Ripple, roll, slip and slide trims in Video by Zaweba
Use the ripple, rolling, slip, slide and rate stretch tools in Video by Zaweba, with the keys for each and the shortcuts that nudge or extend an edit point.
Precise trimming is where editing turns from assembly into craft, because a cut that lands two frames late feels wrong even when nobody can say why. Video by Zaweba has the full set of trim tools found in professional editors, each on its own key, so you can switch between them without reaching for a menu.
Each one changes a cut in a different way. Learning which to use when saves you from fixing one problem and creating another further down the timeline.
The tools and their keys
Select is on V and is the general purpose tool. Razor is on C and splits a clip where you click. The trim tools are slip on Y, rate stretch on R, ripple edit on B, rolling edit on N and slide on U. Track select forward and backward are on A and Shift+A, which select everything on a track from where you click onwards or backwards, handy for moving a whole section along to make room.
Ripple and roll
A ripple edit changes one side of a cut and moves everything after it. Make an outgoing shot two seconds longer with ripple and the rest of the film shifts two seconds later. Nothing is overwritten and no gap appears. Use it while you are shaping the rhythm of a sequence.
A rolling edit moves the cut point itself. The outgoing shot gets longer and the incoming shot gets shorter by the same amount (or the other way round), so the total length does not change and nothing else on the timeline moves. Use it when the length of the scene is right but the cut is a few frames early or late.
Slip, slide and rate stretch
Slip changes what part of a clip you see without moving the clip or changing its length. The clip keeps its place on the timeline, but you shift the source footage inside it earlier or later. It is the tool for a shot that is the right length in the right place but starts a moment too soon.
Slide keeps the clip's content and length but moves it along the timeline, trimming the neighbours on each side to compensate. The clip slides between them, and the overall length stays the same.
Rate stretch changes a clip's length by changing its speed. Drag an edge and the clip plays faster to fit a shorter space or slower to fill a longer one, without losing any of its content. It is the drag and drop cousin of Fit to fill from the source monitor.
Working with edit points
Click a clip's edge to select that edit point. From there the keyboard does the fine work. Alt+arrow nudges the edit one frame; add Shift to nudge five frames. E extends the selected edit to the playhead, so you can park the playhead on the exact frame you want and pull the cut to it. Q and W ripple trim the previous or next edit to the playhead, which is a fast way to take the top or tail off a clip while you watch.
Linked sound trims with its picture, so dialogue stays in step. Every trim is one undo step, and trims are limited by the media: you cannot extend a clip past the end of what was recorded.
Picking the right tool
Ask what should stay fixed. If the rest of the timeline should move, ripple. If the overall length should stay but the cut should move, roll. If the clip's place and length are right but the content is wrong, slip. If the content is right but the clip is in the wrong spot between two others, slide. If the clip must fill a different length, rate stretch.
For finer control, the trim monitor shows both sides of a cut side by side and lets you play the trim as you make it. That is covered in a separate guide, along with the trim settings that set the size of a large trim.
When a trim fights back
Rippling on a timeline with music cut to picture will pull everything after the edit out of step with the beat. Use roll when the music has to stay put. And watch for a trim that will not go further: when it stops, you have reached the end of the recorded media, and Video by Zaweba is telling you there are no more frames to use.
