How to Use DaVinci Resolve 17: Beginner Editing Guide

How to Use DaVinci Resolve 17.md

How to Use DaVinci Resolve 17: Beginner Editing Guide

How to Use DaVinci Resolve

From Motion Array

Step 1: Create a New Project & Import Media

DaVinci Resolve’s project management is based on a disk database. What that means is, rather than saving individual project files onto your hard drive and keeping tabs on where they live, all of your projects are stored in a central location within your computer. Within a database, you will create projects, where all of your footage is stored, and create timelines where you will be doing the actual editing.

The first time you open it, you will land on the Project Manager page. Once you are in a project, you’ll need to first confirm a few settings before importing your media.

1. Open DaVinci Resolve.
2. From the Project Manager, select New Project.
3. Give your project a name.
4. Open Project Settings, which is the cog icon in the lower right of the interface.
5. You will need to set your Timeline Frame Rate. This defaults to 24 fps, but ideally, you will change this to match the majority of your footage (such as 23.976 or 25 fps).
6. If you change the timeline frame rate, change the Playback Frame Rate and Video Format tabs to match.
7. If you don’t know exactly what these settings should be, don’t worry. You’ll have another chance to alter the frame rate when you import your footage.
8. On the Cut tab, go to the menu bar and select File > Import > Import Media.
9. You’ll be greeted by a Finder window. Here, you’ll navigate to where on your computer your footage is stored, to bring into your project.

Step 2: Add Trimmed Clips to the Timeline

Your imported media will appear in the Master Bin. To begin editing, you will need to mark your footage. This way, you are only moving useful media onto the timeline for editing. You can mark your footage two different ways:

Hover your mouse over each clip’s thumbnail and scrub the footage. Press "I" on the keyboard to mark an in-point, the place in the footage you would like to start with. Press "O" on the keyboard to mark an out-point, the point in the footage you would like to end with. Click-and-drag the thumbnail onto the timeline to make an edit. Alternatively, double click a shot you would like to load into the viewer to review. The same I and O keyboard shortcuts apply, mark a clip, and click-and-drag the monitor image onto the timeline.

To review your edits, click on the timeline, drag the playhead to the beginning of the timeline, and press the Spacebar for your rough cut to start playing. To build an assemble edit, watch, and log all of the clips you’ve imported into your project. To change the length of a shot (make something longer or shorter), hover your mouse at the beginning or end of a clip in your timeline to trim any of your shots.

Step 3: Add Text & Titles

DaVinci Resolve includes two different text tools: Text and Text+. Text is for quickly generating 2D titles. You can change fonts, add a drop shadow, and even add a colorful background shape to help separate the text from the video. Text+ is a more sophisticated tool based on Blackmagic’s compositing software Fusion.

Titles can be either 2D or 3D, can feature dynamic lighting, 3D shapes, and particle effects. Text+ titles certainly have more possibilities but can take a very long time for your computer to render, and isn’t the easiest tool to learn.

1. Open the Titles panel, found in the top-left of the interface.
2. Click-and-drag "Text" (fifth option from the top of the list) into the timeline. Be sure to place the title above your video on a new layer.
3. Select the title you want to edit.
4. Open the Tools Belt found just underneath the video window.
5. Open the Titles sub-menu (farthest to the right), and open up the Inspector.
6. In the Inspector, you can adjust font attributes, drop shadow, and background shading.

One "gotcha" to note: Be sure to double-check that you’ve selected the right title before editing! You have to manually click on the title in the timeline first. It’s very easy to start typing in the Inspector and realize after the fact you’ve edited a title that is elsewhere in your project.

Step 4: Add Transitions

While most video production relies on simpler transitions, such as a fade-to-black, or a cross-dissolve, you’ll find quite a number of useful transitions pre-built and ready to use. The push and slide transitions can add some nice momentum to production, and the smooth cut tool morphs together neighboring frames in an attempt to hide jump cuts!

1. Move into the Edit page by clicking the word "Edit" on the ribbon toolbar.
2. Open the Effects Library panel, in the top-left of the interface.
3. Under Video Transitions, click-and-drag the Cross Dissolve transition onto the timeline, place your mouse between two pieces of video.
4. Click on the transition icon in the timeline.
5. Open the Inspector panel in the top-right of the interface.
6. In the Inspector, consider adjusting the length to 8 frames.

In the Inspector, you’ll find all kinds of useful things to edit and adjust to ensure your transitions match the mood of your project. Adjust how long, or short, a fade is. Is the fade gradual, or linear in acceleration? You can even change the transition type after-the-fact in this panel, so start experimenting!

Step 5: Add Effects

DaVinci Resolve comes bundled with many high-quality plugins for adding effects during video editing. This is where you will notice limitations in Resolve vs. Resolve Studio (the paid edition).

The free version of the software comes with far fewer options than that of the paid. Don’t fret though, there are still a large number of effects to learn and explore here, and perhaps after playing around, you may decide the extra ones are worth the price of admission.

1. Within the Effects Library, navigate to OpenFX.
2. Scroll down to Vignette. Click-and-drag the effect from the list and apply it to a piece of video.
3. Open the Inspector, select the video clip with the effect applied, click the "OpenFX" tab to modify the effect parameters.
4. Click the little trash-bin icon in the same menu to remove the effect
5. (Optional) Consider adding an adjustment clip to the whole timeline. Under Effects Library > Effects > Adjustment Clip, drag that effect to a new layer in the timeline. Re-add the Vignette effect, but this time, apply it to the Adjustment Clip. This way, you can apply an effect to an entire timeline at once, rather than one clip at a time.

You can also start to supercharge the software by adding templates and macros.

Step 6: Add Music & Audio

For this section, return to the Cut page. You can add your own music by importing it the same way you added videos in step 1. Resolve doesn’t come with any stock music as some other popular editing applications do, so head on over to Motion Array and grab some free sample royalty-free music to experiment with.

Import music, just like you would import video by following step 1. Drag-and-drop your desired music from the bin into the timeline. To adjust the volume, click on the audio piece, open the Tools Belt, and move into the Audio tab.

There are certainly more advanced audio features in the form of the Fairlight tab, but most basic audio and music tasks can be accomplished within the Cut and Edit pages.

Step 7: Color Correction

Jump over to the Color tab. While it may look a little intimidating, the basic features are straightforward to use. Most of what you are looking for is in the bottom-left of the interface, the primary color corrector.

1. Note that every shot edited in your timeline appears here as a thumbnail along the middle toolbelt. Click on the first shot you want to color.
2. The crosshair with a black box is the Black-Balance Tool. Use this and select an area in your shot that ought to be black to set the level.
3. If your shot crushes too dark, click and drag the Lift slider (underneath the trackball) to bring back detail.
4. Similar process for the highlights, use the White-Balance Tool, found near the bottom left of the Color page, on an aspect of your image that ought to be white (usually a piece of paper).
5. If your shot is too blown out, click and drag the Gain slider to bring back detail.
6. The Sat value (default at 50) controls how much color saturation is in your image. Click and drag the "50" value with your mouse to add and remove color globally in the image.

If you want to dive further into the world of color grading in DaVinci Resolve, we’ve got just the tutorial for that.

Step 8: Share Project

Head back over to the Cut page once you are happy with your edit, titles, transitions, music, and color! Here, you’ll have the option to publish right to Vimeo, YouTube, or to save a standalone movie file onto your computer.

1. Move into the Cut page.
2. Click Quick Export found in the top right of the interface.
3. Select H.264 > Export.
4. Save the file to your preferred folder on your computer.

While it exports, Resolve will have a status window in the progress of your render. Once that’s done, your movie is ready to share with the world. Learn more about the exporting options available to you in this tutorial.

And there you have it! That’s an overview of how to use DaVinci Resolve and get started creating your first project in it. While the program may seem intimidating, with just a couple of mouse clicks, you can get started with video editing and making your own projects!

Import Media

From Motion Array.

Part 1: 3 Ways to Import Media into DaVinci Resolve

Before you can get started importing media, you’ll first need to create a Project.

When launching Resolve for the first time, you’ll be greeted with the Project Manager. Project management is a little different in Resolve compared to some other programs. Projects are saved in a single database, rather than a standalone project file.

1. From here, click the New Project button.
2. Give your project a name.
3. Click Create, which will launch the project.

Before we continue, please be sure to reset the window layout. This way, your screen following along at home will match what you see in this tutorial. But don’t worry, to revert the interface to default click Workspace > Reset UI Layout.

Perfect! With that complete, you can now start importing your media files.

Import Media into the Cut Page

The Cut Page is a recent addition to DaVinci Resolve and is built around the concept of speed. These tools allow you to get up and running with your footage quickly and piece together a rough edit. To get started, you can download a few pieces of free stock video from Motion Array (if you don’t have footage of your own already).

To bring footage into the Cut page:

Click Import Media to bring in one, or a selected number of video clips. Press and hold the Command (Mac) / Control (Windows) key while mouse clicking to select multiple pieces of video. You can also lasso with your mouse to grab a number of clips. Or, click Import Folder to add a folder of media, usually in the form of a camera card, or an entire day’s shoot. You may be greeted with the prompt “clip(s) have a different frame rate than the current project settings.” If you are unsure what your frame rate settings should be, we recommend clicking “change” to have your project match the footage.

Import Media Right into the Edit Page

Alternatively, you can choose to import media in the Edit page rather than the Cut page. It’s important to note that the timeline is the same between either page. When moving between Cut and Edit, you’re still in the same project and the same timeline.

The Cut page is somewhat similar to Final Cut Pro X, with a large focus dedicated to visual trimming. The Edit page is more similar to Premiere Pro, with a traditional “two-up” display of a source and record monitors, full timeline, and effects editor window (by means of the Inspector).

The Edit page does not feature a dedicated Import button. To import media:

1. Click on the menu bar and select File > Import > Import Media.
2. Similar to the Cut page workflow, navigate to the folder where you media lives, select the clips and click Import.

Import Using the Media Page

The Media page in Resolve is a place dedicated to reviewing your files, and deciding what exactly you would like to import. This page features a robust video player that can load many popular media formats instantly.

Why would you use the Media page when you know how to import media in the Cut and Edit pages? One of the main reasons is the ability to watch the video before importing it. If you’re working with a lot of clips and you know you won’t need all of them, the Media page can help sift things down.

To import media in the Media page:

1. Navigate to the Media page on the ribbon navigator.
2. Go to the media location on your drive that you will want to import by using the directory tree in the top left of the window.
3. Click on a clip to preview it in the monitor.
4. Simply drag and drop clips from the folder tree into the Media Pool, to bring them into the project.
5. A dialogue box about mismatched frame rates may appear. If you are unsure what your frame rate settings should be, we suggest clicking “change” to match the project to the footage.

The same keyboard shortcuts apply here as well. Command (Mac) or Control (Windows) will select multiple clips, and Shift + clicking will select a range of clips that can be imported at once.

Part 2: Pro Tips & Common Issues

Imported Files Are on Your Hard Drive

It’s important to know that the video files you’ve imported into your project are still on your hard drive, right where you left them. By importing the video clips, you’re not moving them from one place to another. Importing media simply references the videos on your computer.

Relinking Clips

Relinking Clips If you see the screen above, don’t panic! Media can go offline from your project. What does that mean? As mentioned above, video files aren’t in your DaVinci project file, but instead, are referenced between the software and the location on your hard drive.

The most common culprit for the image above is that files were moved from one folder to another after they had already been imported into an editing session. It’s easy to relink your media, and this tutorial will show you exactly how it’s done.

Here are just a few different ways on how to import media into DaVinci Resolve and start a new video editing project. Importing from the Cut or Edit pages are very fast and great if you know exactly what media you want to import, and where it can be found on your system. The Media page is built around previewing clips before bringing them into your project. Either method is equally effective!

Titles Tutorial

For this tutorial, we’re assuming that you’ve already created a project and have footage in your timeline. If you need footage for your project, you can download some free video clips to use. When it comes to titles, think about where you might want to add them to your video. Maybe it’s right at the beginning of the video to help tell what it’s about. Or maybe you want to add a name at the bottom of the screen during an interview.

Step 1: Selecting a Title

Let’s get started and add our first title to the timeline.

1. Open a Project.
2. Place the playhead at the location in the timeline where you want the title to start.
3. Open the Effects Library on the top left of the window.
4. On the left-hand side of the screen, open Toolbox and select Titles.
   1. You’ll see standard basic text titles listed in the Titles section.
   2. Under Fusion Titles, you will find more advanced titles that contain some type of graphic element.
5. Select the title you’d like to use, and simply drag and drop it onto the timeline at the playhead location. For this example, we are going to add the basic title called ‘L Lower 3rd’.

Step 2: How to Modify Basic Text Titles

Now that you have a title in the timeline, here’s how you can modify it.

1. Click on the title you want to edit so the clip is highlighted.
2. Open the Inspector at the top right of the window. This is where you can make changes to the text.
3. Add the text for the title in the section called Rich Text. You can also adjust the size, font, position, color, alignment, angle, and more.
4. Looking down the Inspector window, you will see that you can also add a drop shadow, stroke, or background. Let’s add a simple background next.
5. Under background, use the Height slider to reveal a background that is slightly higher than the text in the viewer window.
6. Once the height of the background is set, adjust the Width as necessary.
7. Change the Opacity of the background to make it darker or lighter as necessary.

Step 3: Simple Text Animations

We’ve got our basic text set up, now let’s make it a little more interesting by adding a simple fade in and fade out.

1. Open the timeline view options on the left and select Thumb under Video View Options.
2. Go back to the timeline and select the title clip. You will now see two little handles appear at the top and bottom corners of the clip. Click on the handles and drag it to the right or left to create a fade. Do this at the beginning and end of the clip. The numbers that appear represent the number of seconds/frames over which the transition will occur. A setting around 10 frames works well.
3. Now you have a nice title that will fade in and fade out! Great job!
4. For more advanced animations, you’ll need to use keyframes in the Inspector and/or jump over into Fusion.

We hope you found this tutorial helpful! You’re ready to start adding basic titles to your DaVinci Resolve project and even create a simple fade in/out with your text. Now that you’ve got the tools you need, get out there and create something amazing!

Fusion Tutorial

From Motion Array.

Part 1: How to Use DaVinci Resolve Fusion

Step 1: Understanding the Fusion Page

Before you start adding any effects, take a look at your Fusion composition workspace and review the basic things you’ll need to know for a project.

• Make sure the clip you want to edit is selected and your playhead is over it.
• Switch to the Fusion workspace by clicking the correct icon in the bottom panel.
• Your clip Timeline is underneath the Preview Viewer.
• You can see two clips at a time in the Preview View.
• You can view the element Inspector, Metadata, Keyframe, and Spline by clicking on the relevant menu icons in the top-right corner.
• There’s a selection of Tool Shortcuts underneath your timeline.
• The main work area at the bottom is your Nodes space, where you will adjust most of your effects. You’ll learn how to do that in a minute.
• Toggle between viewing your Media Pool, Effects Library, Clips, and Nodes by clicking on the relevant icon in the top-left of the window.

Step 2: Media In & Out

Your Media In and Out is important to understanding the node system. Thinking of your node workspace as a flowchart which acts as a set of instructions will help you to get your head around it.

The Media In represents your input media, as it is, before any effects are added. The Media Out represents your output media, after the effects you’ve added have been applied. You haven’t applied any effects yet, so the Media In and Media Out will look exactly the same.

1. Your multimedia clip will start out with a Media In node (the gray box of the left) and Media Out node (the gray box of the right) connected by an arrow.
2. The arrow shows the direction and order each of the nodes are connected.
3. Select any node and press 1 to make it appear on the left Preview Viewer, and press 2 to show it on your right Preview Viewer.
4. For this tutorial, keep the Media In visible on the left, and Media Out visible on the right as a before and after comparison.

Step 3: Effects Library

To alter our clip, you need to add some other nodes. Each effect will appear in our workspace as another node. The Effects Library is a great place to build our own effects or see what’s already on offer. You’ll notice a mix of visual, motion graphic, and even color grading effects.

1. Click on Effects Library to open the full list of available effects. There are several subcategories.
2. Use this list to build your own effects, or pick from DaVinci Resolve Fusion’s ready-made Templates. This is a great way to study the individual nodes that build a more complex effect.
3. Alternatively, right-click in your node space and select Add Tool to choose an effect.

Step 4: Beginner Effects

Let’s start with a simple visual effect to alter our footage. This will show you how a new effect will create a node that connects to your Media In & Out, which will act like a set of instructions to alter your output.

1. Click on Effects Library > OpenFX > ResolveFX Texture.
2. Select Film Damage, and click and drag it into your node workspace.
3. Drop it in the center of the arrow that connects your Media In and Media Out Nodes. A new node should appear in the middle of your Media In & Out, with arrows connecting to them both.
4. You’ll see that while your media input in the Preview Viewer is unchanged, your Media Output now shows the effect!

Step 5: Nodes & Customization

Now you know how to add a simple effect. A lot of effects on DaVinci Resolve Fusion will need you to adjust values to make them work. This is done by customizing the settings of your nodes, and it will help you to have better control over your effects. Let’s go back to just our Media In and Out nodes and start again with a color correction effect.

1. Select Color Corrector from the shortcut toolbar, or the Effects Library.
2. Click and drag it to the center of the arrow that currently connects Media In and Media Out. It should create a new node.
3. Click on Inspector to adjust the values of the Color Corrector node. Make sure the node is selected as you do this.
4. Choose your desired color using the color wheel.
5. You have control over the other values, too. Try adjusting the color levels such as the Gain, Gamma, or Lift.

Part 2: Advanced Tips to Develop Your Skills

Merge Nodes

As you get more confident in DaVinci Resolve Fusion, you’ll come across effects that need a slightly longer set of instructions to work properly. Merge nodes are just one example, and they are the proper way to incorporate a more complex set of instructions in your node system, such as adding a new piece of media.

1. Click on the Media Pool icon.
2. If you don’t have a piece of media ready to add, right-click in your Media Pool and click on Import Media and choose which media you want to add.
3. Click and drag your chosen media into an empty space in your node area. A new node will be created with the name of your media file.
4. Right-click in your node workspace, and select Add Tool > Composite > Merge from the dropdown menu. Or, click on the Merge icon in the shortcut toolbar.
5. A Merge node will appear: this will act as an instruction to composite your new media with your original clip, but you need to add the arrows, so the “flowchart” knows to follow the instructions, and when.
6. Click and drag to draw an arrow from the right-hand gray box on the side of your new Media node to the Merge node.
7. Delete the arrow connecting your Color Corrector and Media Out nodes by clicking on the right-side of the arrow.
8. Connect the Color Corrector node to the Merge node, using the technique in bullet point 6.
9. Repeat this step to connect the Merge node and the Media Out node.

Swap Node Inputs

If you follow our first tip and your second Preview Viewer changes dimensions, don’t worry. There is a quick fix!

1. Scroll over both arrows flowing into your Merge node. Your new Media node has been assigned as foreground and the color correction node as background. You want this to be the other way around.
2. Right-click on your Merge node and selecting Swap Inputs.
3. Add the finishing touch by dragging and dropping your new media on the second Preview Viewer until it’s where you want it.

Just like that, you’re no longer a stranger to DaVinci Resolve Fusion. You’re ready to add simple effects, and even start building your own more complex node sequences.

It can take a moment to get your head around a node-based system if you’re used to working with layers. Be patient with yourself, and give yourself a pat on the back for learning a whole new system in just a few minutes!

Video Transitions Tutorial

You should know there are five different categories of transitions in Resolve, although you could argue there are only three big groups. Each one could have a distinct effect on the flow of your video, so let’s try to understand which one is the best in each situation.

• Dissolve: One of the most classic transitions from filming. A shot fades into the next one or a black screen.
• Iris/Shape: Shot B gradually masks Shot A out, shaped like a circle or any other shape you can think of until it occupies the entire screen.
• Wipe, Motion: Shot B pushes away or covers Shot A.

While there are lots of options to choose from, the most important thing to keep in mind is to be consistent. You shouldn’t use transitions as a one-time-only trick, because it will stick out for your audience. Your transition choices should be part of the editing style, meaning that if you apply a transition once, you should apply that type of transition two or three times throughout the video.

Now, let’s see how to apply these default video transitions in DaVinci Resolve.

Bring Your Footage into Resolve

Import your footage into the media pool (the keyboard shortcut for import is Cmd ⌘+I). You can also drag and drop the footage from the Finder’s window.

Create a Timeline & Start Editing

Next, it’s time to create a new timeline. The simplest way is to select your clips and right-click on them and choose Create New Timeline From Selected Clips.

Creating a timeline this way guarantees the size and frame rate will be the same as your clips. If you need a different setup, go to Use Custom Settings while creating the timeline.

Then go to the Edit tab to start working. Once you have your clips next to each other in the timeline, you are ready to apply the transition.

Apply the Transition

Make sure the Effects Library is displayed. You’ll find it on the upper right side of the screen, right next to the Media Pool. Once activated, all effects will be displayed. Select Video Transitions if needed.

Drag and drop the desired transition over the clips in the timeline. A transparent box will appear between the clips: That’s your transition!

If the white box appears over one clip or doesn’t appear at all—don’t panic! There is nothing wrong with the settings. It just means one clip does not have enough frames for the transition. You’ll have to make sure the clips are long enough.

Make Adjustments

To adjust the duration of a transition directly on the timeline, drag the sides of the white box until you reach the desired length.

The ideal duration depends on the flow of your edit. To make sure the transition works well, watch from 10 seconds or so before the cut, not just the affected clips.

Also, you can modify the timing of the transition by selecting it in the timeline and then clicking on the white square button inside the transition. You’ll be able to adjust the acceleration of the transition using keyframes in the curves below.

If visual adjustments are not precise enough for you, there is good news for you – parametric customization. This is how you do it.

First, make sure the Inspector panel is enabled. You can open it by clicking the Inspector icon in the upper left corner of the screen. Then, select your transition to display its options on the Inspector.

You can adjust every relevant parameter: duration, style, color, timing, and more. If you are unfamiliar with some of the options displayed here, play with them until you understand them.

Effects

All the Transitions (video and audio), Titles, Generators, and Effects live in the Effects Library. Here you’ll see 3 main categories: the Toolbox, OpenFX, and AudioFX. Let’s dive into what’s available and how to use them in your projects.

Video Transitions

To kick things off, we’ll begin with video transitions! DaVinci Resolve 17 offers the expected transitions—Dissolve, Iris, Push/Slide, Shapes, and Wipes and a lot more have been added in version 17 including some Fusion transitions like camera shake, circles, and crash zoom. Simply click on the Effects Library and look under Toolbox > Video Transitions.

Here, you’ll see that the Cross Dissolve is the standard transition, identified by a red bar beside it. If you’re ever interested in changing the standard transition to something else, all you need to do is select a new transition, right-click, and choose Set as Standard Transition. By clicking the star beside a transition, you can also add it to the Favorites at the bottom of the toolbox.

1. To add a transition between clips or at the beginning or end of a clip you can simply drag it onto that point of the clip. Then use the bars on the side to adjust the length of the transition.
2. To add a transition to or multiple clips in the timeline, select clips or edit points, then from the menu select Timeline > Add Video Only Transition. You can also use the shortcut Option+T or Alt+T to add a video transition. This will add the standard transition to all those clips.

Audio Transitions

DaVinci Resolve has robust audio capabilities, and you can work with audio on the Cut and Edit pages, and the Fairlight page offers a dedicated page for advanced audio work. It has audio transitions and a large number of audio effects included. You can also install third-party audio effects. Audio effects are applied in the same way as video transitions and filters. Effects are dropped on a clip and transition at the head or tails of a clip.

Here’s how you would get started applying an audio crossfade.

1. Simply drag the transition to the clip where you want it or between the clips.
2. Alternatively, select the edit point, then right-click on the transition and select Add to Selected Edit Points and Clips. Alternatively, you can also go Timeline > Add Audio Only Transition or use the shortcut Shift+T to add an audio transition.

Titles

In the Effects Library, you’ll see that titles consist of 3 categories: Titles, Fusion Titles, and Subtitles.

The Titles category is very basic, generally used for titles that don’t animate. The exception is Text+, which includes animated text options to give your text some cool effects. Something to keep in mind is that the Lightning icon tells you it’s a Fusion clip, which supports motion blur. Motion Blur is important when working with titles, so the movement looks more natural.

DaVinci Resolve comes with a nice collection of presets for creating professional titles and lower thirds.

1. Select your preferred title that you want to add to your video project.
2. Drag and drop the title to the desired point on your timeline.
3. Customize the title in the Inspector.
4. If you used a Text+ or a Fusion Title and animated the text, click the Settings tab, and here you’ll see the option to select Motion blur.

Note: One important difference between titles and subtitles is that titles go on a standard video track, where subtitles are applied to a subtitle track.

Generators

Generators are useful utility items that you find in most video editing apps. This is where you will find color bars, solid color, and a gradient. It’s very easy to start working with Generators. Simply drag them to the timeline, just like a clip, and make adjustments in the Inspector.

OpenFX

OpenFX contains ResolveFX effects and third-party plugins (in OFX format). If you have installed plugins to DaVinci Resolve, you will see those plugins installed here.

Most of the ResolveFX comes with the Studio version, and you will see a watermark if you apply them in the free version. If you are a working pro, the paid version gives you features you may need like retouching, film grain, glow, and lens flare.

If you’d like to use an OpenFX, here’s how you’d get started:

1. Select the OpenFX you’d like to use.
2. Drag an effect onto a clip, and be sure to drag transitions to the head or tail of a clip.
3. Each OpenFX will have different customization options, and you can make adjustments in the Inspector.

Effects

There are only 2 effects in this category, but they are both powerful. Here you’ll find Adjustment Clip and Fusion Composition.

Adjustment Clip

The Adjustment Clip applies all effects to multiple clips below it in the timeline, and it works similarly to adjustment layers in the Adobe apps (Photoshop, Premiere Pro, After Effects). Let’s apply an adjustment clip above a couple of video clips.

Let’s say you have two clips in a timeline that you want to give the same stylized look.

1. Drag the Adjustment Clip onto a track above your video clips. For example, if your clips were on video track 1, add the adjustment clip to video track 2.
2. To add your first effect, simply drag and drop that on the Adjustment Clip.
3. From there, adjust the settings in the OpenFX Inspector. You can also double-click on the slider if the effect is not expanded.
4. You can continue to add multiple effects to create a complex look. Click the slider beside each effect to toggle them on and off.
5. If there’s a clip you want to remove, click on the trash can to delete it.

What’s great is that ResolveFX and third-party OFX effects can be applied to the Adjustment Clip. Another advantage of using an adjustment clip is that you can adjust their Opacity and change the Composite Mode to really dial in a look.

Fusion Composition

Fusion lets you accomplish motion graphics and compositing similar to After Effects, but uses nodes you connect to one another instead of layers. A Fusion Composition creates an empty Fusion composition/container. It acts as a placeholder for later creating a Fusion Composition on the Fusion page.

Let’s create a simple title to see how Fusion works:

1. Drag the Fusion Composition onto video 2, above the skateboard clip, and make it the same length. The 3 stars on the adjustment clip identify it as a Fusion clip.
2. Click on the Fusion page, and you’ll see a Mediaout1 node. This is how Fusion outputs what you do on this page. You’ll need to connect a title to it.
3. Click Title on the toolbar. Connect the Title to the MediaOut by dragging from the title output (square) to the MediaIn input (gold triangle).
4. With the Title node selected, type some text in the Inspector.
5. Click back on the Edit page, and you see the text above your video.

Keyboard Shortcuts

From Motion Array.

File

Firstly, let’s take a look at the shortcuts associated with the File Menu, where you can create new timelines, import and export media, and save your projects.

Action	Shortcut
New Bin	Shift + Control + N
New Timeline	Control + N
Save Project	Control + S
Save Project As…	Shift + Control + S
Import Project	Control + I
Export Project	Control + E

Timeline Navigation

The Timeline shortcuts are super helpful in navigating your timeline and playback options.

Action	Shortcut
Go to First Frame	;
Go to Last Frame	´
Play Around Current Frame	/
Go to Timeline Start	Home
Go to Timeline End	End
Previous Clip / Edit	Up
Next Clip / Edit	Arrow Down
Step One Frame Reverse	Arrow Left
Step One Frame Forward	Arrow Right

Marking

Marking your timeline is an efficient way of adding reference points to a clip without needing a keyframe or a cut. Use markers for anything that you want to remind yourself of later, but don’t overuse them, or your timeline will become cluttered and confusing.

Action	Shortcut
Mark In	I
Mark Out	O
Clear In	Alt + I
Clear Out	Alt + O
Mark Clip	X
Add Marker	M
Add & Modify Marker	Control + M
Modify Marker	Shift + M
Delete Marker	Alt + M

Playback

Playback Shortcuts help you watch your edit through in a variety of different ways. Learning these shortcuts will help you quickly watch through, reverse, and loop your clips for review.

Action	Shortcut
Pause/Start Playback	Space
Play Reverse	J
Stop	K
Play Forward	L
Fast Forward	Shift + L
Fast Reverse	Shift + J
Loop/Unloop	Control + /
Play In To Out	Alt + /
Play To Out	Alt + Control + /

Editing

With these hotkeys, you can quickly jump between editing tools, which can save a ton of time and mouse action.

Action	Shortcut
Normal Edit Mode	A
Trim	T
Blade	B
Razor	Control + B
Insert Edit	F9
Overwrite Edit	F10
Replace Edit	F11
Place On Top Edit	F12
Delete Selected	Backspace
Fit To Fill	Shift + F11
Append At End	Shift + F12
Dynamic Trim Mode	W
Trim Mode	T
Select Clips Forward On This Track	Y
Select Clips Backward on This Track	Control + Y
Edit Point Type	U
Select Nearest Edit Point	V
Snapping On / Off	N
Nudge One Frame Left	,
Nudge One Frame Right	.
Select Nearest Clip/Gap	Shift + V
Linked Selection	Control + L
Clip Link	Alt + Control + L
Enable Clip	D
Split Clip	Control + \
Join Clips	Alt + \
Select Nearest Edit Point	V
Edit point type	U

Effects

Shortcuts can also help you with your effects, such as retiming clips, adding transitions, and working with keyframes.

Action	Shortcut
Add Transition	Control + T
Retime Controls	Control + R
Reset Retime	Alt + Control + R
Paste Attribute	Alt + V
Add Keyframe	Control + [
Add Static Keyframe	Control + ]
Delete Keyframe	Alt + ]
Go to Previous Keyframe	[
Go to Next Keyframe	]

General

Some general shortcuts you can use include copy and paste, as we’ve already mentioned, but you can also use a similar method for a variety of other general actions.

Action	Shortcut
Undo	Control + Z
Redo	Shift + Control + Z
Copy	Control + C
Paste	Control + V
Select All	Control + A
Deselect All	Shift + Control + A
Delete with Ripple	Shift + Delete