 Marker
Tutorial - "End of Day" |
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This
intermediate-level tutorial uses Markers and Zoom transitions
in MediaWorks Author to create a captivating 30-second movie
of photos perfectly synchronized to the beat of the music.
To
complete this tutorial, you should be familiar with the basic
features of MediaWorks Author: Scene Navigation menu, accessing
and selecting timebars in the Sequencer window, import features
(drag and drop or the Object-Import menu) and how to play and
stop a scene.
The
Marker Tutorial content consists of one 30-second music track
and 34 photos. The concepts learned here can apply to any number
of images and any length of music. Try it out first using the
content available here. Then, experiment using your own photos
and music. As you will see in the completed movie, using music
with a distinct beat is most effective. This technique is also
very complimentary to less-than-perfect photos. Have fun!
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View the Completed
Marker Tutorial Movie
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Photography
© 2006 Spitfire Productions. Music "Slam" ©
2006 SmartSound,
Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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Step-by-Step
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1.
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Download
and decompress the Marker
Tutorial content (9
mb .zip)  
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2.
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Launch
MediaWorks Author and create a New Project/New Scene. |
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3.
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Increase
the Frames/Second to 30 (Scene Attributes dialog) and set the
Document Size to 720 x 480 (File > Document Size). This size
is appropriate for DV export. |
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4.
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Add
a background photo to the scene:
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a)
Select Background from the Scene Navigation menu (lower left
corner of the Project Window).
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b)
Open the Marker_Tutorial folder and drag the image named "lajolla_001.jpg"
into the Project Window. This image becomes the master background
for the movie.
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c)
Select Scene-1 from the Scene Navigation menu (return to Scene
edit mode).
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5.
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Open
the Marker_Tutorial folder and drag the music file named "Slam.mp3"
onto the Project Window. |
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6.
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Play
the Scene two or three times to familiarize yourself with the
music (30 seconds). Pay attention to the distinctly strong rhythmic
points in time. It helps to tap your foot to the beats. |
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7.
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Save
the Project with the name of your choice. e.g. "End of
Day"
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8.
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Set
Markers:
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a)
Locate the CONTROL and M keys on your keyboard. This key combination
sets the Markers.
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b)
Play the Scene and wait until the triplets of strong beats
occur (at about 4 seconds).
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c)
Hold the CONTROL-Key and press M at each beat of the triplets.
At the end, the beats "spread out" so at the end,
try to add Markers to the first beat of the ending few measures.
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d)
When completed, open the Sequencer Window. The
results should look similar to figure
1.
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TIP:
It may take a few times to get it just right. If you make a mistake,
press the Escape-Key, select File > Revert to Saved, and try
again. |
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9.
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Open
the Sequencer Window and with the blue arrow at 00:00:00, press
the M button to set a Marker at the very beginning of the Scene.
This marker sets when the first image appears. |
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10.
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Save
the Project. |
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11.
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Open
the Markers_Tutorial folder, drag-select all the images (lajolla_001
to lajolla_034) and drag them into the Project Window. Don't drag
in the music track again, it's already in the project! |
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Open
the Sequencer Window and choose Edit > Select All. |
| 12. |
Deselect
the music track by holding the Shift-Key and clicking on the music's
timebar. This leaves all the images selected. |
| 13. |
Hold
the Shift-Key and press the Auto-Sequence button. This sequences
all the selected images to the Markers. The results should look
similar to figure
2. |
| 14. |
Play
the Scene. You may notice a few of the final images are the same.
Now it's time for some fun with transitions. |
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| Fun
with Transitions |
| 15. |
Open
the Sequencer window and expand the window to full screen. |
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Hold
the Shift-Key and click on each timebar coinciding with the 3rd
beat of the triplet. e.g. the longer timebars. Also include the
three timebars at the end in the selections. Don't select the
last image timebar. |
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Choose Object > Transitions and select the Zoom transition.
Set the transition duration to 00:00:33 (third of a second). Select
the Ending transition radio button. Select Zoom and set the duration
to 00:00:33. Click OK. |
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Play the Scene.
TIP:
In the completed example movie we removed the ending transitions
on the last four images. As noted in Step 16, the final image
has no transitions; all to acheive a more interesting visual
effect.
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| Additional
Options |
| 19. |
Add
an opening title. With the Project window in the front, click
the T tool on the Tools palette.
Enter a title "End of Day". Set the font size, color,
shadow, and location within the Scene as desired. |
| 20. |
Open
the Sequencer Window and stretch the Text-1 timebar to match the
length of the 1st image. |
| 21. |
Add
an ending title by dragging the blue arrow to the start time of
the final image. Enter the ending title "A Good Day".
Set the font size, color, shadow, and location within the Scene
as desired. |
| 22. |
To
match the final picture and ending title to the ending of the
movie, open the Sequencer Window and select both the last image
timebar and the Text-2 timebar. Click the Extend To End button
(sideways T). |
| 23. |
Save
the project. |
| 24. |
To
save the Scene for creating a DVD, choose Scene > Export >
DV File... Give the file a name and once exported, create a DVD
using your favorite DVD Authoring program. |
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