Tom,

You could place black color boards between the video clips and still images and then place a fade effect at the front and back of each of the boards. This way you’ll have a fade “out” to black and a fade “in” from black.
You can adjust the duration of the boards, images, and fades, to get your desired effect.
I usually set the black color board to have a duration of 4 seconds, and then put a fade, with a duration of 2 seconds at the front and back of the color board. This gives a nice fade out to momentary black with fade in to the adjacent image or clip.

Just in case you’re unsure how to access things...
- Click on arrow next to “All Media tab” to open color boards.
- Click on “Transition Room tab” to open transitions.
...then just drag desired boards and effects down to your Time Line.
Click here PDtoots for a collection of PowerDirector Tutorials and Tips

Thanks for the reply. You would think with how advanced Power director is, that it would have something simple like a "quick" transition Fade In/Out, like Windows Movie maker.

I will try your suggestion though. Thanks again!

Hi Tom,

I hear what you're saying...

You would think with how advanced Power director is, that it would have something simple like a "quick" transition Fade In/Out

...but I think you and everyone else would soon become bored with just always using pre-set effects, and will find it much more satisfying creatively, to put your own customized touches on your art.

BTW: One could also fill a PIP with a Black Color board that spans the break between 2 clips or images, and then set that PIP to fade in and out in one operation. Then just copy and paste that PIP to the places where it is needed. That would be a slightly quicker operation.

Good Luck! Click here PDtoots for a collection of PowerDirector Tutorials and Tips

Quote: Thanks for the reply. You would think with how advanced Power director is, that it would have something simple like a "quick" transition Fade In/Out, like Windows Movie maker.

Well, in a way it does. The "fade" transition does double duty in that it works as a fade transition when used with color boards and as a cross dissolve when dropped between two video/image clicks.

Once you know this and do what you need a time or two it kind of becomes second nature.

One advantage. Fade to black is one effect, fade to white has yet another psychological "feel" to it. You merely change the color board to get the effect you want. A fade to red may have yet another "feel".

The programmers gave you more control in one transition.

I kind of like it.

How do you do this? I was not able to find this option.

Tom,

I had to have someone point it out to me too, I was used to having access to a separate fade out/in transition and a separate dissolve from one scene to another.

If you haven't already, find the transition in the transition "room" labelled simply "fade" and drop it between 2 video clips. Play back both clips insuring you have the "movie" button under the preview window highlighted.

Notice how one video clip dissolves into the next.

Now go to the media room and select "color boards", drag the black one down to the timeline between the same 2 video clips. When you play this the first scene plays, cuts directly to solid black then cuts directly to the second scene.

Now stretch the black color board out a bit or change the duration until you have 5 or 6 seconds worth and drop that same fade in at it's start and at it's end. Play this and what you should see is the first scene fades out to total black. Total black plays a few seconds and then the second scene fades in from black.

A fade to black can have an air of "finality" about it depending on content of the sequence before it. Or it can merely indicate the end of a "chapter like" part of a story. Fade to black often suggests a passage of time.

Now do the same thing with a white color board and notice the different feel to it. I've seen it used in films where it suggested a transition to "Heaven".

Try it with a red color board and imagine a transition in a horror story.

The fade used as a dissolve between clips from different locations can suggest a change of location.

The two transition effects I use the most (almost exclusively) in my work are the fade to black and the cross dissolve, and in PD7 these are both accomplished with the fade.

Hope I've helped you some here.

Thx for the help Bif. You have helped a lot!