Apple Final Cut Pro 6 User Manual
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Part IV
When Are Clips Automatically Conformed to a Sequence?
Most of the time, Final Cut Pro automatically conforms clips when you edit them into a
sequence. This makes it simple to mix HD and SD video with different resolutions,
aspect ratios, and field dominances. However, there are certain cases where
Final Cut Pro does not conform your clip:
 If the dimensions of the edited clip are smaller than those of the sequence, the value
of the clip’s Scale parameter is increased only if the “Always scale clips to sequence
size” option in the User Preferences window is selected.
 When you edit or paste a clip that contains Scale or Aspect Ratio parameter
keyframes into a sequence, Final Cut Pro does not change these parameter settings
to fit the clip into the sequence. This allows you to preserve any Scale or Aspect Ratio
parameter keyframes you added to your clip to create a motion effect.
To automatically conform edited or pasted clips whose image dimensions are
smaller than the sequence dimensions:
1
Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, then click the Editing tab.
2
Select “Always scale clips to sequence size,” then click OK.
3
Edit one or more clips into your sequence.
Each edited clip’s Scale and Aspect Ratio parameter settings are adjusted automatically
so that the clip’s size matches the sequence dimensions.
Manually Conforming Clips to Match Sequence Settings
If a sequence clip does not have settings that match those of the sequence, you can
manually conform the clip’s settings to match the sequence settings. The following
settings can be conformed:
 Scale parameter
 Aspect Ratio parameter
 Field dominance
To conform sequence clips to the settings of the sequence:
1
Select one or more sequence clips.
2
Choose Modify > Conform to Sequence.
The Scale and Aspect Ratio parameter settings of each selected clip are adjusted so the
clips appear at their native aspect ratio within the sequence dimensions. Also, a Shift
Fields filter may be applied, adjusted, or removed so that each clip’s field dominance
matches the field dominance of the sequence.
Important:
The Conform to Sequence command removes any Scale or Aspect Ratio
parameter keyframes applied to the clip. If you don’t want to lose these animated
parameter settings, you should avoid using the Conform to Sequence command.