Cropping a Video Event using the Pan/Crop Tool

Use the Pan/Crop tool to manually adjust the visible area of a video event by cropping or zooming. This method provides timeline-based animation and advanced control over the event's frame, especially useful for still images or when creating camera movement effects. Unlike the Crop OFX plug-in, the Pan/Crop tool operates on the event level and includes a visual selection box.

USE CASES

  • Remove unwanted borders by cropping directly in the Pan/Crop window.

  • Create motion from stills by zooming or positioning the selection box.

  • Match project framing when aspect ratios differ between media and output.

Crop or zoom a video event

  1. Select a video event on the timeline and click the Pan/Crop button in the event header.
    – or –
    From the Tools menu, choose Video > Video Event Pan/Crop.
  2. The Pan/Crop window opens with a selection box overlaid on the video frame.

Pan/Crop window with selection box for cropping a video event.

FIGURE Pan/Crop window with selection box for cropping a video event

  1. Resize the selection box by dragging the side or corner handles to crop the event.
  2. Enable or disable the following options:
    • Lock Aspect Ratio: Keep the width-to-height ratio fixed when resizing.
    • Size About Center: Resize the selection from the center instead of the edge.
  3. To zoom into the cropped area so it fills the output frame, open the Source section and set Stretch to fill frame to Yes.
  4. To reposition the selection, drag the box in the preview or enter values in the Position section using X Center and Y Center.
NOTE

Use the movement mode icons to restrict repositioning to horizontal or vertical directions. Choose from Move Freely, Move in X Only, or Move in Y Only.

TIP You can use keyframes to animate cropping or zooming over time. For details, see Pan/Crop Animations with Keyframes.

Rotating a video event using the Pan/Crop tool

The Pan/Crop tool also allows you to rotate a video event by adjusting the angle of the selection box. Rotation can be applied manually or numerically, and animated using keyframes.

Rotate a video event

  1. Open the Pan/Crop window for the selected event.
  2. Drag a corner of the selection box to rotate the visible content. The cursor changes to the rotate icon.

Rotated selection box in the Pan/Crop window.

FIGURE Rotated selection box in the Pan/Crop window

  1. To set a specific angle, open the Rotation section and enter a value in the Angle field.
  2. To rotate around a custom point, change the X Center and Y Center values in the same section.

TIP Rotation can be combined with cropping and keyframes to create dynamic visual effects. See Pan/Crop Animations with Keyframes.

Further information