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Adding footage items to a composition


    Once you have created a new composition and imported footage into the project, you can add footage items or another composition to it. To do this, drag footage items or folders from the Project window to a Timeline window, a Composition window, or a composition name or icon in the Project window. You can use individual items in the Project window any number of times in one or more compositions.

    Note: Although you cannot directly add a composition to itself, you can duplicate a composition and add the copy to the original.

    When you drag a footage item to the Timeline window, you can specify a precise layer order and start time for the item. If you add multiple footage items to a composition, the items appear in the order in which they were selected in the Project window. If you drag a footage item into the Composition window, the layer appears where you drop it. If you drag a footage item onto a composition in the Project window, the layer snaps to the center of the Composition window. After you add a layer, you can move it to any position within the Composition window. When you add multiple footage items, they appear in the composition in the order selected.

    Items added to a composition begin at the time indicated on the current-time marker in the Timeline window. For example, if the current time box displays 0:00:04:00 (4 seconds), when you place the item in the Composition window, the item begins its first frame at 4 seconds. By changing the location of the current-time marker (Timeline window) or the time displayed in the Current Time button (Composition window), you can add a layer at any point in the composition.

    In the Composition window, layers are visible only if they are active at the time currently displayed. For example, if you have three layers in a composition, with two of the layers starting at the beginning of the composition and one layer starting at 6 seconds, only two of the layers appear in the Composition window when the current-time marker is set to the beginning of the composition.

    For more information on adjusting the duration or speed of a layer, see Understanding trimming and Time-stretching a layer. For more information on setting and adjusting the current time, see Viewing and setting the current time.

To add a footage item to a composition:

  1. Activate the Timeline window for the composition to which you want to add an item.
  2. To set the current-time marker, click the current-time display, specify a new time, and then click OK.
  3. Drag the name of the footage item, the footage-item thumbnail, or a folder from the Project window to one of three places:
    • The Composition window.
    • The Timeline window. When you drag the item into the Timeline window, a highlight bar indicates where the layer will appear when you release the mouse button. If you drag the item over the time graphic area, a time marker indicates where the layer's In point will be when you release the mouse button.
    While dragging an item into the Timeline window, you can specify the layer order and In point.
    While dragging an item into the Timeline window, you can specify the layer order and In point.
    • The composition name or icon in the Project window.

    Tip iconYou can also add a footage item to a composition by selecting the name of the footage item in the Project window and pressing Ctrl+/ (Windows) or Command+/ (Mac OS).

To add several footage items to a composition at the same time:

  1. Do any of the following:
    • Select multiple footage items. To select a contiguous range of items, press Shift as you click the footage items in the Project window. To select a discontiguous set of items, press Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS) as you select the footage item names.
    • Move multiple footage items into a folder in the Project window. For information on creating folders, see Working with the Project window.
  2. Drag the names of the footage items or the folder from the Project window onto a composition name in the Project window, into the Composition window, or into the Timeline window. The items appear in the order in which they were selected in the Project window.