Apple MA261Z/A User Manual - Page 850

Different Ways to Use Generators in Your Sequence In creating composites and other effects, you may find some of the Final Cut Express HD generators helpful. They allow you to very quickly add certain types of built-in clips by simply choosing items from a menu. For example, by choosing a generator you can:  Add clips that have certain shapes to use as design elements, or as layers when creating track matte effects  Create colored and gradient background layer clips for composites  Add a placeholder or black gap between two clips, called a slug  Add standard SMPTE color bars and tone to use as a reference (for duplication or broadcast purposes) or as an effect  Create shape layers and use them to create track matte effects Some generators, such as the Slug, Matte, and Particle Noise generators, fill the entire frame size of your sequence. Others, like the text filters, are created with an alpha channel that allows your text to be quickly superimposed against an image, or against black. (See Chapter 58, "Creating Titles," on page 855 for information about Text generators.) Generators can have filters and motion settings applied to them. For example, you can use a Color Matte in conjunction with a Garbage Matte or Mask Shape filter to quickly create a clip consisting of a shape against a transparent background. The transparent background exists because an alpha channel has been added to the Color Matte filter. For more information on using Matte and Mask filters, see Chapter 55, "Keying, Mattes, and Masks," on page 805. The parameters of some generators can be keyframed to change their appearance over time. You keyframe generators the same way you keyframe motion settings and filters. For more information about how to keyframe effects in Final Cut Express HD, see "Animating Motion Effects Using Keyframes" on page 719. 850 Part IX Effects