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Applying transitions to clips

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Previewing available transitions

You can access available transitions in the Transitions panel (click Transitions on the Action bar).

Quick view: All the available transitions appear as thumbnails in the Transitions panel. The Quick view contains a subset of the transitions available in the Expert view.

Expert view: The transitions are organized into categories. You can narrow a search for transitions by choosing a transition type, such as Dissolve, from the Category menu. You can also search for a transition by typing its name in the search box. The Expert view has more transitions compared to the Quick view.

Video transitions have animated thumbnail previews that show how they affect clips. Select a transition to set its thumbnail in motion. You can preview an animated thumbnail transition in the Transition panel without having to apply it to a clip.

Note:

Adobe Premiere Elements includes two audio transitions in the Crossfade category: Constant Power and Constant Gain. Though both provide fades, they differ slightly. Constant Power creates a smoother-sounding fade, while Constant Gain, though mathematically linear, often sounds abrupt.

In the Quick view or the Expert view, click Transitions on the Action bar. The Transitions panel appears.
Click the thumbnail for any video transition to set it in motion.

Specify a default transition

The default transition is used in slide shows you create and files you import from Adobe® Photoshop® Elements. It is also used in motion backgrounds you create for DVD menus. The default transitions are Cross Dissolve for video or still images and Constant Power for audio. However, you can change these defaults.

In the Quick view or the Expert view, click Transitions on the Action bar. The Transitions panel appears.
Right-click/ctrl-click the transition you want to be the default and choose Set Selected As Default Transition. (A gray outline marks the icon of the default transition.)

Apply transitions in the Quick view timeline

In the Quick view timeline, drop zones (indicated by vertical green lines) appear the moment you drag a transition. The drop zones let you easily apply transitions between clips.

Apply a double-sided transition in the Quick view timeline

In the Quick view, click Transitions on the Action bar. The Transitions panel is displayed.
Drag a transition from the Transitions panel to the drop zone between two clips in the Quick view timeline. An icon of the transition appears on the right and left bottom corners of the clip to indicate it has been applied. In addition, the Transition contextual control is displayed.
(Optional) Modify the properties of the clip, for example duration. Click More to further customize the transition and preview your changes.

Apply a single-sided transition in the Quick view timeline

In the Quick view, click Transitions on the Action bar. The Transitions panel is displayed.
From the Transitions panel, select the transition you want to apply.
Do one of the following:
- If any one side of the clip has nothing adjacent to it, drag the transition to the transition rectangle on that side of the clip.
- If the clip is adjacent to another clip, drag the transition to the desired edge of the clip. In the Transitions contextual control set Alignment as Left Clip, Between Clips, or Right Clip.

Apply transitions in the Expert view timeline

When applying transitions to the Expert view timeline, you can choose from alignment options, Left Clip, Between Clips, or Right Clip.

Apply a double-sided transition in the Expert view timeline

To apply a transition between two clips in the Expert view timeline the clips must be on the same track, with no space between them.

If a double‑sided transition must use repeated frames (rather than trimmed frames), the transition icon contains additional diagonal lines. The lines span the area where it has used the repeated frames.

In the Expert view, click Transitions on the Action bar. The Transitions panel appears.
From the Transitions panel select the category containing the transition you want to apply.
Drag the transition from the Transitions panel to the cut between two clips in the Expert view timeline, and release the mouse button when one of the following alignment icons appears:

Start At Cut transitionStart At Cut

Aligns the beginning of the transition to the beginning of the second clip.

Center At Cut transitionCenter At Cut

Centers the transition over the cut.

End At Cut transitionEnd At Cut

Aligns the end of the transition to the end of the first clip.

Note:

Pressing Ctrl while dragging a transition lets you select Start At Cut, Center At Cut, or End At Cut by slowly dragging the transition left and right over the cut.

Apply a single-sided transition in the Expert view timeline

When you create a single‑sided transition, whatever is below the transition in the Expert view timeline appears in the transparent portion of the transition. For example, If you want the clip to transition to black, it must be on Track 1 or have no clips beneath it. If the clip is on a track above another clip, the clip on the lower track appears in the transition, so the transition will appear to be double‑sided.

In the Expert view, click Transitions on the Action bar. The Transitions panel appears.
From the Transitions panel select the category containing the transition you want to apply.
Do one of the following:
- If the clip has no adjacent clip to one side of it, drag the transition from the Transitions panel to the edge of the clip.
- If the clip is adjacent to another clip, Ctrl‑drag the transition to the edge of the desired clip.

Apply a default transition in the Expert view timeline

Do one of the following:
- To select non-consecutive clips, Shift-click each clip.
- To select consecutive clips, click in the Project Assets panel, and drag a marquee around the selected clips.
- To select all the clips, press Ctrl-A.
Right-click/ctrl-click the selected clips, and select Apply Default Transition Along CTI.
Select one of the following options:
- Audio
- Video

The transition is applied to all the selected clips.

To apply default transitions between multiple contiguous clips on the same track:

Ctrl-click the clips to which you want to add the default transition.
Right-click/ctrl-click one of the selected clips.
Select Apply Default Transition.

The transition is applied at the cut between each of the contiguous clips.

Replace a transition

You can replace a transition by simply dropping a new transition onto the old one in the Quick view or the Expert view timeline. When you replace a transition, Premiere Elements maintains the alignment and duration of the original transition; however, it discards the settings of the original transition and instead uses the default settings of the new transition.

In the Quick view/Expert view, click Transitions on the Action bar. The Transitions panel appears.
From the Transitions panel, select the transition you will use to replace the previous one.
Drag the transition onto the transition in the Expert view timeline or Quick view timeline.

Preview applied transitions

You can preview transitions you’ve applied from either the Transitions contextual control or the Monitor panel. The Transitions contextual control provides a preview area where you can display thumbnails of the actual clips or the default thumbnails (the letters A and B). Adjust your transitions in the Transitions contextual control and preview the transitions as you make adjustments.

Note:

If you have a digital camcorder, you probably can connect it to both your computer and TV to see real‑time previews on the TV monitor. This gives you a better sense of how the transition will look in the finished movie.

Preview transitions in the Monitor panel

In the Quick view timeline or the Expert view timeline, move the current-time indicator to the left of the transition, and then click the Play button in the Monitor panel.

Note:

To preview a particular frame of the transition in the Monitor panel, drag the current‑time indicator to the desired frame.

View transitions in the Quick view timeline and Expert view timeline

In the Quick view timeline, a transition appears as a rectangle on the clips. In the Expert view timeline, a transition appears just above the cut between two clips, or just above the In or Out point of a single clip.