The recording editor
3 min read
The editor opens with automatic zooms already applied. Nothing you do in it changes the original recording, so every edit can be undone later.
The editor window
- The preview is in the middle.
- The toolbar below it holds playback controls, editing commands and timeline controls.
- The timeline is at the bottom, with one row for each type of content.
- The inspector is on the right. Use the icons along its edge to switch sections. Selecting anything shows its settings at the top of the panel.
Timeline rows
| Row | Contains |
|---|---|
| Video | Your clips. Split, reorder, trim and delete them here |
| Zoom | Every zoom, whether added automatically or by you |
| Text | Text overlays |
| Sound | Music and voiceover you add |
| System audio and Microphone | The audio recorded with the video. Shown only if the recording has them |
| Input | Your clicks and typing, shown for reference so you can see why a zoom was added |
Cut and trim
Position the playhead
Drag it along the timeline. Move the pointer over the timeline to preview the frame under it.
Press ⌘B to split
The clip becomes two clips. The recording file is not changed.
Select a clip and press ⌫ to remove it
Use Restore cuts in the inspector to bring removed footage back at any time.
Drag the middle of a clip to move it in the sequence. A marker shows where it will go. Drag either end to trim it. Clip edges snap to the playhead, to other clips and to the start and end of the video, and the line it snapped to is shown.
Zooms
| Task | How |
|---|---|
| Add a zoom | Position the playhead and press Z, or double-click the Zoom row |
| Change a zoom | Select it. Amount, timing and easing are in the inspector |
| Aim a zoom yourself | Select it, then drag the crosshair on the preview. The zoom stops following your recorded activity and stays where you put it |
| Go back to automatic aiming | Choose Follow activity again in the inspector or the right-click menu |
| Remove a zoom | Select it and press ⌫ |
The camera
Drag the camera on the preview to move it. It snaps to nine standard positions. Dragging it also opens the Camera section of the inspector, where you can set its size, shape, corner radius, crop and mirroring. All of these can be changed at any time, because the original camera recording is never altered.
Text overlays
Press T to add text at the playhead. Drag it on the preview to position it. It snaps to the centre and to the thirds, and cannot be dragged out of frame. Timing, style and an entrance animation are set per overlay in the inspector.
Adding other video, images and audio
Drag a video or image file onto the timeline to place it where you drop it. Audio files are always added to the Sound row.
Sound
- Music and voiceover can overlap each other and the rest of the video. Drag a sound along the timeline to reposition it.
- Each audio row has its own volume and mute button. Muting keeps the volume level you set.
- Audio cannot extend past the end of the video. It is trimmed automatically.
Appearance settings
| Setting | What it controls |
|---|---|
| Background | A preset, a solid colour, your desktop wallpaper, or your own image |
| Padding | How much background is visible around the recording |
| Corner radius and shadow | How the recording sits on the background |
| Cursor | Pointer size, and how much movement is smoothed out |
| Output shape | Source, 16:9, 4:3, 1:1 or 9:16 |
Sizes are set as a proportion of the output rather than in pixels, so a 720p export looks the same as a 4K one.
Undo
⌘Z and ⇧⌘Z undo and redo everything, including cuts, zooms, text, styling and imports. Changes made within about half a second of each other are grouped into one undo step, so dragging a slider counts as a single change.