How to trim videos, images, or audio assets

Note

The tutorial steps in this article are for the Clipchamp video editor for personal accounts. The same principles apply to Clipchamp for work and school.

How to trim a video asset

  1. In the Clipchamp video editor, click on the clip you'd like to trim so it's highlighted.
  2. Sidebars will appear on each end of the clip. Click and drag the handles on either side to adjust the length of your clip.
  3. Drag left to shorten or right to lengthen the clip.
  4. If you trim too much of your clip, simply drag the handle back to recover your footage.

How to trim an audio clip or image asset

  1. In the Clipchamp video editor, click on the clip you want to trim so it's highlighted.
  2. Click on the handle on the side of the clip you want to trim.
  3. Drag the handles left to shorten or right to lengthen the clip.

Note: image clips can be extended beyond their default length, but audio clips can only be shortened.

How to trim multiple assets at once and delete gaps

  1. Hold down the shift key (Windows) or command key (MacBook) on your keyboard to use the multi-item editing feature.
  2. Select the assets you want to trim.
  3. Click and drag the handles to adjust the length of the selected clips.
  4. Right-click on a gap that has appeared between two clips.
  5. Select the delete all visual gaps button from the dropdown menu.
  6. Delete individual gaps by clicking on the trash can icon or the delete this gap button on the timeline.

How to zoom in or out of the timeline

  1. Find the plus and minus buttons at the right end of the timeline.
  2. Click to zoom in and zoom out for more precise trimming.

Note: for more information on how to use the timeline, see: Working with the timeline.

How is trimming different from splitting and cropping a video?

Splitting a clip allows you to cut a clip in two at a specific point and edit the parts separately. Use this method to 'trim' by splitting the clip and then deleting the remaining part. To learn how to split a clip, see: Splitting or cutting video and audio clips.

Cropping a clip allows you to remove unwanted edges or black bars you see in the frame of a video or image to "zoom in" on it. It is different from trimming, which is shortening the duration of a clip. To learn how to crop an asset, see: Cropping a video.