Add transitions and fades

Transitions and fades are manual editing, so they are free and work offline in any project. This is the Mac and Windows app.

Put a transition on a clip

1. Select the clip and open the TRANSITIONS section in the Inspector. It has two rows: IN for the clip’s start and OUT for its end.
2. Pick a type from the row’s menu. To take a transition off again, pick None, or use the ✕ beside it.

The types are Fade (to black), Dissolve (across the cut), Wipe, Dip to black, Slide (both shots travel), Cover (the new shot slides over), Reveal (the old shot slides off), Zoom in and Blur dissolve. Every type except a fade spans the cut, so it needs a clip butted right up against this one.

Or pick one from the Shelf

In the Library panel, open the SHELF tab and switch to TRANSITIONS. The cards are grouped as DISSOLVES, WIPES and MOTION. Click a card to apply it: it lands on the cut nearest the playhead, on the selected clip’s track, and the foot of the shelf names that cut before you click. A card that spans the cut reads needs an adjacent clip when there is no clip on the other side.

Set how long it lasts

A new transition lasts half a second. To change it, type a length in frames into the row’s duration field, or step it up and down; the seconds it equals at the project’s frame rate are shown beside it. A transition across a cut can use at most half of each clip, and a fade at most its own clip.

Fade a clip in or out

Right-click a clip and choose Fade in or Fade out, then a length: 0.25s, 0.5s, 1s or 2s. Remove in the same menu takes the fade off.

Crossfade two sound clips

For clips on an audio track, open the Audio tab in the Inspector, find CROSSFADE and choose + Add. The cut plays hard until you do. A crossfade is equal power, so the level does not dip in the middle. You can also right-click the clip and choose its crossfade into or from the clip beside it.

Changed your mind? ⌘Z undoes any of these, one change at a time.