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[In this movie, we will be covering: displaying Media Start and End Times] [♪ relaxing music ♪] [displaying Tape Name, using Source Timecode] [updated Timecode effect, enhanced Current Time display] After Effects received a much requested overhaul in the way it handles source-produced Timecode in CS5.5. I've opened up project 26A--Color Management Input Profiles from our Creating Motion Graphics book, mainly because it has a variety of media. It has some RED footage. It has some DV footage, in addition to normal Quicktime movies. In the past, After Effects just assumed everybody started at time zero. That's changed now. I'm going to press the tilde key to expand the Project panel to take up my whole display, as this is an older project. I'm not seeing anything new yet, but if I right-click on any column header, I can now pick Media Start, Media End, and Tape Name. Pick Media Start, which defaults to this right column, but I can drag columns wherever I want them to be. And now you'll see the RED footage and the DV footage has maintained its Source Timecode. Particularly interesting is it even maintained the semicolons for the Drop-Frame Timecode the DV used and the normal colons for the Non-Drop Timecode that the RED used. Nice little touch there. As I mentioned, you can also right-click, choose Columns > Tape Name, and if the Tape Name was preserved when you digitized the tape, it will be displayed in this column. In the case of RED footage, you get to see the folder name-- our viritual real name for that shot--AO1CO31. So that's a couple of nice enhancements. I'll press tilde to go back to normal. These Media Start and End times can also be used throughout the project. I'll click on my bit-depth indicator to open up the project settings, and now I have a new option. Do I use the Media Source Time for footage, or do I just go back to saying every one starts at zero? If I use the Media Source Time, grab a clip that actually has a non-zero start, and drag it to the New Composition icon, you'll now see that the composition's Start Timecode matches that media's Start Timecode. If I go Edit > Composition Settings, you'll see basically that the Media Start has been copied into the Start Timecode field for this composition. Another way this is used is if I click media that has timecode embedded, in it's Layer panel you'll see the Start and Stop represent the true time on tape of this footage item. And if I double-click it to open up its Footage panel, I also see these true times. If I find this confusing, I'll just go ahead and set my Project Settings > Footage Start Time back to zero. Click Okay, and these displays go back to the old way of every one starting at zero, then just showing you the duration of that particular clip. This ability to read embedded timecode is also moved over the the old Timecode effect. I'll select my footage, type in "Timecode" to get that effect, drag it onto the shot, and now you see one of the options for Time Source is, indeed, the Layers Source, in addition to the Compositions Time, in addition to a custom time I may want to enter. But by using the Layer Source, it's much easier now for me to go ahead and put timecode burn-ins on, say, all fine footage, which will make it that much easier to hand conform back to online if I need to. Another little timecode related touch you might have noticed is now the Timeline panel shows 2 different time formats. It shows both SMPTE Timecode and Sum-Frame Format, be it absolute frame count or Feet + Frames. It also shows the frame rate of the composition. To change these, you go into your Project Settings. I'll click my on bit-depth indicator. Decide who's the major one, frames or timecode. When you select frames, decide whether or not you want to use normal frame count or Feet + Frames. Click Okay, and now you see I've got a Feet + Frame indicator on top and a SMPTE Timecode indicator underneath. To toggle between these, just hold "Command" on Mac or "Control" on Windows--click. And now it switches who's on top and who's underneath. Another little enhancement in CS5.5.
