Keyframed Effects

Applying an effect

Pinnacle Studio comes with a range of special effects filters which you can apply to your photos and videos simply by selecting a shot in the timeline and clicking the camera icon at the top left of the timeline, then choosing the bottom left icon from the box which pops up. From there, you can double click on any of the displayed effects to add it to your clip.

What is Keyframing?

All the Studio Effects can be animated over time using keyframes. You create a keyframe simply by moving to a point during the clip and setting the value of the effect at that point. You can set as many keyframes as you like and Studio will automatically animate the value smoothly between them.

In other words, by keyframing the strength of (for example) a shot's brightness from zero at the start of a clip to 100 at the end, you can create a gradual fade up of the brightness of the shot.

Working with keyframes

To use keyframes, first add an effect to your clip. The controls for the effect will be displayed. Then click the "use keyframes" box at the bottom right of the effects window.

The keyframe controls will appear and you can simply move to a different point in the clip on the timeline, alter the values of the effects controls and then click the "add" button. Each time you do this, you'll see a numbered box appear on the timeline to indicate the position of the keyframe you've created.

To edit your keyframes, you can jump back and forth between them with the arrows at the bottom of the effects window and then alter or delete them with a single click.

Effects

Keyframing is an extremely powerful tool and you can use it to create a range of effects. Here are a few ideas to try (depending on the Studio version you're using, you may have different effects available):

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1. Explosion

Keyframe the size of a lens flare effect so that it grows, then rapidly shrinks over a second or so to create an explosion

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2. Title Smash

You can apply effects filters to titles as well as video clips. Try adding a stained glass effect to a caption, then animating its Joint parameter to shatter the text.

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3. Ripple fade

Add two shots to the timeline one after the other. Choose the first clip add a "Water drop" filter, and keyframe its progress slider from 0 to 50 over the last few seconds of the clip.

Now select the next shot and add the same effect - this time keyframing the effect from 50 to 100 over the first few seconds.

Play the effect back and you'll see the first clip ripple, then as the ripples clear, the second clip will appear. By using keyframed effects instead of transitions, you can create a range of impressive new effects.