Build a native clip edit with target tracks, razor/add-edit, ripple delete, slip/roll/slide, crossfades, markers, snapping, playback rate, and audio controls.
Where: Native Video Editor → Edit.
Key ideas
- NLE operations preserve source intent: Move and trim change timeline placement; Slip changes which source frames appear without moving the strip; Roll moves the shared cut; Slide moves a clip while adjusting its neighbors.
- Track state governs edits: Video and audio tracks can be added, targeted, enabled/muted, and locked. Destructive strip edits apply only to eligible tracks and a current target prevents accidental placement elsewhere.
- Transitions live at edit boundaries: Crossfades connect adjacent clips and expose kind, start/end placement, and frame duration. They are timeline relationships, not a baked effect on the underlying source.
Steps
- Switch to Edit and add the video/audio tracks the sequence needs.
- Target the destination track, place sources at the playhead, and use filmstrips/waveforms to verify their content.
- Use Select for moves and trims; enable snapping when aligning to the playhead, markers, or edit points.
- Press Cmd/Ctrl+K or use Add edit at playhead for a cut across eligible material; use Razor for pointed cuts.
- Choose Slip, Roll, or Slide for the corresponding editorial change and watch adjacent boundaries as you drag.
- Use Delete for a gap-preserving removal or Ripple delete when later material should close the removed interval.
- Add a crossfade at a valid adjacent boundary; choose Equal power or Linear and tune its duration/placement.
- Select a clip and adjust playback rate, preserve pitch, audio gain/balance, or fades in Properties.
- Add sequence markers and define the work area, then play from before the edit and inspect audio continuity.
Edit tools
- Select
- Hand
- Razor
- Slip
- Roll
- Slide
- Add edit at playhead
- Delete
- Ripple delete
- Link/unlink related clips
Navigation and range keys
- Left/Right — one frame; Shift multiplies the step
- Up/Down — previous/next edit point
- B or I — work-area In; N or O — work-area Out
- I/O on selected layers in Composite instead set layer in/out, so check the workspace
- M — sequence marker
- Cmd/Ctrl++ and Cmd/Ctrl+- — timeline zoom
Tips
- Play across each edit, not only from its first frame; rhythm and audio discontinuities are temporal.
- Lock finished tracks before broad ripple operations.
Limitations and important notes
- A transition requires a valid neighboring edit and enough media handles.
- Preserve pitch changes audio processing but cannot repair every extreme speed change.
- Overwrite placement can replace occupied timeline material on the target track.
Troubleshooting
Ripple delete did not close every gap.
Check locked/disabled tracks and whether the intended strip was on an eligible target track.
Crossfade cannot be added or is shorter than expected.
Move or trim the adjacent clips so both sides of the boundary have usable source handles.