A group of "Slip Clip Selection" and "Slide Clip Selection" commands and shortcuts are found in Premiere Elements 4 through 11 (Windows)* under Edit Menu/Keyboard Customization/Windows/Timeline. There is no Slip nor Slide Clip Tool anywhere to be found in the editor workspace of the programs, just these commands and shortcuts tucked away under the Keyboard Customization lists.
ISSUE
First thoughts were "What are Slip Clip Selection and Slide Clip Selection and what are they supposed to be doing when and if put into use? In researching the topic, Premiere Pro was found to have Slip and Slide Edit features which included:
- Commands and keyboard shortcuts similar to those found in Premiere Elements for "Slip Clip Selection" and "Slide Clip Selection"
- Slip and Slide tools associated with a monitor display to assist during these edits. (Features not found in Premiere Elements.)
SOLUTION
Based on online research** and some hands on work with Premiere Elements, the following was pieced together
Preface
In Premiere Elements, when a clip is trimmed (a piece split out from the whole) in the Preview Window with its Set In/Set Out points or when the trimming is done at the Timeline level with the use of the Scissors, the piece split from the whole still contains the trimmed out portions of the clip, but they are hidden. This is supported by the fact that, when the trimmed clip is placed on the Timeline, the mouse cursor can be used to drag out the edges of that clip to recover the whole video there. These hidden pieces of the trimmed clip are referred to as clip handles. Depending on the trim, these handles can be on the right and/or left edges of the trimmed clip.
Slide Edits
In the case of the Slide Edit, 3 video clips side by side are involved. In this instance, it is the clip to the left of the middle clip and the clip to the right of the middle clip that must be trimmed (that is, have handles). In this scenario, the middle clip moves to the right or left over, trimming the clip to its left or to its right by the number of frames involved in the middle clip movement. The end result is the whole middle clip moved in time with its duration unchanged, but the adjacent clips are lengthened or shortened depending on the direction of the middle clip movement. But, the total duration of the trio is unchanged. Key points:
- 3 video clip setup; the clips to the right and left of the middle clip require handles
- moves middle clip over to right or left, trimming the clip to its left or to its right by the number of frames involved in the middle clip movement
- changes duration of clip to right and left of middle clip, not the middle clip; total duration of the trio remain the same.
Slip Edits
In the case of the Slip Edit, typically there are 3 video clips side by side on the Timeline, with the middle one trimmed on both edges and selected. For that middle trimmed clip, envision from left to right, x frames hidden (left handle), In point representing the beginning frame of the visible portion of the trimmed clip, the Out point representing the end frame of the visible portion of the trimmed clip, and then x frames (right handle).
With use of the Slip Selection commands and keyboard shortcuts, the frames in the middle clip are shifted 1 or 5 frames to the left or right within its duration, un-hiding prior split out footage in the clip trimming process. This represents a change in the clip's starting frame and end frame without changing its duration or the duration of the clips next to it on its right or left. Key points:
- 3 video clip setup, must have handles on both sides of the middle clip
- shifts middle clip's In and Out points by the same number of frames in a single action
- changes the In and Out points of the middle trimmed clip, but does not affect its duration or position in the group of 3 side by side files; before versus after effect is that after shows a different portion of the middle clip than before. The individual and total duration of the trio remain the same.
HOW TO
Table 1 presents the Premiere Elements 11/Windows* commands and keyboard shortcuts for carrying out the Slide and Slip Edits in its program. These same working commands and keyboard shortcuts can also be found in Premiere Elements 4, 7, 8.0/8.0.1, 9.0/9.0.1, and 10 as well as 11. The Premiere Pro CC/CS6 counterparts are also shown there.
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| Table 1. Premiere Elements 11. Slide And Slip Edits Commands And Keyboard Shortcuts With Comparison To Those For Premiere Pro. |
The Premiere Elements 11 keyboard shortcuts worked as described in SOLUTION. So, we are OK on the Premiere Elements 11 side of things. But, there were questions on the Premiere Pro side with regard to the accuracy of the Premiere Pro keyboard shortcuts cited for these commands. It was interesting to note:
- The Premiere Elements 11 SLIP and the Premiere Pro SLIP keyboard shortcuts for "Slip Clip Selection Left Five Frames" and "Slip Clip Selection Right Five Frames" are the same and behaved the same in each program.
- However, the Premiere Pro SLIP shortcuts for "Slip Clip Selection Left One Frame" and "Slip Clip Selection Right One Frame" corresponded to the Premiere Elements 11's SLIDE commands for "Slide Clip Selection Left Five Frames" and "Slide Clip Selection Right Five Frames" respectively.
- The Premiere Pro SLIP keyboard shortcuts for "Slip Clip Selection Left One Frame" and "Slip Clip Selection Right One Frame" in actual Premiere Pro testing appeared to be "Ctrl+Alt+Left" and "Ctrl+Alt+Right" instead of "Alt+Shift+Left" and "Alt+Shift+Right" respectively.
- The Premiere Pro SLIDE keyboard shortcuts did not function properly if tried in Premiere Elements 11. They did move the middle clip of a trio but left gaps. These gaps were also seen in Premiere Pro if the published SLIDE keyboard shortcuts were used instead of its built in Slide tool. Since the focus is always Premiere Elements, this Premiere Pro gap behavior was not explored further.
COMMENTARY
This was my first encounter with Slip and Slide Edits. And, these are my initial observations on this topic. Lots more to learn and verify. It was an interesting concept that I would not have run into if I were not exploring the Premiere Elements 11 Edit Menu/Keyboard Customization/Windows list of keyboard shortcuts and wondered "What are these?" when I saw the Slide and Slip commands and keyboard shortcuts.
Most of the background information on these Edits in general came from the Pro Help resources. Yet Premiere Elements 4, 7, 8.0/8.0.1, 9.0/9.0.1, 10, and 11 have these Slip and Slide Edits commands and keyboard shortcuts which seem to me to provide useful "advanced" editing opportunities.
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*Premiere Elements Mac counterparts for these Premiere Elements Windows commands and keyboard shortcuts were not explored since there was no access to a Mac computer for this study.
**http://helpx.adobe.com/premiere-pro/using/trimming-clips1.html
http://www.adobepress.com/articles/article.asp?p=1660201&seqNum=2
http://documentation.apple.com/en/finalcutpro/usermanual/index.html#chapter=44%26section=2%26tasks=true
ATR
