Dragging one image into timeline muliplies it 4 times

[Ken Veal]

VSX10.I have 12 jpegs in the sub library taken by me.All were imported in groups of 2 or 3.When I drag any one of them into the timeline i see 4 versions of the same single image and have to shorten the clip of 4 to 1 to get just 1 image .The project starts with a very short .wmv file and the project is 39 seconds long.What is going on here

[gewb]

I've seen that numerous times but there doesn't appear to be four actual clips, just one. Maybe it is to keep the thumbnail from being stretched beyond recognition on the timeline.

[Ken Veal]

I have had another look at the sample .wmv SP-V16 (one with the balloons), when in my timeline it looks like it is 4 clips as I can see separating horizontal lines but they cannot be looked at as 4 diiferent clips.The sample plays normally on the screen as one clip.This is very frustrating and the 2nd time in as many weeks that I am getting a major problem with VSX10

[Ken Berry]

Ken -- it's not a problem. It's VS conforming to the duration of photo you have set or accepted in Preferences > Edit. On that tab towards the top, you will see "Default photo/color duration (l) and by default it is set to 3 seconds.

I also think you have set in Preferences > General your Clip Display Mode to Thumbnail Only. In fact when I drag that clip, or any clip into the timeline, I get what appear to be 4 images too, but in reality it is just frames of the image, stretching it to the default image duration. Indeed, if you extend the timeline to show even more frames (by holding down the Ctrl key and rolling your mouse wheel or by clicking the magnifying glass icon above the timeline to the far right of screen) you will see what you are interpreting as many more images. But they are only frames... If you extend it to full magnification, then you will end up with 75 frames of that same image -- i.e. 25 frames for each of the 3 seconds set as default. That's for PAL, of course. With NTSC it would be 90 or a fraction under...

That's how it's supposed to work!

[Ken Veal]

Thanks for informative reply Ken .Have set my default duration to 10 secs and Clip Display Mode to thumbnail Only as it was in my previous project .By working through your post and stretching and reducing the timeline with a single clip in it and then deleting the clip, I dragged another clip down into the timeline. This time the timeline was looking as it did before (well almost) ,moving the slider control to the left the clip then looked “normal” to me. So, thanks to you I am a happy bunny now and apollogise to Video Studio for my previous comments which were made out of ignorance on my part. Can I assume that this issue has arisen because that slider was where it is now on my previous project in VSX10 and all those before in VSX9 , or is there another reason?

[Ken Berry]

[quote-"Ken Veal"]Can I assume that this issue has arisen because that slider was where it is now on my previous project in VSX10 and all those before in VSX9 , or is there another reason?[/quote]

It is probably the reason, yes. Jogging that slider is easy to do, and as you will have seen, even a tiny movement has a large effect on what you see in the timeline.

But in a sense, you are missing the point. The slider is there for a purpose. When dealing with video clips -- as opposed to still photos -- sometimes there will be something in the middle of a clip when you play it that you don't like and want to cut out. You can see it in the preview screen but you may not be able to stop and start playback there in the preview screen at the exact points you want to cut. With the slider out at maximum, showing all 25 frames per second, you can go through frame by frame and make a very accurate cut.

This is less important with a still photo which won't have anything in it that you need to cut out except at either end to make it shorter. You might be disturbed for a while by seeing lots of frames when you have an image in the timeline, but believe me, you will get used to it.

Having the slider out a fair way also makes it easier to deal with transitions -- which of course you seem to like! Having the timeline squeezed in by having the slider too far down to the left makes it much more difficult to insert or delete transitions. You could probably say much the same about inserting and editing titles, though of course with them most of the editing is done on the preview screen itself.

[Ken Veal]

I have used the slider as you described for editing video and sound before. Why I asked about the slider position in previous projects over the years was that it seemed a coincidence that I was getting the effect of 4 images in the 2nd time I have a project in VSX10 and not the 1st project or all the other projects I have worked on over many previous versions.
I know I go over the top with transitions and this may be not the way to go but they must be there to use (but I will not be using and 3D one again) and my viewers seem to appreciate them