In Blackbird, you can create motion effects like slowing down or speeding up a clip directly on the timeline using the trim mode. Here's how to do it:
- Start by selecting the clip in the timeline that you want to apply the motion effect to. This clip can be part of the sequence, on its own layer, or placed anywhere on the timeline.
- Hover over the transition point between clips to invoke the trim mode. You will see the left, center, and right trim icons. By continuously holding the Shift key, the trim mode toggles to a motion effect trim mode, denoted by the trim symbol with an arrow.
- Work with the outgoing shot or any desired portion of the clip. Drag the trim while holding the Shift key to invoke the motion effect trim mode. In this example, let's double the length of the clip to effectively slow it down by 50 percent.
- As you perform the trim, the slow-mo/fast mode dialog will give you a readout of the precise speed adjustments interactively.
- On the timeline, you will see two lines representing the clip: the top line represents the full duration of the edit side clip, and the bottom line represents the source frames used to create the time-affected clip.
- You can use the same method to speed up a clip by adjusting the trim differently.
- If you want to trim a clip back to its normal frame rate, watch the motion effect trim dialog to ensure you return to the original speed.
- Keep in mind that since the audio tracks were enabled during the trim, the sound speed was adjusted as well. If this is undesirable, make sure to disable the audio tracks when trimming or delete them after the edit is made.
In the next tutorial, you will learn how to create a speed adjustment while easily match-framing to the same shot at the original speed.