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The initial idea of using the Logitech G13 as an editing tool came from Jonny Elwyn who described it on his blog. I was still in the process of configuring my Wacom tablet for best performance at that time and I forgot about G13 completely.

Now, with the release of DaVinci Resolve 12 I started getting to know all the new editing capabilities and thought that it’s a good time to rethink and overhaul my workflow. I connected the Logitech G13 and after using it for some time, I would like to describe my current setup and share my config.

Quick overview

The G13 can be configured per Application the same ways as the Wacom tablet. It will also automatically load the desired profile once the configured application is open. Additionally, the mappings can be assigned in 3 separate layers that can be switched by dedicated buttons. Each layer can be assigned a different illumination color so that we can easily see which layer we are in at the moment.

Here’s the basic overview of the configuration editor recorded by Jonny:

Configuration for Resolve

Common mappings

I use a couple of key mappings across the layers which means that the same keys do exactly the same thing in each layer.

The layers I use are defined as follows:

  1. Layer 1 – Importing the footage to the timeline
  2. Layer 2 – Editing
  3. Layer 3 – Color correction and grading

The common mappings across all the 3 layers are used for navigation and playback.

The center and most accessible part of the keypad is occupied by the J, K and L which are responsible for reverse playback, stop and forward playback accordingly. Another shared mapping is the joystick and the two buttons next to it. The joystick is mapped to the arrow keys which allows to go frame by frame left and right (left and right keys) as well as next/previous clip (up and down keys). The joystick buttons are mapped to home and end keys which will take us to the beginning and the end of the timeline in the edit mode, and to the beginning and the end of the clip in the color mode.

Another useful command is located under G19 which is mapped to ⇧Z and toggles between the current timeline magnification and the whole timeline view. In Color panel it resets the zoom of the clip in the preview window.

The last two common commands I use are simply Undo (⌘Z) and Save (⌘S).

Layer 1 – importing footage to the timeline

This is the layer I use when I import clips to the timeline.

The workflow looks more or less as follows:

  1. I will select the clips from the Media Clips,
  2. Load them to the source window
  3. Mark In & Out points
  4. Insert to the timeline or replace the existing clip

G9 key is mapped to “Source/Timeline preview” toggle option to easily switch the active preview, G13 and G14 allow me to quickly insert or replace the clip in the timeline.

G3 and G4 zoom in and out the whole timeline.

For more editing fine-tuning I switch to the second layer below.

Layer 2 – editing

In this layer I do the main editing work. The mapping below is my personal choice since the editing tools might be used in many various ways this might not be the best fit for your workflow. Experimentation is the key!

I usually edit using my Wacom Intuos 5 tablet with G13 next to it. For the mouse workflow, the mapping would probably look a bit different.

The top-left keys G1 & G2 change the editing mode from normal to trim. G5 and G6 trim the current clip to the current position or from the current position. G9 toggles the Dynamic Trim function. G16 & G17 will move the selected edit point left and right by one frame for precise adjustment.

Layer 3 – color correction and grading

The third layer is the most experimental one because I’m still trying to find the best workflow and the most efficient setup, but the mapping that stays most of the time is the following:

The top-left keys disable the current node or all nodes at once. Next I have a new node shortcut – new node after and new node before. Then the full-screen toggle for quick access. G9 will toggle between primaries and log with my pinky and G13 will toggle loop playback of the clip. G16 & G17 will copy the grade from the previous clip or from the 2 clips prior.

Download

Here’s my configuration file for download:

 resolve12_g13_mapping.xml

It can be imported through Logitech Gaming Software by clicking the “+” button in the profiles section:

External Resources

The drivers for G13 can be found on the official Logitech website

All rights reserved to Tom Huczek ©