Avid Media Composer Tips
Contents
Trim Mode
- Unwanted zoomed image in Trim Mode
- Command-click the image until size is restored [1]
Script Integration
- Adding takes with resets to your script bin:
- add the take to the script bin spanning the relevant lines of the script
- add a script mark that starts on first action
- add a second script mark where action ends (before the first reset action begins)
- add the same take to the script bin in the same manner as you would add a second take
- add a script mark that starts on second action
- add a second script mark where second action ends (before the third reset action begins)
- repeat until there are no more resets to add
- select the take lines in the script and select Script > ScriptSync
- in the dialog box select "sync between first and last mark"
- (this will contain the ScriptSync phonetic-indexing analysis to the portions of takes between the "action" and "cut" script marks you entered above, each time you added the same take)
- in the dialog box select "sync between first and last mark"
- that is all -- you're done [2]
- add the take to the script bin spanning the relevant lines of the script
- mouse scrolling with shift-command scrolls the script page left-right
- highlight text in the script bin and option dragging will make a copy of that text
Time Warp
- Time Warp can be embedded in a clip by applying Auto-Sync [3]
Codecs
- to install the DNxHD codecs use MediaComposerLegacyComponents.
Keyboard
- holding Command key while scrolling mouse wheel in script bin scrolls page to page rather than line to line
Graphics
- Applying Matte Key effects settings to other Matte Key clips
- "Option+drag the effect icon from the effect editor to a bin, and then option+drag that effect from the bin on to the existing matte key that you’d like to change. With matte keys, option+drag creates an effect without the key source, but copies over all parameter settings (like shadows.)" [4]
Import
- Batch re-importing doesn't delete the old media. [5]
Export
- to overcome the 2GB AAF file size limit, check the "AAF Edit Protocol" box in the AAF Export Settings. [6]
- Color Scaling settings for same as source DNxHD export:
- "Keep as Legal Range" if going into Resolve
- "Scale from Legal Range to Full Range" if viewing only in QuickTime Player
- blacks will appear milky in Resolve if "Scale from Legal Range" used [7]
Download
- link to Avid Download Center[8]
Timeline
- subsequent presses of the "enter" key after entering a +/- timecode in the Composer window will continue to advance/decrement the cursor by the entered numeric amount [9]
- the "f" key toggles the Composer timecode entry between frames and hh:mm:ss:ff [10]
- Top and Tail buttons [11]
- Resume Trim: Option-U [12]
- to unlock all tracks in a sequence, select all tracks, then go to menu Clip / Unlock Tracks
- dragging a segment with SHIFT+ALT+COMMAND to another part of the timeline will duplicate that segment [13]
- Tracks appear in the wrong numeric order
- Solution: drag the tracks into the right order and then save that as a new timeline setting
- Remember track selection when re-loading clip into source monitor
- "uncheck the "auto_enable_source_tracks" under composer_settings/edit" [14]
- "The only way NOT to select filler is if you hold OPT and click on the SELECT ALL FORWARD or SELECT ALL BEHIND commands." [15]
Media
- option-dragging a clip from Finder/Explorer into a bin brings the media in as AMA linked. [16]
- Console command to link media over network
- IOT0.tio files on your media drive -- they are left over by PathDiag application and are safe to delete later [19]
- Use Source Browser to relink AMA clips [20]
Bug workarounds
- If command-' is moving your Timeline window to the wrong monitor, quit Avid and delete the Settings.xml file in your project and restart Avid.
- to rebuild Marker Frames if they change to wrong image just create a new video track
Audio
- To fit audio within a specific length and keep the pitch the same use the TimeShift AudioSuite plugin. [21]
- Audio Hardware Calibration window is accessible within the Calibration window, within the Hardware tab of the Audio Project Settings. [22]
- Use Dny3 Compressor/Limiter[23] and EQ3 7-Band audio plugins to improve dialog intelligibility. [24]
- in order for external USB microphone (like Blue Snowball) to appear and be able to capture audio in Avid, do a hardware disable of I/O device (like BlackMagic Intensity Pro) using the button along the top of the timeline
- To bring up the Add Track dialog box, press option-command-U. This will allow you to pick what number the track should be.
- delete all audio dissolves in sequence: "Park on a dissolve, go into effects editor, lasso all the dissolves, hit delete." [25]
Bins
- The new Set Default Bin View option in the Bin Settings window allows you to set a default bin view when creating a new bin.
- Right click and select Source Settings to apply a LUT to a clip. Right click the sequence and select Refresh to apply colour change to clips in sequence.
- bin filter text box filters based on column selected [26]
Effects
- To change the direction of a Horizontal Wipe, set the first keyframe to to 100 and the last keyframe to 0. [27]
ISIS Storage
- Use Firefox for the ISIS Management Console as Chrome will never save the option to Always Allow Flash. [28]
Crashes
- If Avid will not open and just crashes and startup:
- Go to Users / Shared / AvidMediaComposer then delete the Avid FatalErrorReports folder [29]
References
- ↑ https://community.avid.com/forums/p/31399/918012.aspx
- ↑ https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxyme-tremblay-94165499/
- ↑ http://community.avid.com/forums/p/197791/885952.aspx#885952
- ↑ https://community.avid.com/forums/p/134210/764286.aspx#764286
- ↑ https://forums.creativecow.net/thread/45/896673#906400
- ↑ John Nicholls
- ↑ Redlab
- ↑ Eddie Retamal, Pivotal Post
- ↑ Craig Webster
- ↑ Craig Webster
- ↑ How to do a Quick Trim - Top & Tail in Avid Media Composer
- ↑ Option+U. It resumes a previous complicated asymmetrical trim from where you left off.
- ↑ https://community.avid.com/forums/p/97828/859615.aspx#859615
- ↑ https://community.avid.com/forums/t/120111.aspx
- ↑ https://community.avid.com/forums/p/132963/758275.aspx#758275
- ↑ Louis Casado
- ↑ Louis Casado
- ↑ https://community.avid.com/forums/t/60999.aspx
- ↑ Lupe Avina, Pivotal Post
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1_yIZzM1JE
- ↑ http://c2.avid.com/blogs/training/archive/2008/01/28/time-shift-audio-plug-in.aspx
- ↑ http://avid.force.com/pkb/articles/en_US/user_guide/en272751
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mORT3YSmeA
- ↑ Christopher Minns
- ↑ https://community.avid.com/forums/p/62367/381810.aspx#381810
- ↑ file:///Applications/Avid%20Media%20Composer/Help/MCHelp.html#page/Help%2FBins.20.59.html
- ↑ https://community.avid.com/forums/t/128021.aspx
- ↑ ISIS management console broken in latest chrome update
- ↑ https://community.avid.com/forums/p/205871/922479.aspx#922479