Apple Final Cut Pro X (10.0.9) - Manual (Page 205)

Chapter 10 Add transitions, titles, effects, and generators 205
Add and adjust transitions
Transitions overview
You can add cross dissolves and other transition effects between cuts to make your program
more interesting.
Transitions replace one shot with another over a specified period of time; when one shot ends,
another one replaces it. Three very common video transitions occur over time: fades, cross
dissolves, and wipes.
You can add audio-only transitions to audio edits in a connected storyline. These transitions can
be either a fade-in, fade-out, or crossfade.
Note: When a transition is added to a video clip with attached audio, a crossfade transition is
automatically applied to the audio. If the audio is detached or expanded from the video, the
audio is not affected by the video transition.
How transitions are created
Transitions require overlapping video from the clips on each side of the edit point. A one-
second transition requires one second of video from the end of the left clip and one second of
video from the start of the right clip. When you apply a transition to an edit point, Final Cut Pro
attempts to use additional video from each of the clips to create the overlap. These additional
(unused) sections of clips are known as media handles. The following image shows a clip with
media handles on each end and a clip with no extra video, or media handle, at its start.
Clip selected in the Event Browser
No start media handle
End media handle Start media handle
End media handle
The media handle video may not be appropriate for use in a transition. For example, if the video
includes unusable video such as a slate, it will be visible in the project.
You can set the default duration for transitions. See Set transition defaults on page 206.