Importing Video into KDEnlive
When you first run KDEnlive, you will see the main screen:
Before you can begin editing a new video you need to first create a Project to contain it. The Project is just a container that holds the configuration for a discrete piece of work - such as the video format and where the temporary files will be written. You create a new Project using the option:
File → New
The following dialogue box should open up, allowing you to define what you require for your new project:
Note: the video settings will default to those you input in the Config Wizard but you can override these on a project by project basis
After the video resolution and frame rate, the next most important this to check is that the default number of video and audio tracks is correct - however, these can easily be increased/decreased during editing, so it's no big deal if incorrect. Most users will be happy with the defaults, so just click the "OK" button unless something really jumps out at you.
KDEnlive will save your input, clear out any existing Project you had loaded in the editor previously and return you to the main editor window.
The KDEnlive is broken up into four main areas:
Project Tree: this is the area in the top left of the screen. It displays the clips included in the current project
Effect Stack: this is the area immediately to the left of the Project Tree. It displays the effects being applied to the project
Monitor: this is the area immediately to the left of the Effect Stack. It can display one of three views: the Clip Monitor (-for viewing the raw clip), Project Monitor (-for viewing the edited clip) and the Record Monitor(-for recording video -e.g. from your webcam)
Timeline: this is the bottom half of the screen and shows the timeline for the project on each channel, including thumbnails, levels, etc. This is where most of the work is done - and it's from here that the Project Monitor displays
To add a new video clip into a KDEnlive project, simply click on the "Add Clip" button in the Project Tree area:
A file dialogue box will display, allowing you to navigate to the clip. Once located, simply select it then click the "Open" button:
If the file was in a supported video file format, you should be returned to the main the clip should then be returned to the main KDEnlive window, with a thumbnail of the new clip displayed in the Project Tree area and the first frame of the video displayed in the Clip Monitor.