In this short tutorial,
I’m going to show you how you can export your videos
or still images with an Alpha channel,
in other words a transparent background.
Hey guys. what’s up.
My name is Serge, and welcome back to my channel.
If you make a video intro
or a cool animation layered over your video clip,
you can export that clip with an alpha channel,
and instead of having to make that animation again,
you can just use the exported clip
and layer it over your next project.
This will save you time in making that animation,
and there will be no need to render it again
in your next edit.
Let me show you.
Down in my timeline,
I made a cool little mobile phone animation.
The background appears black, but it’s actually transparent.
If I place a video clip under this animation layer,
you can see this transparency.
Now, if I want to use this animation in another project,
or even in a different library,
to save time, I can just export this clip,
and have it ready for my next project.
The problem is,
most codecs don’t come with an alpha channel.
So, if I export this clip using the H.264 codec,
when I import it back into Final Cut Pro,
the transparent parts of my clip will be black.
There’s only two codecs included with Final Cut Pro
that support an alpha channel.
Those are Pro Res 4444,
and Pro Res 4444 XQ.
To export your video clip with an alpha channel
and retain the transparency,
you have to use one of these codecs.
First, select your animation or video clip
with a transparent background,
and press Command C to copy it.
Make a new project,
and press Command V to paste this animation into your project.
Hit the share button in the top right corner,
and select Export file.
In the export popup, select settings,
and from the Video eCodec dropdown,
choose either Pro Res 4444 or Pro Res 4444 XQ.
Click next, and select your save destination.
Your project is exported as an MOV file
that includes an alpha channel.
If you import this clip into Final Cut Pro,
the background transparency is retained,
so when you add this to your project above an existing video clip,
all the black parts are transparent.
Another thing you can do in Final Cut Pro,
is export still images with a transparent background.
Before I show you how to do that,
I’d like to take a minute to talk about the sponsor of this video,
Envato Elements.
If you make videos as a job,
or even as just a hobby,
you need to know about Envato Elements.
It’s an all in one subscription service,
with millions of assets for you to use in your next project.
Whether you need background music or sound effects for your video,
stock footage to use as B-Roll,
or like in this example,
a cool video template like you just seen,
chances are, Envato Elements has what you’re looking for.
And the best part,
everything Envato Elements has to offer
is included for one low monthly price.
Click the link in the video description,
and see how Envato Elements can help you
make better videos.
Now, back to Final Cut Pro.
Let’s say for example,
you want to build a title in Final Cut Pro,
and export it as an overlay to use in other apps.
To do this, make a new project,
and from the Rendering dropdown menu,
select the Pro Res 4444 codec.
This step is important,
because if you leave it as the default Pro Res 422 codec,
this will not work.
Next, build your title in the timeline.
If you’re not sure whether your title preset background
is transparent or black,
press Command Coma to open Final Cut Pro preferences,
and in the playback tab,
change your background to checkerboard.
Next, place your playhead
over the frame you want to export as a still image,
hit the share button,
and if you don’t see a Save Current Frame option,
click the add destination button.
Grab the Save Current frame preset,
and drag it over to your destinations sidebar.
Close the preferences window,
hit the share button again,
and select Save Current Frame.
Select the settings tab,
and from the Export dropdown menu,
select PNG.
Click Next,
and select your save destination
to export your selected frame as a still image
with a transparent background.
If you enjoyed this video,
let me know by hitting the like button
or in the comments below.
And a huge thank you to Envato Elements
for making videos like this possible.
If you decide to sign up for Envato Elements
through the link in the video description,
I get a small percentage of your subscription fee,
so it’s a great way to support my channel
and get access to millions of digital assets Envato Elements offers.
As far as I’m concerned, it’s a win for everyone.
Thanks for watching,
and I’ll see you back here next week.