Cropping Video Events with the OFX Plug-in

The Crop OFX plug-in offers a fast and intuitive way to crop video events directly in the Video Preview window. Unlike the Pan/Crop tool, this plug-in allows you to apply cropping at various levels—media, event, track, or project—and interactively adjust the crop using on-screen handles. Use it when you want to crop quickly, especially during early editing stages.

USE CASES

  • Quickly remove unwanted borders or frame a subject more tightly.

  • Apply consistent cropping across multiple events or tracks.

  • Combine cropping with other OFX effects and keyframe animation.

Cropping an event using the Crop OFX plug-in

PREREQUISITE

  • Ensure that at least one video event is placed on the timeline.

  1. Open the Video FX window.
  2. In the left pane of the Video FX window, locate and select the Crop effect.
  3. Drag the Default preset onto the desired video event on the timeline.
  4. Access the Video Event FX window. Interactive crop handles appear in the Video Preview window.

  5. Drag one of the crop handles toward the center of the preview area to crop the image.

    NOTE The crop handles appear as small yellow dots at the edges of the selection area (left, top, right, bottom). When you drag a handle, the opposite one becomes the anchor point and is marked with a black dot. The handles may be hard to see at first, especially if no mouseover occurs.

    6. Interactive crop handles in Video Preview window

    FIGURE Interactive crop handles in the Video Preview window

  6. Alternative: Use the Video Event FX window to set the crop parameters instead of dragging handles in the preview.
    • Set the crop using the controls in the Video Event FX window.
    • Use the Anchor Point dropdown and adjust the crop area using the X Crop and Y Crop sliders or text fields.
  7. Reposition the cropped area by dragging it in the Preview window or entering values in the Location field.
  8. Rotate the selection by dragging the rotation control or adjusting the Angle slider.
  9. Set the transparency using the Opacity slider or text field.

    10. Crop OFX parameters in FX window

    FIGURE Crop OFX plug-in interface in the Video Event FX window

TIP

To animate the crop, click Animate in the Video Event FX window. Enable keyframes for all crop parameters before starting your animation. For more information, see Keyframe animation.

Crop OFX controls in the Video Event FX window

Control Description
Anchor Point Defines the fixed edge for the crop operation. When a handle is dragged, the anchor point determines which side stays in place. Default is Right.
X Crop / Y Crop Adjusts the horizontal and vertical crop amount. Use the sliders or enter numeric values to crop each axis independently.
Location Moves the cropped area. Click and drag the box or enter values for horizontal and vertical offset (0.5 = center).
Angle Rotates the cropped image. Use the slider or enter a rotation value in degrees.
Opacity Sets the transparency of the cropped area. A value of 1.0 means fully visible; 0.0 means fully transparent.

 

FURTHER INFORMATION