Opening and Modifying Transitions in the Transition Editor
When you open a transition from your sequence in the Timeline in the Transition Editor,
you can modify and trim it much more precisely than you can in the Timeline. All the
transitions that come with Final Cut Pro are different, but all of them share some
essential properties and edit points that you can modify in the Transition Editor.
 If you open a transition from a sequence in the Timeline: Changes you make
immediately alter that transition in your edited sequence.
 If you open a transition from the Effects tab of the Browser: This opens a copy of the
transition. Changes you make have no effect until you apply the modified transition
to an edit point in the Timeline or save the transition as a favorite.
To open a transition from the Timeline, do one of the following:
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Double-click the transition.
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Control-click the transition, then choose Open from the shortcut menu.
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Select the transition’s icon, then choose View > Transition in Editor.
To open a copy of a transition from the Effects tab, do one of the following:
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Double-click a transition in the Effects tab.
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Select a transition, then press Return.
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Control-click the transition, then choose Open Viewer from the shortcut menu.
This opens a copy of the transition. If you change settings and want to use the
changed version, you need to save it as a favorite (see “
Saving a Transition as a
Favorite
” on page 386) or apply it directly to an edit point in the Timeline by dragging
its drag hand to an edit point. For more information, see the next section, “
Applying a
Modified Transition Directly to a Sequence in the Timeline
.”