MasterTool

Timecode Calculator

Calculate timecode from the published formulas and tables for the craft.

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What this tool does

Calculate timecode from the published formulas and tables for the craft. Drop-frame counting only exists for 29.97 fps (nominal 30) NTSC workflows; it skips frame numbers, not real frames, so the timecode clock stays aligned with wall-clock time.

How to use the Timecode Calculator

  1. Enter or select conversion direction.
  2. Enter or select total frames.
  3. Enter or select timecode (hh:mm:ss:ff).
  4. Enter or select frame rate (fps, nominal).
  5. Enter or select timecode counting.
  6. Read the calculated result; change any measurement to compare alternatives.

Formula

non-drop: frames split by nominal fps into HH:MM:SS:FF; drop-frame (29.97): frame numbers 00 and 01 are skipped at each minute except every 10th, using the standard 17982-frames-per-10-minutes counting
mode
Conversion direction
frames
Total frames
tc
Timecode (HH:MM:SS:FF)
fps
Frame rate (fps, nominal)
drop
Timecode counting

Drop-frame counting only exists for 29.97 fps (nominal 30) NTSC workflows; it skips frame numbers, not real frames, so the timecode clock stays aligned with wall-clock time.

Worked example

For timecode calculator, the following measurements illustrate the exact method: Conversion direction: frames; Total frames: 3600; Timecode (HH:MM:SS:FF): 00:02:00:00; Frame rate (fps, nominal): 30; Timecode counting: non-drop.

Inputs

  • Conversion directionFrames → timecode
  • Total frames3600
  • Timecode (HH:MM:SS:FF)00:02:00:00
  • Frame rate (fps, nominal)30
  • Timecode countingNon-drop-frame

Result

  • Timecode00:02:00:00
  • Total seconds120
  • Total frames3,600

Results explained

Timecode
Timecode from the formula above. Drop-frame counting only exists for 29.97 fps (nominal 30) NTSC workflows; it skips frame numbers, not real frames, so the timecode clock stays aligned with wall-clock time.
Total seconds
Total seconds from the formula above. Drop-frame counting only exists for 29.97 fps (nominal 30) NTSC workflows; it skips frame numbers, not real frames, so the timecode clock stays aligned with wall-clock time.
Total frames
Total frames from the formula above. Drop-frame counting only exists for 29.97 fps (nominal 30) NTSC workflows; it skips frame numbers, not real frames, so the timecode clock stays aligned with wall-clock time.

Frequently asked questions

Divide the frame count by the frame rate to get seconds, then split into hours, minutes, seconds and leftover frames. At 30 fps non-drop, 3,600 frames = 120 seconds = 00:02:00:00 — the worked example in this calculator.

At 29.97 fps real frames accumulate slower than a 30 fps clock, so drop-frame timecode skips the frame numbers 00 and 01 at the start of every minute except every 10th minute. No pictures are dropped — only labels — which keeps the timecode matching real elapsed time over an hour (107,892 real frames).

Switch the direction to Timecode → frames and enter HH:MM:SS:FF. In drop-frame mode the calculator subtracts the 2 skipped numbers per minute (except every 10th) — the inverse of the frames-to-timecode count.

Enter 30 (the nominal rate timecode counts at) and choose Drop-frame. Timecode always counts whole nominal frames; 29.97 only describes the real playback speed, which this calculator uses for the total-seconds output.

Editors write drop-frame timecode with a semicolon before the frames field (00:01:00;02) and non-drop with a colon. This calculator follows the same convention in its timecode output when drop-frame is selected.