Pinnacle Systems DS Nitris - 7.0 Editing Guide

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Avid® DS Nitris

Editing Guide

Version 7.0

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Avid

Product specifications are subject to change without notice and do not represent a commitment on the part of Avid Technology, Inc.

The software described in this document is furnished under a license agreement. You can obtain a copy of that license by visiting Avid's Web site at www.avid.com. The terms of that license are also available in the product in the same directory as the software. The software may not be reverse assembled and may be used or copied only in accordance with the terms of the license agreement. It is against the law to copy the software on any medium except as specifically allowed in the license agreement.

No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, for any purpose without the express written permission of Avid Technology, Inc.

The Avid DS and Avid DS Nitris application uses JScript and Visual Basic Scripting Edition from Microsoft Corporation.

Attn. Government User(s). Restricted Rights Legend

U.S. GOVERNMENT RESTRICTED RIGHTS. This Software and its documentation are “commercial computer software” or “commercial computer software documentation.” In the event that such Software or documentation is acquired by or on behalf of a unit or agency of the U.S. Government, all rights with respect to this Software and documentation are subject to the terms of the License Agreement, pursuant to FAR §12.212(a) and/or DFARS §227.7202-1(a), as applicable.

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GOT FOOTAGE?

Editors — Filmmakers — Special Effects Artists — Game Developers — Animators — Educators — Broadcasters — Content creators of every genre — Just finished an incredible project and want to share it with the world?

Send us your reels and we may use your footage in our show reel or demo!*

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*Note: Avid cannot guarantee the use of materials submitted.

Avid DS Nitris Editing Guide • 0130-05575-01 • September 2003

Using This Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Who Should Use This Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Symbols and Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Using the Mouse, Pen, and Keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Customizing the Pen or Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

If You Need Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Accessing the Online Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

If You Have Documentation Comments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

How to Order Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Avid Educational Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Avid DS Customer Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

E-mail Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Web Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

FTP Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Mailing List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Chapter 1 Working with Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Starting a Work Session . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Creating a New Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Opening an Existing Project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Setting User Preferences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Managing Files and Folders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Working with Avid Explorer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Organizing Your Project Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Working with Bins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Changing the Bin View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Changing the Frame in Thumbnail and Script View. . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Identifying File Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Displaying File Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Customizing the Details and Script Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Saving or Deleting a Bin View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Sorting Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Sifting Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Viewing Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Viewing the Avid Event Log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Sorting Columns and Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Workflow: Working with Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Opening Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Creating a New Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Opening an Existing Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Importing Sequences and Master Clips from Another Project . . . . . 63

Setting Sequence Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Working with Different Qualities of Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Understanding Video Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Understanding Video Quality Matching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Understanding Audio Quality Matching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Understanding the Processing Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Understanding the Working Conversion Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

Saving Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

Creating a Copy of a Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Searching for Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Deleting Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

Chapter 3 Building a Rough Cut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Workflow: Editing Audio and Video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

Creating Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Preparing Source Clips for Editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Editing Source Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Placing Clips on the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

Working on the Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

Marking In and Out-points on the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Using the Mark Buttons to Set In and Out-points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Using Timecode to Set In and Out-points. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

Displaying Timecodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

Displaying the Source Timecodes of a Clip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

Displaying the Sequence Timecodes of a Clip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

Moving or Trimming Objects Using the Timecode Boxes . . . . . . . 126

Adjusting the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128

Panning and Zooming the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Changing the Ruler Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Viewing a Sequence as a Hieracharical Tree Structure. . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Playing Sequences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

Varying the Playback Speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137

Moving to Points on the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138

Moving to Edit Points on the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Looping Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Viewing Unprocessed Frames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Using the Position Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141

Switching Viewers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142

Setting True Video Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

Zooming or Panning the Viewers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

Displaying Overlays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Manipulating Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Selecting Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146

Moving Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

Renaming and Adding Comments to Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Cutting Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Copying Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Deleting Clips from the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Lifting Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Extracting Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Revealing Unused Material on Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Changing the Activeness of Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156

Using Locators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160

Displaying Locator Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

Setting Reference Locators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163

Placing Locators on Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

Moving Locators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Deleting Locators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Moving to Locators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Annotating Locators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168

Changing the Color of Locators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Finding Frames, Clips, and Bins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Matching a Frame in a Master Clip or Subclip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Performing a Reverse Match Frame. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171

Finding the Bin for a Clip or Subclip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172

Extracting Parts of a Sequence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173

Converting a Timeline Region or Object. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174

Creating Multiple Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175

Replacing Timeline Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Grabbing Frames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Creating a Master Clip from a Snapshot. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

Creating an Image File from a Snapshot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

Rippling Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178

Inserting Clips in Ripple Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181

Editing Clips in Ripple Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182

Synchronizing Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

Aligning Clips for Synchronization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

Creating a Sync Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

Manipulating Synchronized Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188

Editing Synchronized Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189

Resyncing Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190

Deleting Synchronized Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190

Referencing Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

Creating Reference Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192

Converting a Container Clip to a Reference Clip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192

Processing Reference Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193

Chapter 4 Trimming Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

Workflow: Trimming Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196

Understanding Trimming. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

Methods of Trimming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198

Understanding Trim Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199

Entering and Exiting Trim Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200

Trimming Clips in Trim Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201

Reviewing a Trim Edit or Transition in Trim Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . 202

Selecting and Breaking Edit Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203

Selecting Trim Sides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203

Breaking and Relinking Edit Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206

Performing a Basic Trim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207

Trimming the Edit Point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209

Trimming with the Trim Handles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211

Trimming Audio Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215

Backtiming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216

Snapping Edit Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216

Trimming On-the-Fly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

Creating Overlap Edits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218

Trimming Container Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219

Trimming Transition Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219

Understanding Slipping or Sliding Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221

Slipping Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222

Sliding Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224

Entering Slip/Slide Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224

Performing a Slip or Slide Trim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225

Reviewing a Slip or Slide Trim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

Maintaining Sync While Trimming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

Creating a Gap When Trimming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228

Chapter 5 Working with Effects and Transitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229

Displaying Guides. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230

Applying Effects on the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230

Applying Transitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231

Cutting to a Clip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231

Creating One-Sided Transitions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233

Creating Transitions Between Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233

Editing Transition Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235

Aligning Transitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236

Removing Transitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237

Using the Comparison Buffer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237

Nesting Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239

Creating Nested Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240

Navigating within Nested Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

Deleting Nested Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248

Displaying Effects in a Viewer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248

Opening a Floating Viewer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248

Changing the Image Displayed in a Viewer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250

Viewing Image Components. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251

Processing Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252

Chapter 6 Processing Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255

Understanding Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256

When is Processing Needed? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257

Workflow: Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259

Processing Areas of the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260

Processing a Single Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262

Processing a Region of a Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264

Previewing Effects without Processing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264

Setting the Processing Options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265

Processing Media at Different Qualities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269

Creating Caches at Any Level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270

Understanding Processing Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275

Minimal Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275

Complete Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275

Example: Minimal versus Complete Processing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276

Working with Real-Time Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280

Playing Real-Time Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282

Outputting Real-time Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284

Remote Processing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285

Monitoring Remote Processing Jobs with the Avid DMS Broker . . 286

Chapter 7 Applying Image Transition Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

Understanding Image Transition Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

Applying a Dissolve Effect to a Transition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288

Applying a DVE Effect to a Transition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290

Understanding the Morph Effect. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292

Applying a Morph Transition Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294

Creating Shapes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295

Joining Shapes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298

Creating Barrier Shapes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302

Warping the Morph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303

Animating Shapes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303

Tracking Morphed Shapes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305

Setting the Rendering Options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306

Applying a Picture-in-Picture Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309

Applying Wipe Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313

Chapter 8 Working with Time Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315

Understanding the Time Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315

Applying a 3:2 Contract Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316

Applying a 3:2 Expand Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318

Applying a Deinterlace Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318

Applying an Interlace Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321

Understanding the Timewarp Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322

Applying an Audio Timewarp Effect. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322

Applying a Video Timewarp Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326

Chapter 9 Animating Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339

Workflow: Animating Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340

Creating Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341

Setting Keyframes Automatically . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342

Setting Keyframes Manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343

Understanding the Animation Editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346

Using the Animation Tree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347

Working with the Animation Graph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 350

Editing Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353

Editing Keyframes Manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 354

Editing Animation on the Animation Graph. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356

Offsetting Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371

Copying Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371

Repeating Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376

Trimming Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379

Removing Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379

Processing Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381

Chapter 10 Mixing Audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383

Workflow: Mixing Audio. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384

Working in Audio Container Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385

Audio Clips and Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386

Understanding the Mixer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388

Changing the Mixer Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389

Using the Input Strips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389

Using the Output Strips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 397

Using an External Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398

Mapping External Controls to Avid DS Nitris Commands. . . . . . . . 399

Creating a Command Mapping Set . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401

Loading a Command Mapping Set. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401

Building an Audio Mix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401

Creating Audio Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 403

Using the Surround Panner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405

Mixing Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406

Fine-tuning the Mix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409

Adjusting the Mixer Inputs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 410

Adjusting the Mixer Outputs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412

Animating the Audio Mix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412

Animating the Input Strip Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413

Bypassing the Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 415

Editing the Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416

Deleting Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416

Converting the Sample Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417

Converting Sequence Sample Rates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417

Converting Clip Sample Rates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417

Processing the Mix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 420

Processing Clip-based Audio Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 422

Chapter 11 Working with Audio Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 423

Understanding Audio Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 424

Applying Crossfade Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 424

Applying Dynamics Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425

Working with Equalizer (EQ) Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 426

Applying the 3 Band Tone Control Effect. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 426

Applying the 4 Band Parametric EQ Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 427

Applying the 10 Band Graphic EQ Effect. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 427

Applying Fade Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 428

Applying a Gain Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 428

Applying Reverb Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 429

Applying a VST Host Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 429

Chapter 12 Media Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431

Understanding Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431

Managing Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 434

Using the Media Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 434

Defragmenting Media. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 440

Verifying Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 440

Copying Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 441

Moving Media. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 441

Deleting Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 442

Purging Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 443

Example: Purging versus Deleting Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 448

Archiving Projects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 449

Creating a Device Preset Before Archiving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 450

Creating a Single Archive for a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 450

Creating Multiple Archives of the Same Project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 454

Restoring Projects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 456

Restoring a Complete Project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 457

Restoring Parts of a Project Archive. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 460

Restoring a Project Archived on Multiple Tapes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 462

Moving Projects to Another Workstation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463

Deleting Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463

Deleting Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465

Viewing Information about Storage Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 466

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467

Using This Guide

Congratulations on your purchase of an Avid DS Nitris system. You can use your system to create broadcast-quality output incorporating every possible production element from full-speed, high-resolution footage, to multimedia artwork and animation, to computer-generated effects and titling.

The documentation describes the features and hardware of all models. Therefore, your system might not contain certain features and hardware that are covered in the documentation.

Who Should Use This Guide

This guide is intended for all Avid DS Nitris users, from beginning to advanced who are interested in learning essential skills for assembling programs of any length in the Avid nonlinear environment and finishing high-end uncompressed, quality television programs and commercials.

This guide and the Help will be your primary learning tools for editing procedures as you progress through early projects, and will remain your principal source for procedures in the future.

This guide provides information on:

• Setting project configurations

• Setting sequence preferences

• Using the editing tools

• Managing your media files

Using This Guide

Symbols and Conventions

Unless noted otherwise, the material in this document applies to the Windows XP operating system. Avid DS Nitris documentation uses the following symbols and conventions:

Symbol or Convention

Meaning or Action

> This symbol indicates menu commands (and subcommands)

Margin tips In the margin, you will find tips that help you perform tasks

Italic font Italic font is used to emphasize certain words and to indicate

Courier Bold font

A note provides important related information, reminders, recommendations, and strong suggestions.

A caution means that a specific action you take could cause harm to your computer or cause you to lose data.

A warning describes an action that could cause you physical harm. Follow the guidelines in this document or on the unit itself when handling electrical equipment.

in the order you select them. For example, File > Import means to open the File menu and then select the Import command.

This symbol indicates a single-step procedure. Multiple arrows in a list indicate that you perform one of the actions listed.

more easily and efficiently.

variables.

Courier Bold font identifies text that you type.

Bold font Bold indicates a user interaction.

Using the Mouse, Pen, and Keyboard

In Avid DS Nitris, you can use a two-button mouse (with wheel) or a pen and tablet. The left and right mouse buttons perform different operations. Unless otherwise stated, use the left mouse button.

The mouse and pen operate slightly differently. All the procedures in this guide are documented for the mouse. You can, however, easily use a pen or the keyboard. The following table shows the terms relating to the mouse, pen, and keyboard.

This Term Means This with a Mouse Means This with a Pen

Symbols and Conventions

Click Quickly click and release the

left mouse button. Always use the left mouse button unless otherwise stated.

Double-click Click the left mouse button

twice rapidly.

Right-click Quickly click and release the

right mouse button.

Drag Click and hold the left mouse

button or the wheel while you move the mouse.

Alt+key, Ctrl+key, Shift+key,

etc.

Press and hold the first key while you press the second key. For example, “Press Alt+F1” means to press and hold the Alt key while you press the F1 key.

Tap the tablet once with the tip of the pen, or touch the pen to the tablet with enough pressure to click.

Quickly tap the tablet twice in the same screen pixel or press the F5 key to go from single to doubleclick.

Press the top portion of the switch on the side of the pen or press the F6 key to go from left to rightclick.

Press the pen to the tablet while moving the pen.

Using This Guide

Customizing the Pen or Mouse

By customizing the pen, you can adjust the click pressure, switch functions, and other features. For information on customizing the pen, refer to the documentation provided with your Avid DS Nitris system.

You can also customize the mouse. For example, you can select left-handed configuration or change the double-click speed. For information on customizing the mouse, refer to the Windows online Help.

If You Need Help

If you are having trouble using Avid DS Nitris:

1. Retry the action, carefully following the instructions given for that task in this guide. It is especially important to check each step of your workflow.

2. Check for the latest information that might have become available after the documentation was published in one of two locations:

- If release notes are available, they ship with your application.

- If ReadMe files are available, they are supplied in your Avid

application folder. ReadMe files are also available from Help.

3. Check the documentation that came with your Avid application or your hardware for maintenance or hardware-related issues.

4. See “Avid DS Customer Support” on page 18.

5. For Technical Support, please call 800-800-AVID (800-800-2843). For international enquiries and support services, contact your Avid Reseller. Support offerings may vary per location.

Accessing the Online Documentation

The online library contains all the Avid DS Nitris documentation in PDF format. If it was installed on your workstation, you can access it from the Help menu in Avid DS Nitris.

You will need Adobe® Acrobat® Reader® installed to view the documentation online.

To access the online library, do one of the following:

t In Avid DS Nitris, select Help > Online Library. t Insert the Drivers CD-ROM into your CD-ROM drive, and select

Online Library from the main menu.

To install Adobe Acrobat Reader:

1. Insert the Drivers CD-ROM into your CD-ROM drive.

2. Select the appropriate workstation and select Utilities.

If You Have Documentation Comments

We’d appreciate any comments or suggestions you may have about the Avid DS Nitris documentation.

Please e-mail your documentation comments to:

dsdocs@avid.com

If You Need Help

Include the title of the document, its part number, and the specific section you are commenting on in all correspondence.

How to Order Documentation

To order additional copies of this documentation from within the United States, call Avid Sales at 800-949-AVID (800-949-2843). If you are placing an order from outside the United States, contact your local Avid representative.

Avid Educational Services

For information on courses/schedules, training centers, certifications, courseware, and books, please visit www.avid.com/training or call Avid Sales at 800-949-AVID (800-949-2843).

Using This Guide

Avid DS Customer Support

The following sections describe various Avid DS Customer Support options.

E-mail Support

The e-mail address for Avid DS Customer Support is: dssupport@avid.com.

You can use it for sending bug reports, usability questions, and avidds.cab audit reports for system analysis. All e-mails are logged in the support database and assigned a case number. Send one support request per e-mail.

Web Support

FTP Support

It is mandatory that you include your SID number in the body of your e-mail message for verification of your maintenance contract and case logging, otherwise, response will be delayed.

The Avid DS Customer Support and Download sections at

http://www.softimage.com/avidds provide quick access to a wide range of

resources from the Avid DS teams and user community. Downloads, including presets, drivers, and Quick Fix Engineering (QFE), provide the latest solutions for use with your Avid DS Nitris system. Online documentation, tutorials, and Knowledge Base articles ensure that you get the most out of your work with Avid DS Nitris. It's like having a dedicated Avid DS Customer Support engineer sitting at your desk!

For troubleshooting purposes, an FTP server is available for uploading large files for Avid DS Customer Support personnel to examine. You can upload a project's archive, media files, or other large piece of data. Simply zip the files to upload and use a short name for easy retrieval, such as archive.zip or Case274877.zip. You can use a Windows Command Prompt or an FTP application to upload files to our server.

Avid DS Customer Support

Command Prompt Commands

Command Description

Site access ftp ftp.softimage.com [Enter]

Folder access cd incoming [Enter]

User name anonymous [Enter]

Password “your e-mail address” [Enter]

Transfer mode bin [Enter]

Upload command Put “path:\file name” [Enter]

Once the file upload is complete, send an e-mail to dssupport@avid.com to inform Avid DS Customer Support as there is no automatic notification when a file is uploaded on the FTP server. Please provide the complete and exact file name (case sensitive) to retrieve.

Mailing List

Although the Avid DS mailing list is frequently monitored by Avid employees, it is not part of the official support channels. You are invited to send your support requests to any of the above channels when required.

If you have an e-mail account, you can join the worldwide network of Avid DS users exchanging ideas. The mailing list has proven to be quite useful for users, with a constant stream of new subscribers.

To subscribe, send an e-mail to majordomo@softimage.com with the following text in the body of your message: subscribe ds. You can get further information on using the automated list server by e-mailing majordomo@softimage.com with “help” as your message.

You can also go to http://www.avid.com/support/forums.html, which is a great source of information available on the Avid web site for Avid DS.

Using This Guide

Chapter 1

Working with Projects

This chapter describes how your project files and media are handled in Avid DS Nitris. Since project organization plays a key part in the editing process, you will learn how to create projects, and use the Avid Explorer to organize your media into folders.

The following sections describe how to work with projects and media:

• Starting a Work Session

• Managing Files and Folders

• Working with Bins

• Viewing Events

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

Starting a Work Session

When you start Avid DS Nitris, the Open Project dialog box is displayed, so that you can view and manage all projects anywhere on the network. Each project has its own associated sequences. When you open a sequence, you have access to all the master clips and custom presets in the project.

Projects contain master clips, sequences, and any special presets and/or scripts you create.

Sequence files contain information about your edit decisions, composites, and any effects you’ve applied to your clips.

Master clips are representations of the digitized media stored on your disk array.

Master clips can be shared between sequences within the same project.

By default, all projects created with Avid DS Nitris are stored in their own folder under the DS Projects folder. It’s important that you keep all the files related to a project inside the project folder, so that they can be archived, restored, and/or purged.

If you’re running more than one version of Avid DS Nitris on your workstation, new projects will be classified by version, and will be stored in a subfolder of the \DS Projects folder. You can use the Scan Disk option to change the project path folder, so that only the projects in a particular version folder are displayed.

Starting a Work Session

To start Avid DS Nitris, do one of the following:

t Double-click the Avid DS Nitris icon on the Windows desktop. t Click Start > Programs > Avi d P ro d uc t s > Avid DS Nitris v7.0 >

Avid DS Nitris v7.0.

Tip: If you selected the Load Last Sequence at Startup option in the User Preferences dialog box and want to bypass this option, press Shift and double-click the Avid DS Nitris shortcut on the desktop. This starts the application and displays the Open Project dialog box from which you can select a different project.

The Open Project dialog box is displayed.

You can now create or open an existing project or sequence.

Creating a New Project

When you first start Avid DS Nitris or when you want to start a new project, you are prompted to name your project, designate a location for it, and set the project’s preferences. Once you’ve done this, a project folder is created at the specified location. By default, all sequences associated with this project are saved in this folder.

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

To open a new project:

1. Do one of the following:

t From the Open Project dialog box, click the New Project button. t Select File > New > Project.

Browse button

2. In the New Project dialog box, enter a unique name for your project in the Project Name text box.

3. In the Location text box, type the path where you would like the project files to reside. You can also use the browse (...) button to locate the folder in which you want to save your project.

4. Set the appropriate preferences for your project. Project preferences define the way your material is captured,

processed, and output by Avid DS Nitris. Once you set the project preferences, they become the default settings for the sequences that you create in this project.

For detailed information on setting these preferences, click the Help button.

5. Click OK to save the project preferences. The Editing layout is displayed for you to start building your sequence,

and the Avid Explorer displays your project as the favorite.

Opening an Existing Project

Once you’ve created a project, it is available to all other users in your workgroup. Opening any sequence in the project gives you access to all master clips and presets used in that project.

Starting a Work Session

To open an existing project on your workstation:

1. Select File > Open > Project. The Open Project dialog box is displayed.

2. From the Select a Project list, select a project name.

3. From the Select a Sequence list, do one of the following:

t Click New DS Sequence and then click New Sequence. t Double-click an existing sequence name. t Select a sequence and click Open.

If you created a new sequence, the New Sequence dialog box is displayed for you to set the sequence preferences—see “Setting

Sequence Preferences” on page 65.

A new or existing sequence is opened.

To open an existing project on another workstation:

1. Select File > Open > Project. The Open Project dialog box is displayed.

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

2. From the Project List box, click Scan Disk.

The Scan Subdirectories for Projects dialog box is displayed.

3. Locate the \DS Projects folder on the network that contains the project you want to open and click Select.

Avid DS Nitris searches through the selected folder and creates a project list. You can now open any one of these projects and/or sequences.

Setting User Preferences

You can work more efficiently by setting some personal preferences, such as automatic saves, number of undo levels, animation preferences, and the number of type of tracks to display when you open a new sequence. You can also set editing preferences, such as pre-roll and post-roll frames.

After setting the preferences, they become part of your user profile under your user name. The next time you start Avid DS Nitris, these preferences are used.

Do not customize the fonts, windows scheme, or taskbar properties on the Windows desktop or Avid DS Nitris may not function properly.

To open the User Preferences dialog box:

t Select File > User Preferences.

Starting a Work Session

For information about the User Preferences options, click the Help button.

Choosing a Scripting Language

Avid DS Nitris supports several popular scripting languages. To use a scripting language with Avid DS Nitris, you must first install the scripting engine for that language.

Although Avid DS Nitris logs commands in its History pane using VBScript syntax, you can write and run scripts using any language that is ActiveX-compliant. ActiveX is a technology for sharing data between programs. Some ActiveX-compliant scripting languages include:

• ActivePerl

•JScript

• Python ActiveX Scripting

• VBScript (default)

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

To set a preferred scripting language:

1. From the User Preferences dialog box, select the Scripting/Logging tab.

2. From the Scripting Language list, select your preferred scripting language.

Setting Up the Command Log

No matter what language you’ve specified in your preferences, Avid DS Nitris logs commands using the VBScript syntax.

The Scripting Language list contains the ActiveX scripting languages whose engines are installed on your workstation. If you just installed an engine and it’s not listed, restart Avid DS Nitris. If it still isn’t listed, restart your computer.

Avid DS Nitris not only creates a command log in the History pane of the Script Editor, but can also create a separate log file that is saved to disk for each Avid DS Nitris session.

You have the option of setting a limit to the number of commands logged in the History pane. You can also save a log file to disk, containing all commands used in each Avid DS Nitris session.

To set the command log size:

1. From the User Preferences dialog box, select the Scripting/Logging property page.

2. The number of commands kept in the History pane of the Script Editor by default is 200. To modify this number, click in the Lines text box and type a new number. To set no limit to the number, select the Unlimited option.

To activate the log file:

1. On the Scripting/Logging property page, select the Log Commands to File option to create a command log file.

A log file will be created the next time you start Avid DS Nitris.

Managing Files and Folders

2. To specify a location for the log file, type a path in the File Name

text box.

Avid DS Nitris overwrites the existing command log file each time you start a new session. If you want to keep the log file, make sure you rename it before starting Avid DS Nitris.

You can only use the logging and scripting tools to capture media.

Managing Files and Folders

After you start a project, you can organize your project files to suit your project’s needs. When you work with files, folders, and the windows that contain them, you are working in the Avid Explorer view.

Working with Avid Explorer

The Avid Explorer is a view that opens by default when you start a project. By using the Avid Explorer, you can

• Navigate and view the entire contents of your workstation

• Organize a project’s clips, sequences, and effects in a tree structure of folders.

• Capture from file and import clips from other projects

Any files or applications that you can open on your Windows desktop you can also open in the Avid Explorer. For example, imagine that you are working on a commercial and the producer sends you a Microsoft document that lists the latest changes. You can open the document within the Avid Explorer and refer to it while you are editing, without needing to switch back and forth between application windows. You can also open files associated with your Web browser through the Avid DS Nitris Web viewer.

When you select a folder, the folder’s contents are displayed in a bin.

Word

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

To access the Avid Explorer:

t From the view switcher, click the Avid Explorer (Main) button.

Avid Explorer tools

Panel 1

Panel 2

Bins

You can include the Avid Explorer as a single-instance view or a multiinstance view in any views that you create.

Using the Avid Explorer Views

The left side of the Avid Explorer includes two panels. Each panel can contain one of three views: My System, Shortcuts, or Project.

Managing Files and Folders

The My System view shows the contents of your workstation in a hierarchical tree structure.

The Shortcuts view shows shortcuts to files, folders, or applications.

The Project view shows the folders for the current project.

To show or hide a panel:

t Click the Show/Hide Panel button.

Show/Hide Panel buttons

The Show/Hide Panel button is highlighted for the panel that is displayed.

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

To choose a view to display in a panel:

t Click the pop-up menu next to a Show/Hide Panel button and select

My System, Shortcuts, or Project.

A check mark indicates which view is displayed.

Using the Shortcuts View

The Shortcuts view lets you create and access shortcuts that suit your work requirements. For example, you can create a shortcut to a folder with your favorite presets or to a graphics application. Any shortcuts you can create in Windows can be created in the Shortcuts view.

The Shortcuts view is divided into two tabs: System and Project.

• Shortcuts that you create on the System tab are available in all

projects.

• Shortcuts that you create on the Project tab are available only when

the project in which you created them is open.

System tab Project tab

To switch between tabs:

t Click the System tab or the Project tab.

To create a shortcut, do one of the following, depending on what is displayed in a bin:

t Drag a folder or file from a bin to either tab in the Shortcuts view. t Drag the folder icon from a bin’s address bar to either tab in the

Shortcuts view.

Managing Files and Folders

t In either tab of the Shortcuts view, right-click an empty area and select

New Shortcut. The Windows Shortcut Wizard is displayed. Follow the instructions to create a shortcut in the Shortcuts view.

To delete a shortcut, do one of the following:

t Right-click the shortcut and select Delete. t Select a shortcut and press Delete on the keyboard.

To access the Shortcuts context menus:

t Right-click the background. Use this context menu to change the way

shortcuts are displayed (large icons, list, thumbnail) and how they are sorted and arranged.

t Right-click a shortcut. Use this context menu to cut, copy, paste,

delete, and other system functions.

The Create Shortcut command, which is displayed when you right-click an object, does not create a shortcut in the My System view or Project view.

Organizing Your Project Folder

Before you start capturing material and editing sequences, create subfolders in your project folder to hold master clips, sequences, and custom presets. You’ll find that creating subfolders helps organize your project, so that you can locate files quickly and easily.

Also, when Avid DS Nitris archives a project, it gathers and archives all the files in the project folder. Therefore, it is important that you keep all the project files within the project folder.

When you create a new project in Avid DS Nitris, a project folder is automatically created and displayed in the Avid Explorer. It also creates subfolders for DSPresets and scripts. This default structure can be customized, so that all projects you create are already organized. For more information, see “Creating a Standard Folder Structure” on page 36.

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

There are ways to set up your folders that make tasks, such as recapturing, much easier. Here is an example of a simple but effective folder setup:

Show/Hide Panel

Project folder

Subfolders

When capturing clips, you can select the AutoSource option. This automatically creates a folder for your master clips with the same name as the tape from which you are capturing material.

Creating or Deleting Folders

To create a folder:

1. In the Project view, select your project folder.

Project view

Bin

The contents of the folder are displayed on the right in a bin.

2. Right-click an empty area of the bin and select New > Folder.

The new folder is displayed in the bin with the name New Folder highlighted.

3. Type in a new name and press Enter.

4. Continue adding as many folders as you need. You can create subfolders under your new folders. Simply click the new folder in the Project view and then right-click the bin to add a new folder.

To delete a folder:

t In the Project view or bin, right-click a folder and select Delete from

the Windows section of the menu.

Moving Files between Folders

You can rearrange the files in your project folders by dragging them to a new folder.

To move a file to another folder:

t Drag a file from a bin to a folder in the Project view or to another bin.

The No Entry icon changes to a Move icon when you place the pointer over a folder in the Project view.

Managing Files and Folders

Renaming Project Files

You cannot move clips or sequences between projects, but you can import sequences and master clips into another project. For more information, see

“Importing Sequences and Master Clips from Another Project” on page 63.

To make a copy of a file:

t Select the clip or sequence that you want to copy, press Ctrl and drag

You can rename a master clip, sequence, or folder in your project.

You cannot change the name of a clip or sequence if it is open or when previewing it in the Source viewer.

the clip to an empty area in the current folder, or to another folder in the tree.

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

To rename a clip, sequence, or folder:

1. In a bin, click the name of a clip, sequence, or folder.

2. Type in a new name and press Enter.

Creating a Standard Folder Structure

When you rename a clip, sequence, or other Avid DS Nitris file, make sure to keep the file extension (.Clip, .Segment, and so on). Avid DS Nitris cannot manage the file properly without the extension.

A file name can contain up to 255 characters and include spaces. It cannot contain any of the following characters: \ / : * ? " < > |

If you want Avid DS Nitris to create a standard folder structure for new projects, you can create an .ini file that will specify the folders that will appear in the Avid Explorer when a new project is created. The .ini file must be called folder.ini and must be stored in the \Preferences\username folder. You can have different .ini files for each Avid DS Nitris user.

To create a standard folder structure for new projects:

1. Open a text file using a text editor.

2. On the first line of the file, type the following in uppercase letters:

[FOLDERS]

3. Type in the names of the folders you want to appear in the Avid Explorer. For example:

-Graphics

- Master Clips

-Sequences

-Trash

The order of the folders is not important, as they will be sorted in alphabetical order or according to the sorting method used in the Avid Explorer.

Managing Files and Folders

4. Save the file as folder.ini and save it in the following location: C:\Program Files\Avid\DS_v7.0\Preferences\username Any new projects that are created will contain the folders specified in

the .ini file.

Avid DS Nitris Group Folders

The DSPresets, Scripts, and Views folders are created by default.

As part of a project’s workflow, you might need to work with groups of sequential files, such as a series of scanned image files or files from a graphics program. Typically these files share a file name that increments by a single digit, such as beach001.jpg, beach002.jpg, and so on. The Avid Explorer automatically combines these files into a special kind of folder, called an Avid DS Nitris Group folder, or virtual folder. You can then capture and manage the sequential files more easily.

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

The following illustration shows a list of Avid DS Nitris Group folders.

The folder is identified with the following syntax:

filename[first..last:#files].extension

For example, a folder that contains 88 files, named CatchFish1.pic through CatchFish88.pic, is labeled:

CatchFish[1..88:88].pic

To view the individual files:

t Double-click the Avid DS Nitris Group folder.

If a group does not include a complete series of numbers, a yellow circle and exclamation point is displayed over the icon. The folder name displays the total number of files, indicating that one or more files are missing. For example, if CatchFish30.pic is missing, the folder is labeled:

CatchFish[1..88:87].pic

Sequential Avid DS Nitris files (*.Clip, *.Segment, *.Preset) are not grouped in a folder.

When a folder contains a file that does not conform to the pattern of the group, Avid DS Nitris isolates the file and the part of the group that is affected. To combine the files into a single folder again, remove or rename the non-conforming file.

Grouping Files as Frames or Fields

By default, Avid DS Nitris groups files as a series of frames. If, however, the file names of a group include field numbers (Frame01.1.jpg, Frame01.2.jpg, Frame02.1.jpg, and so on), you should deselect the default option. The folder name then includes the total number of files followed by the letter F (field). For example,

Frame[01..06:12;F].jpg

To group files as frames or fields:

1. Select File > User Preferences.

2. Select the Avi d Exp lorer property page.

3. Select or deselect the Group files as frame option.

Working with Bins

A bin is a window that displays the contents of a folder or other object. Bins appear within the Avid Explorer view. You can minimize, maximize, resize, and close bins using standard Windows control methods. You can also cascade and tile bins.

Working with Bins

The following illustration shows three bins within the Avid Explorer view. Each bin displays its contents in a different view.

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

Storyboard view

Thumbnail view

Details view

To open a bin:

t Select a folder or other object in the tree.

If a folder in the tree is already selected, double-click it.

To open additional bins, do one of the following:

t Press Shift and click a folder or other object in the tree.

If a folder in the tree is already selected, press Shift and double-click it.

t Press Shift and double-click a folder in a bin.

Working with Bins

You can open one or more Avid Explorer windows that are not docked in the Avid Explorer view. From the View menu, select Multi-Instance Views > Avid Explorer. These windows include only bin tools. You can include this Avid Explorer window as a multi-instance view in any views that you create.

Changing the Bin View

You can display a bin in one of five different views:

• Large icons: Displays files with large icons

• List: Displays files with small icons in list format

• Details: Displays files as a list with details, using columns. You can

choose and save which columns to display—see “Customizing the

Details and Script Views” on page 44.

• Thumbnail: Displays the files as pictorial icons. This view is

especially useful for media files. You can rearrange the thumbnails in any order within the bin by clicking and dragging.

• Script: Displays the files as pictorial icons with an area for comments.

Clip information is displayed above the text box.

To change the bin view:

t Click a button at the bottom of the bin.

Large Icons

List

Details

Thumbnail

Script

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

Changing the Frame in Thumbnail and Script View

By default the first frame of a clip is displayed in Thumbnail or Script view. Avid DS Nitris lets you select a different frame to display.

To change the frame displayed in the Thumbnail or Script view:

1. Open the clip in the Source viewer.

2. Go to the frame you want to display.

3. Click the Update Thumbnail button, located below the Source

viewer.

Identifying File Types

Each file in a bin is identified by an icon. Because a bin displays the same files as your workstation, you see the same icons that appear in your Windows Explorer.

Files that are specific to Avid DS Nitris display a generic icon when viewed in the Windows Explorer.

Avid DS Nitris media files have their own icons, which appear on or beside clips in a bin. When an icon is highlighted in red, it means that Avid DS Nitris could not find any media associated with a clip. This clip must be recaptured before you can work with it.

Icon File Type Icon File Type

Audio clip Background or composite

container clip

Video clip Sequence

Combined audio and video clip Still image

Audio container clip Linked still image

Displaying File Properties

Each master clip or sequence contains information about its location on the disk array, the name of the project to which it belongs, the start, end, and duration of the clip, as well as your own comments.

In addition, master clips contain information on the clip type, quality, resolution, dominance, color space, bit depth, coverage, and location. For a description of these properties, click the Help button.

To view master clip properties:

1. In a bin, right-click a master clip, and in the Avid DS Nitris section select Properties.

The Properties dialog box is displayed.

2. Select the Media tab to view information about the media associated with the master clip.

The Media property page displays information about the selected clip. Audio and video media files are listed separately.

Working with Bins

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

The Media property page displays the types of media associated with the clip you selected in the Avid Explorer. Purged media is indicated by a red dot on the icon. It is possible to have one type of media indicated as purged and another not.

3. Select the General tab to view the file properties.

The location of this file, its in and out times, and duration are displayed. You cannot edit these properties, but you can add notes for the file in the Comments text box.

4. Select the File Info tab to view information about how the original file

was captured. The original file location, resolution, capture settings, and file status

are displayed. This information is read-only and cannot be modified, except to re-establish a link for a linked file that has been moved from its original location.

5. Select the Track Patching tab to view information about the audio

format (such as mono or stereo) and the audio input assignment for master clips that were captured from tape.

You can use this property page to reassign hardware inputs to different audio channels if necessary when recapturing audio media.

To view sequence properties:

t In a bin, right-click a sequence, and in the Avid DS Nitris section

select Properties. The Properties dialog box is displayed. These properties are read-only.

Customizing the Details and Script Views

Avid DS Nitris lets you customize the columns of information in Details and Scripts views by displaying and hiding file parameters.You can choose from Avid DS Nitris parameters, parameters from the Windows operating system, or parameters that have been added to your Windows system from other applications. You can also rearrange the order of columns, adjust the size of columns, and save the arrangement.

Working with Bins

To create a more compact display, Avid DS Nitris parameters do not include the product name in the column heading. Column headings for these parameters use a darker shading.

To hide or display bin columns:

1. Do one of the following:

t In the bin tools, click the Settings button. t Click the Fast Menu button and select Settings > Add/Remove

Columns.

A dialog box is displayed, either within the bin or separately. The currently displayed column headings are marked by colored bands.

For a description of the bin columns, click the Help button.

2. Do one or more of the following: t Select the columns that you want to display.

Selected columns are highlighted by a colored band.

t Deselect highlighted columns that you do not want to display. t Click the All/None button to select all columns. t Click the All/None button again to deselect all columns

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

3. Click the Apply button to apply your changes.

4. Click the Close button to close the dialog box.

To rearrange columns:

1. Click the heading of the column that you want to move. The entire column is selected.

2. Drag the column to the desired position. The column is displayed in the new position.

To change the width of a column:

t Drag the border of a column heading.

If you’re using a deck that can be addressed in a format different from its recording speed, four bin columns provide you with a quick way to find your clips on the source tape:

• Avid DS Nitris Physical In

• Avid DS Nitris Physical Out

• Avid DS Nitris Physical Start

• Avid DS Nitris Physical Stop

These columns show timecodes in the same format as the deck faceplate.

Saving or Deleting a Bin View

If you change the bin view by adding columns, changing the order of columns, or other customization, an asterisk is displayed at the end of the bin view name. Avid DS Nitris lets you save and display this customized bin view.

You can also display a preset bin view, such as Editing, Audio Management, Video Management, or Presets.

Working with Bins

To save a bin view:

1. Click the Save Current Column Setting button.

The Save As dialog box is displayed.

2. Accept the current name or type a new one, and click OK.

The Bin View list includes the new bin view.

To display a bin view:

t From the Bin View list, select the view you want to display.

To delete a bin view:

1. From the Bin View list, select the view you want to delete.

2. With the Bin View list displayed, press the Delete key. A confirmation box is displayed.

3. Click Ye s .

Sorting Files

By default, clips in Details view are sorted by name, in ascending alphabetical order (from A to Z). You can change the way clips are sorted, using the information in any column or combination of columns.

You can change the sorting for any files that you view through the Avid Explorer.

To change the way clips are sorted:

1. In Details view, click the column that you want to act as the primary sorting criterion.

The clips are sorted according to the information in that column. The number zero (0) is displayed in the title bar of the column indicating the primary sorting status. An upward or downward pointing arrow is also displayed, specifying the direction in which the information is sorted (ascending or descending).

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

2. Press Ctrl and click a new column to act as the secondary sorting criterion.

Any clips with the same criterion in the primary sort are now sorted according to the information in the second column. The number one (1) is displayed in the title bar of the column, indicating the secondary sorting status. An upward or downward pointing arrow is also displayed, specifying the direction in which the information is sorted.

3. Continue pressing Ctrl and clicking the columns to further refine your column sorting.

When performing a single-column sort, click the column a second time to change the direction in which the column is sorted. Click again to remove the sorting.

When performing multi-column sort, press Ctrl and click a column a second time to change the sorting direction. Press Ctrl and click again to remove the sorting.

Example

In this example, clips are first sorted by channel. Notice that all video clips are grouped together. Since they are all the same, you can sort them further using another criterion. In this example, they are sorted further by duration.

Working with Bins

Clips sorted by channel in alphabetical order. (primary sort)

Each channel type, such as Video, is further sorted according to duration (secondary sort).

Sifting Files

By sifting files, you can customize any window that you view through the Avid Explorer so that it displays only those files that meet a specific set of criteria.

For example, in a bin that contains master clips, you can create a custom sift to display only clips from a particular tape or only clips with a name that contains the letters CU (for close-up). Sifting is not limited to clips; you can use it with any files that you view through the Avid Explorer. You can also use it to modify the files displayed in the Media Tool (see “Using

the Media Tool” on page 434).

The Custom Sift dialog box provides ten types of criteria (such as Equals or Contains) and lets you set up to six sets of criteria.

Tip: To view bin columns, click the D (Details) button in the bottom bar of the bin. To change the visible bin columns, click the Settings button in the Avid Explorer toolbar.

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

To sift clips or sequences:

1. In an open bin, click the Fast Menu button and select Custom Sift. The Custom Sift dialog box is displayed.

2. From the Column list, select an Avid DS Nitris column heading to which you want to apply the criterion.

t To view all column headings on your system, select the Show All

Columns option.

t To clear the Column entry, select None from the Column list.

3. From the Criterion list, select one of the sifting options.

4. In the Value text box, and type the text that you want to use as a sift criterion.

Type the text exactly as it is displayed in the column. For example, to view clips with a duration of more than 5 seconds, select Greater Than as the criterion and type 00:00:05:00.

An exception is size. For example, to view clips greater than 54 KB, select Greater Than as the criterion and type 54000.

5. Repeat these steps to add additional sift criteria (up to six sets).

6. To clear all data, click the Clear button.

7. To preview the results of your selections, click the Apply button.

8. To save your view:

a. Click the Save button.

The Save As dialog box is displayed.

b. Type a name for the sifted view and click OK.

9. In the Custom Sift dialog box, click OK.

Only the clips or sequences that meet your criteria are displayed in the bin.

Displaying a Sifted or an Unsifted View

After you have sifted the clips in a bin, you can switch between the unsifted view and the currently selected sifted view.

To switch between a sifted and an unsifted view, do one of the following:

Working with Bins

t In a bin, click the Fast Menu button and select Show Sifted.

t In the Avid Explorer toolbar, click the Sifting button.

Loading and Deleting a Sifted View

You can load or delete a saved set of criteria.

To load a sifted view, do one of the following:

t In the Custom Sift dialog box, select the view that you want to load

from the Load/Save list, and click Apply or OK.

t Click the Fast Menu button, select Load Sift, and select the view you

want to load.

To delete a sifted view:

1. Select the view that you want to delete from the Load/Save list.

2. Keep the menu open and press the Delete key on your keyboard.

3. In the dialog box, click Ye s.

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

Viewing Events

While working with Avid DS Nitris, you can track important processes, such as the start up and shut down of Avid DS Nitris applications, Avid DS Nitris RP processing messages, or errors when a folder cannot be accessed. This is done using the event logging service in Avid DS Nitris. The event-logging service stores events from various sources in a single collection called an event log. Notifications of events include informative messages, errors, and warnings.

The event log records important software and hardware events to help you determine the conditions that caused the error and the context in which it occurred. By periodically viewing the event log, you may be able to identify problems before they cause damage.

The event logging service does not replace direct messages that are displayed when an action is necessary. The event log simply lets you to view the results of any actions.

A reasonable amount of disk space is reserved for the event log. When the log is full, older events are erased to make room for new ones.

The following Avid applications log events in the event log:

• Avid DS Nitris

• Avid Media Indexer

• Avid Project Indexer

Viewing the Avid Event Log

The event logging system consists of two parts, the viewer and the event log file. The Avid Event Log is a list of all previously logged events.

To view the Avid event log,

1. Do one of the following:

t Select View > Multi-Instance Views > Avid Event Log. t In an Avid Explorer panel, select Avid Event Log in the Views

folder.

The Avid Event Log view is displayed in a bin, along with a list of software and hardware events that have occurred.

Viewing Events

For detailed information on the Avid Event Log, click the Avid Explorer Help button.

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

2. Double-click an event log entry to display additional information.

Viewing the Windows Event Log

If you cannot start Avid DS Nitris due to a fatal error, Windows also has an Event Viewer so that you can browse through the event logs. In the Windows Event Viewer, events from all open applications, the operating system, and other system services are logged.

To view the Windows event log:

1. On the Windows desktop, right-click the My Computer icon and select Manage.

2. Click System Tools > Event Viewer. An event log is displayed for the different Windows applications.

Viewing Events

3. Double-click the Avid Event Log to view the Avid DS Nitris events.

Sorting Columns and Events

You can reorder the columns and events that are displayed.

To set the column order:

t Click on a column heading and drag it left or right to a new position.

To sort the list of events:

t Click on the column heading to sort the contents below the column in

ascending or descending order.

You can perform secondary sorts on multiple columns for better grouping of events. For instance if you want to sort the events by type and then by time, click the Type column heading, press Ctrl and click the Date - Time heading. A (0) and a (1) appear in the respective columns.

You can also sort the columns in the reverse order by pressing Ctrl and clicking the column heading again. An up or down arrow appears in the column heading to indicate the direction of the sort.

Chapter 1 Working with Projects

Chapter 2

Working with Sequences

This chapter describes how to work with sequences, search for sequences, and set your video and audio preferences.

• Workflow: Working with Sequences

• Opening Sequences

• Setting Sequence Preferences

• Working with Different Qualities of Media

• Saving Sequences

• Searching for Sequences

• Deleting Sequences

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

Workflow: Working with Sequences

Before you open a sequence, you must first select the project to which it belongs. The following illustration shows a simple editing scenario in Avid DS Nitris.

Open project and sequence.

Select project Select sequence

Set sequence preferences.

Construct sequence.

Sequence preferences can be changed during the course of a project to work with media at different qualities.

Opening Sequences

You can easily create, open, and manage the sequences in your project using the Open Project dialog box. A sequence is an arrangement of clips on the timeline; it contains information about edit decisions, applied graphics and effects, animation settings, and working preferences.

When you open a sequence in the timeline, you can immediately begin audio/video editing, compositing, painting, titling, or audio mixing. Because the Avid DS Nitris environment is nonlinear, these tasks can be performed in any order, changed at any time, and moved to any location.

Avid DS Nitris also gives you the flexibility to work with different media qualities within your sequence. For example, working with media at a higher resolution increases processing time, so initially, you may want to process your clips at lower resolution to obtain quicker results. When you’re ready to output the final sequence, you can recapture the media at a higher resolution, and reprocess the effects.

Opening Sequences

Sequence

Overview area

Video tracks

Audio track

Sequences always belong to a particular project. To access your sequences, you must first select the project to which it belongs. To get a quick view of all the projects on any workstation on the network, use the Open Project dialog box.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

To access the list of projects and sequences:

t Select File > Open > Project.

The Open Project dialog box is displayed.

Projects

Sequences within the selected project

Click the Help button for detailed information on the Open Project dialog box.

Creating a New Sequence

You must create sequences from within a project. You can either select a project from the Open Project dialog box and then create a new sequence, or if your project is already open, you can create a new sequence directly from the File menu.

To create a sequence:

1. Select File > Open > Project. The Open Project dialog box is displayed.

2. From the Select a Project box, select the project to which your sequence will belong.

The Select a Sequence box opens any other sequences that belong to this project.

Opening Sequences

3. From the Select a Sequence box, select New DS Sequence from the

list.

4. Click the New Sequence button.

The New Sequence dialog box displays the sequence preferences.

By default, the sequence preferences are inherited from the settings established when the project was created. These settings can be changed. For more information, see “Setting Sequence Preferences” on page 65.

Avid DS Nitris requires at least 10% of your system memory (RAM) to be free at all times. If not, you may not be able to create sequences with custom formats that have resolutions much greater than the standard video resolution, such as 2000×1500.

5. Click OK to accept the settings.

A new sequence is opened and the Editing layout is displayed.

To create a new sequence within the current project:

1. Select File > New Sequence.

If the sequence you’re currently working on has not been saved, you are prompted to do so.

2. Click Ye s to save the sequence.

A new sequence is opened in your current project with the same preferences as those of the project.

If you want to create a new sequence with preferences that are different from the project, select File > New > DS Sequence.

For detailed information on these sequence preferences, click the Help button.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

Opening an Existing Sequence

You can open a sequence in one of three ways:

• From the File menu (if you want to open a sequence from the current project)

• From the Open Project dialog box (if you want to open a sequence from another project)

• By double-clicking the sequence in the Avid Explorer

Each time you start Avid DS Nitris, you can automatically load the last sequence on which you were working by selecting the Load Last Sequence at Startup option in the User Preferences dialog box. For more information, see “Setting User Preferences” on page 26.

To open a sequence from the File menu:

1. Select File > Open > Sequence.

If the sequence you are currently working on has not been saved, you are prompted to do so.

2. Click Ye s to save the current sequence.

The Load Sequence dialog box is displayed.

3. Browse through the folders and select a sequence. (All sequences are indicated by the sequence icon.)

4. Click OK or double-click the sequence to open it.

To open a sequence from the Open Project dialog box:

1. Select File > Open > Project. If the sequence you are currently working on has not been saved, you

are prompted to do so.

2. Click Ye s to save the current sequence. The Open Project dialog box is displayed.

Opening Sequences

3. From the Select a Project box, select the project to which your sequence will belong.

The Select a Sequence box displays all sequences that belong to this project.

4. From the Select a Sequence box, select a sequence and click the Open Sequence button.

To open a sequence from the Avid Explorer:

1. Locate the sequence in the Avid Explorer.

2. Double-click the sequence. If the sequence you are currently working on has not been saved, you

are prompted to do so.

3. Click Ye s to save the current sequence. The sequence is opened.

Importing Sequences and Master Clips from Another Project

Depending on how you set up your sequences and projects, you may want to use the same sequence or master clips in more than one project. When you import sequences or master clips to another project, you have the option of linking to the existing media or creating copies of the media.

By creating a link to the media, the media is shared between the two projects, which saves space on your disk array.

Shared storage devices can be any storage area on your local machine or anywhere on the network. The limitation with media sharing is that, unless you are connected to an Avid Unity have sufficient bandwidth to provide real-time access to the media for more than one user at a time. However, if the storage device has sufficient bandwidth, real-time playback is possible.

If you are not getting real-time playback on effects, you can either reprocess your effects or copy the media from the shared storage to your local storage. For more information, see “Copying Media” on page 441.

™

system, the storage device may not

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

To import a sequence or master clips from another project:

1. In the Avid Explorer, locate and open the folder that contains the sequence or master clips you want to import.

If you want to import a sequence or master clips that are on another workstation on the network, you must share the project folder and the folder containing the media at the Windows level.

2. Right-click the sequence or master clips and select Import to Current Project.

If you archive a project with media that is shared between projects, the media will be archived with both projects. When it is restored, Avid DS Nitris checks to see if the media is still in its original location. If it is, the link is recreated. If not, the media is restored to its original location.

The Sequence and Master Clip Import dialog box is displayed.

3. Select an option:

- Link to original media links the new sequence or master clips to

the original media

- Make new copies of media creates copies of the media at the

locations you specify for the new video and audio media.

4. Click OK.

A new folder is displayed in the current project folder, entitled “Imported from project projectname.”

Setting Sequence Preferences

Sequence preferences define the format and quality of the audio and video clips in your sequence. By default, the sequence preferences are inherited from the settings you created for the current project.

During the course of building your sequence, you can switch your sequence preferences to work with video at a lower resolution, or with compression. Working at a lower resolution is useful when producing a rough cut of your sequence, because your clips are processed at a much faster rate. Working with compressed media lets you save storage space on your disk array. For more information, see “Working with Different

Qualities of Media” on page 69.

Setting Sequence Preferences

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

For descriptions of all the options in this dialog box, click the Help button.

To set the sequence preferences:

1. In the Video Settings box, select a video format from the Format list. When you select a video format other than Custom, Avid DS Nitris

automatically sets the aspect ratio, color space, frame rate, frame size, field dominance, and pixel ratio based on the format you chose—see

“Understanding Video Settings” on page 72.

These settings cannot be changed after you save your sequence preferences.

Setting Sequence Preferences

2. Set the Precision at which you want to process the effects in this

sequence—see “About Bit Depth” on page 82.

The processing settings apply to all effects in the sequence but can be changed when you process effects individually.

3. Set the Timecode Start if other than 00:00:00:00.

If you select a drop-frame video format, such as NTSC, you have the option of displaying timecode as either drop frame or non-drop frame. This option only affects the timecode display and not the sequence frame rate. For more information, see “About Video Format” on page 72.

4. Set the number of Video, Background, and Audio tracks you will

require in your sequence.

5. In the Storage Settings box, make a selection from the Resolution list. Setting it at Full resolution results in large, high-quality media and

cache files. Setting it at Quarter resolution results in smaller, lowerquality media and cache files—see “About Video Quality” on page 75.

On some workstations where the processing power and bandwidth does not allow you to work with HD media at full resolution, you can work in quarter resolution mode to play your effects in real-time. On these workstations, there will be additional options for Quarter Resolution working mode.

6. Set the Bit Depth to be used when capturing your media.

7. Select one of the following options:

- Uncompressed to work with media that is not compressed.

- Compressed to work with compressed media. From the Preferred

Ratio list, select a compression ratio that best suits your needs.

When you are in passthrough mode, all compressions (codecs) may not be available.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

Since Avid DS Nitris supports multiple qualities for your video material, you can select the version of the captured media that you want to use. For more information, see “Understanding Video Quality

Matching” on page 76.

8. Select one of the following options:

- Use the closest media format available if it is not crucial that you

have an exact video media match with your sequence preferences. If Avid DS Nitris cannot find an exact match, it finds and displays the closest alternative.

- Display a “media not available” message if you only want to

work with video media of a specific quality. Avid DS Nitris uses only the media that matches the selected

resolution and compression settings. If it cannot find an exact match for both, a “Media Not Available” message is displayed in the viewer as you playback your clips. This serves as a good indicator when you’ve captured video that does not conform to your sequence preferences.

9. Select a Sample Rate for your sequence. The higher the sampling rate,

the more accurate the audio—see “Understanding Audio Quality

Matching” on page 81.

Audio quality defines the sample rate and bit depth at which an audio signal is captured. You can set the sample rate conversion quality, so that Avid DS Nitris can convert audio material that has a different sample rate than the current sequence. The higher the sample rate, the more accurate the digital representation of the signal. A higher sample rate, however, does use more disk space.

When you place audio clips on the timeline that contain different sampling rates than the current sequence, you are prompted to convert the clip to match the current sequence sampling rate. If you do not convert the clip, you will not have access to the audio media unless you change the sequence preferences.

10. Select a Bit Depth value from the list. The higher the value, the more

precise the audio will be.

Working with Different Qualities of Media

11. Drag the SR Conversion Quality slider in the direction of one of

the following:

- Fast to convert the sample rate quickly, but at a low quality.

- High to preserve quality, but this setting takes longer to convert the

sample rates.

12. Click OK to save your settings.

When working with sequences of custom formats with resolutions that are much greater than the standard video resolution, such as 2000×1500, a minimal amount of system memory (RAM) must be kept available at all times. Otherwise, you may notice significant slowdown when working on your system.

Working with Different Qualities of Media

You can work at full, half, or quarter resolution (HD only), and with compressed media at different ratios. This multi-quality feature lets you balance image quality and system performance during the different phases of your work. The working video settings (compression and resolution) determine the quality at which your media is displayed in the viewer, as well as the quality at which it is processed by Avid DS Nitris. You can change the video settings at any time if you want to display or process media at a different quality.

The video format cannot be changed once you create the sequence.

The quality you choose to work with at any given time depends on the task at hand. Media can use up large amounts of disk space, and the higher the quality of the media, the more disk space is consumed.

If you want to conserve disk space, you can do your rough cut on material captured at low resolution or in compressed form. When your sequence is ready for finishing, you can redigitize a specific clip, so that you can work at the quality at which you will be outputting.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

When you’re ready to output the entire sequence, you only need to redigitize the portions of the master clips actually used in the sequence at full, uncompressed resolution before you output to tape.

If you’re working with only compressed media, you can mix different compression ratios within a sequence. If you’re working with both compressed and uncompressed media, you may encounter circumstances where both cannot be used at the same time within the same sequence.

To change the sequence preferences:

1. Select File > Sequence Preferences.

The settings that you chose for this sequence are displayed.

For descriptions of all the options in this dialog box, click the Help button.

2. In the Processing box, select the Type of processing.

This selection depends on the type of source material that you have—see “Processing in Fields versus Frames” on page 83.

Working with Different Qualities of Media

3. Set the Precision at which you will process the video effects.

4. From the Conversion Mode box, select a mode for Presets and Media. From now on, when you place clips or sequences on the timeline, they

will be converted using the mode you selected—see “Understanding

the Working Conversion Mode” on page 83.

You can still change the conversion mode for an individual clip on the timeline by right-clicking the clip and selecting Properties.

5. Set the video resolution, bit depth, and compression at which you will be capturing your media—see “About Video Quality” on page 75.

6. To change the audio settings, select the Audio tab.

7. From the Sample Rate Conversion box, select the Conversion on Drop option if you want to convert all sample rates imported into your sequence to the sample rate of the current sequence.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

8. Drag the SR Conversion Quality slider in the direction of one of

the following:

- Fast to convert the sample rate quickly, but at a low quality.

- High to preserve quality, but this setting takes longer to convert the

sample rates.

9. Click OK to save the new settings.

Understanding Video Settings

Although Avid DS Nitris automatically sets the industry-standard video size and frame settings for the video format you choose, you may want to read about the various video settings, especially if you intend to work on a custom format.

About Video Format

Video format refers to the size or aspect ratio of a picture frame. Depending on your hardware configuration, you can work in a variety of video formats, such as PAL D1, NTSC D1, 720p, 1080i, 1080p, or other custom formats. When you select a video format (other than Custom), Avid DS Nitris automatically sets the industry-standard video size and frame settings.

Drop Frame versus Non-Drop Frame

Some formats such as NTSC (the standard North American video format), may require a timecode adjustment if you are making a video that has to fill an exact time slot.

NTSC video runs at 29.97 frames per second, and since timecode counts at 30 frames per second, it means that the timecode will gain on actual time at a rate of about 3.6 seconds per hour.

Using non-drop timecode (which runs at 30 frames per second), will gradually differ from actual time. If you use drop frame timecode, however, it will make slight adjustments by skipping frame numbers periodically to keep the timecode synchronized with real time. Depending on your purpose, you may either keep the timecode synced with real time

About Frame Size

Working with Different Qualities of Media

or count the frames exactly. It is important to understand that no frames in the video are actually dropped when you choose drop frame. The video is identical in both cases with only the timecode counter being modified.

The frame size is the dimensions of a picture frame in Avid DS Nitris. These measurements are based on pixels.

About Pixel Ratio

720

486

An NTSC D1 4:3 image by default has a frame size of 720×486 pixels.

A PAL D1 4:3 image, however, has a default frame size of 720×576 pixels.

A 16:9 HD image can have a variety of frame sizes, such as 1920×1080 pixels or 1280×720 pixels.

Aspect ratio is the numerical ratio of picture width to height. The standard aspect ratio for NTSC and PAL video and television is 4:3. For material shot on film or HD, 16:9 is the standard aspect ratio. You can also create non-standard aspect ratios.

Pixel ratio refers to the shape of one pixel. Different video standards have different pixel ratios. NTSC and PAL pixels have ratios of 0.9 and 1.07 respectively, while computer-generated image, typically have square pixels with a ratio of 1.0.

Avid DS Nitris can compensate for different pixel ratios so that a captured image does not appear distorted. When you capture material from file, you must set the file’s pixel ratio, which tells Avid DS Nitris the original state of the material. For example, if you are importing a computer-generated image, set the pixel ratio to 1.0.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

About Field Dominance

Video images are displayed half a frame at a time, where each half, referred to as a field, is comprised of alternate lines of video information (odd and even). The two fields are combined (interlaced) to form one frame.

Even fields

Two fields are interlaced to form one frame

Odd fields

Frames

The order in which odd and even fields occur over time is referred to as field order or field dominance. With even field dominance, even fields come first. In odd field dominance, odd fields come first. With NTSC, the first field contains all the odd numbered scan lines and the second field contains all the even. PAL is the opposite of NTSC in terms of field dominance. That is, field 1 contains all the even-numbered scan lines and field 2 contains all the odd lines.

NTSC, PAL, and HD video material can either be interlaced or progressive, such as 1080i or 1080p. Interlaced video contains two fields, which make up every frame. Progressive video, however, creates full frames by scanning each line sequentially. As a result, field dominance is not an issue. For more information, see “Interlacing versus Progressive

Scanning” on page 7 of the Avid DS Nitris Compositing and

Graphics Guide.

When you need to invert your fields, you can deinterlace your material, then reinterlace and invert the field dominance. You can also deinterlace a clip to display the odd and even fields as separate frames. This is useful

About Color Space

Working with Different Qualities of Media

when retouching clips or creating paint animation and field-based rotoscopy. For more information, see “Applying a Deinterlace Effect” on

page 318 and “Applying an Interlace Effect” on page 321.

Color space determines how the color components of the video signal are stored in Avid DS Nitris. There are three pixel formats available in Avid DS Nitris: YCbCr 4:2:2 (601), YCbCr 4:2:2 (709), and RGBA. Avid DS Nitris converts all imported material to the color space of the sequence. All material imported in RGBA color space uses 32 bits per pixel, even if you did not import the alpha channel. YCbCr 4:2:2 uses 16 bits/pixel and YCbCrA (YCbCr with alpha) 4:2:2 uses 24 bits/pixel.

Cache media, created from processed effects, transitions, or composites, is treated the same way as source media. Some effects, however, require an internal conversion to RGBA. As a result, some banding may occur when you’re working with a YCbCr sequence with these effects. To solve this problem, you can apply the RGB-YCbCr Dither effect. For more information, see “Color Space Adjustment Effect” on page 508 of the Avid DS Nitris Compositing and Graphics Guide.

About Video Quality

Video media quality is determined by three factors:

• Resolution, which is the amount and degree of detail in a video image,

• Compression, which is a technique used to reduce the amount of space necessary to store video data, and

• Bit depth, which is the number of bits used to store information about each pixel of an image.

The resolution you set affects the size of the captured or processed media. The higher the resolution, the better the quality of your media, and the larger the size of the media. Similarly, the higher the bit depth, the more tones (grayscale or color) that are available for storage, and more accurate color representation in the digital image. Higher bit depth also increases file size.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

When you’re performing a rough cut, you can increase throughput and limit storage requirements by working at low resolution. Later on in the editing process, you can use high-resolution media to obtain better results.

Compression is a technique used to reduce the amount of space necessary to store video information. You can compress material at capture time to reduce the size of the media file. High compression is useful when you capture media for your initial edit. This lets you store large amounts of material using the least amount of storage space. Compressed data usually suffers some loss or degradation from the original source. After you’ve done a rough cut, you can purge the compressed media, and recapture the edited material with less or no compression. For more information, see

“Working with Different Qualities of Media” on page 69.

Understanding Video Quality Matching

When you set your video storage sequence preferences, such as the working resolution, bit depth, compression, or sample rate, you defined the quality at which clips are previewed and processed. If a video clip was captured at a different quality than the option set in your sequence preferences, Avid DS Nitris can either:

• Display no media, or

• Use the media which best approximates the resolution, compression ratio, bit depth, or audio sample rate.

Working with Exact Media Matches

Quality matching is different for audio than it is for video—see

“Understanding Audio Quality Matching” on page 81.

If you choose to display only the media that matches your sequence preferences, Avid DS Nitris looks for an exact match when the position

indicator passes over the clip on the timeline.

1. Resolution: Checks if there is media captured or processed at the

specified resolution.

2. Precision: For caches only. Checks if there are two caches processed

with the same precision as the sequence settings.

Working with Different Qualities of Media

3. Aspect ratio: Checks if the aspect ratio matches that of the current

sequence.

4. Frame rates: Verifies that the frame rates are identical.

5. Compression ratio: Checks if there is media captured or processed at

the specified compression. For the purposes of quality matching, uncompressed media has a compression ratio of 1.0.

6. Field dominance: Checks if the field dominances are compatible. For

this criteria, the match does not have to be exact, since some media files, such as stills, can be tagged as having a field dominance of None. The matching criteria works as follows:

Media Quality

Field Dominance Sequence preference

None Even Odd

None

Even

Odd

Ye s N o N o

Ye s Ye s No

Ye s N o Ye s

7. Image formats: Verifies if the following are identical:

-Color space

-Frame size

- Pixel ratio

- Bits per Channel (Number of bits used to encode a channel)

8. Compatible Resolution: Checks if the current hardware settings

support real-time effects in this resolution.

9. Compression type and ratio: Checks if there is media captured with

the same cache and at the same ratio than the sequence settings.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

10. Only caches generated in Exact match mode are accepted in exact match (This restriction does not apply to media).

The checks are done sequentially. If it finds video media that meets all the criteria, then the media is displayed in the viewer. If any one of the criteria fails, then the “Media Not Available” message is displayed in the viewer.

Working with Closest Media Matches

If you choose to display media that is closest to your sequence preferences, Avid DS Nitris first verifies that you have media that matches your frame rate.

In HD sequences, compression is not supported for HD media.

1. Frame rate: Verifies if the frame rate is identical, except for linked

clips. If, after this search, no candidates are found, the “Media Not

Available” message is displayed in the viewer.

If more than one candidate is found, Avid DS Nitris uses the following criteria to determine which media file is a closer match and will be displayed:

2. Captured versus linked media: Captured media is considered a

closer match than linked media.

3. Conversion needs: Media with an image format, size, resolution,

compression, bit depth, or field dominance that does not need to be converted to match the preferences of the current sequence is a closer match than media that needs to be converted.

4. Compression: If the compression type or ratio of the two qualities are different, then a quality match will be based on criteria in the following order:

- its codec type and ratio exactly matches those of the sequence.

- its codec type is the same as the sequence but not its ratio.

- its codec type can be read in real-time by the hardware.

Working with Different Qualities of Media

5. Resolution width: If none of the candidates match the resolution

width of the current sequence, then the media with the greater resolution width is the closest match.

6. Resolution height: If none of the candidates match the resolution

height of the current sequence, then the media with the greater resolution height is the closest match.

7. Image format: Uses the exact or closest match.

8. Aspect ratio: Uses the closest match.

- Width in square pixels: If none of the candidates have the same

width as the current sequence, then the media with the greater width is determined to be a closer match.

- Height in square pixels: If none of the candidates have the same

height as the current sequence, then the media with the greater height is determined to be a closer match.

9. Bit depth: If none of the candidates has the same bit depth as the

current sequence, then the one with the greatest bit depth is the closest match.

10. Processing precision: For caches only. If none of the candidates has

the same precision as the current sequence, then the one with the higher precision is preferred.

Once it finds the candidate that is the closest match, Avid DS Nitris determines if it needs to convert the media to fit into the current sequence. The conversion method is based on the following properties:

1. Image format: If the image format is different than the current

sequence, it will need to be converted.

2. Image size: If the image size is different than the current sequence

size, it will need to be converted.

3. Resolution: If the resolution is different than the current sequence, it

will need to be converted.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

4. Field Dominance: If the field dominance is set to None, then no conversion is needed. Odd and even are incompatible, so a field conversion is required. The following table shows where conversion is required:

Field Dominance Sequence preference

Media Quality

None Even Odd

None

Even

Odd

No No No

No No Yes

No Yes No

5. Compression: If the compression type is not hardware real-time playable, a conversion is needed.

Quality Matching Example

Here’s an example of video quality matching. Your sequence preferences have been set to:

• 4:3 aspect ratio

• Half-resolution

• 4:1 compression

• Use the closest media format available

You have the following media available on disk:

• Quality 1 – 4:3 aspect ratio, half-resolution, uncompressed

• Quality 2 – 4:3 aspect ratio, half-resolution, 2:1 compression

• Quality 3 – 4:3 aspect ratio, half-resolution, 3:1 compression

• Quality 4 – 16:9 aspect ratio, half-resolution, 3:1 compression

Working with Different Qualities of Media

Using the quality matching formula in Avid DS Nitris:

Step Discards Reason

Step 1 None All media segments are at the same resolution.

Step 2 None No match for compression ratio. Keeps all but notes

that the smallest compression ratio will be the closest.

Step 3 Quality 4 Does not match the aspect ratio.

Between Quality 1, 2 and 3, Quality 1 is chosen because it is the least compressed of the three.

Processed media (caches) are also created based on the video resolution and compression settings. The same quality matching method is used to select the quality of the cache during playback.

Understanding Audio Quality Matching

An audio clip can have media at multiple sample rates, just like a video clip can have media at multiple resolutions, compression ratios, or aspect ratios.

With audio, Avid DS Nitris first tries to play media that matches the sample rate set in your audio sequence preferences. If it doesn’t find such media, the audio tracks turn red and you’re prompted to convert the audio media to the sample rate of the current sequence.

If an exact audio media match is found, then that audio media is used. If more than one candidate meets this match, then Avid DS Nitris looks at the following criteria:

1. Captured versus linked media: Captured media is considered a

closer match than linked media.

2. Bit Depth: If none of the candidates match the bit depth, media with a

greater bit depth is the closest match.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

Understanding the Processing Settings

The media resolution, bit depth, compression, or sample rate that you set in your Sequence preferences define the quality at which clips are captured. During processing, you can use these same settings, or you can change them to process the captured media at a different resolution, bit depth, or compression. This is useful if you want to process your effects at a lower quality for preview purposes, and save on processing time. When your sequence is ready for finishing, you can change the settings back to a higher quality and reprocess the effects.

About Bit Depth

Bit depth is used to describe the number of bits used to store information about each pixel of an image. The higher the depth, the more colors that are available for storage and more accurate color representation in the digital image.

In Avid DS Nitris, this is known as the Storage format bit depth, and is used when storing captured media and processed media (caches).

Avid DS Nitris supports 8 or 10-bit storage bit depth for non-Custom sequences, and up to 16 and 32-bit for custom sequences.

Setting the Processing Bit Depth

Effects can be processed at 16 or 32-bit depth. This is known as Precision.

Avid DS Nitris supports 8, 10, 16 or 32-bit media and caches. This Precision can be set for the individual effects that support these levels, or it can be set in your sequence preferences and applied globally to all effects that support these levels. For a list of 16 bit/32 bit float effects, see “Effects

Supporting 16 or 32 Bits (Float) Processing” in the Help.

Although Avid DS Nitris can support higher bit depths during processing, the storage of the caches (for non-Custom sequences) is still done at either 8 or 10-bit depth. Note that, using a higher precision bit depth generates smoother effects during processing, and still produces better quality output even though some quality is lost when storing the cache at the lower bit depth.

Working with Different Qualities of Media

Processing in Fields versus Frames

When applying effects, you must decide whether to apply the effect to each frame or each field. This will usually depend on the type of source material you’re using. Knowing how your source material was created will play a role in determining how to process your effects. If processed incorrectly, you may notice unwanted jittering or unusual artifacts.

• Field to convert the image to fields, which processes each field of your

effects and graphics separately (using different property values if there is animation), and then reconverts the video information to frames to display the results. This option is better for animated effects, such as dissolves, fades, and motion paths.

• Frame processes the entire frame (both fields together) using the same

property values. Use this option with frame-based source material. Static graphics images, 30 fps film, and 30 fps CGI (computergenerated images) are some examples of frame-based material.

Understanding the Working Conversion Mode

Since Avid DS Nitris is resolution independent, you can work with media and sequences with different size and resolutions, all within the same sequence. When dealing with media of different formats, you can specify how Avid DS Nitris should handle the conversion.

There are different situations in which media is converted:

• When media is imported

• When linking to media from within a sequence

• When using media of different formats than the current sequence

When you digitize or import media, it is digitized according to the video sequence preferences or capture settings—see “Understanding Video

Settings” on page 72.

Since the scale/pan settings applied to the media are fixed, you cannot change these settings when you recapture the media.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

In the second and third cases, you’re dealing with how clips are converted when they’re placed on the timeline. The conversion mode you select determines how clips and sequences of different resolutions are displayed when they’re placed on the timeline.

You can set the conversion mode in the Sequence Preferences dialog box.

The clips that are already on the timeline will not be affected. Only clips placed on the timeline after the sequence preferences are changed will be converted.

You can also set the conversion mode for each clip individually using the conversion mode settings in the Clip Properties property page. This overrides the conversion mode in the Sequence Preferences dialog box.

As previously explained, when you place a clip on the timeline which has a different resolution than the current sequence, the image will be converted using the method you set in the Sequence Preferences dialog box.

However, when you place a sequence on the timeline, the conversion becomes a little more complicated, since you may be dealing with various resolutions within that sequence. Avid DS Nitris treats the clips within that sequence as a single unit in order to preserve the relationship between the clips. By doing so, Avid DS Nitris ensures that the ratio between each clip remains the same. Once the clips are grouped together, Avid DS Nitris uses the conversion mode you set in the Sequence Preferences dialog box to convert all the clips as a single unit.

If your clip is converted more than once, it can’t be assigned one of the defined conversion modes. Instead, a separate conversion mode called “Multiple Conversions” is used to specify that the clip has been converted multiple times.

When you insert a sequence within another sequence, you can always override the current sequence preference conversion mode by modifying each clip’s conversion mode individually in the Clip Properties property editor. Only the clip whose conversion mode you modified will be affected. All other clips will remain as they are.

Working with Different Qualities of Media

If you use a sequence that has processed effects within another sequence, the caches will remain valid as long as both sequences have the same settings. If, however, you change the conversion mode, you must process the effects again.

The following table summarizes how each item is converted in Avid DS Nitris:

Items Media conversion treatment

Captured clip Frame size, at the time of capture, is scaled and panned to the

current sequence size

Linked clip Image size is scaled and panned to the current sequence size

Sequence Sequence size is scaled and panned to the current sequence

size

Example

The following is an example of how a sequence, which contains linked images of various resolutions, is converted when inserted into a sequence that has a different resolution.

Sequence A is an NTSC D1 sequence at 720 × 486 resolution. It contains the following images:

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

Image 1: 1440×972 linked image set to Scale to Fit.

Sequence B is a custom sequence at 360 × 243 resolution. The conversion mode in the Sequence Preferences dialog box is set to Center, Keep Original Size. When you place sequence A into sequence B, the following occurs (the original frame size of sequence A is outlined in white):

The clips are grouped together and treated as a single unit. Since image 1 was centered in the original sequence, it will remain centered in the new sequence. Since sequence B has a smaller resolution, the image just fills up more of the viewer. This clip has been converted in both sequences, so its conversion mode will be set to Multiple Conversions.

Image 2: 300×300 linked image set to Keep Original Size and Position.

Image 2 was not centered in the original sequence, so in this sequence, the star gets cut out of the viewer. Since the original linked clip was set to Keep Original Size and Position, it has only been converted once and its conversion mode will be set to that of the current sequence.

Image 3: 1000×1000 linked image set to Center, Keep Original Size.

Since image 3 was centered in the original sequence, it remains centered. Because the circle is so large, it fills the entire viewer. This clip has been converted in both sequences, so its conversion mode will be set to Multiple Conversions.

Working with Different Qualities of Media

If you change the conversion mode in the Sequence Preferences dialog box to Scale to Fit, and place sequence A into sequence B again, the following occurs:

If you compare these images with the images in the original sequence, they will be exactly the same, except smaller. Since the images are grouped together as a sequence, the individual images are not scaled to fit the resolution of the current sequence. Instead, the whole sequence is scaled down to fit the new sequence resolution, which, in this case, produces a smaller version of the original sequence.

You can then go into the Clip Properties property page and change the conversion mode for each clip individually.

When applying a conversion mode to a clip individually, the original sequence settings are ignored and Avid DS Nitris refers back to the original image.

For example, the conversion mode for image 1 was set to Keep Original Size and Position. Notice how the displayed image is the 1440×972 clip. If Avid DS Nitris had referred back to the original sequence, then the clip would have been displayed at 720×486 resolution.

After changing the conversion mode of an individual clip, you can always change it back to its original setting.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

Saving Sequences

When you save a sequence, you are saving the contents of the timeline. Any clips, container clips, transitions, caches, effects, and edit markers are saved with the sequence.

It is good practice to save your sequences at regular intervals, or when you have completed an important part of your work. The first time you save a sequence, all information related to the sequence is saved. However, the next time you save the sequence, only the modifications to the sequence are saved, so it takes less time.

You can also create a crash recovery file for your current sequence at regular intervals. This lets you recover the latest work on your sequence in the event of a system failure. For more information, see “User Preferences

Dialog Box” in the Help.

To save a sequence for the first time:

1. Select File > Save. The Save Sequence dialog box is displayed.

2. Use the Avid Explorer tools to navigate to the folder in which you want to save the sequence.

3. Type in a name for your sequence in the File Name text box and click OK.

The sequence is saved and a sequence icon with the sequence name is displayed in the Avid Explorer. You can now continue editing or close the current sequence, and begin work on a new sequence or project.

To save an existing sequence:

t Select File > Save.

The existing sequence is overwritten.

Creating a Copy of a Sequence

You can save different versions of a sequence in a project folder. If, for example, you’ve been hired to create a series of spots for a client, you create a project that is completely contained in a single folder. Inside that folder, you create a number of subfolders to store elements, such as master clips, presets, mattes, and backgrounds.

Inside that project, you create a sequence for the first spot by dragging clips to the timeline, and saving the sequence in your project folder. For the second spot, make a copy of the sequence calling it “Scene 2 (Take 2)”, and make the necessary adjustments. Continue to do the same for each of the spots.

Saving Sequences

To save a copy of a sequence:

1. Select File > Save As.

2. Type a new name for the sequence. The sequence is saved. You can now make the necessary edits to

this sequence.

Another way to create versions of your sequence is by selecting the sequence in the Avid Explorer, pressing the Ctrl key, and dragging the file to an empty area of the folder. Copying the sequence in the Avid Explorer takes less time than creating a copy with the Save As command.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

Searching for Sequences

Large projects can contain many sequences and even more master clips. Although you can use the Avid Explorer to find a particular sequence or clip, it can be more efficient to search for sequences and master clips using the Clip Search tool.

The Clip Search tool lets you search for master clips or sequences within your current project. You can do searches by source, file name, or file properties. All clips found in the search appear in the clip tray.

To search for sequences or master clips:

1. Select View > Single-Instance Views > Clip Search.

The Clip Search dialog box is displayed.

2. Select the Master Clips and/or Sequences option(s) to search for one,

the other, or both.

Searching for Sequences

3. To search by:

- Source: Select a tape source name or file from the Referencing the

Following Source list and click Go.

- File name: Type the file name in the With Name Containing text

box and click Go.

- File property: Select an attribute from the list, either Contains or

Equals, type the text you are searching for in the text box, and click Go.

The clips and/or sequences found in your search are displayed in the clip tray.

You can only perform a clip or sequence search using one filter option at a time.

Click Help for detailed information on the Clip Search dialog box.

Chapter 2 Working with Sequences

Deleting Sequences

If you no longer require a sequence, you can create an archive of the project in which it resides (see “Archiving Projects” on page 449) or delete the sequence from the project. Be careful when you delete a sequence, because deleting a sequence can also delete media, depending on the option that you choose.

To delete a sequence:

1. In an Avid Explorer bin, right-click a sequence that is not currently open and select one of the following:

- Delete Clip & Unused Media: Deletes the selected sequence and

its associated media if the media is not used by a master clip or another sequence. This option deletes cache media that is used only by the sequence.

-Delete Clip & All Media: Deletes the selected sequence and its

associated media even if the media is used elsewhere. Although this is a quick way to create more disk space on your drive, it can be risky. You should only do this when you’re absolutely sure that you no longer need the sequence’s cache media and master clips.

Selecting the Delete option under the Windows section of the menu or pressing the Delete key deletes the selected sequence but does not delete the associated media.

2. Click Ye s to delete the sequence.

Chapter 3

Building a Rough Cut

This chapter describes how to perform basic editing tasks, such as preparing source clips, arranging clips on the timeline, and synchronizing clips to create a rough cut.

• Workflow: Editing Audio and Video

• Creating Sequences

• Marking In and Out-points on the Timeline

• Displaying Timecodes

• Viewing a Sequence as a Hieracharical Tree Structure

• Playing Sequences

• Manipulating Clips

• Using Locators

• Finding Frames, Clips, and Bins

• Extracting Parts of a Sequence

• Grabbing Frames

• Rippling Clips

• Synchronizing Clips

• Referencing Sequences

Chapter 3 Building a Rough Cut

Workflow: Editing Audio and Video

Editing is the process of assembling audio and video clips on the timeline, creating transitions between these clips, and synchronizing the sound with the images. Because the timeline is an integral part of the editing process, it is found in many of the layouts. The tasks in this chapter focus on the timeline and how to use it with other tools to edit your media.

All editing tasks are based on what you select. Each time you make a selection on the timeline, the Record viewer, timecode boxes, and tool panels are updated to give you information on the selected object.

Workflow: Editing Audio and Video

The following illustration shows how you can build and edit a sequence in Avid DS Nitris.

Locate and prepare media for editing.

Preview and trim your source media in

the Source viewer.

Place clips on the timeline.

Create a rough cut of your sequence by dragging clips to the timeline.

Manipulate clips.

Move, trim, slip, slide, and nest clips on the timeline.

Apply transitions.

Create cuts, wipes, dissolves, crossfades, and DVE-type transitions.

Chapter 3 Building a Rough Cut

Synchronize audio with video.

Synchronize video or audio events by using locators.

Process the sequence.

Process all transitions and container clips in the sequence to play the results in real time.

Click Process button.

Creating Sequences

A sequence is an arrangement of clips on the timeline. It contains information about edit decisions, applied graphics and effects, animation settings, and working preferences.

Before constructing your sequence, it’s important to realize that the edits you make to clips are non-destructive. That is, you’re not actually editing the source media. The clips that you see in the bin and on the timeline are simply references to the media on the disk array.

Creating Sequences

Setting up your sequence involves previewing and editing source clips, and then placing them on the timeline. The quickest way to create your rough cut is to place clips directly on the timeline. You can, however, preview your source clips to set new in and out-points before placing them on the timeline.

You may also want to bring in a project from an offline environment into Avid DS Nitris. You can import an AFE, AAF, Open Media Framework

(OMF

), or Edit Decision List (EDL) file into the Avid Explorer as logged clips, or onto the timeline as a sequence. For more information, see

“Conforming AAF and AFE Files” and “Conforming OMF, EDL, and ALE Files” in the Avid DS Nitris Capture and Output Guide.

Preparing Source Clips for Editing

Before you place a clip on the timeline, you can prepare it in the Source viewer. If a single viewer is displayed, and you drag a clip to the viewer, it changes into a dual viewer that displays the Source and Record viewers. The Source viewer lets you view and edit source clips.

To move a clip to the Source viewer:

t Drag a clip from a bin to the Source viewer.

Bin Source viewer

Clip

Chapter 3 Building a Rough Cut

The source clip is displayed in the Source viewer. The Record viewer displays the frame (if any) at the current location of the position indicator on the timeline. This lets you compare a source clip with the clip on the timeline where it will be inserted.

For more information, see “Source and Record Viewers” in the Help.

Transport controls

Source viewer: Frame at position of position indicator on source clip.

Record viewer: Frame at position of position indicator on timeline.

Each viewer has its own set of controls for manipulating the source clips, timeline clips, or material on an external device. The controls under the Source viewer help you prepare source clips before inserting them on the timeline. You can continuously cue and mark your source material without affecting the sequence.

For an overview of all the controls in the Source viewer, see “Transport

Controls” in the Help.

After marking the appropriate in and out-points on the source clip, use the Record viewer to locate the frame (in your sequence) on which the new clip is to be inserted. You can also decide whether or not to use all the channels of the source clip, and on which track you want to place the clip. For more information, see “Patching Tracks” on page 108.

After the clip has been placed on the timeline, you can continue working in dual viewer mode or use a single viewer to display only the clips on the timeline.

Editing Source Clips

You can place master clips, container clips, or sequences in the Source viewer for previewing. This lets you cue or mark new in and out-points on the source clip, and then insert, overwrite, replace, or fit-to-fill clips on the timeline with it.

Creating Sequences

Position bar

Timecode box

In-point Position indicator

Mark In-point Mark Out-point

To edit a clip for use in your sequence:

Play

Out-point

1. Click Play below the Source viewer to play the source clip.

2. Click one of the following:

t Mark In button when the position indicator reaches the desired in-

point.

t Mark Out button at the desired out-point. t Type a timecode in the I (in) or O (out) timecode box and click the

I or O button.

An in-point or out-point is displayed in the position bar. If you need to adjust these points, drag them to a new location.

3. Click Play again to stop playing the clip.

4. You can now place the clip directly on the timeline—see “Placing Pre-

edited Clips on the Timeline” on page 105.

Chapter 3 Building a Rough Cut

Creating Subclips

Instead of placing the marked clip on the timeline, you can first create a subclip from it. This leaves the original clip untouched while a copy of the original clip with new in and out-points is saved in a bin. The Capture Target option of the Capture Settings dialog box specifies the location for the new subclip, see “Media Capture Settings” in the Help.

Unlike master clips, subclips do not directly reference the original media. Subclips remain linked to the master clips from which they were created, and the master clips in turn reference the digitized media files located on your storage drives. As a result, none of the original footage is lost.

To create a subclip:

1. Verify the target location for the subclip, by doing the following:

a. In the Avid Explorer toolbar, click the Capture Settings button.

b. In the Media Capture panel, verify the Capture Target settings

The Capture Settings dialog box is displayed.

and modify if needed.

100

2. Load a clip in the Source viewer.

3. On the position bar below the Source viewer, reposition the in and/or out-points of a clip.

4. Place the position indicator on the frame you want to display in the bin.

5. Click the Create Subclip button.

6. In the Create Subclip dialog box, type a name for the subclip.

You can use the default name, which is the parent clip name appended with a number, such as RealClip - 001.

7. Click OK. The new clip is created and saved in the target bin.

The source clip maintains its original in and out-points.

Pinnacle Systems DS Nitris - 7.0 Editing Guide

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual

Contents

Using This Guide

Who Should Use This Guide

Symbols and Conventions

Using the Mouse, Pen, and Keyboard

Customizing the Pen or Mouse

If You Need Help

Accessing the Online Documentation

If You Have Documentation Comments

How to Order Documentation

Avid Educational Services

Avid DS Customer Support

E-mail Support

Web Support

FTP Support

Mailing List

Working with Projects

Starting a Work Session

Creating a New Project

Opening an Existing Project

Setting User Preferences

Choosing a Scripting Language

Setting Up the Command Log

Managing Files and Folders

Working with Avid Explorer

Using the Avid Explorer Views

Using the Shortcuts View

Organizing Your Project Folder

Creating or Deleting Folders

Moving Files between Folders

Renaming Project Files

Creating a Standard Folder Structure

Avid DS Nitris Group Folders

Working with Bins

Changing the Bin View

Changing the Frame in Thumbnail and Script View

Identifying File Types

Displaying File Properties

Customizing the Details and Script Views

Saving or Deleting a Bin View

Sorting Files

Sifting Files

Displaying a Sifted or an Unsifted View

Loading and Deleting a Sifted View

Viewing Events

Viewing the Avid Event Log

Viewing the Windows Event Log

Sorting Columns and Events

Working with Sequences

Workflow: Working with Sequences

Opening Sequences

Creating a New Sequence

Opening an Existing Sequence

Importing Sequences and Master Clips from Another Project

Setting Sequence Preferences

Working with Different Qualities of Media

Understanding Video Settings

About Video Format

About Frame Size

About Pixel Ratio

About Field Dominance

About Color Space

About Video Quality

Understanding Video Quality Matching

Working with Exact Media Matches

Working with Closest Media Matches

Understanding Audio Quality Matching

Understanding the Processing Settings

About Bit Depth

Processing in Fields versus Frames

Understanding the Working Conversion Mode

Saving Sequences

Creating a Copy of a Sequence

Searching for Sequences

Deleting Sequences

Building a Rough Cut