5

• Drag the files between any layers in a group.
A position indicator shows where the layers will be placed when you release the mouse
button.
• Drag the files into the Timeline, placing them between any layers nested in an existing
group.
Note: For more information on adding objects to the Timeline, see Using the Timeline.
When you add a media file to a project, the file appears as a layer in the Canvas, Timeline,
Layers list, and Media list. Each layer’s start time in the Timeline is set to the position of
the playhead in step 1.
You can also add media files to your project without having them appear in the
composition. You do this by ragging a file into the Media list. This allows you to store
media objects you might want to use in the future.
To drag media files to a project without using them in the composition
1 Open the Media list.
2 Drag media files from the File Browser into the Media list.
The resulting media objects are added to the project but don’t appear in the Canvas,
Layers list, or Timeline.
Adding Layered Photoshop Files to a Project
You can add a layered Photoshop file to your project by dragging it to the Canvas, Layers
list, or Timeline, or by using the Import button or Import command. Using the Import
button (in the preview area) collapses all layers of the Photoshop file into a single Motion
layer, by default. To preserve the layers of the imported file, use the drop menu or the
File > Import command.
To add a layered Photoshop file using the drop menu
1 Drag a layered Photoshop file from the File Browser into the Canvas, Layers list, or Timeline.
2 Before releasing the mouse button, pause until the Canvas drop menu appears and
pointer becomes curved.
This menu presents commands for importing the layered file.
3 Continuing to hold down the mouse button, drag the curved pointer over a command
in the drop menu, and when the menu item is highlighted, release the mouse button.
The layers of the Photoshop file are added using the command you choose.
The Canvas drop menu has the following options:
• Import Merged Layers: All layers of the Photoshop file are collapsed into a single Motion
layer.
• Import All Layers: A group is created and nested in the group. Each layer of the
Photoshop file is preserved as a separate Motion layer in this new group.
208 Chapter 6 Creating and Managing Projects