Zoom · Guide

How automatic zooms work

CursorClip zooms in where you click. When you stop recording, it adds a zoom for each click inside what you recorded. Each zoom starts at the click and lasts about 4 seconds. Clicks close together on the same part of the screen join into one longer zoom.

Typing, scrolling and moving the pointer don't make zooms, so a recording with no clicks has none. You can change, add or remove any zoom in the editor.

What makes a zoom

Makes a zoom

  • A mouse or trackpad click inside the display, window or area you record
  • Right-clicks and other mouse buttons count too

Doesn't make a zoom

  • Clicks outside the display, window or area you record
  • Clicks on the CursorClip control bar or the Notes panel
  • Clicks in the last 0.7 seconds before you stop
  • Typing, scrolling or moving the pointer

Record so the zooms come out well

  • Click the thing you're talking about, when you talk about it. Each zoom starts at the click.
  • Talking over slides, or scrolling without clicking, gives no zooms. You can add them afterwards on the Zoom lane.

See and change your zooms

Zooms show up when you play the preview, and in your export.

  1. 1

    Open Zoom & Pan

    The editor opens on Video Settings. In the icon column on the left, click the viewfinder icon. It's third from the top, and its tooltip says Zoom & Pan.

  2. 2

    Find the Zoom lane

    It's the timeline row labeled Zoom, under Video. Each blue block is one zoom. When a block is wide enough, it shows Auto Zoom or Manual Zoom and the magnification, like 1.7x.

  3. 3

    Click a zoom to select it

    The panel on the right switches to that zoom, even if Zoom & Pan wasn't open. Click Project Settings at the top of the panel to go back.

  4. 4

    Move it, resize it, change how far it zooms

    Drag the middle of the block to move it. Drag either edge to change its length. It won't go shorter than 2 seconds. The Magnification slider goes from 1x to 4x.

  5. 5

    Choose Auto or Manual

    Under Zoom Mode, pick Auto or Manual. Auto frames where you clicked and follows the pointer if it moves out of view. Manual zooms into a fixed area you choose. Click Edit Area, drag the box or its handles on the preview, then click Done. A smaller box zooms in further.

  6. 6

    Start over if you need to

    Reset puts the zoom back to Auto at 1.7x and keeps its timing. ⌘Z undoes your last edit, and ⇧⌘Z redoes it.

Add or remove zooms

  • Add one. Hover an empty part of the Zoom lane until you see + Add zoom, then click. You get an Auto zoom at 1.7x, 4 seconds long, around the spot you clicked. It's shorter if the gap is smaller.
  • Remove one. Select it and click Delete Zoom. Or right-click the block and choose Delete.
  • Remove them all. Click More Options in the toolbar, the circle with three dots. Choose Delete All Zooms…, then Delete All. With no zoom selected, Zoom & Pan has the same button at the bottom. ⌘Z brings them back.
  • Turn them off for now. Disable All Zooms is in the same two places. It leaves your zooms out of the preview and the export without deleting them. You can't edit them while they're off. Enable All Zooms turns them back on.

Settings for the whole project

With no zoom selected, Zoom & Pan shows Camera motion. These settings apply to every zoom in the project.

Roomy, Balanced, Tight top of the card

How much of the screen stays in view around the action. Roomy, the default, shows the most. Tight frames the action closest.

Follow response Responsive, Balanced, Steady

How fast the camera catches up when the pointer moves out of its frame during a zoom. Responsive is fastest and Steady is slowest. Balanced is the default.

Camera blur Off, Subtle, Strong

Softens the screen during zooms and pans. Until you pick one, it goes with the framing. That's Off for Roomy, Subtle for Balanced and Strong for Tight.

Customize timing Slow, Normal, Fast

Click it to set Zoom in, Zoom out and Pan speed. All three start at Normal, and Reset timing puts them back.

The pointer has its own settings under Cursor Settings, in Cursor motion. If you scroll the timeline by hand, a Follow button appears. It has nothing to do with zooms. It scrolls the timeline back to the playhead.

If it doesn't work

  • No zooms at all. Usually the recording had no clicks inside what you recorded. Add zooms on the Zoom lane, or record again and click as you go.
  • The Zoom lane says Zooms disabled. Open Zoom & Pan and click Enable All Zooms. A Look saved while zooms were off turns them off when you apply it. If that Look is your default for new recordings, new projects start with zooms off.
  • Clicking the lane adds nothing. A new zoom needs at least 2 seconds of free space, and zooms stop 0.7 seconds before the video ends. Move or shorten a nearby zoom first.
  • A zoom disappeared after a cut. A zoom that sits entirely inside a part you cut is hidden with it. Undo the cut to get it back. See Trim and cut your recording.
  • A zoom stopped working after a crop. An Auto zoom needs its click or the pointer inside the crop. If both stay outside it, that zoom stops zooming. When you apply a crop, CursorClip tells you how many automatic zooms it made inactive.
  • You can't see the Zoom lane. The timeline is collapsed. Click the up arrow at the right end of the timeline bar.

Next steps

Cut the slow parts with Trim and cut your recording, then Export your video. Recording and editing are free. Exporting needs a license.