Apple Final Cut Pro 7 - Manual (Page 750)

If the In point of your incoming clip begins on the first frame of the clip’s media file, you
have no handle at the beginning (or head) of your clip. Likewise, if the Out point of your
outgoing clip ends on the last frame of the clip’s media file, you have no handle at the
end (or tail) of your clip. If the clips don’t have enough media for the transition,
Final Cut Pro attempts to make the longest transition possible with the available clip
handles. In some cases, you may end up with transitions as short as one frame, which
may be difficult to see in the Timeline and are generally not intended or useful.
Aligning a Transition in the Timeline
You can place a transition so that it starts on, centers on, or ends on the edit point between
two clips in the Timeline. You should choose a transition alignment based on the editorial
effect you want to achieve:
• Starting on the cut: Choose this alignment if you want the last frame of the outgoing
clip to be fully visible before the transition begins.
A transition starting
on the cut
• Centered on the cut: Choose this alignment if you want the cut point between the two
clips to be the midpoint in the transition.
A transition centered
on the cut
750 Chapter 47 Adding Transitions