<h2>Overview of Operations</h2>
-<dl class="wide-table">
- <dt><kbd class="menu">Session > Open Video</kbd></dt>
- <dd>Add/replace a video to/on the timeline</dd>
- <dt><kbd class="menu">Window > View Monitor</kbd></dt>
- <dd>Open/close external video monitor window</dd>
- <dt><kbd class="menu">View > Video Monitor > …</kbd></dt>
- <dd>Various settings of the video monitor</dd>
- <dt><kbd class="menu">Session > Export > Video</kbd></dt>
- <dd>Export session and multiplex with video-file</dd>
- <dt><kbd class="mouse">Left</kbd>-drag the video in the timeline</dt>
- <dd>Re-align video and move 'locked' audio-regions along</dd>
- <dt>Context-menu on the video-timeline: <kbd class="menu"> 'lock'</kbd></dt>
- <dd>Prevent accidental drags</dd>
- <dt>Audio region context menu: <kbd class="menu">Position > Lock to video</kbd></dt>
- <dd>Mark audio region(s) to be moved along with the video.</dd>
-</dl>
+<table class="dl">
+ <tr><th><kbd class="menu">Session > Open Video…</kbd></th>
+ <td>Add/replace a video to/on the timeline</td></tr>
+ <tr><th><kbd class="menu">Window > Video Monitor</kbd></th>
+ <td>Open/close external video monitor window</td></tr>
+ <tr><th><kbd class="menu">View > Video Monitor > …</kbd></th>
+ <td>Various settings of the video monitor</td></tr>
+ <tr><th><kbd class="menu">Session > Export > Export to Video File…</kbd></th>
+ <td>Export session and multiplex with video-file</td></tr>
+ <tr><th><kbd class="mouse">Left</kbd>-drag the video in the timeline</th>
+ <td>Re-align video and move 'locked' audio-regions along</td></tr>
+ <tr><th>Context-menu on the video-timeline: <kbd class="optoff">Lock</kbd></th>
+ <td>Prevent accidental drags</td></tr>
+ <tr><th>Audio region context menu: <kbd class="menu"><em>Name_Of_The_Region</em> > Position > Lock to video</kbd></th>
+ <td>Mark audio region(s) to be moved along with the video.</td></tr>
+</table>
-<h2>Adding Video</h2>
+<h2>Adding a video</h2>
+
<p>
- Adding video is a two-step process: select a video file, and choose
- import mode and optionally select an audio track to extract.
+ Adding a video is a two-step process: selecting a video file, and choosing
+ import mode and optionally selecting an audio track to extract. Only one video
+ can be present in the session, so opening a video when one is already opened
+ results in replacing the video.
</p>
+
+<h3 class="clear">Launching the video server (optionnal)</h3>
+
+<figure class="right">
+ <img class="mini" src="/images/launch_video_server.png" alt="The Launch Video Server dialog">
+ <figcaption>
+ The Launch Video Server dialog
+ </figcaption>
+</figure>
+
<p>
- The first step is rather straight-forward. The panel on the right side
- allows to seek through the video and displays basic file information.
- It is also useful to check if the video format/codec is supported:
+ Importing a video makes Ardour start the video server automatically. If
+ the <kbd class="option">Show video Server Startup Dialog</kbd> option in the
+ <kbd class="menu">Video</kbd> section of the
+ <a href="@@preferences#preferences-video">preferences</a> is checked, the
+ <kbd class="menu">Launch Video Server</kbd> window is shown, allowing more
+ complex operations, e.g. connecting to a remote video server instead of a local
+ one.
</p>
-<img src="/images/a3_video_open.png" alt="video-open-dialog" width="300" />
+
+<h3 class="clear">Selecting a file</h3>
+
+<figure class="right">
+ <img class="mini" src="/images/set_video_track.png" alt="The video open dialog">
+ <figcaption>
+ The video open dialog
+ </figcaption>
+</figure>
+
<p>
- The second step analyzes the video file in more detail and offers import options:
+ This step is rather straight-forward. The panel on the right side
+ allows to seek through the video and displays basic file information.
+ It is also useful to check if the video format/codec is supported.
</p>
-<dl>
- <dt><kbd class="menu">Import/Transcode to Session</kbd></dt>
- <dd>This is the default. The video will be imported in a suitable
+<p>
+ The lower part of the window shows some options:
+</p>
+<ul>
+ <li><kbd class="option">Open Video Monitor Window</kbd> to automatically show
+ the video monitor (Harvid). This can also be done later by using the
+ <kbd class="menu">Window > Video Monitor</kbd> menu which is binded to
+ <kbd class="mod2">V</kbd> by default.</li>
+ <li><kbd class="option">Adjust Session Framerate to Match Video Framerate</kbd>
+ which can also be set later with the <a href="@@session-properties">Session Properties</a>.
+ Having the session and video framerate at the same value allows their sync not to
+ drift off.</li>
+</ul>
+
+<h3 class="clear">Import options</h3>
+
+<figure class="right">
+ <img class="mini" src="/images/transcode-import_video_file.png" alt="The Transcode/Import Video dialog">
+ <figcaption>
+ The Transcode/Import Video dialog
+ </figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+<p>
+ This step analyzes the video file in more detail and offers import options:
+</p>
+<table class="dl">
+ <tr><th><kbd class="menu">Import/Transcode Video to Session</kbd></th>
+ <td>This is the default. The video will be imported in a suitable
video format/codec for the timeline and video monitor and saved inside the
session folder. A location other than the session folder can also be
chosen (external disk, or network storage of the video server on a different
- machine).</dd>
- <dt><kbd class="menu">Reference from Current Location</kbd></dt>
- <dd>Only useful for opening files that were previously encoded (are already
- in a good format/codec). Use with care.</dd>
- <dt><kbd class="menu">Do not Import Video</kbd></dt>
- <dd>Useful for extracting audio only.</dd>
-</dl>
-
-<img src="/images/a3_video_import.png" alt="Video Import Dialog" width="300" />
+ machine) by using the <kbd class="menu">Output File:</kbd> field.</td></tr>
+ <tr><th><kbd class="menu">Reference from Current Location (Previously Transcoded
+ Files Only)</kbd></th>
+ <td>Only useful for opening files that were previously encoded (are already
+ in a good format/codec for Ardour). Should be used with care.</td></tr>
+ <tr><th><kbd class="menu">Do not Import Video (Audio Import Only)</kbd></th>
+ <td>Useful for extracting audio only.</td></tr>
+</table>
<p>
By default the video is imported using the original width/height.
- If it is a large video (e.g. full-HD) it makes sense to scale it down
+ If it is a large video (e.g. Full HD), it makes sense to scale it down
to decrease the CPU load and disk I/O required to decode and play the
- file.<br>
- A small, low-quality representation of the image is usually sufficient
- for editing soundtracks. The default bitrate in kbit/sec is set to use
- 0.7 bits per pixel. (Compare: the average DVD medium uses 5000 kbit/s;
- at PAL resolution this is about 0.5 bits per pixel. But the DVD is
- using the <dfn>mpeg2</dfn>—a denser compression algorithm than the
- <dfn>mjpeg</dfn> codec used by Ardour.)
+ file.
+</p>
+<p>
+ A small, low-quality representation of the image is usually sufficient
+ for editing soundtracks. The default bitrate in kbit/sec is set to use
+ 0.7 bits per pixel (in comparison, the average DVD medium uses 5000 kbit/s;
+ at PAL resolution this is about 0.5 bits per pixel, but the DVD is
+ using the <dfn>mpeg2</dfn>—a denser compression algorithm than the
+ <dfn>mjpeg</dfn> codec used by Ardour).
+</p>
+
+<p>
+ The <kbd class="menu">Extract Audio:</kbd> offers options regarding the Audio
+ part of the stream, allowing to either not extract audio, or to choose which audio
+ stream to add to the session.
+</p>
+<p>
+ When extracting any audio, if it includes <a href="@@timecode-generators-and-slaves">
+ LTC timecodes</a>, those can be extracted and used to sync the video by checking
+ the option below.
</p>
<h2>Working with A/V</h2>
<p>
- Well now,..
+ Working with A/V in Ardour is similar to working in a pure audio setup, except
+ for the presence of a video timeline in the <a href="@@ruler">ruler</a> zone,
+ and a Xjadeo video window, showing a preview of the result.
+</p>
+
+<figure class="center">
+ <img class= "mini" src="/images/video_timeline.png" alt="The Video Timeline">
+ <figcaption>
+ The Video Timeline
+ </figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+<p>
+ The Xjadeo window supports some user interactions, such as showing some OSD
+ information or changing the zoom level. Xjadeo's documentation is available
+ on its <a href="http://xjadeo.sourceforge.net/xjadeo.html#heading8">website</a>.
</p>
-<img src="/images/a3_videotimeline.png" alt="Video Timeline" width="600" />
<h2 id="export">Exporting Video</h2>
+
+<figure class="right">
+ <img class="mini" src="/images/export_video_file.png" alt="The Video Export Dialog">
+ <figcaption>
+ The Video Export Dialog
+ </figcaption>
+</figure>
+
<p>
- The video export will take audio from the current Ardour session and
- multiplex it with a video file. The soundtrack of the video is taken from
+ The video export will take audio from the current Ardour session and
+ multiplex it with a video file. The soundtrack of the video is taken from
an audio export of Ardour's master bus.
</p>
<p>
- An arbitrary video file can be chosen. For high quality exports, the
- original file (before it was imported into the timeline) should be used.
- This is the default behaviour if that file can be found. If not, Ardour
- will fall back to the imported proxy-video which is currently in use
- on the timeline. Any existing audio tracks on this video file are stripped.
+ An arbitrary video file can be chosen. For high quality exports, the
+ original file (before it was imported into the timeline) should be used.
+ This is the default behaviour if that file can be found. If not, Ardour
+ will fall back to the imported proxy-video which is currently in use
+ on the timeline. Any existing audio tracks on this video file are stripped.
</p>
<p>
- The range selection allows to cut or extend the video. If the session is
- longer than the video duration, black frames are prefixed or appended to
- the video. (Note: this process may fail with non-standard pixel aspect
+ The range selection allows to cut or extend the video. If the session is
+ longer than the video duration, black frames are prefixed or appended to
+ the video. (Note: this process may fail with non-standard pixel aspect
ratios). If Ardour's session range is shorter, the video will be cut accordingly.
</p>
<p>
- Audio samplerate and normalization are options for Ardour's audio exporter.
+ Audio sample rate and normalization are options for Ardour's audio exporter.
The remaining settings are options that are directly passed on to ffmpeg.
</p>
<p>
- The file format is determined by the extension that you choose for it
- (.avi, .mov, .flv, .ogv, .webm,…)
- Note: not all combinations of format, codec, and settings produce files
- which are according to specifications. For example, flv files require
- sample rates of 22.1 kHz or 44.1 kHz, mpeg containers can not
- be used with ac3 audio-codec, etc. If in doubt, use one of the built-in
- presets.
+ The file format is determined by the extension chosen for it
+ (.avi, .mov, .flv, .ogv, .webm,…).
+ Note: not all combinations of format, codec, and settings produce files
+ which are according to specifications. For example, flv files require
+ sample rates of 22.1 kHz or 44.1 kHz, mpeg containers can not
+ be used with AC-3 audio codec, etc. If in doubt, one of the built-in
+ presets should be used.
</p>
-<img src="/images/a3_video_export.png" alt="Video Export Dialog" width="300" />
-
<p>
- Ardour video export is not recommended for mastering! While ffmpeg
- (which is used by Ardour) can produce high-quality files, this export
- lacks the possibility to tweak many settings. We recommend to use winff,
- devede or dvdauthor to mux & master. Nevertheless this video-export c
- omes in handy to do quick snapshots, intermediates, dailies or online videos.
+ Ardour's video exporter is not recommended for mastering! While ffmpeg
+ (which is used by Ardour) can produce high-quality files, this export
+ lacks the possibility to tweak many settings. We recommend using
+ <a href="http://www.biggmatt.com/winff/">winff</a>,
+ <a href="http://www.rastersoft.com/programas/devede.html">devede</a> or
+ <a href="http://dvdauthor.sourceforge.net/">dvdauthor</a> to mux and master.
+ Nevertheless this video exporter comes in handy to do quick snapshots,
+ intermediates, dailies or online videos.
</p>
-
projects / ardour-manual / blobdiff