How to Quickly Edit Videos with the Source Tape Feature in DaVinci Resolve
If you’re looking to speed up your editing process and edit video quickly, especially during the initial sorting of camera rushes, the Source Tape Feature is something to be interested in. It can transform the way you interact with and select your clips, saving you hours of manual previewing.
Why Use the Source Tape?
Typically, an editor has to sift through countless clips, marking in and out points one by one. It’s time-consuming, and, let’s face it, annoying, especially when dealing with multiple camera cards. The Source Tape allows you to view all clips within a bin as a single, continuous virtual clip. This drastically reduces the need for constant clicking and dragging, making your preliminary editing both faster and simpler.
Getting the Source Tape to Tape the Source
How to quickly edit videos with the Source Tape Feature? The process is pretty straightforward once you know the steps. Here’s how you can make the most out of this feature and edit video quickly:
- Access the Source Tape: Begin by heading over to the Cut Page within DaVinci Resolve. Here, open a bin full of clips (or just click it), and tap on the ‘Source Tape’ button found in the Source Viewer. This will link all your clips together into one long, continuous sequence that reflects the contents of the current bin.
- Play Back Clips: With the Source Tape active, your clips will play back as if they were a single, unified file. For quicker navigation, use the JKL keys on your keyboard: ‘J’ for reverse, ‘K’ for pause, and ‘L’ for forward play.
- Marking Clips: During playback, you can set in and out points using ‘I’ for the in point and ‘O’ for the out point, without pausing. After marking a segment you want to keep, simply hit ‘F12’ to append it directly to your timeline as a subclip.
Protip: The Fast Review function modifies playback speed according to the length of the clips, speeding up for longer clips and slowing down for shorter ones, making it easier to review your footage.
Integration of Cut and Edit Pages
The beauty of the Source Tape lies in its integration with both the Cut and Edit Pages in DaVinci Resolve. Any changes or selections made in the Source Tape are immediately reflected across both pages, making up for a more fluid and cohesive process. You could be rough cutting on the Cut Page or making finer adjustments on the Edit Page, and the Source Tape will keep all of the edits in synch.
The Source Tape in DaVinci Resolve is a game-changer. It not only simplifies the initial sorting and selection of clips but also integrates with DaVinci Resolve’s comprehensive editing suite. By mastering the Source Tape, you can reduce the time spent on preliminary edits and focus more on the creative aspects of your project.