Splice Now

The traditional way to make a freeze frame in Media Composer is with the Freeze Frame menu pick. You park on a frame in the source monitor, match back till you’re looking at a master clip, then select Clip > Freeze Frame and choose a length. This generates a clip of the frozen frame and media for it. You can then cut it anywhere you want.

But there’s an easier way — using the Timewarp effect. Instead of creating a clip in the source monitor, you apply the effect in the timeline and make a speed adjustment from 100% to 0%. The trick is to specify your keyframe type — to create an instantaneous change rather than a ramp.

First, identify the frame to freeze and add a locator so you can find it easily. Then drag the Timewarp effect to the clip, park on it, open the Motion Effect Editor, and display the Speed Graph.

Move the position indicator to your frame and add a keyframe. Then —  and this is the crucial step — right-click on the speed graph and select “Shelf.”

Enter a speed for your new keyframe — 0%. The result is a speed graph with a hard right angle at your keyframe — an instantaneous change from normal speed (100%) to a frozen frame (0%).

That’s all there is to it. Keep in mind that this is a real-time effect. It typically won’t require rendering, and you can overlay other effects on top of it. Because it’s real-time, it’s easy to change. If you prefer a different frame, just open the Motion Effect Editor and move your keyframe. (To ensure that you don’t change the speed, hold down Option and Shift while you drag.)

For more tips like this, check out my book Avid Agility, available at Amazon.

This entry was posted on August 14, 2011 at 12:50 pm and is filed under Avid, Avid Technical Tips. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. You can comment below, or link to this permanent URL from your own site.