Six Tips for MediaStudio Pro Washington DC

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Originally published at Internet.com

Is Ulead MediaStudio Pro your editing weapon of choice? Then we're here to help you get more out of it.

To discover the best tips, tricks, and timesavers for the trusted professional editing program, we went straight to the source. Corel manager Tobie Openshaw tapped his years of shooting and editing experience to provide us with these six tips. 1. Keep Track of What's on Your Tapes
Keeping track of what's on your tapes is always a problem. Remember to label your tapes clearly (usually a keyword and number is best, i.e. "Windsurfing 001"), and use the DV Scan function to scan your tapes and generate thumbnail lists that you can save. Openshaw prints them out and keeps them in a folder for easy reference when looking for a specific shot or event years later.

2. Smart Editing for Multicam Productions
If shooting a wedding or event with two or more cameras, you can speed up postproduction with these tips: * Roll all the cameras, then fire a flash from a flash camera in a position where they can all see you. You can even aim the flash at a wall or reflective object that is visible to all the cameras. * When you've captured the video and put the tracks on the timeline, it's easy to line up the frames with the flash in them. Then your shots will all be in sync up to the point where any one camera was turned off (so it's best to keep all the cameras running throughout the shoot). * Apply a motion path to each clip to create a ¼-screen display. Put Track 1 bottom left, Track 2 bottom right, Track 3 Top Right, and so on. Now, when you play back the video you can watch all the angles simultaneously and decide on the fly which shaky part to cut and which key part to keep. * Once you've made your rough cut, simply delete the motion path and the shots will fill the screen and follow each other. You can then drag them down to the same track with overlap to create transitions as needed.

3. Use Smart Compositor Attributes Throughout your Project
If you used the Smart Compositor to create a killer opening sequence, remember that when you're creating segues between sections of your video you can select a clip from the Smart Compositor, right click on it and choose Copy, and then go to your segue clip and right click on it and choose Paste Attributes. By doing this, you'll have a consistent mask/motion path and filter effect throughout your project.

4. Don't Forget Image Editing Software
MediaStudio Pro shouldn't be the only tool in your toolbox. An image editor like Ulead PhotoImpact allows you to create titles, logos, and lower-third graphics with alpha channel transparency. You can insert these directly into the timeline and animate them with motion path effects.

5. Match Positions in a Dissolve
MediaStudio Pro's method of creating automatic dissolves on overlaps-so that two moving objects seem to be dissolving one into the other-makes achieving this effect easy. Position the scrub line on the first clip at the spot where the object you want is in the desired position. Leave the scrub line where it is and drag the second clip over the first. Slip the dissolve back and forth until the points match, and monitor your results in the Preview window.

6. Don't Suffer in Silence
If you're not sure how to achieve an effect, don't spend hours on trial and error. Instead, visit the MediaStudio Pro Users Group and ask for help. You'll find many knowledgeable people there who are happy to help. Another essential resource is Charlie Hills's book Getting Results with MediaStudio Pro. You can also visit his Web site here.