Provided by: openshot-qt_3.1.1+dfsg1-1_all 
NAME
openshot-qt - OpenShot Video Editor Documentation
OpenShot Video Editor is an award-winning, open-source video editor, available on Linux,
Mac, Chrome OS, and Windows. OpenShot can create stunning videos, films, and animations
with an easy-to-use interface and rich set of features. [image]
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Introduction
OpenShot Video Editor is an award-winning, open-source video editor, available on Linux,
Mac, and Windows. OpenShot can create stunning videos, films, and animations with an
easy-to-use interface and rich feature-set. [image]
Features
• Free & open-source (licensed under GPLv3)
• Cross-platform (Linux, OS X, Chrome OS, and Windows)
• Easy-to-use user interface (designed for beginners, built-in tutorial)
• Supports most video, audio, & image formats (based on FFmpeg)
• Includes popular video profiles & presets (over 70+ profiles, including YouTube HD)
• Advanced timeline (including drag and drop, scrolling, panning, zooming, and snapping)
• Advanced clips (including trimming, alpha, scaling, location, rotation, and shearing)
• Real-time preview (multi-threaded, and optimized for performance)
• Simple & advanced views (or customize your own unique view)
• Powerful, curve-based Keyframe animations (linear, Bézier, and constant interpolation)
• Compositing, image overlays, watermarks, & transparency
• Unlimited tracks / layers (support for complex projects)
• Video transitions, masks, & wipes (grayscale images and animated masks)
• Video & audio effects (including brightness, gamma, hue, chroma key / blue screen, and
more)
• Image sequences & 2D animations (001.png, 002.png, 003.png, etc…)
• Blender 3D integration (animated 3D title templates)
• Vector file support & editing (SVG / scalable vector graphics used for titles and
credits)
• Audio mixing, waveform, & editing
• Emojis (open-source stickers & artwork included)
• Frame accuracy (step through each frame of video)
• Time mapping & speed changes (slow/fast, forward/backward)
• Advanced AI (motion tracking, object detection, & stabilization effects)
• Credits & captions (scrolling and animated)
• Hardware accelerated (encoding & decoding supports NVIDIA, AMD, Intel and more)
• Import & export (EDL and Final Cut Pro formats, supports most video editors)
• Desktop integration (drag and drop from file managers)
• JSON project format (compatible with OpenShot Cloud API for cloud-based automation)
• Customizable keyboard shortcuts
• Translations (available in 100+ languages)
• Community support (Join our community to ask questions and discuss topics)
• Professional support: Schedule a call
Screenshot
[image]
System Requirements
Video editing benefits from modern, multi-core CPUs with fast clock speeds (GHz), large
amounts of memory, and fast hard disk drives. Basically, you want the best computer you
can afford when video editing. Here are the minimum system requirements:
TL;DR
Most computers manufactured after 2017 will run OpenShot
Minimum Specifications
• 64-bit Operating System (Linux, OS X, Chrome OS, Windows 7/8/10/11)
•
Multi-core processor with 64-bit support
• Minimum cores: 2 (recommended: 6+ cores)
• Minimum threads: 4 (recommended: 6+ threads)
• Minimum turbo clock speed: 2.7 Ghz (recommended: 3.4+ Ghz)
• 4GB of RAM (16+ GB recommended)
• 1 GB of hard-disk space for installation & usage (recommended: 50+ GB available
hard-disk space for media, videos, images, and storage)
• Optional: Solid-state drive (SSD), if utilizing disk-caching add an additional 10GB of
hard-disk space
License
OpenShot Video Editor is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the
terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation,
either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
OpenShot Video Editor is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY
WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.
Installation
The latest stable version of OpenShot Video Editor for Linux, Mac, Chrome OS, and Windows
can be downloaded from the official download page at https://www.openshot.org/download/.
You can find our latest unstable versions (i.e. daily builds) at
https://www.openshot.org/download#daily (these versions are updated very frequently, and
often contain many improvements not yet released in our stable build).
Windows (Installer)
Download the Windows installer from the official download page (the download page contains
both 64-bit and 32-bit versions), double click it, and follow the directions on screen.
Once completed, OpenShot will be installed and available in your Start menu. [image]
[image]
Windows (Portable)
If you need to install OpenShot on Windows without Administrator permissions, we also
support a portable installation process. Download the Windows installer from the official
download page, open the command prompt, and type the following commands:
Install portable version of OpenShot (no administrator permissions required)
cd C:\Users\USER\Downloads\
OpenShot-v2.6.1-x86_64.exe /portable=1 /currentuser /noicons
[image]
Mac
Download the DMG file from the official download page, double click it, and then drag the
OpenShot application icon into your Applications shortcut. This is very similar to how
most Mac applications are installed. Now launch OpenShot from Launchpad or Applications in
Finder. [image]
Linux (AppImage)
Most Linux distributions have a version of OpenShot in their software repositories, which
can be installed using your package manager / software store. However, these packaged
versions are often very outdated (be sure to check the version number: Help→About
OpenShot). For this reason, we recommend installing an AppImage from the official download
page.
Once downloaded, right click on the AppImage, choose Properties, and mark the file as
Executable. Finally, double click the AppImage to launch OpenShot. If double clicking
does not launch OpenShot, you can also right click on the AppImage, and choose Execute or
Run. For a detailed guide on installing our AppImage and creating a launcher for it, see
our AppImage Installation Guide. [image]
Linux (PPA)
For Debian-based Linux distributions (Ubuntu, Mint, etc…), we also have a PPA (Personal
Package Archive), which adds our official OpenShot software repository to your package
manager, making it possible to install our latest version, without relying on our
AppImages.
Stable PPA (Contains only official releases)
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:openshot.developers/ppa
sudo apt update
sudo apt install openshot-qt python3-openshot
Daily PPA (Highly experimental and unstable, for testers)
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:openshot.developers/libopenshot-daily
sudo apt update
sudo apt install openshot-qt python3-openshot
Chrome OS (Chromebook)
Chrome OS supports Linux apps, but this feature is off by default. You can turn it on in
Settings. Once Linux is enabled, you can install and run OpenShot Linux AppImages on any
x86-based Chromebook. The command below will download our AppImage and configure your
system to run OpenShot successfully.
• Navigate to chrome://os-settings/crostini (Copy/Paste)
• Under “Linux (Beta)” select “Turn On”. Default values are fine.
•
When the Terminal appears (i.e. black window), Copy/Paste the following command:
• bash <(wget -O - http://openshot.org/files/chromeos/install-stable.sh)
Quick Tutorial
Using OpenShot is very easy, and this tutorial will take you through the basics in under 5
minutes. After this tutorial, you will be able to make a simple photo slide-show with
music.
Basic Terminology
To help understand the steps below, here are some definitions of a few basic terms used in
this tutorial.
┌───────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Term │ Description │
├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Project │ A project includes references to │
│ │ all the video files and edits │
│ │ (animations, titles, etc…), │
│ │ saved in a single file. │
├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Timeline │ The timeline is an editing user │
│ │ interface that represents edits │
│ │ and clips on a horizontal ruler. │
│ │ Time progresses from left to │
│ │ right. │
├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Track │ A separate layer on the │
│ │ timeline, which can hold clips. │
│ │ A timeline is made up of many │
│ │ tracks, stacked vertically. │
├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Clip │ A trimmed portion of video, │
│ │ audio, or both positioned on a │
│ │ track, and at a specific │
│ │ position in time. When files are │
│ │ dropped on the timeline, they │
│ │ are represented as a Clip. │
├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Transition │ A method to blend two images. │
│ │ Transitions can take many forms, │
│ │ including cuts, dissolves, and │
│ │ wipes. │
└───────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Video Tutorials
If you prefer to learn by watching videos instead of reading, we have many official video
tutorials that cover a wide range of beginner and introductory topics. These videos are a
great next step on your way to master OpenShot Video Editor!
• Video: Getting Started
• Video: The Basics (Part 1)
• Video: The Basics (Part 2)
• Video: Basic Animation
• Video: Trim, Slice, and Split
• Video: Chroma Key
• Video: Masks & Transitions
• Video: Backup & Recovery
Step 1 – Import Photos & Music
Before we can begin making a video, we need to import media files into OpenShot. Most
video, image and music file formats will work. Drag and drop a few videos or images and a
music file from your Desktop to OpenShot. Be sure to drop the files where the arrow in the
illustration is pointing to. [image]
Alternative methods to add files to your projects are described in the section Import
Files. The “Show All”, “Video”, “Audio”, “Image” filters above the added files allows you
to only see the file types you are interested in.
Step 2 – Add Photos to Timeline
Next, drag each video or photo onto a track in the timeline (as seen in the illustration).
The timeline represents your final video, so arrange your photos (i.e. clips) in whatever
sequence you want them to appear in your video. If you overlap two clips, OpenShot will
automatically create a smooth fade between them, displayed by blue rounded rectangles
between the clips. Remember, you can rearrange the clips as many times as needed by simply
dragging and dropping them.
You can also shorten or lengthen each clip, by clicking the left or right edge and
dragging your mouse. For example, if you want a photo to last longer than 10 seconds (the
default duration), simply grab the right edge of the photo (on the timeline), and drag it
to the right (to increase the clip’s duration on the timeline). [image]
Step 3 – Add Music to Timeline
To make our creation more interesting, we need to add some music. Click on the music file
that you imported in step 1, and drag it onto the timeline. If the song is too long, grab
the right edge of your music clip, and resize it smaller (that will make it end earlier).
You could also insert the same file multiple times, if your music is too short. [image]
Step 4 – Preview your Project
To preview what our video looks & sounds like, click the Play button under the preview
window. You can also pause, rewind, and fast-forward your video project by clicking the
corresponding buttons. [image]
Step 5 – Export your Video
Once you have edited your photo slide-show video, the last step is to export the project.
Exporting converts your OpenShot project into a single video output file. By using the
default settings, the video works on most media players (such as VLC) or websites (such as
YouTube, Vimeo, …).
Click on the Export Video icon at the top of the screen (or use the File→Export Video
menu). The default values will work fine, so just click the Export Video button to render
your new video. [image]
Conclusion
You should now have a basic understanding of how OpenShot works. Importing, Arranging,
Previewing, and Exporting. Hopefully this tutorial took less than 5 minutes for you to
complete. Please read the rest of this guide for a more detailed understanding of OpenShot
and its advanced features.
If you have any questions after reading this User Guide, please consider joining our
Reddit User Community to discuss topics, ask questions, and meet with other OpenShot
users.
Video Editing Basics
You do not need to be a trained videographer to understand how to create videos well.
Simple editing can keep your viewers engaged longer, and add a professional feel, even if
you are not a professional video editor.
Basically, video editing is taking footage, cutting it up, removing the pieces you do not
want, and keeping the bits you do. Back in the old days, editing was slicing reels of film
and piecing it together. Thankfully software makes the whole process much more manageable.
There are three main jobs of video editing:
1. Remove mistakes or unwanted sections
2. Keep the video moving at an engaging pace
3. Insert supporting footage, audio, or titles
Use these three points as a checklist as you edit.
Computer
Video editing does not require an expensive machine, especially if you are a beginner. It
would be best if you had a decent monitor and graphics card. If you have an older
computer, check your system specifications against OpenShot’s System Requirements to make
sure it works for video editing. Unfortunately, many older computers are not fast enough
for video editing, and you should upgrade your whole system, if possible.
Accessories
Before beginning a video project, ensure there is enough storage space on your computer to
save all the necessary clips. For example, one hour of 1080i video, such as from a mini-DV
camcorder, takes up nearly 11 GB of storage. If your computer’s internal storage device
cannot store all the clips, the solution is to buy an external drive.
It would help if you had several cables, usually Firewire or USB, to connect your
computer, external hard drive, and a camera. Different computers and cameras accept other
connectors, so check your manuals before buying anything.
Practical Tips
Becoming a great video editor isn’t effortless, but with practice and patience, you’ll be
editing like a professional in no time. Here are a few of the essential tips and
techniques you need to know to become a skilled video editor.
1.
Pick the Right Computer
While having a great computer won’t necessarily make you a great video editor,
a faster computer will allow you to focus more of your time on the story you’re
trying to tell rather than your computer rendering. Everyone has their own
opinions about what computer is best for editing, but it all depends on your
own preferences.
2.
Keep Shooting
Record more video that you think you will need for your project. Include video
that enhances the scene, sets a mood, or tells a story. You can use the extra
video for smooth transitions in your project. If you are comfortable using
multiple devices, use two devices simultaneously the insert video from either
device into your project.
3.
Organize Your Project Files
Composition is the key to success, whether you are running Linux, on a Mac, or
a Windows machine. Be sure to label video files, audio files, and even still
images clearly and keep all your clips on the same device and in the same
folder for easy access. OpenShot tries to keep up with your clips, but if you
move them after your project is saved, you could lose your entire project.
Organizing before you begin editing can be very advantageous.
4.
Watch Everything
Watching everything is the first step in the editing process. Writer and
filmmaker David Andrew Stoler says there is gold in the most unlikely of
places: “Some of the most beautiful expressions you’re going to get from the
actors are after the cut.”
5.
Edit for a Story
Remember that as you edit, you are telling a story. Editing is so much more
than merely cutting footage and adding effects. It is an opportunity to take
your audience on a journey. Whether you are editing a complex narrative film or
only putting together a personal video, you tell a more in-depth story.
6.
Keyboard Shortcuts
One of the easiest ways to tell the difference between and professional video
editor and a novice is to simply look at how much they use the keyboard.
Editors that have been in the business for some time know that a few seconds
saved add up over the length of the project.
7.
Learn the Lingo
Video editing is not just a hobby or a profession; it is an industry. And just
like any industry, there is a ton of jargon to learn. Practically speaking, you
do not need to know all the terms on the Glossary to become a better video
editor, but a fundamental knowledge of the terms may help you communicate
better with other video editors or clients.
8.
Assemble, Then Make a Rough Cut
Drag and drop all your video footage into a timeline and make sure your frame
size and frame rates are consistent. Begin a new timeline and drag-and-drop the
best clips into what becomes your assembly cut. Remember to save your work
frequently, and notate the date and time of each version.
9.
Refine Your Video
In this phase, your rough cut begins to resemble a cohesive project. Adjust
the sound and color, make sure the dialog is audible, and add music, titles, or
graphics in this phase. Color correction is the process of setting your footage
to a color baseline. No matter how great your subject looks on set, you will
almost always need to do some basic post-processing for a consistent video.
10.
Refine Some More
A slow scene can set the mood and add tension or it can bore an audience. A
fast scene can add adrenaline to your audience’s systems or it can give them
headaches. Some editors cut their projects several different ways before they
find the right pace. Do not let cutting your project several times discourage
you.
Exporting
People view most of their projects on phones, tablets, or computers, so it is essential to
know how to export for the web. The goal when exporting a video for the web is to create
the highest quality possible with the smallest file size. Four main factors determine the
file size of your finished video:
•
Codec: A codec determines the type of file format (MP4, AVI, MOV). The more compression
performed by the codec, the smaller your video’s size. Videos that are smaller in
file size tend to be lower in visual quality.
•
Resolution:
Resolution refers to the number of horizontal and vertical pixels (dots on
display) your video contains. For example, a 4K UHD (2160P) video has four times
the resolution of FHD (1080P) video. A higher resolution means more information
to store so that you will have larger file sizes.
•
Bit Rate:
The Bit Rate is the measure of the speed of data processing of your video. A
higher bit rate means higher-quality video and larger files. OpenShot allows you
to manually set the Bit Rate / Quality in the Advanced tab of the Export Video
window.
•
Frame Rate:
The frequency (in Hz) at which consecutive images, called frames, appear on the
display is the Frame Rate. Typically, you export your video in the film standard
(24fps) or the TV broadcast standard of 30fps (or 25fps in PAL). While there is
not much wiggle room here, you should note that if you decide to export your
video in 48fps, 50fps, or 60fps, your file size doubles.
Main Window
OpenShot Video Editor has one main window which contains most of the information, buttons,
and menus needed to edit your video project.
Overview
[image]
┌───┬───────────────────┬──────────────────────────┐
│# │ Name │ Description │
├───┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│1 │ Main Toolbar │ Contains buttons to │
│ │ │ open, save, and export │
│ │ │ your video project. │
├───┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│2 │ Function Tabs │ Switch between Project │
│ │ │ Files, Transitions, │
│ │ │ Effects, and Emojis. │
├───┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│3 │ Project Files │ All audio, video, and │
│ │ │ image files that have │
│ │ │ been imported into your │
│ │ │ project. │
├───┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│4 │ Preview Window │ This is the area that │
│ │ │ the video will playback │
│ │ │ on the screen. │
├───┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│5 │ Edit Toolbar │ This toolbar contains │
│ │ │ buttons used for │
│ │ │ snapping, inserting │
│ │ │ markers, slicing razor, │
│ │ │ and jumping between │
│ │ │ markers. │
├───┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│6 │ Zoom Slider │ This slider will adjust │
│ │ │ the time-scale of your │
│ │ │ timeline. Drag the left │
│ │ │ or right edge to zoom in │
│ │ │ or out. Drag the blue │
│ │ │ area to scroll the │
│ │ │ timeline left or right. │
│ │ │ Clips and transitions │
│ │ │ are displayed as simple │
│ │ │ rectangles, to give you │
│ │ │ context for adjusting │
│ │ │ the zoom to specific │
│ │ │ clips. │
└───┴───────────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
│7 │ Play-head / Ruler │ The ruler shows the │
│ │ │ time-scale, and the red │
│ │ │ line is the play-head. │
│ │ │ The play-head represents │
│ │ │ the current playback │
│ │ │ position. Hold Shift key │
│ │ │ while dragging the │
│ │ │ playhead to snap to │
│ │ │ nearby clips. │
├───┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│8 │ Timeline │ The timeline visualizes │
│ │ │ your video project, and │
│ │ │ each clip and transition │
│ │ │ in your project. You can │
│ │ │ drag the mouse to │
│ │ │ select, move, or delete │
│ │ │ multiple items. │
├───┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│9 │ Filter │ Filter the list of items │
│ │ │ shown (project files, │
│ │ │ transitions, effects, │
│ │ │ and emojis) by using │
│ │ │ these buttons and filter │
│ │ │ textbox. Enter a few │
│ │ │ letters of what you are │
│ │ │ looking for, and the │
│ │ │ results will be shown. │
├───┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│10 │ Playback │ Left to Right: Jump to │
│ │ │ Start, Rewind, │
│ │ │ Play/Pause, Fast │
│ │ │ Forward, and Jump to End │
└───┴───────────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
For step-by-step instructions on the basic usage of OpenShot, be sure to read the Quick
Tutorial.
Built-in Tutorial
When you first launch OpenShot, you will be presented with a friendly built-in tutorial.
It will demonstrate and explain the basics. Clicking Next will jump to the next topic. You
can always view this tutorial again from the Help→Tutorial menu. [image]
Tracks & Layers
OpenShot uses tracks to layer videos and images. The top most track is the top layer, and
the bottom track is the bottom layer. If you are familiar with layers in a photo editing
application, then you should be quite familiar with this concept. OpenShot will stack the
layers and mix each one together, just like a photo editing application. You can have an
unlimited number of tracks, but typically a simple video project will not need more than 5
tracks.
For example, imagine a 3 track video project [image]
┌──┬──────────────┬──────────────────────────┐
│# │ Name │ Description │
├──┼──────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│1 │ Top Track │ Clips on this track will │
│ │ │ always be on top and │
│ │ │ visible. Often │
│ │ │ watermarks and titles │
│ │ │ are placed on higher │
│ │ │ tracks. │
├──┼──────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│2 │ Middle Track │ Clips in the middle │
│ │ │ (might or might not be │
│ │ │ visible, depending on │
│ │ │ what is above them) │
└──┴──────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
│3 │ Bottom Track │ Clips on this track will │
│ │ │ always be on the bottom. │
│ │ │ Often audio clips are │
│ │ │ placed on lower tracks. │
└──┴──────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
Keyboard Shortcuts
Here is a list of the default keyboard shortcuts supported by OpenShot. You can configure
these shortcuts in the Preferences window, which is opened by selecting Edit→Preferences
from the OpenShot menu bar. (On macOS, choose OpenShot Video Editor→Preferences.)
Learning a few of these shortcuts can save you a bunch of time!
┌───────────────────┬─────────────────────────────────┐
│Shortcut │ Action │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+H │ About OpenShot │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+M │ Add Marker │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Shift+T │ Add Track │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+W │ Add to Timeline │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+B │ Animated Title │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Up │ Center on Playhead │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+P │ Choose Profile │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Shift+ESC │ Clear All Cache │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+C │ Copy │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Delete │ Delete Item │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Backspace │ Delete Item (Alternate 1) │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+D │ Details View │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Shift+C │ Duplicate Title │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Not Set │ Edit Title │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+E │ Export Video │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│L │ Fast Forward │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│F11 │ Fullscreen │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+F │ Import Files… │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Shift+E │ Insert Keyframe │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+End │ Jump To End │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Home │ Jump To Start │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+N │ New Project │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Right │ Next Frame │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Right │ Next Marker │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Shift+Left │ Nudge left │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Shift+Right │ Nudge right │
└───────────────────┴─────────────────────────────────┘
│Ctrl+O │ Open Project… │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+V │ Paste │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Space │ Play/Pause Toggle │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Up │ Play/Pause Toggle (Alternate 1) │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Down │ Play/Pause Toggle (Alternate 2) │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│K │ Play/Pause Toggle (Alternate 3) │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Shift+P │ Preferences │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Left │ Previous Frame │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Left │ Previous Marker │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+I │ Properties │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Q │ Quit │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Y │ Redo │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│J │ Rewind │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Not Set │ Save Current Frame │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+S │ Save Project │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Shift+S │ Save Project As… │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+A │ Select All │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Shift+A │ Select None │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+K │ Slice All: Keep Both Sides │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+L │ Slice All: Keep Left Side │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+J │ Slice All: Keep Right Side │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│s │ Slice Selected: Keep Both Sides │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│d │ Slice Selected: Keep Left Side │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│a │ Slice Selected: Keep Right Side │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+G │ Snapping Enabled │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+X │ Split Clip… │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Shift+D │ Thumbnail View │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+T │ Title │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│R │ Toggle Razor │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+R │ Transform │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│Ctrl+Z │ Undo │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│= │ Zoom In │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────┤
│- │ Zoom Out │
└───────────────────┴─────────────────────────────────┘
│Ctrl+Middle Button │ Scroll Timeline │
└───────────────────┴─────────────────────────────────┘
Files
To create a video, we need to make media files available to our project by importing files
into OpenShot. Most media file types are recognized, such as videos, images, and audio
files. Files can be viewed and managed in the Project Files panel.
Note that imported files are not copied anywhere, they remain in the physical location
they were before and are simply being made available to your video project. So, they must
not be deleted, renamed, or moved after adding them to your project. The “Show All”,
“Video”, “Audio”, “Image” filters above the files allows you to only see the file types
you are interested in. You can also toggle the view between details and thumbnails view
of your files.
Import Files
These are all possible methods to import media files into OpenShot: [image]
File Menu
To view the file menu, right click on a file (in the Project Files panel). Here are the
actions you can use from the file menu. [image]
┌────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Import Files… │ Import files into your project │
├────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Thumbnail/Detail │ Toggle the view between details │
│ │ and thumbnails │
├────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Preview File │ Preview a media file │
├────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Split Clip… │ Split a file into many smaller │
│ │ clips │
├────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Edit Title │ Edit an existing title SVG file │
├────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Duplicate Title │ Make a copy, and then edit the │
│ │ copied title SVG file │
├────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Add to Timeline │ Add many files to the timeline │
│ │ in one step │
├────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│File Properties │ View the properties of a file, │
│ │ such as frame rate, size, etc… │
├────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Remove from Project │ Remove a file from the project │
└────────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Split Clip
If you need to cut a file into many smaller clips before editing, the Split Clip dialog is
built exactly for this purpose. Right click on a file, and choose Split Clip… from the
file menu. This opens the Split Clip dialog. Use this dialog to quickly cut out as many
small clips as you need. The dialog stays open after you create a clip, to allow you to
repeat the steps for your next clip. When you are finished, simply close the dialog.
[image]
Please refer to the section Trimming & Slicing for more ways to cut and slice clips
directly in the timeline.
Export Clips
If you want your clips available outside of your OpenShot project, or want to copy all
your video assets to one place, you can do this with the Export Clips dialog. Simply
Ctrl+Click to select any clips or files you like, then Right Click and choose Export
Clips. In the dialog that appears, choose a destination folder, and click Export.
NOTE: This will export each clip using it’s original video profile (width, height,
framerate, aspect ratio, etc…). It also supports any Split Clip (described above). For
example, if you have split a long video file into many different clips (and named them),
you can now export all the clips as separate video files (using the original clip’s video
profile). [image]
Add to Timeline
In certain cases, you might need to add many files to the timeline at the same time. For
example, a photo slide show, or a large number of short video clips. The Add to Timeline
dialog can automate this task for you. First, select all files you need to add, right
click, and choose Add to Timeline. [image]
Properties
To view the properties of any imported file in your video project, right click on the
file, and choose File Properties. This will launch the file properties dialog, which
displays information about your media file. For certain types of images (i.e. image
sequences), you can adjust the frame rate on this dialog also. [image]
┌──┬─────────────────┬──────────────────────────┐
│# │ Name │ Description │
├──┼─────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│1 │ File Properties │ Select an image sequence │
│ │ │ in the Project Files │
│ │ │ panel, right click and │
│ │ │ choose File Properties │
├──┼─────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│2 │ Frame Rate │ For image sequences, you │
│ │ │ can also adjust the │
│ │ │ frame rate of the │
│ │ │ animation │
└──┴─────────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
Remove from Project
This will remove a file from the project. It will not delete the underlying physical file
though, so removing a file from the project merely makes it unavailable for this video
project.
Clips
Each media file you add to the OpenShot timeline is called a clip and is visualized by a
dark, rounded rectangle (as seen in the screenshot below). A clip has many properties,
which affect how and when the clip is rendered and composited, such as position, layer,
scale, location, rotation, and alpha. OpenShot can animate these properties over time, and
when combined, can create some amazing effects.
To display a clip’s properties, either right-click and choose Properties or double click
on the clip. Clip properties appear in the properties dock, in alphabetical order. These
properties can be filtered by typing a few letters in the filter box, at the top of the
property panel.
To adjust a property, you can:
• click on its value and drag the slider from side to side for a coarse adjustment
• double click on its value and enter a value. Numerical values display to 2 decimal
places, but you can enter more precise numbers. You can often enter valid values that
are outside the range offered by the slider adjustment.
• right-click or double-click to select an option (for non-numerical values)
Clip properties are part of the Animation system. If you change a clip property, you
create a keyframe at the current position of the playhead. If you want a property to apply
throughout the clip, you must place the playhead at (or before) the start of the clip
before making the change. An easy way to locate the start of a clip is to use
‘next/previous marker’ on the Timeline toolbar. [image]
┌──┬────────────┬──────────────────────────┐
│# │ Name │ Description │
└──┴────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
│1 │ Clip 1 │ A video clip │
├──┼────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│2 │ Transition │ A gradual fade │
│ │ │ transition between the 2 │
│ │ │ clips │
├──┼────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│3 │ Clip 2 │ An image clip │
└──┴────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
Trimming & Slicing
OpenShot has many easy ways to adjust the start and end trim positions of a clip
(otherwise known as trimming). The most common method is simply clicking and dragging the
left (or right) edge of the clip. Here is a list of all methods for cutting or trimming
clips in OpenShot:
Keep in mind that the above cutting methods also have Keyboard Shortcuts, to save even
more time.
Preset Menu
OpenShot has tons of great preset animations and clip properties, such as fading, sliding,
zooming, etc… These presets can be accessed by right clicking on a clip. [image]
Transform
To quickly adjust the location, scale, rotation, and shear of a clip, select a clip on the
timeline. By default, the selected clip appears in the preview window with transform
controls (blue lines and squares). Or if disabled, right click on a clip and choose
Transform. Dragging the blue squares will adjust scale, and dragging the center will move
the image. Dragging the mouse on the outside of the blue lines will rotate the image.
Dragging along the blue lines will shear the image in that direction. Dragging the circle
in the middle will move the origin point that controls where we rotate the image. Note:
Pay close attention to the play-head position (red playback line). Key frames are
automatically created at the current playback position, to help create animations.
[image]
For more info on key frames and animation, see Animation.
Effects
In addition to the many clip properties which can be animated and adjusted, you can also
drop an effect directly onto a clip. Each effect is represented by a small letter icon.
Clicking the effect icon will populate the properties of that effect, and allow you to
edit (and animate) them. For the full list of effects, see Effects. [image]
Properties
Below is a list of clip properties which can be edited, and in most cases, animated over
time. To view a clip’s properties, right click and choose Properties. The property editor
will appear, where you can change these properties. Note: Pay close attention to where the
play-head (i.e. red playback line) is. Key frames are automatically created at the current
playback position, to help create animations.
┌────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Alpha │ Curve representing the alpha (1 │
│ │ to 0) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Channel Filter │ A number representing an audio │
│ │ channel to filter (clears all │
│ │ other channels) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Channel Mapping │ A number representing an audio │
│ │ channel to output (only works │
│ │ when filtering a channel) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Frame Number │ The format to display the frame │
│ │ number (if any) │
└────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│Duration │ The length of the clip (in │
│ │ seconds) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│End │ The end trimming position of the │
│ │ clip (in seconds) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Gravity │ The gravity of a clip determines │
│ │ where it snaps to its parent │
│ │ (details below) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Enable Audio │ An optional override to │
│ │ determine if this clip has audio │
│ │ (-1=undefined, 0=no, 1=yes) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Enable Video │ An optional override to │
│ │ determine if this clip has video │
│ │ (-1=undefined, 0=no, 1=yes) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│ID │ A randomly generated GUID │
│ │ (globally unique identifier) │
│ │ assigned to each clip │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Track │ The layer which holds the clip │
│ │ (higher tracks are rendered on │
│ │ top of lower tracks) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Location X │ Curve representing the relative │
│ │ X position in percent based on │
│ │ the gravity (-1 to 1) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Location Y │ Curve representing the relative │
│ │ Y position in percent based on │
│ │ the gravity (-1 to 1) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Volume Mixing │ The volume mixing choices │
│ │ control how volume is adjusted │
│ │ before mixing (None=don’t adjust │
│ │ volume of this clip, │
│ │ Reduce=lower the volume to 80%, │
│ │ Average=divide volume based on # │
│ │ of concurrent clips, details │
│ │ below) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Origin X │ Curve representing the rotation │
│ │ origin point, X position in │
│ │ percent (-1 to 1) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Origin Y │ Curve representing the rotation │
│ │ origin point, Y position in │
│ │ percent (-1 to 1) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Parent │ The parent object to this clip, │
│ │ which makes many of these │
│ │ keyframe values initialize to │
│ │ the parent value │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Position │ The position of the clip on the │
│ │ timeline (in seconds, 0.0 is the │
│ │ beginning of the timeline) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Rotation │ Curve representing the rotation │
│ │ (0 to 360) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Scale │ The scale determines how a clip │
│ │ should be resized to fit its │
│ │ parent (details below) │
└────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│Scale X │ Curve representing the │
│ │ horizontal scaling in percent (0 │
│ │ to 1) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Scale Y │ Curve representing the vertical │
│ │ scaling in percent (0 to 1) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Shear X │ Curve representing X shear angle │
│ │ in degrees (-45.0=left, │
│ │ 45.0=right) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Shear Y │ Curve representing Y shear angle │
│ │ in degrees (-45.0=down, 45.0=up) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Start │ The start trimming position of │
│ │ the clip (in seconds) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Time │ Curve representing the frames │
│ │ over time to play (used for │
│ │ speed and direction of video) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Volume │ Curve representing the volume (0 │
│ │ to 1) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Wave Color │ Curve representing the color of │
│ │ the audio wave form │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Waveform │ Should a waveform be used │
│ │ instead of the clip’s image │
└────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Details
Gravity:
Gravity sets an initial position for the clip, once it has been scaled as above. The
options are:
• Top Left – the top and left edges of the clip align with the top and left edges of
the screen
• Top Center – the top edge of the clip aligns with the top edge of the screen; the
clip is horizontally centered on the screen.
• Top Right – the top and right edges of the clip align with the top and right edges of
the screen
• Left – the left edge of the clip aligns with the left edge of the screen; the clip is
vertically centered on the screen.
• Center (default) – the clip is centered horizontally and vertically on the screen.
• Right – the right edge of the clip aligns with the right edge of the screen; the clip
is vertically centered on the screen.
• Bottom Left – the bottom and left edges of the clip align with the bottom and left
edges of the screen
• Bottom Center – the bottom edge of the clip aligns with the bottom edge of the
screen; the clip is horizontally centered on the screen.
• Bottom Right – the bottom and right edges of the clip align with the bottom and right
edges of the screen
Scale:
This is the initial resizing method, which may be further adjusted by Scale X and Scale
Y (below). The options are:
• Best Fit (default) – the clip is as large as possible without changing the aspect
ratio.
• Crop – the aspect ratio of the clip is maintained while the clip is enlarged to fill
the entire screen, even if that means some of it will be cropped.
• None – the clip is its original size.
• Stretch – the clip is stretched to fill the entire screen, changing the aspect ratio
if necessary.
Volume Mixing:
Mixing audio involves adjusting volume levels so that they maintain a good range within
each clip, and then adjusting them in proportion to other clips used in the project.
The following values are available:
• None - Make no adjustments to volume data before mixing audio
• Average - Automatically divide the volume of each clip based on the # of overlapping
clips. For example, 2 overlapping clips would each have 50% volume.
• Reduce - Automatically reduce the clip’s volume by 20%, allowing it to mix with other
clips, and reducing the likelihood of over-volume loud events.
Consider the following guidelines when adjusting volume levels:
• If you combine particularly loud audio clips on multiple tracks, clipping (a staccato
distortion) may occur. To avoid clipping, reduce volume levels.
• If you need to adjust the volume separately in different parts of a clip (for
example, one person’s voice is faint, while later another’s is too loud), you can use
keyframes to vary the volume throughout the clip.
• If the original level of a clip is much too high or low, you can change the input
level. However, adjusting the level will not remove any distortion that may have
resulted from recording the clip too high. In those cases, it is best to re-record
the clip.
More Information
For more info on key frames and animation, see Animation.
Transitions
A transition is used to gradually fade (or wipe) between two clips. In OpenShot,
transitions are represented by blue, rounded rectangles on the timeline. They are
automatically created when you overlap two clips, and can be added manually by dragging
one onto the timeline from the Transitions panel. A transition must be placed on top of a
clip (overlapping it), with the most common location being the beginning or end.
Overview
[image]
┌──┬────────────┬──────────────────────────┐
│# │ Name │ Description │
├──┼────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│1 │ Clip 1 │ A video clip │
├──┼────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│2 │ Transition │ A gradual fade │
│ │ │ transition between the 2 │
│ │ │ clips, created │
│ │ │ automatically by │
│ │ │ overlapping the clips. │
├──┼────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│3 │ Clip 2 │ An image clip │
└──┴────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
Direction
Transitions adjust the alpha/transparency of the clip below it, and can either fade from
opaque to transparent, or transparent to opaque. Right click and choose Reverse Transition
to change the direction of the fade. You can also manually adjust the Brightness curve,
animating the fade in any way you wish. [image]
Cutting & Slicing
OpenShot has many easy ways to adjust the start and end positions of a transition
(otherwise known as cutting). The most common method is simply grabbing the left (or
right) edge of the transition and dragging. Here is a list of methods for cutting
transitions in OpenShot:
Keep in mind that all of the above cutting methods also have Keyboard Shortcuts.
Mask
Like Clips, transitions also have properties which can be animated over time. The fade (or
wipe) can be adjusted with the Brightness curve, or held at a constant value to create a
transparency mask on top of a clip.
Custom Transition
Any greyscale image can be used as a transition (or mask), by adding it to your
/.openshot_qt/transitions/ folder. Just be sure to name your file something that is easily
recognizable, and restart OpenShot. Your custom transition/mask will now show up in the
list of transitions.
Properties
Below is a list of transition properties which can be edited, and in most cases, animated
over time. To view a transition’s properties, right click and choose Properties. The
property editor will appear, where you can change these properties. NOTE: Pay close
attention to where the play-head (i.e. red playback line) is. Key frames are automatically
created at the current playback position, to help create animations.
Effects
Effects are used in OpenShot to enhance or modify the audio or video of a clip. They can
modify pixels and audio data, and can generally enhance your video projects. Each effect
has its own set of properties, most which can be animated over time.
Effects can be added to any clip by dragging and dropping them. Each effect is represented
by a small colored icon and the first letter of the effect name. To view an effect’s
properties, click on the effect icon. The property editor will appear, where you can edit
these properties. Note: Pay close attention to where the play-head (i.e. red playback
line) is. Key frames are automatically created at the current playback position, to help
create animations. [image]
Video Effects
Effects are generally divided into two categories: video and audio effects. Video effects
modify the image and pixel data of a clip. Below is a list of video effects, and their
properties. Often it is best to experiment with an effect, entering different values into
the properties, and observing the results.
Alpha Mask / Wipe Transition
Uses a grayscale mask image to gradually wipe / transition between 2 images.
┌──────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├──────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│brightness │ (float, -1 to 1) This curve │
│ │ controls the motion across the │
│ │ wipe │
├──────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│contrast │ (float, 0 to 20) This curve │
│ │ controls the hardness and │
│ │ softness of the wipe edge │
├──────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│reader │ (reader) This reader can use any │
│ │ image or video as input for your │
│ │ grayscale wipe │
└──────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│replace_image │ (int, choices: ['Yes', 'No']) │
│ │ Replace the clips image with the │
│ │ current grayscale wipe image, │
│ │ useful for troubleshooting │
└──────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Bars
Add colored bars around your video.
┌───────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├───────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│bottom │ (float, 0 to 0.5) The curve to │
│ │ adjust the bottom bar size │
├───────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│color │ (color) The curve to adjust the │
│ │ color of bars │
├───────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│left │ (float, 0 to 0.5) The curve to │
│ │ adjust the left bar size │
├───────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│right │ (float, 0 to 0.5) The curve to │
│ │ adjust the right bar size │
├───────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│top │ (float, 0 to 0.5) The curve to │
│ │ adjust the top bar size │
└───────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Blur
Adjust the blur of the frame’s image.
┌──────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├──────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│horizontal_radius │ (float, 0 to 100) Horizontal │
│ │ blur radius keyframe. The size │
│ │ of the horizontal blur operation │
│ │ in pixels. │
├──────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│iterations │ (float, 0 to 100) Iterations │
│ │ keyframe. The # of blur │
│ │ iterations per pixel. 3 │
│ │ iterations = Gaussian. │
├──────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│sigma │ (float, 0 to 100) Sigma │
│ │ keyframe. The amount of spread │
│ │ in the blur operation. Should be │
│ │ larger than radius. │
├──────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│vertical_radius │ (float, 0 to 100) Vertical blur │
│ │ radius keyframe. The size of the │
│ │ vertical blur operation in │
│ │ pixels. │
└──────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Brightness & Contrast
Adjust the brightness and contrast of the frame’s image.
┌───────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│brightness │ (float, -1 to 1) The curve to │
│ │ adjust the brightness │
└───────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│contrast │ (float, 0 to 100) The curve to │
│ │ adjust the contrast (3 is │
│ │ typical, 20 is a lot, 100 is │
│ │ max. 0 is invalid) │
└───────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Caption
Add text captions on top of your video.
┌───────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│background │ (color) Color of caption area │
│ │ background │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│background_alpha │ (float, 0 to 1) Background color │
│ │ alpha │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│background_corner │ (float, 0 to 60) Background │
│ │ corner radius │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│background_padding │ (float, 0 to 60) Background │
│ │ padding │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│caption_font │ (font) Font name or family name │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│caption_text │ (caption) VTT/Subrip formatted │
│ │ caption text (multi-line) │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│color │ (color) Color of caption text │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│fade_in │ (float, 0 to 3) Fade in per │
│ │ caption (# of seconds) │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│fade_out │ (float, 0 to 3) Fade out per │
│ │ caption (# of seconds) │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│font_alpha │ (float, 0 to 1) Font color alpha │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│font_size │ (float, 0 to 200) Font size in │
│ │ points │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│left │ (float, 0 to 0.5) Size of left │
│ │ margin │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│line_spacing │ (float, 0 to 5) Distance between │
│ │ lines (1.0 default) │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│right │ (float, 0 to 0.5) Size of right │
│ │ margin │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│stroke │ (color) Color of text border / │
│ │ stroke │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│stroke_width │ (float, 0 to 10) Width of text │
│ │ border / stroke │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│top │ (float, 0 to 1) Size of top │
│ │ margin │
└───────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Chroma Key (Greenscreen)
Replaces the color (or chroma) of the frame with transparency (i.e. keys out the color).
┌──────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
└──────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│color │ (color) The color to match │
├──────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│fuzz │ (float, 0 to 125) The fuzz │
│ │ factor (or threshold) │
├──────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│halo │ (float, 0 to 125) The additional │
│ │ threshold for halo elimination. │
├──────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│keymethod │ (int, choices: ['Basic keying', │
│ │ 'HSV/HSL hue', 'HSV saturation', │
│ │ 'HSL saturation', 'HSV value', │
│ │ 'HSL luminance', 'LCH │
│ │ luminosity', 'LCH chroma', 'LCH │
│ │ hue', 'CIE Distance', 'Cb,Cr │
│ │ vector']) The keying method or │
│ │ algorithm to use. │
└──────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Color Saturation
Adjust the color saturation.
┌─────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│saturation │ (float, 0 to 4) The curve to │
│ │ adjust the overall saturation of │
│ │ the frame’s image (0.0 = │
│ │ greyscale, 1.0 = normal, 2.0 = │
│ │ double saturation) │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│saturation_B │ (float, 0 to 4) The curve to │
│ │ adjust blue saturation of the │
│ │ frame’s image │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│saturation_G │ (float, 0 to 4) The curve to │
│ │ adjust green saturation of the │
│ │ frame’s image (0.0 = greyscale, │
│ │ 1.0 = normal, 2.0 = double │
│ │ saturation) │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│saturation_R │ (float, 0 to 4) The curve to │
│ │ adjust red saturation of the │
│ │ frame’s image │
└─────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Color Shift
Shift the colors of an image up, down, left, and right (with infinite wrapping).
Each pixel has 4 color channels:
• Red, Green, Blue, and Alpha (i.e. transparency)
• Each channel value is between 0 and 255
The Color Shift effect simply “moves” or “translates” a specific color channel on the X or
Y axis. Not all video and image formats support an alpha channel, and in those cases, you
will not see any changes when adjusting the color shift of the alpha channel.
┌────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│alpha_x │ (float, -1 to 1) Shift the Alpha │
│ │ X coordinates (left or right) │
├────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│alpha_y │ (float, -1 to 1) Shift the Alpha │
│ │ Y coordinates (up or down) │
└────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│blue_x │ (float, -1 to 1) Shift the Blue │
│ │ X coordinates (left or right) │
├────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│blue_y │ (float, -1 to 1) Shift the Blue │
│ │ Y coordinates (up or down) │
├────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│green_x │ (float, -1 to 1) Shift the Green │
│ │ X coordinates (left or right) │
├────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│green_y │ (float, -1 to 1) Shift the Green │
│ │ Y coordinates (up or down) │
├────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│red_x │ (float, -1 to 1) Shift the Red X │
│ │ coordinates (left or right) │
├────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│red_y │ (float, -1 to 1) Shift the Red Y │
│ │ coordinates (up or down) │
└────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Crop
Crop out any part of your video.
┌───────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├───────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│bottom │ (float, 0 to 1) Size of bottom │
│ │ bar │
├───────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│left │ (float, 0 to 1) Size of left bar │
├───────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│right │ (float, 0 to 1) Size of right │
│ │ bar │
├───────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│top │ (float, 0 to 1) Size of top bar │
├───────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│x │ (float, -1 to 1) X-offset │
├───────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│y │ (float, -1 to 1) Y-offset │
└───────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Deinterlace
Remove interlacing from a video (i.e. even or odd horizontal lines)
┌──────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├──────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│isOdd │ (bool, choices: ['Yes', 'No']) │
│ │ Use odd or even lines │
└──────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Hue
Adjust the hue / color of the frame’s image.
┌─────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├─────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│hue │ (float, 0 to 1) The curve to │
│ │ adjust the percentage of hue │
│ │ shift │
└─────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Negative
Negates the colors, producing a negative of the image.
Object Detector
Detect objects through the video.
┌──────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├──────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│class_filter │ (string) Type of object class to │
│ │ filter (i.e. car, person) │
├──────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│confidence_threshold │ (float, 0 to 1) Minimum │
│ │ confidence value to display the │
│ │ detected objects │
├──────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│display_box_text │ (int, choices: ['Off', 'On']) │
│ │ Draw a rectangle around detected │
│ │ objects │
├──────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│objects │ (list) List of detected object │
│ │ ids │
├──────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│selected_object_index │ (int, 0 to 200) Index of the │
│ │ tracked object that was selected │
│ │ to modify its properties │
└──────────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Pixelate
Pixelate (increase or decrease) the number of visible pixels.
┌─────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│bottom │ (float, 0 to 1) The curve to │
│ │ adjust the bottom margin size │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│left │ (float, 0 to 1) The curve to │
│ │ adjust the left margin size │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│pixelization │ (float, 0 to 0.99) The curve to │
│ │ adjust the amount of │
│ │ pixelization │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│right │ (float, 0 to 1) The curve to │
│ │ adjust the right margin size │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│top │ (float, 0 to 1) The curve to │
│ │ adjust the top margin size │
└─────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Shift
Shift the image up, down, left, and right (with infinite wrapping).
┌─────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├─────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│x │ (float, -1 to 1) Shift the X │
│ │ coordinates (left or right) │
├─────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│y │ (float, -1 to 1) Shift the Y │
│ │ coordinates (up or down) │
└─────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Stabilizer
Stabilize video clip to remove undesired shaking and jitter.
┌─────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
└─────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│zoom │ (float, 0 to 2) Percentage to │
│ │ zoom into the clip, to crop off │
│ │ the shaking and uneven edges │
└─────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Tracker
Track the selected bounding box through the video. The tracked object can be selected as a
parent on other clips.
Wave
Distort the frame’s image into a wave pattern.
┌───────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│amplitude │ (float, 0 to 5) The height of │
│ │ the wave │
├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│multiplier │ (float, 0 to 10) Amount to │
│ │ multiply the wave (make it │
│ │ bigger) │
├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│shift_x │ (float, 0 to 1000) Amount to │
│ │ shift X-axis │
├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│speed_y │ (float, 0 to 300) Speed of the │
│ │ wave on the Y-axis │
├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│wavelength │ (float, 0 to 3) The length of │
│ │ the wave │
└───────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Audio Effects
Audio effects modify the waveforms and audio sample data of a clip. Below is a list of
audio effects, and their properties. Often it is best to experiment with an effect,
entering different values into the properties, and observing the results.
Compressor
Reduce the volume of loud sounds or amplify quiet sounds.
┌────────────┬─────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├────────────┼─────────────────────┤
│attack │ (float, 0.1 to 100) │
├────────────┼─────────────────────┤
│bypass │ (bool) │
├────────────┼─────────────────────┤
│makeup_gain │ (float, -12 to 12) │
├────────────┼─────────────────────┤
│ratio │ (float, 1 to 100) │
├────────────┼─────────────────────┤
│release │ (float, 10 to 1000) │
├────────────┼─────────────────────┤
│threshold │ (float, -60 to 0) │
└────────────┴─────────────────────┘
Delay
Adjust the synchronism between the audio and video track.
┌───────────┬─────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├───────────┼─────────────────┤
│delay_time │ (float, 0 to 5) │
└───────────┴─────────────────┘
Distortion
Alter the audio by clipping the signal.
┌────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│distortion_type │ (int, choices: ['Hard Clipping', │
│ │ 'Soft Clipping', 'Exponential', │
│ │ 'Full Wave Rectifier', 'Half │
│ │ Wave Rectifier']) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│input_gain │ (int, -24 to 24) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│output_gain │ (int, -24 to 24) │
├────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│tone │ (int, -24 to 24) │
└────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Echo
Reflection of sound with a delay after the direct sound.
┌──────────┬─────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├──────────┼─────────────────┤
│echo_time │ (float, 0 to 5) │
├──────────┼─────────────────┤
│feedback │ (float, 0 to 1) │
├──────────┼─────────────────┤
│mix │ (float, 0 to 1) │
└──────────┴─────────────────┘
Expander
Louder parts of audio becomes relatively louder and quieter parts becomes quieter.
┌────────────┬─────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├────────────┼─────────────────────┤
│attack │ (float, 0.1 to 100) │
├────────────┼─────────────────────┤
│bypass │ (bool) │
├────────────┼─────────────────────┤
│makeup_gain │ (float, -12 to 12) │
├────────────┼─────────────────────┤
│ratio │ (float, 1 to 100) │
├────────────┼─────────────────────┤
│release │ (float, 10 to 1000) │
├────────────┼─────────────────────┤
│threshold │ (float, -60 to 0) │
└────────────┴─────────────────────┘
Noise
Random signal having equal intensity at different frequencies.
┌──────┬─────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├──────┼─────────────────┤
│level │ (int, 0 to 100) │
└──────┴─────────────────┘
Parametric EQ
Filter that allows you to adjust the volume level of a frequency in the audio track.
┌────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│filter_type │ (int, choices: ['Low Pass', │
│ │ 'High Pass', 'Low Shelf', 'High │
│ │ Shelf', 'Band Pass', 'Band │
│ │ Stop', 'Peaking Notch']) │
└────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│frequency │ (int, 20 to 20000) │
├────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│gain │ (int, -24 to 24) │
├────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│q_factor │ (float, 0 to 20) │
└────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Robotization
Transform the voice present in an audio track into a robotic voice effect.
┌────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│fft_size │ (int, choices: ['128', '256', │
│ │ '512', '1024', '2048']) │
├────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│hop_size │ (int, choices: ['1/2', '1/4', │
│ │ '1/8']) │
├────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│window_type │ (int, choices: ['Rectangular', │
│ │ 'Bart Lett', 'Hann', 'Hamming']) │
└────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Whisperization
Transform the voice present in an audio track into a whispering voice effect.
┌────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│fft_size │ (int, choices: ['128', '256', │
│ │ '512', '1024', '2048']) │
├────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│hop_size │ (int, choices: ['1/2', '1/4', │
│ │ '1/8']) │
├────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│window_type │ (int, choices: ['Rectangular', │
│ │ 'Bart Lett', 'Hann', 'Hamming']) │
└────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
For more info on key frames and animation, see Animation.
Export
Exporting converts your OpenShot project (clips, effects, animations, titles) into a
single video output file (using a process called video encoding). By using the default
settings, the exported video will be compatible with most media players (such as VLC) and
websites (such as YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook).
Click on the Export Video icon at the top of the screen (or use the File→Export Video
menu). The default values will work fine, so just click the Export Video button to render
your new video. You can also create your own custom export profiles, see Profiles.
Simple Mode
While video encoding is very complicated, with dozens of interrelated settings and
options, OpenShot makes it easy, with sensible defaults, and most of this complexity
hidden away behind our Simple tab, which is the default export view. [image]
┌──────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├──────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Profile │ Common presets (combinations of │
│ │ presets and video profiles │
│ │ grouped by category, for │
│ │ example: Web) │
└──────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│Target │ Target presets related to the │
│ │ current profile (collections of │
│ │ common formats, codecs, and │
│ │ quality settings, see Preset │
│ │ List) │
├──────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Video Profile │ Video profiles related to the │
│ │ current target (collections of │
│ │ common size, frame rate, and │
│ │ aspect ratios, see Profile List │
│ │ or create your own Profiles) │
├──────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Quality │ Quality settings (low, med, │
│ │ high), which relate to various │
│ │ video and audio bitrates. │
└──────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Advanced Mode
Most users will never need to switch to the Advanced tab, but if you need to customize any
of the video encoding settings, for example, custom bitrates, different codecs, or
limiting the range of frames exported, this is the tab for you.
Advanced Options
[image]
┌────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Export To │ Export both video & audio, only │
│ │ audio, only video, or an image │
│ │ sequence │
├────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Start Frame │ The first frame to export │
│ │ (default is 1) │
├────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│End Frame │ The final frame to export │
│ │ (default is the last frame in │
│ │ your project to contain a clip) │
└────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Profile
[image]
┌─────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Profile │ The video profile to use during │
│ │ export (collection of size, │
│ │ frame rate, and aspect ratios, │
│ │ see Profile List) │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Width │ The width of the video export │
│ │ (in pixels) │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Height │ The height of the video export │
│ │ (in pixels) │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Aspect Ratio │ The aspect ratio of the final │
│ │ exported video. 1920x1080 │
│ │ reduces to 16:9. This also takes │
│ │ into account the pixel ratio, │
│ │ for example 2:1 rectangular │
│ │ pixels will affect the aspect │
│ │ ratio. │
└─────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│Pixel Ratio │ The ratio representing pixel │
│ │ shape. Most video profiles use a │
│ │ 1:1 square pixel shape, but │
│ │ others will use rectangular │
│ │ pixels. │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Frame Rate │ The frequency that the frames │
│ │ will be displayed at. │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Interlaced │ Is this format used on │
│ │ alternating scan lines (i.e. │
│ │ broadcast and analog formats) │
└─────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Image Sequence Settings
[image]
┌─────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Image Format │ The string format that │
│ │ represents the output file name │
│ │ in an sequence of images. For │
│ │ example, %05d.png would pad a │
│ │ number with 5 digits: 00001.png, │
│ │ 00002.png. │
└─────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Video Settings
[image]
┌───────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Video Format │ The name of the container format │
│ │ (mp4, mov, avi, webm, etc…) │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Video Codec │ The name of the video codec used │
│ │ during video encoding (libx264, │
│ │ mpeg4, libaom-av1, etc…) │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Bit Rate / Quality │ The bitrate to use for video │
│ │ encoding. Accepts the following │
│ │ formats: 5 Mb/s, 96 kb/s, 23 │
│ │ crf, etc… │
└───────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Audio Settings
[image]
┌───────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Name │ Description │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Audio Codec │ The name of the audio codec used │
│ │ during audio encoding (aac, mp2, │
│ │ libmp3lame, etc…) │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Sample Rate │ The number of audio samples per │
│ │ second. Common values are 44100 │
│ │ and 48000. │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Channel Layout │ The number and layout of audio │
│ │ channels (Stereo, Mono, │
│ │ Surround, etc…) │
└───────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│Bit Rate / Quality │ The bitrate to use for audio │
│ │ encoding. Accepts the following │
│ │ formats: 96 kb/s, 128 kb/s, 192 │
│ │ kb/s, etc… │
└───────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Animation
OpenShot has been designed specifically with animation in mind. The powerful curve-based
animation framework can handle most jobs with ease, and is flexible enough to create just
about any animation. Key frames specify values at certain points on a clip, and OpenShot
does the hard work of interpolating the in-between values.
Overview
[image]
┌──┬───────────────────┬──────────────────────────┐
│# │ Name │ Description │
├──┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│1 │ Green Property │ When the play-head is on │
│ │ │ a key frame, the │
│ │ │ property appears green │
├──┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│1 │ Blue Property │ When the play-head is on │
│ │ │ an interpolated value, │
│ │ │ the property appears │
│ │ │ blue │
├──┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│2 │ Value Slider │ Click and drag your │
│ │ │ mouse to adjust the │
│ │ │ value (this │
│ │ │ automatically creates a │
│ │ │ key frame if needed) │
├──┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│3 │ Play-head │ Position the play-head │
│ │ │ over a clip where you │
│ │ │ need a key frame │
├──┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│4 │ Key frame Markers │ Small icons are │
│ │ │ displayed on the bottom │
│ │ │ of the clip for each │
│ │ │ active keyframe │
│ │ │ (circle=Bézier, │
│ │ │ diamond=linear, │
│ │ │ square=constant). These │
│ │ │ icons are filtered based │
│ │ │ on the property window. │
│ │ │ For example, if you │
│ │ │ filter only scale_x, you │
│ │ │ will only see the icons │
│ │ │ for scale_x keyframes, │
│ │ │ for example. │
└──┴───────────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
Key Frames
To create a key frame in OpenShot, simply position the play-head (i.e. playback position)
at any point over a clip, and edit properties in the property dialog. If the property
supports key frames, it will turn green, and a small icon (circle=Bézier, diamond=linear,
square=constant) will appear on the bottom of your clip at that position. Move your
play-head to another point over that clip, and adjust the properties again. All animations
require at least 2 key frames, but can support an unlimited number of them.
To adjust the interpolation mode, right click on the small graph icon next to a property
value.
For more info on creating key frames for location, rotation, scale, shear, and location, see Transform.
For more info on preset animations, see Preset Menu.
For more info on clip properties, see Properties.
Bézier Presets
When using a Bézier curve for animation, OpenShot includes more than 20 curve presets
(which affect the shape of the curve). For example, Ease-In has a more gradual slope at
the beginning, making an animation move slower at the beginning, and faster at the end.
Ease-In/Out (Back) has a gradual beginning and ending, but actually goes past the expected
value and then back (producing a bounce effect).
To choose a curve preset, right click on the small graph icon next to a key frame.
[image]
Image Sequences
If you have a sequence of similarly named images (such as, cat001.png, cat002.png,
cat003.png, etc…), you can simply drag and drop one of them into OpenShot, and you will be
prompted to import the entire sequence. [image]
To adjust the frame rate of the animation, right click and choose File Properties in the
Project Files panel, and adjust the frame rate. Once you have set the correct frame rate,
drag the animation onto the timeline. [image]
Titles
Adding text and titles is an important aspect of video editing, and OpenShot comes with an
easy to use Title Editor. Use the Title menu (located in the main menu of OpenShot) to
launch the Title Editor. You can also use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+T.
Overview
[image]
Custom Titles
OpenShot can use any vector SVG image file as a title template. Just add an SVG image file
to your .openshot_qt/title_templates/ folder, and it will appear the next time you open
the Title Editor interface. You can also right click on any SVG files in your Project
Files panel, and choose Edit Title or Duplicate Title.
3D Animated Titles
Adding a 3D animated title is just as easy, using our Animated Title dialog. Use the Title
menu (located in the main menu of OpenShot) to launch the Animated Title editor. You can
also use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+B. [image]
┌──┬───────────────────┬──────────────────────────┐
│# │ Name │ Description │
├──┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│1 │ Choose a Template │ Choose from any │
│ │ │ available 3D title │
│ │ │ templates │
├──┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│2 │ Preview Title │ Preview your title as │
│ │ │ you make changes │
├──┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│3 │ Title Properties │ Change the text, colors, │
│ │ │ and advanced properties │
├──┼───────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│4 │ Render │ Render the 3D animation, │
│ │ │ and add it to your │
│ │ │ project │
└──┴───────────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
Installing Inkscape & Blender
These features require the latest version of Blender (https://www.blender.org/download/)
and Inkscape (https://inkscape.org/release/) be installed, and the OpenShot Preferences
updated with the correct paths to the Blender & Inkscape executable. See the General tab
in Preferences.
For a detailed guide on how to install these dependencies, see Blender & Inkscape Guide.
Profiles
A video profile is a collection of common video settings (size, frame rate, aspect ratio).
Profiles are used during editing, previewing, and exporting to provide a quick way to
switch between common combinations of these settings.
If you often use the same profile, you can set a default profile:
Edit→Preferences→Preview.
Project Profile
The project profile is used when previewing your project and editing. The default project
profile is HD 720p 30fps. It is best practice to always switch to your target profile
before you begin editing. For example, if you are targeting 1080p 30fps, switch to that
profile before you begin editing your project. For a full list of included profiles see
Profile List. [image]
┌──┬────────────────┬──────────────────────────┐
│# │ Name │ Description │
├──┼────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│1 │ Title Bar │ The title bar of │
│ │ │ OpenShot displays the │
│ │ │ current profile │
├──┼────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│2 │ Profile Button │ Launch the profiles │
│ │ │ dialog │
├──┼────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│3 │ Choose Profile │ Select a profile for │
│ │ │ editing and preview │
└──┴────────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
Choose Profile Dialog
[image]
┌──┬──────────────────┬──────────────────────────┐
│# │ Name │ Description │
├──┼──────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│1 │ Filter / Search │ Filter the available │
│ │ │ profiles by typing a few │
│ │ │ characters (i.e. FHD, │
│ │ │ 720p, 16:9, etc…) │
├──┼──────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│2 │ Selected Profile │ Click on the desired │
│ │ │ profile, and then the OK │
│ │ │ button. You can also │
│ │ │ double click a profile │
│ │ │ to select it. │
├──┼──────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│3 │ Filtered Count │ Count of filtered │
│ │ │ profiles │
├──┼──────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│4 │ Accept Profile │ Click the OK button to │
│ │ │ switch to the selected │
│ │ │ profile. │
└──┴──────────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
Export Profile
The export profile always defaults to your current project profile, but can be changed to
target different profiles. [image]
┌──┬─────────────────┬──────────────────────────┐
│# │ Name │ Description │
├──┼─────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│1 │ Choose Profile │ Select an export profile │
│ │ │ from a dropdown. This │
│ │ │ list is sorted from │
│ │ │ largest resolution at │
│ │ │ the top, smallest │
│ │ │ resolution at the │
│ │ │ bottom. │
└──┴─────────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
│2 │ Search Profiles │ Open Profile dialog to │
│ │ │ filter and search for an │
│ │ │ export profile, which │
│ │ │ can sometimes be much │
│ │ │ quicker to find a │
│ │ │ specific profile. │
└──┴─────────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
Custom Profile
Although OpenShot has more than 400 profiles (Profile List) included by default, you can
also create your own custom profiles. Create a new text file in the
~/.openshot_qt/profiles/ or C:\Users\USERNAME\.openshot_qt\profiles folder. Use the
following text as your template (i.e. copy and paste this into the new file):
description=Custom Profile Name
frame_rate_num=30000
frame_rate_den=1001
width=1280
height=720
progressive=1
sample_aspect_num=1
sample_aspect_den=1
display_aspect_num=16
display_aspect_den=9
┌───────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Profile Property │ Description │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│description │ The friendly name of the profile │
│ │ (this is what OpenShot displays │
│ │ in the user interface) │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│frame_rate_num │ The frame rate numerator. All │
│ │ frame rates are expressed as │
│ │ fractions. For example, 30 FPS │
│ │ == 30/1. │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│frame_rate_den │ The frame rate denominator. All │
│ │ frame rates are expressed as │
│ │ fractions. For example, 29.97 │
│ │ FPS == 30,000/1001. │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│width │ The number of horizontal pixels │
│ │ in the image. By reversing the │
│ │ values for width and height, you │
│ │ can create a vertical profile. │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│height │ The number of vertical pixels in │
│ │ the image │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│progressive │ `(0 or 1)` If 1, both even and │
│ │ odd rows of pixels are used. If │
│ │ 0, only odd or even rows of │
│ │ pixels are used. │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│sample_aspect_num │ The numerator of the SAR │
│ │ (sample/pixel shape aspect │
│ │ ratio), 1:1 ratio would │
│ │ represent a square pixel, 2:1 │
│ │ ratio would represent a 2x1 │
│ │ rectangle pixel shape, etc… │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│sample_aspect_den │ The denominator of the SAR │
│ │ (sample/pixel shape aspect │
│ │ ratio) │
└───────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│display_aspect_num │ The numerator of the DAR │
│ │ (display aspect ratio), │
│ │ (width/height) X (sample aspect │
│ │ ratio). This is the final ratio │
│ │ of the image displayed on │
│ │ screen, reduced to the smallest │
│ │ fraction possible (common ratios │
│ │ are 16:9 for wide formats, 4:3 │
│ │ for legacy television formats). │
├───────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│display_aspect_den │ The denominator of the DAR │
│ │ (display aspect ratio) │
└───────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Once you restart OpenShot, you will see your custom profile appear in the list of
Profiles.
Preset List
OpenShot includes a large list of common profiles and their associated video export
settings (video codec, audio codec, audio channels, audio sample rate, etc…), which
targets specific websites and devices.
All Formats
AVI (h.264)
AVI (mpeg2)
AVI (mpeg4)
GIF (animated)
MKV (h.264 dx)
MKV (h.264 nv)
MKV (h.264 qsv)
MKV (h.264 va)
MKV (h.264 videotoolbox)
MKV (h.264)
MKV (h.265)
MOV (h.264)
MOV (mpeg2)
MOV (mpeg4)
MP3 (audio only)
MP4 (AV1 rav1e)
MP4 (AV1 svt)
MP4 (HEVC va)
MP4 (Xvid)
MP4 (h.264 dx)
MP4 (h.264 nv)
MP4 (h.264 qsv)
MP4 (h.264 va)
MP4 (h.264 videotoolbox)
MP4 (h.264)
MP4 (h.265)
MP4 (mpeg4)
MPEG (mpeg2)
OGG (theora/flac)
OGG (theora/vorbis)
WEBM (vp9)
WEBM (vp9) lossless
WEBM (vpx)
WEBP (vp9 va)
Device
Apple TV
Chromebook
Nokia nHD
Xbox 360
Web
Flickr-HD
Instagram
Metacafe
Picasa
Twitter
Vimeo
Vimeo-HD
Wikipedia
YouTube HD
YouTube HD (2K)
YouTube HD (4K)
YouTube HD (8K)
YouTube Standard
DVD
DVD-NTSC
DVD-PAL
Blu-Ray/AVCHD
AVCHD Disks
Profile List
OpenShot includes a large list of common profiles.
Definitions
• Profile Name: This is a short, friendly name for a video profile (FHD 1080p 30 fps, for
example)
• FPS: Frames Per Second
• DAR: Display Aspect Ratio (i.e. 1920:1080 reduces to 16:9 aspect ratio)
• SAR: Sample Aspect Ratio (i.e. 1:1 ratio == square pixel, 2:1 horizontal rectangular
pixel). The SAR directly affects the display aspect ratio. For example, a 4:3 video can
be displayed as 16:9, if it uses rectangular pixels. However, rectangular pixels will
cause the final display width to be adjusted.
• PAR: Pixel Aspect Ratio (identical to SAR - but some people prefer this term instead)
• SAR Adjusted Width: This is the width of the final display image, taking SAR (i.e.
non-square pixels) into account
• Interlaced: Display alternating lines of the video image (odd lines, even lines), mostly
used by analog broadcasting
• NTSC: NTSC is an analog TV color system used mostly in America (usually 29.97 fps)
• PAL: PAL is an analog TV color system used in Europe, Australia, and much of the rest of
the world (usually 25 fps)
• UHD: Ultra High Definition
• QHD: Quad High Definition
• FHD: Full High Definition
• HD: High Definition (usually defined as any resolution at equal or greater than 1280x720
pixels)
• SD: Standard Definition (usually defined as any resolution smaller than 1280x720 pixels)
Import & Export
Video editing projects (including tracks, clips, and keyframes) can be imported and
exported from OpenShot Video Editor in widely supported formats (EDL: Edit Decision Lists,
and XML: Final Cut Pro format). For example, if you start editing a video in a different
program (Adobe Premier, Final Cut Pro, etc…), but later need to move all your edits to
OpenShot (or vice versa).
EDL (Edit Decision Lists)
The following features are supported when importing and exporting an EDL file with
OpenShot.
Example EDL format supported by OpenShot:
TITLE: Clips - TRACK 5
FCM: NON-DROP FRAME
001 BL V C 00:00:00:01 00:00:03:17 00:00:00:01 00:00:03:17
001 AX V C 00:00:00:01 00:00:10:01 00:00:03:17 00:00:13:17
* FROM CLIP NAME: Intro.png
002 BL V C 00:00:00:01 00:00:05:09 00:00:13:17 00:00:18:25
002 AX V C 00:00:00:01 00:00:10:01 00:00:18:25 00:00:28:25
* FROM CLIP NAME: FileName.mp4
* OPACITY LEVEL AT 00:00:00:01 IS 0.00% (REEL AX)
* OPACITY LEVEL AT 00:00:01:01 IS 100.00% (REEL AX)
* OPACITY LEVEL AT 00:00:09:01 IS 100.00% (REEL AX)
* OPACITY LEVEL AT 00:00:10:01 IS 0.00% (REEL AX)
003 BL V C 00:00:00:01 00:00:33:15 00:00:28:25 00:01:02:09
003 AX V C 00:00:14:25 00:00:34:29 00:01:02:09 00:01:22:13
003 AX A C 00:00:14:25 00:00:34:29 00:01:02:09 00:01:22:13
* FROM CLIP NAME: FileName2.mp4
004 BL V C 00:00:00:01 00:00:26:25 00:01:22:13 00:01:49:07
004 AX A C 00:00:00:01 00:02:20:01 00:01:49:07 00:04:09:07
* FROM CLIP NAME: Music.wav
* AUDIO LEVEL AT 00:00:00:01 IS -99.00 DB (REEL AX A1)
* AUDIO LEVEL AT 00:00:03:01 IS 0.00 DB (REEL AX A1)
* AUDIO LEVEL AT 00:02:17:01 IS 0.00 DB (REEL AX A1)
* AUDIO LEVEL AT 00:02:20:01 IS -99.00 DB (REEL AX A1)
XML (Final Cut Pro format)
The following features are supported when importing and exporting an XML file with
OpenShot. This XML format is supported in many video editors (not just Final Cut Pro). In
fact, most commercial video editors have some support for importing and exporting this
same XML format.
Example XML Output (tree view)
[image]
Preferences
The Preferences window contains many important settings and configuration options for
OpenShot. They can be found in the top menu under Edit→Preferences. Many settings will
require OpenShot to be restarted after your changes are applied.
NOTE: Some features such as Animated Titles and external SVG editing require setting the
paths for Blender and Inkscape under the General tab. And if you notice audio playback
issues, such as audio drift, you many need to adjust the audio settings under the Preview
tab.
General
[image]
The General tab of the Preferences window allows you to modify the settings that apply to
OpenShot as a whole.
Preview
[image]
The Preview tab of the Preferences window allows you to set a Default Video Profile for
your project, if you have a preference for a specific editing profile. More about
Profiles. Also, you can adjust the real-time preview audio settings, for example, which
audio device and sample rate to use.
Autosave
[image]
Autosave is a saving function in OpenShot which automatically saves the current changes to
your project after a specific number of minutes, helping to reduce the risk or impact of
data loss in case of a crash, freeze or user error.
Recovery
Before each save, a copy of the current project is created in a recovery folder, to
further reduce the risk of data loss. The recovery folder is located at
~/.openshot_qt/recovery/ or C:\Users\USERNAME\.openshot_qt\recovery. If you need to
recover a corrupt or broken *.osp project file, please find the most recent copy in the
recovery folder, and copy/paste the file in your original project folder location (i.e.
the folder that contains your broken project), and then open this recovered project file
in OpenShot. Many versions of each project are stored in the recovery folder, and if you
still have issues with the recovered *.osp file, you can repeat this process with older
versions contained in the recovery folder.
Cache
[image]
Cache settings can be adjusted to make real-time playback faster or less CPU intensive.
The cache is used to store image and audio data for each frame of video requested. The
more frames that are cached, the smoother the real-time playback will be. However, the
more that needs to be cached requires more CPU to generate the cache. There is a balance,
and the default settings provide a generally sane set of cache values, which should allow
most computers to playback video and audio smoothly.
┌────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Setting │ Description │
├────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Cache Mode │ Choose between Memory or Disk │
│ │ caching (memory caching is │
│ │ preferred). Disk caching writes │
│ │ image data to the hard disk for │
│ │ later retrieving, and works best │
│ │ with an SSD. │
├────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Cache Limit (MB) │ How many MB are set aside for │
│ │ cache related data. Larger │
│ │ numbers are not always better, │
│ │ since it takes more CPU to │
│ │ generate more frames to fill the │
│ │ cache. │
├────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Image Format (Disk Only) │ Image format to store disk cache │
│ │ image data │
├────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Scale Factor (Disk Only) │ Percentage (0.1 to 1.0) to │
│ │ reduce the size of disk based │
│ │ image files stored in the disk │
│ │ cache. Smaller numbers make │
│ │ writing and reading cached image │
│ │ files faster. │
└────────────────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│Image Quality (Disk Only) │ Quality of the image files used │
│ │ in disk cache. The higher │
│ │ compression can cause more │
│ │ slowness, but results in smaller │
│ │ file sizes. │
├────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Cache Pre-roll: Min Frames: │ Minimum # of frames that must be │
│ │ cached before playback begins. │
│ │ The larger the #, the larger the │
│ │ wait before playback begins. │
├────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Cache Pre-roll: Max Frames: │ Maximum # of frames that can be │
│ │ cached during playback (in front │
│ │ of the playhead). The larger the │
│ │ #, the more CPU is required to │
│ │ cache ahead - vs display the │
│ │ already cached frames. │
├────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Cache Ahead (Percent): │ Between 0.0 and 1.0. This │
│ │ represents how much % we cache │
│ │ ahead of the playhead. For │
│ │ example, 0.5 would cache 50% │
│ │ behind and 50% ahead of the │
│ │ playhead. 0.8 would cache 20% │
│ │ behind and 80% ahead of the │
│ │ playhead. │
├────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Cache Max Frames: │ This is an override on the total │
│ │ allowed frames that can be │
│ │ cached by our caching thread. It │
│ │ is defaulted to 600 frames, but │
│ │ even if you give a huge amount │
│ │ of RAM to OpenShot’s cache size, │
│ │ this will override the max # of │
│ │ frames cached. The reason is… │
│ │ sometimes when the preview │
│ │ window is very small, and the │
│ │ cache size is set very high, │
│ │ OpenShot might calculate that we │
│ │ can cache 30,000 frames, or │
│ │ something silly which will take │
│ │ a huge amount of CPU, lagging │
│ │ the system. This setting is │
│ │ designed to clamp the upper │
│ │ limit of the cache to something │
│ │ reasonable… even on systems that │
│ │ give OpenShot huge amounts of │
│ │ RAM to work with. │
└────────────────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Debug
[image]
Here you can modify how much data should be logged. Normally, Debug Mode (verbose) is off.
The default port is 5556. If you want to help improve OpenShot you can enable Send
Anonymous Metrics and Errors.
Performance
[image]
Please keep in mind that hardware acceleration is experimental at the moment. OpenShot
supports both decoding and encoding acceleration. For more information take a look at our
Github HW-ACCEL Doc. NOTE: On systems with older graphics cards, hardware acceleration
may not always be faster than CPU encoding.
Keyboard
[image]
This is where hotkeys can be seen and re-assigned, as described under Keyboard Shortcuts.
Location
[image]
Default file path locations for saving/opening projects, importing files, and exporting
videos can be configured here. This can save you time by defaulting the open/save file
dialogs to the most appropriate starting folder (options described below).
┌─────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Setting │ Description │
├─────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│File Import │ Default folder to choose when │
│ │ importing a file │
└─────────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
│Save or Open Project │ Default folder to choose when │
│ │ saving or opening a project file │
├─────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Video Export │ Default folder to choose when │
│ │ exporting a video │
└─────────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
┌───────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┐
│Values │ Description │
├───────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Recent Folder │ The last folder used for this │
│ │ same operation. Project folders, │
│ │ Import folders, and Export │
│ │ folders are tracked separately. │
├───────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┤
│Project Folder │ The current project folder (or │
│ │ the user’s home folder, if the │
│ │ project is not yet saved) │
└───────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┘
Developers
If you are a programmer (or want to become a programmer), and are interested in developing
new features, fixing bugs, or improving the user interface for OpenShot, the following
sections will explain how to get started and get involved!
The Big Picture
OpenShot Video Editor has 3 main components, a Python & PyQt user interface (openshot-qt),
a C++ audio library (libopenshot-audio) and a C++ video library (libopenshot). If you are
not familiar with Python, PyQt, or C++, those would be great topics to research and learn
more about at this point.
However, many bugs can be fixed and new features added with only Python knowledge, since
the C++ components are not involved in the user interface at all. Python is an amazing
language, and is super fun to learn, and is the only prerequisite skill needed to become
an OpenShot developer!
WARNING:
The instructions that follow are for Ubuntu Linux, which is the easiest environment to
configure for OpenShot development. If you are using another OS, I suggest running a
virtual machine with Ubuntu LTS before continuing any further.
If you must use a Windows or Mac system for development, start by referring to the
build notes in the libopenshot wiki. Building the library with all of its dependencies
is the most challenging part of the process.
• Windows Build Instructions
• Mac Build Instructions
Getting the Latest Source Code
Before we can fix any bugs or add any features, we need to get the source code onto your
computer.
Use git to clone our 3 repositories:
git clone https://github.com/OpenShot/libopenshot-audio.git
git clone https://github.com/OpenShot/libopenshot.git
git clone https://github.com/OpenShot/openshot-qt.git
Configuring your Development Environment
In order to actually compile or run OpenShot, we need to install some dependencies on your
system. The easiest way to accomplish this is with our Daily PPA. A PPA is an unofficial
Ubuntu repository, which has our software packages available to download and install.
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:openshot.developers/libopenshot-daily
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install openshot-qt \
cmake \
libx11-dev \
libasound2-dev \
libavcodec-dev \
libavdevice-dev \
libavfilter-dev \
libavformat-dev \
libavresample-dev \
libavutil-dev \
libfdk-aac-dev \
libfreetype6-dev \
libjsoncpp-dev \
libmagick++-dev \
libopenshot-audio-dev \
libprotobuf-dev \
libqt5svg5-dev \
libswscale-dev \
libunittest++-dev \
libxcursor-dev \
libxinerama-dev \
libxrandr-dev \
libzmq3-dev \
pkg-config \
python3-dev \
protobuf-compiler \
qtbase5-dev \
libqt5svg5-dev \
libxcb-xfixes0-dev \
qtmultimedia5-dev \
swig
At this point, you should have all 3 OpenShot components source code cloned into local
folders, the OpenShot daily PPA installed, and all of the required development and runtime
dependencies installed. This is a great start, and we are now ready to start compiling
some code!
libopenshot-audio (Build Instructions)
This library is required for audio playback and audio effects. It is based on the JUCE
audio framework. Here are the commands to build it:
cd libopenshot-audio
mkdir build
cd build
cmake -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=dist ..
make
make install
Essentially, we are switching to the libopenshot-audio/build folder, then running cmake ..
on the parent folder. This finds dependencies and creates all the needed Makefiles used
to compile this library. Then make uses those Makefiles to compile this library, and make
install installs them in the location we specified. If CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX isn’t set,
the files will install to /usr/local/ (by default) and make install will require
administrative privileges to run.
libopenshot (Build Instructions)
This library is required for video decoding, encoding, animation, and just about
everything else. It does all the heavy lifting of video editing and video playback. Here
are the commands to build it:
cd libopenshot
mkdir build
cd build
cmake -DLIBOPENSHOT_AUDIO_DIR=../../libopenshot-audio/build/dist ..
make
Essentially, we are switching to the libopenshot/build folder, then running cmake .. on
the parent folder. This finds dependencies and creates all the needed Makefiles used to
compile this library. Then make uses those Makefiles to compile this library. Because we
provided the location of our compiled libopenshot-audio installation, that version of the
library will be used instead of the system version (if any).
We don’t install our libopenshot after building, because we don’t need to. For testing
purposes, we can tell OpenShot to use libopenshot right from our build directory.
openshot-qt (Launch Instructions)
This is our main PyQt Python application. Because it is written in Python, it does not
require any compiling to run. To launch OpenShot from the source code with our
newly-built libopenshot-audio and libopenshot libraries, use the following commands:
cd openshot-qt
PYTHONPATH=../libopenshot/build/src/bindings/python
python3 src/launch.py
This should launch the OpenShot user interface. Any changes you have made to the source
code files (*.py Python files, *.ui PyQt UI files, etc…) will be included. This requires
the libopenshot-audio and libopenshot libraries, and if anything went wrong with the steps
above, OpenShot will likely not launch.
If OpenShot launches at this point, congratulations! You now have a working local version
of OpenShot, which is running off your local source code. Try making some changes to the
source code and re-launch OpenShot… you should now see your changes!
GitHub Issues
Now that you have successfully compiled and launched OpenShot Video Editor from source
code, be sure to check out our list of bug reports on GitHub: OpenShot Issues. Also, you
are encouraged to fill out our quick contributor form and introduce yourself!
Share your Changes
Once you have fixed a bug or added an amazing new feature, be sure to share it with the
OpenShot team. Ideally, we can merge this into our main source code branch. The easiest
way to share your changes is by creating a fork of our repo, pushing your changes back to
GitHub, and creating a Pull Request. A Pull Request lets the OpenShot team know you have
changes ready to be merged. Then we can review things, give feedback, and hopefully merge
your changes into the main branch.
Contributing
Want to help improve OpenShot (and make some friends in the process)? Please consider
joining our open-source team by filling out this quick contributor form and introduce
yourself! All volunteers are welcome, regardless of skills or skill level. Let’s build
something amazing!
How to Contribute
There are many different ways to help and support OpenShot, including:
• Testing
• Translations
• Documentation
• Customer Service
• Social Media / Marketing
• Software Development
• Art / Design / UI
• User Community
• Donations
All of these areas are equally important, so we would love to know which ones appeal to
you the most. Please take a moment and fill-out our quick contributor form.
Did you find a bug?
Please use our step-by-step bug reporting page: https://openshot.org/issues/new/ to
troubleshoot a potential new bug. This guide will instruct you on how to delete you log
files, test with the latest daily build, and search for duplicate bug reports (in case
someone else has already reported this same issue). At the end of the guide, it will help
you create a detailed and useful bug report for our development team and volunteers.
Software Developers
OpenShot uses GitHub to manage issues and source code: https://github.com/OpenShot. Please
read our guide on Becoming a Developer for a step-by-step guide on compiling OpenShot and
making your first pull request on GitHub.
Made with Love
OpenShot Video Editor is a volunteer effort and a labor of love. Please be patient with
any issues you find, and feel free to get involved and help us fix them!
Thank you for your support!
– OpenShot Team
Learn More
We are working hard to expand this user guide and to improve OpenShot Video Editor, but if
you are stuck and don’t know where to turn, OpenShot has several sources for additional
information.
1. OpenShot has several YouTube Tutorials available to help you learn more.
2. OpenShot has a Reddit User Community dedicated to users helping users, answering
questions, and discussing video editing and OpenShot topics.
3. If you would like to help improve this User Guide, view source on GitHub.
4. If you have discovered a new bug, please Report a Bug.
5. If you need professional support, you can open a ticket by sending an message to
support@openshot.org or Schedule a call.
Glossary
There is much technical terminology in today’s fast-moving media-centric world. If you
find yourself wondering what a video production term or an acronym means, you are
certainly not alone. Like most industries, video production has a language all its own.
Here is a list of terms commonly found in video editing. Becoming familiar with these
terms only makes your job easier. [image]
Definitions
These definitions are a work-in-progress. Please let us know if you need a term defined by
contacting support@openshot.org.
-A- -B- -C- -D- -E- -F- -G- -H- -I- -J- -K- -L- -M- -N- -O- -P- -Q- -R- -S- -T- -U- -V-
-W- -X- -Y- -Z-
-A-
A-Roll:
The Principal video that is usually someone speaking.
Aliasing:
The undesirable jagged or stair-stepped appearance of angled lines in an image,
graphic, or text.
Alpha: Alpha blending is a convex combination of two colors allowing for transparency
effects in computer graphics. The value of alpha in the color code ranges from 0.0
to 1.0, where 0.0 represents a fully transparent color, and 1.0 represents a fully
opaque color.
Alpha Channel:
An alpha channel is a channel in an image or movie clip that controls the opacity
region.
Ambient Noise:
Ambient noise is background noise specific to the shooting location.
Animation:
The technique of making inanimate objects or drawings appear to move in motion
pictures or computer graphics.
Anti-Aliasing:
Anti-aliasing is a process for smoothing jagged lines in an image. Anti-aliasing
can also mean a method of filtering out erroneous frequencies in an audio signal.
Artifact:
An artifact is undesired data in an image because of digital processing.
Aspect Ratio:
The ratio of width to height in a flat surface or 2-dimensional abstract
construction, such as an image, video, character, or pixel. The standard ratios
for NTSC SD videos are 4:3 (or 1.33:1) and HD 16:9 (or 1.77:1). The most common
aspect ratios for motion pictures are 1.85:1 and 2.35:1.
ATSC: ATSC is a digital broadcast standard that replaced the older analog NTSC standard.
The standard covers both standard and high-definition formats.
Audio Sample Rate:
The number of samples taken per second to reproduce audio digitally. The higher
the sample rate, the higher the quality of the digital audio. A rate of 44,100
samples per second produces CD-quality audio and captures the range of human
hearing.
-B-
B-roll:
B-roll is supplemental footage that provides supporting details and greater
flexibility when editing video. Common examples include the footage used to cut
away from an interview or news report to help tell the story.
Bit: The elementary unit for digital storage. A BIT can be either a 1 (one) or a 0
(zero).
Bit Depth:
In digital graphics and video, bit depth indicates the number of colors an image
can display. A high-contrast (no gray tones) black and white image is 1bit,
meaning it can be off or on, black or white. As bit depth increases, more colors
become available. 24-bit color allows for displays of millions of colors.
Similarly, in digital audio, bit depth indicates the number of bits per sample.
The higher the number, the better the sound quality.
Bitrate:
The frequency at which bits (binary digits) pass a given physical or metaphorical
point, measured in bps (bits per second). For every second in the video, the Bit
Rate, or Data Rate, is the amount of data used each second. The bitrate, in
Kilobits per second, can be variable or constant.
Blue Screen:
A blue screen is a blue background that the subject stands in front of that the
computer later replaces with another background in post-production. See also blue
screen compositing and green screen.
Blue Screen Compositing:
The process of making all blue elements in an image transparent and placing a
different background underneath.
-C-
Capture:
The process of transferring source video from a camcorder or tape deck to a
computer. If the source video is analog, the capture process converts the video to
digital.
Channel:
A channel is one of several grayscale components used to make up a color image.
Red, green, and blue channels make up RGB images, with an optional alpha channel
for transparency.
Chromakey:
Chromakey is a method of creating transparency in a video source by selecting a
specific “key color” to create an alpha matte. It is frequently used on news
programs to display weather graphics behind talent and for visual effects
compositing.
Clip: A digitized or captured portion of video, audio, or both. Clips are media files
added to the Timeline, usually part of a more extensive recording.
Codec: Codec is a video compression technology used to compress data in a video file.
Codec stands for “Compression Decompression.” An example of a popular codec is
H.264.
Color Correction:
The process of altering the color of a video, especially one shot under less than
ideal conditions, such as low light.
Compositing:
Construction of a composite image by combining multiple images and other elements.
Coverage:
Coverage is the process of shooting additional footage and camera angles to cover
the action in the scene. Coverage is so that the editor has a more excellent range
of choices when the film reaches the post-production stage.
Compression:
The process of reducing data, such as in an audio or video file, into a form that
requires less space.
Crop Factor:
Crop factor is a number (typically from 1.3-2.0) that represents the ratio of a
sensor’s imaging area to that of a full-frame sensor. Try multiplying the focal
length of your lens by your camera sensor’s crop factor. It gives you the focal
length for the lens/sensor combination.
Crawl: Crawl is a text effect where the text moves right-to-left (in the English-speaking
world).
Cross-fade:
A cross-fade is a simultaneous fade-in of one audio or video source as another
fades out so that they overlap temporarily. Also called a dissolve.
Cut: A cut is an instantaneous change from one shot to another.
Cut-in (Insert Shot):
It is a type of shot that most often shows the objects the subject is in contact
with or manipulating. Cut-in shots are correspondingly helpful to b-roll because
they stray from the subject for a short time.
Cutting on Action:
Cutting on action is a technique used to create a more interesting scene. The
concept is simple… when you cut in the middle of an action, it will appear less
jarring and more visual interesting.
-D-
Data Rate:
The amount of data moved over time (for example, 10 MB per second). Often used to
describe a hard drive’s ability to retrieve and deliver information.
Denominator:
The number or expression below the line in a fraction (such as 2 in ½).
Digital Video:
Digital video is an electronic representation of moving visual images (video) in
the form of encoded digital data. In contrast, analog video represents moving
visual images with analog signals. Digital video comprises a series of digital
images displayed in rapid succession.
Digitize:
To convert analog video or audio to digital form.
Dissolve:
Dissolve is an image transition effect where one picture gradually disappears as
another appears. Also called a cross-fade.
-E-
Editing:
Editing is the process or result of selectively sequencing video and audio clips
into a new video file. Typically involves reviewing raw footage and transferring
desired segments from source footage into a new predetermined sequence.
Effect:
Synthetic sounds and animations created in the digital domain applied to a clip to
change a specific parameter of video or audio. Examples: the color of a visual
element or the reverb on an audio track.
Encode:
To merge the individual video signals (for example, red, green, and blue) into a
combined signal, or to convert a video file to a different format using a codec.
Export:
Export refers to the process of assembling your edited video project into a single
file that then plays back on its own, shared, or uploaded.
-F-
Fade: A fade is the gradual diminishing or heightening of visual or audio intensity.
Usage: fade-out, fade to black, fade-in, or fade up from black.
Fade-in:
1.(n.) a shot that begins in total darkness and gradually lightens to full
brightness. 2. (v.) To gradually bring sound from inaudibility to the required
volume.
Fade-out:
1.(n.) a shot that begins in full brightness and gradually dims to total darkness.
2. (v.) To gradually bring sound from the required volume to inaudibility.
Filter:
A video filter is a software component that performs some operation on a multimedia
stream. Multiple filters used in a chain, known as a filter graph, are the process
in which each filter receives input from its upstream filter. The filter graph
processes the input and outputs the processed video to its downstream filter.
Final Cut:
The final video production, assembled from high-quality clips, and ready for export
to the selected delivery media.
Finishing:
The stage that brings together all assets of a piece. Your output from this stage
is your master/sub-master.
Footage:
Derived from having feet of film, this is almost synonymous with video clips.
Frame: In filmmaking, video production, animation, and related fields, a frame is one of
the many still images which compose the complete moving picture.
Frames Per Second (fps):
The number of frames played every second. At 15 fps and lower, the human eye can
detect individual frames, causing the video to appear jerky.
Frame Rate:
Frame rate (expressed in frames per second or FPS) is the frequency (rate expressed
in Hz) at which consecutive images called frames appear on display. The term
applies equally to film and video cameras, computer graphics, and motion capture
systems. Common Frame Rate Examples: 24, 25, 29.97, 30, 50, 60.
Frequency:
The number of audio cycles per second, expressed in hertz (Hz). Frequency
determines the pitch of a sound.
-G-
Gamma: A measurement of the intensity of mid-tones in an image. Adjusting the gamma
adjusts the level of the mid-tones while leaving the blacks and whites untouched.
GPU: Graphics processing unit. A microprocessor with built-in capabilities for handling
3D graphics more efficiently than a CPU (central processing unit).
Gravity:
Gravity in OpenShot is a property of each clip that sets the clip’s initial
position on the screen.
Green screen
A green background that the subject stands in front of that is another background
in post-production.
Green Screen Compositing
The process of making all green elements in an image transparent and placing a
different background underneath, so it appears that the subject is in a different
location.
-H-
High Definition (HD):
A general term for a video signal with a significantly higher resolution than
standard definition.
HDMI: High Definition Multimedia Interface. Interface for transmitting high definition
digital audio and video data.
HDR: HDR (high dynamic range) is the compositing of two images, one that correctly
exposes the highlights, and another that properly exposes the dark areas. When
composited together, you get a properly exposed image.
HDTV: High Definition TV. A broadcast format that allows for a higher resolution signal
than the traditional formats, NTSC, PAL, and SECAM.
HDV: High Definition Video. The format used to record HDTV-quality data with video
camcorders.
Headroom:
The space between the top of a character’s head and the top of the frame.
Hiss: Noise caused by imperfections in the recording medium.
Hue: The shade of a color. This is the general color category into which the color
falls. For example, pink, crimson, and plum are different colors, but they all
fall under the hue of red. White, black, and gray tones are not hues.
-I-
Image Stabilizer:
Also referred to as an electronic image stabilizer. A technique used to remove the
movement caused by camera shake.
Importing:
Importing is the process of transferring videos from your camera onto your computer
or into a piece of editing software.
Interframe Compression:
A compression scheme, such as MPEG that reduces the amount of video information by
storing only the differences between a frame and those preceding it.
Interpolation:
Used in animation to calculate the motion in between two user-generated keyframes
so that the editor does not need to animate each frame manually. This speeds up
the process and makes the resulting animation smoother.
Intertitles:
Titles that appear on their own between footage. Commonly seen in silent movies to
substitute dialogue, also used as chapter headings.
-J-
J-Cut: An edit in which the audio starts before the video, giving the video a dramatic
introduction. Also known as an audio lead.
Jog To move forward or backward through video by playing it one field or frame at a
time.
Jump Cut:
A jump cut is an unnatural, abrupt switch between shots identical in the subject
but slightly different in screen location, so the subject appears to jump from one
screen location to another.
-K-
Key: A method for creating transparency, such as a bluescreen key or a chroma key.
Keyframe:
A keyframe is a frame that contains a record of specific settings (e.g., scale,
rotation, brightness). Start and endpoints for animated effects. By setting
multiple keyframes, you can adjust these parameters as the video plays to animate
certain aspects.
-L-
L-Cut: An L-cut is an edit in which the video ends before the audio. L-cuts act as a
subtle transition from one scene to the next.
Letterbox:
A technique used to preserve the original aspect ratio of a motion picture when
played on a TV. Letterboxing adds black bars to the top and bottom of the screen.
Linear Editing:
A form of video editing which lays out cuts sequentially, one by one, to produce
the final scene. This contrasts with non-linear editing which allows cutting in any
order.
Log: A record of start and end timecode, reel numbers, scene descriptions, and other
information for a specified clip.
Lossless:
A compression scheme that results in no loss of data from decompressing the file.
Lossless files are generally quite large (but still smaller than uncompressed
versions) and sometimes require considerable processing power to decode the data.
Lossy: Lossy compression is a compression scheme that degrades quality. Lossy algorithms
compress digital data by eliminating the data least sensitive to the human eye and
offer the highest compression rates available.
-M-
Mark In:
Placing a marker at the beginning of where you want your clip to start.
Mark Out:
Placing a marker at the beginning of where you want your clip to end.
Match Action:
Match action (or match cut) is a technique where an editor will cut from one
visually similar scene to another.
Memory Bank:
A Memory Bank is a video that documents specific periods or events in someone’s
life. It can be set to music, make use of natural sound, record vacations, or just
capture moments in everyday life.
Marker:
An object used to mark a location. Clip markers signify essential points within a
clip. Timeline markers indicate scenes, locations for titles, or other significant
points within an entire movie. Use clip markers and timeline markers for
positioning and trimming clips.
Mask: The transparent area of an image, typically defined by a graphic shape or a
bluescreen background. Also called a matte.
Matte: Matte is an image mask used in visual effects to control applying an effect to
certain parts of the image.
Montage:
A montage is a self-contained sequence of shots assembled in juxtaposition to each
other to communicate an idea or mood. The implied relationship between seemingly
unrelated material creates a new message.
Motion Artifact:
Visual interference caused by the difference between the frame rate of the camera
and the motion of the object. The most common display of this is when filming a
computer or television screen. The screen flickers or a line scans down it, which
is the difference in frame rates and a lack of synchronization between the camera
and television.
-N-
Noise: Undesired data in a video or audio signal. See also artifact.
Non-linear Editing:
An editing system that performs edits at any time, in any order. Access is random,
which means that the system can jump to specific pieces of data without having to
look through the whole footage to find it.
Numerator:
The number or expression above the line in a fraction (such as 1 in ½).
NTSC: NTSC is an abbreviation for National Television Standards Committee. NTSC is the
group that initially developed the black & white and subsequently color television
system. The United States, Japan, and many other countries use NTSC. Five-hundred
twenty-five interlaced lines make up NTSC that display at a rate of 29.97 frames
per second. ATSC Has now superseded by NTSC.
-O-
Offline Editing:
Editing a rough cut using low-quality clips, and then producing the final cut with
high-quality clips, usually on a more sophisticated editing system than that used
for developing the rough.
Online Editing:
Doing all editing (including the rough cut) on the same clips that produce the
final cut.
Opacity:
An inverse measure of the level of transparency in an image, which is of importance
when compositing. An image’s alpha channel stores its opacity information.
-P-
PAL: PAL is an abbreviation for Phase Alternate Line. This is the video format standard
used in many European countries. Six-hundred twenty-five lines make up a PAL
picture that displays at a rate of 25 frames per second.
Pan: A horizontal movement of the camera on a fixed axis.
Pan and Scan:
A method of converting widescreen images to a 4:3 aspect ratio. Cropping the video
so that it fills the entire screen and panning it into position shows the essential
parts of the scene.
Picture in Picture (PIP):
An effect of superimposing a small window of footage over a larger window and the
two play at the same time.
Pixel: One of the tiny dots that make up the representation of an image in a computer’s
memory. The smallest unit of a digital image.
Pixel Aspect Ratio:
Aspect ratio is the ratio between the width and height of your video; the Pixel
Aspect Ratio is the ratio between the width and height of the pixels. A standard
Pixel Aspect Ratio is 1:1.
Pixelation:
The display of large, blocky pixels in an image caused by over-enlarging it.
Playhead:
When editing audio or video in a current computer, the Playhead is a graphic line
in the Timeline that represents the current accessed position, or frame, of the
material.
Post-production (Post):
Post-production (post) is any video production activity following the initial
recording. Typically, post involves editing, the addition of background music,
voice-over, sound effects, titles, and various visual effects resulting in
completed production.
Poster Frame:
A single frame of a clip, selected as a thumbnail to indicate the clip’s contents.
Project:
A project is all the files, transitions, effects, and animations that you make or
use within OpenShot.
-R-
Raw Footage:
Raw footage is pre-edited footage, usually direct from the camera.
Real-time:
Real-time occurs immediately, without delay for rendering. If a transition occurs
in real-time, there is no waiting, the computer creates the effect or transition
on-the-fly, showing it the results immediately.
Rendering:
The process by which the video editing software and hardware convert the raw video,
effects, transitions, and filters into a new continuous video file.
Render Time:
The render time is the time it takes an editing computer to composite source
elements and commands into a single video file. Rendering allows the sequence,
including titles and transition effects, to play in full motion.
Resolution:
Resolution refers to the actual number of horizontal and vertical pixels your video
contains. Common resolution Examples: (SD) 640×480, (HD) 854x480, (HD) 1280×720,
(FHD) 1920×1080, (QHD) 2560x1440, (UHD) 3840x2160, and (FUHD) 7680x4320. Often the
numbers that appear vertically refer to the resolution. The examples listed would
appear as SD, 480p, 720p, 1080p, 1440p, 4K and 8K, respectively.
RGB: Monitors, cameras, and digital projectors use the primary colors of light (Red,
Green, and Blue) to make images.
RGBA: A file containing an RGB image plus an alpha channel for transparency information.
Roll: Roll is a text effect commonly seen in end credits, where text typically moves from
the bottom to the top of the screen.
Rough cut:
A rough cut is a preliminary edit of footage in the approximate sequence, length,
and content of a finished program.
-S-
Sample Rate:
In digital audio, the number of samples per second. The higher the number, the
better the sound quality.
Scene: Action that occurs in one location at one time.
Scrub: Scrubbing is an act of moving the cursor or playhead across the Timeline manually.
Once specific to audio tracks, the term now also refers to video tracks.
Shot: A recording of a single take.
Slow-motion:
A shot in which action takes place at a slower than average speed. The camera
achieves slow-motion by speeding up the frame rate during recording and then
playing back the frames at a slower speed.
Snap: Snapping quickly positions an object in alignment with grid lines, guidelines, or
another object. Snapping causes the object to automatically jump to an exact
position when the user drags it to the proximity of the desired location.
Splice:
The process of physically attaching two pieces of film using tape or cement.
Split cut (L-cut or J-cut):
An edit in which the audio starts before or after the picture cut. Used for easing
the transition from one scene or shot to another.
Splitscreen:
A unique effect that displays two or more scenes simultaneously on different parts
of the screen.
Sound Effects:
Sound effects are contrived audio, usually prerecorded, incorporated with a video
soundtrack to resemble a real occurrence. Blowing on a microphone, for example,
might simulate wind to accompany hurricane images.
Soundtrack:
The soundtrack is the audio portion of a video recording, often multifaceted with
natural sound, voiceovers, background music, or other sounds.
Stabilization:
Image stabilization is a family of techniques that reduce blurring associated with
the motion of a camera or other imaging device during exposure.
Standard Definition (SD):
Television broadcasting standard with a lower resolution than high definition.
Step: The act of moving forward or backward through video one frame at a time.
Still Frame:
A single frame of video is repeated, so it appears to have no motion.
Straight Cut:
The most common edit, consecutive clips placed one after another in the Timeline
window. Straight cuts are preferable to transitions when the scenes are similar,
and you do not want edits to be noticeable.
Superimposing:
Combining images, where one or more layers involve transparency.
Sync (Synchronization):
Synchronization refers to the relative timing of audio (sound) and video (image)
parts during creation, post-production (mixing), transmission, reception, and
play-back processing.
SECAM: Systeme Electronique Couleur Avec Memoire, a TV format used mainly in Eastern
Europe, Russia, and Africa.
-T-
Tilt: Tilting is a cinematographic technique in which the camera stays in a fixed
position but rotates up/down in a vertical plane.
Timecode:
The timecode is the discrete address given to each frame of the video (for example,
1:20:24:09). Timecode makes frame-accurate editing possible and allows editors to
identify scenes precisely in a log.
Time-lapse:
It is a technique for capturing each frame in a video at a much slower rate than
usual. When played back at regular speed, time appears to go by faster. An
editing program achieves this by fast-forwarding or increasing the speed of your
video.
Timeline:
The Timeline is an editing interface that lays out a video project in a linear
fashion consisting of clips laid horizontally across the screen.
Timeline Editing:
Timeline editing is a computer-based method of editing, in which bars proportional
to the length of a clip, represent video and audio clips on a computer screen.
Titling:
Titling is the process or result of incorporating on-screen text as credits,
captions, or any other alphanumeric communication.
Track: A separate audio or video layer on a timeline.
Transcode:
Converting a digital file to another digital file format. This usually involves
audio and video compression.
Transparency:
Percentage of the opacity of a video clip or element.
Transition:
A method of juxtaposing two scenes. Transitions can take many forms, including
cuts, dissolves, and wipes.
Trim: Removing frames from the beginning, middle, or end of a clip.
-V-
Video Format:
The video format is a standard that determines the way a video signal records on
videotape. Standards include DV, 8-mm, Beta, and VHS.
Voiceover:
A term used to describe off-camera narration that is not part of a scene
(non-diegetic).
VTR: A Videotape recorder also referred to as a ‘deck’. Decks duplicate videotapes and
inputting and outputting from a computer.
-W-
Widescreen:
A format in which the width-to-height ratio of the frame is greater than 4:3 so
that it is significantly wider than it is tall.
Wipe: A wipe is a transition from one shot to another. The edge of the transition moves
across the original image as a line or a pattern, revealing the new shot.
-Z-
Zoom: A shot where the image grows more substantial or smaller by adjusting the focal
length of the lens instead of physically moving the camera.
AUTHOR
Jonathan Thomas
COPYRIGHT
OpenShot Studios, LLC