected. 4 Click the Add to timeline button. 5 Move the mouse over the video clip you want to apply the filter and click it. 40 STORYBOARD Shift up / down video filter buttons Example of a dialog box after clicking the Advanced options button Add to timeline button Advanced options button Notes: · VideoStudio allows you to apply a maximum of five filters to a single video clip. · When there is more than one video filter applied to a video clip, you can change the order of filters by clicking the Shift up / down video filter buttons. Yet, the order change affects the whole appearance or style of the video clip. · Advanced options can be made to the first frame and the last only in a video clip. So, drag the slider to either of these two points for adjustments. 41 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Effects Transition effects give your home movies a truly professional touch. Fortunately, they are also the easiest part of Ulead VideoStudio. For your first few videos, feel free to go a little crazy and try out every transition in the Library. Once you've gotten used to using transition, you can express your artistic side by modifying the preset transitions to your own liking. In any case, you're guaranteed to have fun in this section. Simple jump cuts used to be all you could do with your home videos. This is when one scene stops and the next scene starts immediately. Ulead VideoStudio, on the other hand, has tons of styles of transitions you can use, from cross fades to explosions. We'll deal with the details of these effects later, but for now you just need a project with two video clips in it. Adding a transition: 1 From the Effects step, use the drop down list in the Library to select a category of effects. 2 Scroll through the effects thumbnails in the Library panel and find one that you like to use. 3 Click and drag the effect to the Timeline, roughly between two video clips. 4 Drop your effect and it will snap into place. Note: You may find it easier to work on transition effects when you're in the Storyboard mode. Drag and drop transition effects right onto the Storyboard or Timeline mode 42 EFFECTS Your clips appear adjacent to each other on the Storyboard. You'll recall that the Storyboard has two different modes, Storyboard and Timeline, but transitions work the same way in both modes. The illustrations on the previous page shows VideoStudio in Storyboard mode. The mode can be switched by clicking the Switch mode button. Transition magic If you've tried a few simple transitions as outlined on the previous page, you really have mastered all you need to know. Ulead VideoStudio pretty much takes care of all the details to make your transitions smooth and professional. That doesn't mean the program has taken control of your movie for you, however. After you have added a transition to your project, take a look at the Options panel. Below is an example of one of the transitions, from the Slide effects, specifically the Barn door. In this effect's settings, displayed on the Options panel, you can change many parameters that will allow you to control exactly how the effect is going to be used in your movie. Border size and color Select a size for the border (in pixels) on the left and choose a color by clicking on the color box. Duration Sets the length of time for the transition. You can also modify the duration by using the yellow Trim handles on the Timeline. Soft edge The soft edge applies to the border of the effect. This blends the two clips together more smoothly. If you don't have a border set on the clip, these buttons are unavailable. Transition effects direction These buttons control the direction of motion in the transition effect. In this transition, the two doors can move in eight different ways. Add to timeline / Apply changes Click to add the new transition to the Timeline. When you are modifying a transition that has already been inserted, this button has a check mark on it. Click to apply your changes to the selected clip. 43 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Title While a picture may be worth a thousand words, there is no doubt that clarifying titles or credits like text here and there throughout your movie adds to its comprehensibility. And what movie would be complete without opening and closing credits? If you can type, even with just two fingers, you can create professional titles in minutes. Adding a text title: 1 From the Title step, use the Clip navigation buttons below the Preview window, or directly drag the Preview bar to scroll through your movie. 2 When you see the frame where you would like your title to appear, click the Create or edit Title clip button or directly click the Preview window. Remember that you cannot create a new title over an existing title clip. 3 Type in your title in the Preview window and customize it as you would in an ordinary word processor. All settings are available on the Options panel. (See page 45 for details.) 4 When you are finished, click the Add to timeline button. Repeat steps 1 to 4 by moving to a different frame to enter a new text title as needed. Notes: · When entering a text title, a faint rectangle is visible in the Preview window. This is the Title safe area, and it is the recommended maximum size for your text. Along with the rectangle, you should see a blinking cursor that indicates the starting point for text entry. · When entering text, you can press the Backspace key to correct mistakes and press the Enter key to start a new line. Move around the text with the arrow keys as needed. To change the attributes of text, first highlight the text by selecting it with your mouse and then make revisions. Preview bar Clip navigation buttons Create or edit Title clip button Add to timeline button The yellow triangle represents the position of the title clip in the Timeline. 44 A centered text title being edited. Note the Title safe area around the center of the window. TITLE VideoStudio improves the Options panel with new features like border, transparency and shadow. Simply use these settings to design the look of the current selected title. Note that available options might be different, depending on the title preset you choose. Option page 1: General Depending on the option you choose, it can apply to the whole text title, or part of it. Options page controls Create or edit title clip Click to begin making or modifying a title clip. Font face Selects any True Type font installed on your computer. Font size Sets the size of the text in points. Font style Bold, italic and underline. Motion style button Selects a type of animation for your credits. Click to display animation styles. Reset Reverts to original settings. Click to toggle between three option pages: General, Transparency, and Shadow. Line spacing Sets the spacing, or leading, between lines of text. Color Sets the color of the selected text. Alignment Left, center or right justification. Duration Sets the length of time for the title clip. You can also modify the duration by using the two yellow Trim handles on the Timeline. Apply changes Applies new settings to the title clip. Option page 2: Transparency Each option here applies to the whole text title. Border width Sets the extent of the border around each character in a text title. Border color Sets the border color of the whole text title. Transparency Sets how visible the title is over your video. Soft edge Sets how smoothly a text title blends into the video clip. 45 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Option page 3: Shadow Each option here applies to the whole text title. Shadow styles Determines the shadow type. Available detailed settings vary depending on the shadow style you choose. Transparency Sets how visible the shadow is over your video. Shadow color Sets the shadow color. Intensity Sets the extent of the shadow. Soft edge Sets how smoothly the shadow blends into the video clip. Modifying a text title: 1 Click a title clip on the Timeline. The selected clip will be surrounded by a broken line and two yellow handles. 2 Click the Create or edit title clip button, or directly click the Preview window to change the text. 3 Again, you can simply move to another step to finish, or click the Apply changes button. You can also use the Reset button make the text change back to its original state. Create or edit title clip button Reset and Apply changes buttons Note: Once a title clip has been inserted onto the Timeline, you can adjust its duration by either clicking and dragging on the handles, or entering a duration value on the Options panel. To see what the title looks like in the Preview window, use the Preview bar handles. The Library can also be used to store your title clips. To add a title clip to the Library, just drag it from the Timeline to the Library. Rolling & scrolling One of the most common and effective techniques for presenting closing credits is the rolling or scrolling credits. With Ulead VideoStudio, this is simply a matter of specifying a direction and a duration for your text. After you have entered some text and inserted it onto the Timeline, click the title clip you have created and check the Options panel. 46 TITLE Animating a text title: 1 Select a text title on the Timeline or create a new one. 2 On the first page of the Options panel, click the yellow Motion style button. 3 Select a motion style from one of the preset choices. 4 Click the Apply changes button. Motion style button Text title animation effects on the Options panel Most of the motion style buttons, the last twelve in fact, represent scrolling animations. It is a little difficult to explain in words, but not hard to understand. For example, the button has a box with three arrows pointing down. This represents a title that starts off the top of the screen, scrolls downward across the screen, and scrolls off the bottom. A brief description of each motion style is also available in a pop up message format when moving the mouse over a motion style button. But the best way to figure out what these really do is to select the effect, and then click Play clip button to see the result in the Preview window. You can also use the Preview window to see the results of your changes by grabbing and dragging the yellow Preview bar beneath the Preview window. The speed of scrolling is directly determined by the length of the clip: very slow title animations take longer to play. So if you need a scrolling title that lasts for less than a second, the speed of scrolling is going to necessarily be quite rapid. Fading in & out Another incredibly useful, easy, and effective method of displaying your titles is to fade your text in from invisible to crisp and clear and then back to invisible again. This works especially well for opening credits with a slow fade, or as captions with a quicker fade. Fading titles: 1 Select a text title on the Timeline or create a new one. 2 On the first page of the Options panel, click the yellow Motion style button. 3 Click one of the three buttons for fading. Buttons for fading 47 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Putting it all together To create a long list of credits in a production, it is necessary to insert a series of title clips into the Timeline. Creating extended credits: 1 Start by creating one clip with multiple lines of text. 2 Drag a copy of the Title clip from the Timeline to the Library. This is the easiest way to maintain consistency on each title's attributes. 3 Drag title copies from the Library back to the Timeline to create new titles. 4 Modify the text in the copied title. 5 Repeat this procedure until you have credited the whole gang. Note: You'll end up with a number of separate, sequential title clips on the Timeline. Try adding a small space between clips for a brief pause. Anyway you do it, test your titles to ensure that they are readable in the final version of your movie. (See page 57 for information about previewing parts of a movie) Using video or image clips as titles In addition to text titles, VideoStudio provides a new feature that adds video or image clips as titles. This new feature is particularly useful when this video or image file has a transparent background. So, the object in the video or image file does not just blend smoothly into the background. More importantly, you can simply design a custom-made video or image title in dedicated editors like Ulead COOL 3D 3.0 and Ulead PhotoImpact 6.0 first, and then import it to VideoStudio as a title. Notes: · For a video title with a transparent background, currently VideoStudio only accepts the AVI format with a 32-bit RGB data type created in Ulead COOL 3D 3.0. · For an image title with a transparent background, the accepted format is PNG, PSD, and TIF. For example, to do it in Ulead PhotoImpact 6.0, create an irregular shape selection first. Then, save it as one of the above mentioned format with the option "Save Selection" activated. Video Save Options dialog box in Ulead COOL 3D 3.0 Save As dialog box in Ulead PhotoImpact 6.0 48 TITLE Also, VideoStudio adds a new versatile moving path option that animates a video or image title in a way of your choice. The way to use the option is the same as the one for text titles. Below is the introduction to all the options (including moving path) that apply to both video and image titles. Option page 1: General (Video) See page 32 for details. Option page 1: General (Image) Note: As VideoStudio automatically resizes an image clip to the 4:3 ratio, it's better to create an image at this ratio beforehand to avoid possible undesired distortion. Option page 2: Motion (Video and Image) Moving style Determines the way a video or image title moves. Move the mouse over each icon for its ToolTips with specific description. Zoom ratio Sets the degree of magnification for a video or image title. Anchor position Determines the location of a video or image title within its underlying video or image clip. 49 ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO USER GUIDE Voice & Music The importance of music in a video production cannot be overstated, and a running narration can be just as critical. Ulead VideoStudio has the tools to make sure your audio is top notch. Like the other parts of VideoStudio, the audio tracks are activated by clicking on their respective Step on the menu at the top of the program interface, by clicking on the icons to the left of the track, or by double-clicking on the track itself. The upper audio track is the Voice track. This can be used to create a running narration of your movie. The lower audio track is the Music track, and can be used for background music. You can even use music from your favorites CDs. Voice track Detail of the Timeline showing the two audio tracks with WAV file clips Music track Insert media files button If you already have some audio files (including MP3 files) ready to be used in your movie, it is just a matter of clicking the Insert media files button and inserting the clip onto the Timeline. The Library can also be used to store your audio clips and dragging and dropping to and from the Timeline is effortless. Click the Load audio button at the top right of the Library panel to add audio clips. Incidentally, the Ulead VideoStudio CD also comes with several audio clips ready for you to use. These clips are mostly short sound effects clips and can be very humorous when used in your movies, or can be used to create additional ambience. Load audio button 50