Navigate the timeline, split clips, trim, and undo changes

Follow these steps

1. Step 1

   Play, pause, and scrub to the right moment

   Select the circular Play button below the preview to start playback; it changes to Pause while the video is playing. Select it again to pause, or press Space to switch between play and pause without leaving the timeline.

   Drag the playhead—the vertical line and handle over the timeline—to scrub backward or forward. The time readout below the preview shows the current time and total duration. For frame-level positioning, pause first and press the Left Arrow or Right Arrow key.

   

2. Step 2

   Adjust the timeline zoom

   Use See more detail on the right side of the control bar to spread the timeline out around the playhead. This makes short sections and trim handles easier to target. Use See less detail to fit more of the clip on screen, or drag the slider between the two buttons to choose an intermediate level.

   You can also press Cmd+Plus or Cmd+Minus on Mac, or Ctrl+Plus or Ctrl+Minus on Windows. Timeline zoom affects only the editor view; it does not speed up, slow down, or crop the exported video.

3. Step 3

   Split a video segment

   For a visual split, select Split Tool—the scissors button on the left side of the control bar—then click the point inside a blue video segment where the cut should go. The block becomes two independently selectable segments. Click additional points to make more cuts, then press Escape or select Split Tool again to turn the tool off.

   For a precise split at the current playhead, position the playhead and press Cmd+X on Mac or Ctrl+X on Windows. A split must be more than 0.1 seconds from either edge of the segment, so zoom in or move the playhead inward when a click does not create a cut.

4. Step 4

   Trim the beginning or end of a segment

   Turn off Split Tool, then click a blue video segment to select it. Drag the white handle on its left edge to remove time from the beginning, or drag the right handle to remove time from the end. Release when the edge reaches the frame you want to keep.

   Trimming is nondestructive project editing: it changes the kept source range and closes the resulting gap in the clip. Zoom in before dragging when you need a smaller adjustment.

5. Step 5

   Delete an unwanted segment

   Use this delete segment workflow after splitting around the unwanted passage so it is its own blue block. Turn off Split Tool, click that segment to select it, and press Backspace—the default Delete selected segment shortcut. Tight Studio removes the selected segment from playback and closes the gap.

   To remove several pieces in sequence, split and delete one at a time, checking playback around each join. If you delete the wrong segment, use Undo immediately to restore it.

6. Step 6

   Undo or redo an edit

   Select Undo in the left control group, or press Cmd+Z on Mac or Ctrl+Z on Windows, to step backward through recent edits. Select Redo, or press Cmd+Shift+Z on Mac or Ctrl+Shift+Z on Windows, to restore an edit you just undid.

   A dim Undo or Redo button means there is no available history in that direction. After undoing, making a different edit starts a new path and clears the previous redo path, so review a restored cut before continuing.