Timeline Reference
Use these settings to help you navigate and perform tasks on the timeline. You can also right-click anywhere on the timeline to display a context menu of relevant operations for the type of element selected.
Navigation
Positioner
The “playhead” for playing the clip, displayed as a vertical yellow bar. The frame directly beneath the positioner is displayed in the Player or is the current location for an edit such as a dissolve or cut.
In the timecode area below the tracks, a lighter yellow box attached to the positioner indicates the length of the current frame, at the timeline zoom level. Click and drag this yellow box to move the positioner, so as not to accidentally move clips on the timeline.
Focus point
A horizontal yellow line on the positioner indicating the current track.
Back button
Click to move back one page in the timeline window.
Horizontal scroll bar
To pan, drag left or right. To zoom the timeline, drag up or down.
Forward button
Click to move forward one page in the timeline window.
Current Timecode field
Displays the timecode of the current timeline position. This field displays timecode or frame number depending on the selection in the Time Display Mode box located in User Interface preferences.
Current Frame field
Displays the frame number of the current timeline position. This field displays timecode or frame number depending on the selection in the Time Display Mode box located in User Interface preferences.
- button
Click to expand track height.
+ button
Click to decrease track height.
Vertical scroll bar
To pan, drag up or down. To zoom the timeline, drag left or right.
Vertical Zoom
Timeline Search button
Open the Find and Select in Timeline window to search the timeline using many different criteria.
Timeline Layout combo box
Select an option to display the timeline.
| Select: | To: |
|---|---|
| Home | Reset the view of the timeline. |
| Reset Height | Reset the height of the tracks in the timeline. |
| Fit to Width | Reset the horizontal scale of the timeline. |
| Fit Selection | Centre the timeline on the selected element. |
Colour Management
The Edit Colour Space option from the Timeline context menu allows you to modify the Pre-processing options of all the currently selected sources. This tool does not affect Sequences, only sources.
Tool Mode button
Choose whether to convert your media into a different colour space or only tag them.
Tagged Colour Space menu
Choose the colour space to tag your media with (this does not modify pixel values, but it does affect how viewports display your media).
Input Colour Space menu
Select the source colour space of your media. "From Source" uses the the currently tagged colour space, which allows you to easily convert a set of clips in various colour spaces to a common working space.
Working Colour Space menu
Select the destination colour space of your media. Set the Working Space first in order to filter the list of Input Colour Spaces to only show the compatible options. "From Project" takes the value from the Colour Management Preferences.
Get Colour Space From Selection button
The tool starts with the colour space setting that was last used. Click this button to initialize with the colour space of your primary selection.
Rendering
Rendering option
Select an option to render timeline effects. You can edit effects after rendering.
| Select: | To: |
|---|---|
| Render Selection | Render the selected elements. |
| Render | Render to topmost track in the timeline. |
| Full Resolution | Render at full resolution, regardless of the current working resolution. |
| Proxy | Render proxies only, not the corresponding high-resolution images. An amber outline appears on the timeline segment to indicate the state of the rendering. Available if proxies are selected during the setup of a project. |
| Full Resolution and Proxy | Render at bot full and proxy resolution. |
| Include Handles | Select to take the heads & tails into account when rendering. |
Other options appear to set the rendering mode for the selected option if you are using Burn or Background Reactor.
Depending on how a clip is rendered, you can see a visual representation on the render bar at the top of the clip on the timeline:
| Render Bar: | State: |
|---|---|
 | Unrendered. |
 | Rendered. |
 | Partially rendered. |
 | Proxy rendered. |
 | Proxy partially rendered. |
 | Sent to Burn or Background Reactor. |
| | Sent to Burn. |
Scene Detection
Scene Detect button
Click to start the scene detection process on the selected segment(s). Scene detection starts as soon as the button is clicked.
Threshold slider
Drag to set the Scene Detection Threshold. With a lower the threshold, small changes in a shot is enough to trigger a splice. With a higher threshold, the changes must be more pronounced in order to trigger a splice.
Edit button
Click to enable editing of the generated Scene Detection data.
Edit Mode menu
Select the Edit mode you want to use to edit the generated Scene Detection data. Options are Delete, Add and Move.
Reset button
Click to reset the Scene Detection curve to its default state.
Apply button
Click to apply the Scene Detection data to the elected segment(s).
Viewing
Timeline View Mode box
Select a viewing mode for working in the timeline.
| Select: | To Display: |
|---|---|
| Timeline | Video and audio tracks in a timeline format with a positioner at the location of the current frame (press Shift+F5 to toggle between a larger timeline view and the normal timeline view). |
| Collapsed | Only the current frame of each edit sequence. The edit sequence appears in the form of a stack. Shuttle through the sequence by dragging the cursor across the bottom of the frame. |
| Head-Tail | The first and last frames of each clip. Shuttle through the sequence by dragging the cursor across the bottom of any frame. |
| Storyboard | Only the first frame of each clip in the edit sequence. Shuttle through the sequence by dragging the cursor across the bottom of any frame. |
| Frames | Every frame in the edit sequence is displayed. Although you cannot edit in this mode, it is useful for viewing your entire edit. |
| History | A schematic or list representation of the majority of operations performed on a clip or timeline element. |
| Clip List | A list of objects and information about these objects that make up the timeline. |
Timeline Tasks
Timeline Gear menu
Select a task to perform on the timeline. Some of the options have sub-menus with more options.
| Select: | To: |
|---|---|
| New Tracks and Versions | Add new tracks or versions to the timeline. |
| Edit | Perform various element or timeline editing operations. |
| Rename | Rename the selected timeline element. |
| Rename Track | Rename the selected track. |
| Media | Options to flush renders, and to break the link between an element's metadata and media or high-resolution media. |
| Select All | Select all elements in the timeline. |
| Deselect All | Deselect all elements in the timeline. |
| Container | Work with containers on the timeline. |
| Group | Create an edit sync group for selected timeline elements. |
| Go To | Navigate to various areas of the sequence. |
| Marks | Work with In and Out, Cue, or Segment markers. |
| Stereo | Work with stereo tracks on the timeline. |
| Cut | Add a cut to the selected element at the positioner location. |
| Cut All Tracks | Add a cut to all tracks at the positioner location. |
| Merge Tracks | Merge timeline tracks into a single track. |
| Swap Effects | Copy timeline effects between clips. |
| Lift | Remove the selected element from the edit sequence, and leave a gap in its place. |
| Ripple Delete | Remove the selected element from the edit sequence, and close the gap. |
| Close Gap | Remove a gap and collapse the elements to fill the gap. |
| Commit | Options to manage your timeline to simplify or save space. See Timeline Media Management Options. |
| Hard Commit | Commit an edit sequence to one continuous clip (also called a mixdown). Soft properties of the sequence such as transitions, head and tail frames, and timewarp data are removed. |
| Render | Manage render options for the timeline. |
Other Options
Timeline Options menu
Select an option for working on the timeline.
There are a number of audio options in this menu:
| Select: | To: |
|---|---|
| Scrub Audio | Enable scrubbing audio while dragging the positioner. |
| Show Gain Animation | Display the animatable Segment Gain level. |
| Show Timeline Audio Meters | Display mini audio meters to the right of the timeline. Audio Meters are displayed only if the current clip or sequence has at least one audio track. |
| Show Waveforms With Effects | Display waveforms after an effect is applied to an audio segment. |
| Show Waveforms Without Effects | Display waveforms before an effect is applied to an audio segment. |
| Hide Waveforms | Not display waveforms. |
| Increase Waveform Range | Zoom in on the waveform. |
| Decrease Waveform Range | Zoom out on the waveform. |
Use the Rectangle Selection options to select how timeline elements are included in a selection when drawing a bounding box around them.
| Choose: | To select: |
|---|---|
| Inclusive | All elements that are partially or entirely included in the bounding box. |
| Partial | Only the portions of the elements that fall within the bounding box. Audio is selected on a sub-frame basis if Sub-frame Positioner is selected in the Timeline section of the Preferences menu. |
| Partial A/V | Only the portions of the elements that fall within the bounding box. Audio is selected on a frame basis even if Sub-frame Positioner is selected in the Timeline section of the Preferences menu. |
| Bounded | Only elements that are fully in the bounding box. |
Enable Selection Includes Gaps to include empty gaps when performing a timeline selection.
Enable Selection Includes Locked Tracks to allow you select a Timeline segment even if is resides on a locked track.
Enable one or both snap options to include in the timeline snap criteria:
- Snap To Positioner on Gestural Insert
- Snap Includes Marks
Enable Focus on Trim if you want the timeline positioner to snap to the transition while trimming, allowing you to view frames in the player.