Copying Clips from multiple tracks

[JSH]

Hello,
this has been troubling me since I started using VS. I assumed at some point I would discover how do it correctly but after nearly a year I have not sussed it so I thought I would ask what I am doing wrong!
Here is an extract of a project i am working on

As you can see I have used many tracks to create the effect I want. Over the course of the video I wish to repeat those effects. I know I could create a template but I don't want to repeat everything in the same sequence. I pick and choose what I want to repeat depending of what images I am using. I simply want to copy the clips that are underneath each other on many tracks and paste at the point I am editing. However when I do this VS pastes the clips on the same track. This means I then have to move the clips to the tracks below and line them up correctly. The other thing I sometimes do is copy a range of images over a track to the the new location and continue for all the tracks. ensure they are lined up and then use the images on the video track (with ripple editing) to delete the ones I don't want. Clearly the images on the video track align with each effect so i am only deleting the one effect. Each way is more time-consuming than it needs to be, ie if there was a way of copying and pasting where VS remembered which track to paste the images to.
Getting to the point - is there a way of doing that?
thank you for any help you can give.

[BJC]

If you slide a clip (select - left click and hold while you slide) up into a library panel a copy will be created which you can slide back down as many times as you wish to wherever you want them - forget copy and paste - I think slide is your solution -- will that do what you want or have I not understood your problem correctly ?

[JSH]

Thanks for responding. That is not what I am after, I don't want to amend the length of clips at the side of the ones I want to copy. I want to select clips underneath each other on multiple tracks, copy them and paste the group at another point.

[JSH]

I hope this is a better image to describe the issue. The block with the time length is the block I want to paste, notice it is all on one track rather than on multiple tracks as per the group that is highlighted in Orange.

[lata]

I assumed you wished to move the selected clips

If your clips are all on one track and adjacent to each other
Then you should be able to select the clips, right click the selection for Copy, Your cursor will change to a hand with a +
drop to the end of your project, providing the end is in view

You should also be able to drop within your project although Ripple Editing may be required

[JSH]

Hello, my clips are not all on one track. They are on multiple tracks as per the second image. I want to copy the images over the multiple tracks and paste to another location (again over multiple tracks). I will then replace the images in to the copied set with new sets.

[lata]

So you do wish to move the selected images showing in Yellow on the five tracks
May be done in two stages

You cannot drag all clips but you can drag the 4 overlay clips to any position on the timelines.
You can then Copy the top clip and drop that in any position, you would drop above the overlay clips
Then delete the original top clip, Ripple Editing applied would close all gap made when removing the clip

Of course the layout of the existing clips may interfere with the repositioning.

What version of Video Studio are you working with?

[JSH]

no i wish to leave the original set in place (hence copy not cut) and paste in another place so i end up with two lots. I will then replace the images in the second set.
I am on VS 2020.

[lata]

In that case you are best to create a new project containing the 5 clips
Save the vsp and import to the library.

You should then be able to drag the vsp to the timelines containing the 5 clips in same order

[JSH]

Thanks, i was hoping to avoid something like that. The thing is there are 15 or so 'sets' of images/effects that I repeat at different points in the project so I would have 15 or so vsp files. This is the same reason i did not want to create templates. It is possible to do this in Pinnacle Studio, seems a pretty basic thing to want to do really. Ah well it is what it is.
Thanks for your help

[lata]

I am not on the pc at the moment but will give this some thought.

With hindsight when you first started to create the effect you could have saved each segment to a vsp / template, then you can build up in any order.

There is another option to render the 5 clips to a new video file using the Project Range, of course you first replace the clips.
You can then use the video anywhere on the timelines, even so not a particularly good workflow.

Simply copy and paste a selection in same order should be possible

[Candive]

Thanks, i was hoping to avoid something like that. The thing is there are 15 or so 'sets' of images/effects that I repeat at different points in the project so I would have 15 or so vsp files. This is the same reason i did not want to create templates. It is possible to do this in Pinnacle Studio, seems a pretty basic thing to want to do really. Ah well it is what it is.
Thanks for your help

Hi JSH,
I replicated you issue and was surprised to to see VS transpose the column of overlays onto a single track. I even went back to VS X10 and it produced the same result - so I guess in this instance its by design rather than a bug. As Trevor has indicated, the only work around is to create a series of VSP's or Instant Projects. A bit of up-front work but will save you time in the long run. Since you have a project already established, use it to create your VSP/Instant Projects by just deleting the stuff you don't want and saving each one as a VSP/IP. You would then save them in their own Library bin. As you mention, an alternative is to use Pinnacle for this project since its easy to copy groups which maintain their track position. Use the right tool to get the job done!

[JSH]

Thanks for your response Candive. Yes it has made me wonder whether to go back to Pinnacle Studio (or at least use if for some projects) but I remember waiting forever for effects to render and it constantly crashing. I have PS 21 and I might look at PS 24 to see if any better. I do like VS, even though it is occasionally frustrating to use (as now). I probably will turn the current project into a template (I have done loads of them), although pan & zoom, crop etc are tailored for specific images it is easy to amend the settings when replacing with a new image.