Once you have your raw video recorded, your job is only half-done. In fact, what comes next is the part that many people consider more important than the recording itself — editing.
So what exactly is video editing? It is simply the art of putting bits and pieces of recorded material together so that they make a cohesive unity that tells the story to a viewer.
Some consider editing a pure form of art, while many just deem it a skill that is required to make videos watchable. If you have some experience in editing videos, you could further improve your technique by following some basic tips & tricks. Read on!
Shortcuts Can Save You a Lot of Time
If you are using some of the popular video editing software such as Sony Vegas or Adobe Premiere, you should take into account that these are made with a lot of shortcuts. In other words, some actions don’t have to be performed just by using your mouse, as shortcuts can do that much faster. For example, pressing “L” on your keyboard will speed up video playback, which means that you would not have to look for the option manually.
Make sure to check the list of shortcuts for the software that you are using.
Always Add Sound Effects and Music
Music and sound effects are present in the majority of the videos we watch, and they are edited so that we sometimes don’t even notice them. However, your videos will be more entertaining and captivating with SFX and music in them. What is important is that you can guess the right timing for sounds, but it is something you should practice and watch tutorials for if you want to master it. Just remember — the absence of music and SFX can make your videos feel awkward and boring.
Use Slow Motion or Speed It Up
Many videos have a certain rhythm to them — a pace of a sort, and that is something that viewers are unconsciously aware of. A good video editor needs to speed up or slow down some parts of a video so that they keep up with the pace and keep viewers’ attention.
Furthermore, every video must have a sort of mix between longer and shorter sequences. If a video has a set of identically paced sequences, viewers will notice that and consider the video boring.
Therefore, make sure to chop it up a little bit and make it more interesting.
Pay Attention to Colors
Many newbies completely forget about editing video colors and end up with colorful sequences that really differ from each other. This is very painful to watch, so feel free to explore options such as color correction and white balance in order to improve your editing skills.
Learn from the Best
Video editing is best studied by watching the top professionals in the industry. Luckily, their work is available to anyone — just watch any Hollywood movie, and you will be able to witness masters of this art do their job. In other words, once you start analyzing how movies are edited, you will gain valuable insight into the latest tips & tricks for video editing. In order to learn how to analyze movies, make sure to watch useful YouTube editing videos!