Hello, welcome to this video! Let's see in a short time everything you need
to know to start using the newest CyberLink PowerDirector 17!
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guides dedicated to PowerDirector!
CyberLink PowerDirector is a professional video-editing software, with
lots of features to realize custom videos and slideshows by adding
adjustments, effects, transitions and pieces of text through a simple and
direct user interface. In this video we are going to see all the main and
advanced tools inside PowerDirector.
As you open this software, a startup page appears, showing several ways to
start with a new project, depending on your skill level.
Use Slideshow Creator or Auto Mode to create a video by using ready made
templates. First, import your media files and then choose the template
effects and transitions to use. Add any background music if you want, and
check the preview of the video created. If this is OK, you can render and
export it on your computer, burn it on a Disc, or import it into the main
PowerDirector workspace to edit it further.
You can also download and get other free ready templates from the
DirectorZone website. Check this out through the link in the video
description!
If you want to create a video without a template, you can open the main
interface in Timeline Mode or in Storyboard Mode.
The Timeline Mode is the main interface inside PowerDirector, allowing full
control of any modification, effect or media property. You also have the
possibility to add particles and titles to your video.
The Storyboard Mode is the simplified version of the Timeline editor,
realizing a video through a sequence of media files taken entirely, with
pictures lasting five seconds. In case you import any text or particle,
this automatically switches to the Timeline Mode. You can do so by pressing
the Tab key at anytime.
To see the complete features and tools inside PowerDirector, we will work
in Timeline Mode.
On the startup page, choose the video format to use on top, such as the
standard 16:9, the old 4:3, and the 9:16 used on smartphones. At this point
click on Timeline Mode to open the editor. You can also click on 360°
Editor to open the same main interface with the Preview ready to work with
360° spherical videos.
You can change the aspect ratio or enable the 360° Mode anytime by using
the button in the top left corner.
The main PowerDirector interface is divided into four main workspaces,
listed as tabs in the top left corner. With Capture you can record and
import media; Edit is used to import and modify files to create your
video; Produce to save and render your video on your computer or online;
and Create Disc to create and add DVD interactive Menus and chapters to
introduce the video and navigate through it.
Check out our video dedicated to DVD Menus if you want to learn more.
Let's see how to create a new video project! The first thing to do is to
import all the media files you want to work with, such as videos, pictures
and audio files.
You can use the Capture workspace to record media by using either your
webcam, your microphone or CyberLink Screen Recorder for screen recording.
If you already have your files saved, you can directly start from the Edit
workspace. This is made by several parts: in the top left corner you have
the Navigation Panel, collecting media, objects, templates, text and
effects. On the right you have the Video Preview, used to check any media
or your video project in progress. At the bottom, you get the main Project
Timeline, where you can work with your media and apply modifications.
To import media files you can drag and drop these into the Timeline from
any computer folder or the Media Room section of the Navigation Panel.
From this panel you can also add samples, backgrounds, entire projects and
even ready project templates to use.
All the media files imported inside the Timeline are collected inside
rows called Tracks, and shown as rectangles called clips. Video frames and
pictures are contained inside Video Tracks, with a blue frame icon on the
left; whereas sound, speech and recordings are inside Audio Tracks, with a
blue speaker icon, or inside other dedicated Tracks at the very bottom.
These clips also show a quick preview of their content inside. Visual clips
show small thumbnails about their frames and audio clips their own audio
waveform instead. You can improve this preview by zooming in or out of the
Timeline with your mouse wheel while holding down the CTRL key, or by
enlarging the interested Track by dragging its edges.
To get a complete preview of your media clips and your Timeline content,
use the Video Preview. This can work in Movie Mode or in Clip Mode.
When working on the Timeline, the Video Preview stays in Movie Mode,
showing the timeline content where its marker is placed in time. Click on
the time bar above to place the marker and check a particular frame, or
click and drag the marker to check your project frames sequentially without
any sound.
To playback in real time with sound, use the player below the Preview or
Space bar key to playback and stop quickly. You can also playback in
full screen mode by double-clicking on the Preview, and exit with the
Escape key.
Next to the Player, click on the photo button to take a snapshot of the
current frame, and use Preview Quality to adjust the quality of the Video
Preview, according to your computer specifications. In case of 360° videos,
you can enable the 360 button to check the video in full spherical view,
changing the point of view by clicking and dragging on the Preview.
When you click on any clip, this gets selected in blue color and the Video
Preview changes into Clip Mode, showing just its content. In addition, you
also get several nodes to edit the basic clip appearance: click and drag
the clip to move it; use its white nodes to scale it; its blue squares to
skew and distort it; and click and drag from the blue circle to rotate it.
Use CTRL+Z to undo any action if you make mistakes.
You can also open the PiP Designer by double-clicking on the clip, in
order to move, scale the clip or apply effects to it.
When selecting a picture, you can also enable the Crop Tool and use the
same rectangle on the dialog box to move and crop the clip while checking
the Preview on the left. Below it, choose the aspect ratio to use, between
standard ones and a custom one.
Let's see how to edit the media clips inside the Timeline!
Click and drag a clip to move it in time within the same Track or in
another. Video frames with audio are moved together unless you make these
independent by right-clicking and going to Link/Unlink Video and Audio.
In case visual clips overlap in time, the Video Preview shows these
according to their Track position. All the clips placed on the lower Video
Tracks are shown in front of all the other clips inside higher Video Tracks
in position.
To edit the clip duration click and drag its edges. In case of videos and
audio, you have content with limited duration, you can't stretch these in
time, and you cut part of their content if you shorten these.
If you stretch and shorten these clips while holding down the CTRL key,
you change their duration by acting on their speed rate, without acting
on their content. In this case, if you stretch clips, these are played
slower. If you shorten clips, these are played faster. When changing the
speed rate, an orange letter appears to indicate that a Video or an Audio
Speed effect has been applied.
To split a clip into different parts, just place the marker in time,
right-click and go to Split.
To cut, copy and paste a selected clip, just right-click on it. Always
use CTRL+Z to undo.
To move and edit multiple clips, just click and drag on the
Timeline to create a selection area selecting all the media clips touching
it. At this point, if you move or edit all the selected clips are affected
in the same way.
In addition, each clip has an envelope line that you can click and drag up
or down to adjust the opacity level on visual clips and the volume level
on sound clips. Just make sure not to get any yellow audio waveform or you
get distorted sound.
On the left side you have several options to manage the content inside each
Track. Check and uncheck each Track to enable or disable its content, which
means to hide visual content on Video Tracks, and mute sound on Audio
Tracks. Use the Lock button to block any modification on the Track content,
until you unlock the Track.
To add or remove Tracks just right-click on these.
Inside your project you can also add titles and text by using the Title
Room section inside the Navigation Panel. Here choose a 2D, 360 or 3D
title template to use then drag and drop it on the Timeline to create a
text clip. This is shown in green color and is contained inside any Video
Track or inside the Title Track dedicated to it. Consider that the Title
Track is placed at the lowest position, so text is shown above all the
visual clips that overlap in time.
You can edit title clips just like other standard clips in position and
duration. To edit the text content and properties, open the Title Designer
by double-clicking on the title clip.
Use Character Presets to apply a ready template on the text; Font/Paragraph
to adjust the font family, style, size and distribution; and Font Face,
Shadow and Border to manage the text color or any shadow or border
effect.
Directly on the Preview click on the text to type in and click and drag
its borders to move it. Use the white nodes to scale it and the green one
to rotate it.
To learn more about Title Designer, check out our video dedicated to it!
With PowerDirector you can also apply corrections, visual effects and
transitions.
To apply adjustments, just select a clip and go to Fix/Enhance. At this
point enable any correction and check the Video Preview to enhance the clip
appearance in the best way.
You can open the Effect Room to find all the visual effects available.
Select one to check it on the Preview and drag and drop it to apply it on
a clip. An orange i letter indicates that an effect is added. To manage,
edit and remove any effect from the selected clip, just click on the Effect
button above the Timeline.
Transitions are special effects used to make a clip appear and disappear
in time. From the Transition Room click on one transition to check its
effect on the Video Preview. Then drag and drop it on the edges of a clip
or between two consecutive clips. The added transition is shown with its
icon and can be adjusted in duration by dragging its edges. To change the
transition effect, just drag another on it.
To save your project, just go to File and then to Save Project As....
This way you save everything from your Timeline content, clip properties
and effect options inside a PowerDirector project file under a .psd format.
To obtain or upload your video you have to render it by using the Produce
workspace. This is divided in two parts: on the left you can adjust all the
render options and on the right you get a big preview on your final video,
with the destination folder and space available on disk.
On the left, choose how to export your video: select Standard 2D or 3D to
export your video on your computer, setting file format, resolution and
frame rate at the bottom. Choose Device to export your video on smartphones
and consoles; with Online you can make and upload your video on social
media websites. You can also use Profile Analyzer to pick the suggested and
best matched render profile with the help of PowerDirector.
In case of 360° videos, you will get optimized template options for these
kind of videos.
To start rendering, just use the Start button.
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