Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
The panel where almost everything video-related happens is called the Timeline
panel. Most video editors are based on this same idea, because it's a very visual
way to put together a movie. You build your movie from left to right, just like you
would a slide show, where the first thumbnail is the first slide, then the one to the
right of that is the second, and so on. Same thing with video, except, of course,
that the thumbnails are videos. Take two minutes now to learn the Timeline panel
and its basic controls, and it'll make your video editing life a lot easier.
Working with Video
Step One:
You play, rewind, and fast-for ward your
video in Photoshop just like you would in
any other video player (using the standard
Rewind [Go to Previous Frame], Play, and
Fast-Forward [Go to Next Frame] icons).
However, there is a “rewind to the begin-
ning” icon (it's actually the Go to First
Frame icon) that you'll wind up using
quite a bit (it's the first icon, just to the left
of Rewind).
The Go to First Frame icon takes you back to the very beginning
Step Two:
Now, click on the down-facing arrow in
the top right of the Timeline panel, and
from the flyout menu, choose
Enable
Timeline Shortcut Keys
to turn on your
shortcuts for the panel. There's a great
shortcut you can use to play your video:
just hit the
Spacebar
on your keyboard.
It starts (and then stops) your video. To
jump to the beginning of the individual
clip that is curently selected, press the
Up Arrow key
on your keyboard. To
jump to the end of that clip, press the
Down Arrow key
.
Pressing the Up Arrow key jumps the playhead back to the beginning of the
selected clip. The Down Arrow key jumps you to the end
TIP: Put Your Playhead at Any Spot
To move your playhead to any spot you
want it in the timeline, just click once up
at the top of the timeline, right on where
the seconds are listed, and your playhead
immediately jumps to that spot.
