Since the early ages of the video production industry, video editing was a job for the nerdy, tech-savvy people who spent all day in front of computers, trying to make cuts look appealing to the viewers. In the modern-day, however, the average person can easily do the same work in a fraction of the time, with much less effort.
Thanks to all the technological advancements in video production, video editing has never been easier. Gone are the days of the film workprint, where you had to physically cut and splice pieces of film together. All you need now is a video editor, a computer, and a video in need of editing, and you can edit your videos with the help of an online video editor. Here are some helpful words of advice to kick-start your video editing journey as a complete beginner.
The Basics
These days, video editing is a very easily accessible process, and there are a plethora of ways that you can edit a single clip. One of these ways is to simply record a video on your phone and use the in-built video editing software to make your raw footage look polished and appealing.
While many people opt for the smartphone editing route, it is a very basic way of editing your videos. If you wish to make your videos stand out and look better than average, you will have to put in more effort than the average person.
What Do You Need?
There are many levels to video editing. What you will need will vary depending on your video editing needs. For example, a highlight reel of your weekend getaway where all you need to do is cut and splice clips together and add a track in the background will not require you to spend the extra money for a dedicated editing computer or highly expensive professional editing software. On the other hand, if you wish to add that oomph to your videos and elevate your YouTube channel to the next level, you might have to invest in those things.
The Software
To achieve your desired results, you will need professional-level video editing software. Thankfully, you have many competent professional video editing software like InVideo available to you free of cost. Look for ones that have a wide choice of video editing templates as they are handy for someone new to the video editing world. Video editing templates allow you to easily add pre-made credits, animations, visual effects, and more. Templates make your videos instantly look more refined and well-executed.
The Hardware
Since all the editing you undertake will be done on your computer, picking the right computer can be a tricky feat. Nearly all modern-day computers can make simple edits to low-resolution clips, but the higher the resolution and framerate of your raw footage, the higher is the computing power required to process them. Ideally, you would want a computer with a modern i5 or i7 processor, 8GB RAM at the least, a dedicated graphics card that can handle the video quality that you wish to work with, and at least 256GB of Solid-State Drive storage. You can speed up the speed of your data transfer by investing in a motherboard with USB 3.1, USB type C, and a capable internet connection. Although, if your editing needs are not intense, you can make do with a low-budget setup or even a smartphone!
The Jargon
Now that you have met your hardware and software requirements, you will have to watch several video editing tutorials before your first edit. These tutorials might be hard to understand for a beginner as the teachers use video editing terminology that you might not know. So, to ease your learning, here are a few commonly used terms in video editing:
- Compositing – Compositing is combining visual elements from different clips in one scene.
- Compression – It is the process of reducing the size of your video files. It decreases the time to transfer data and leaves you with more free space in your storage.
- Resolution – It is a number that tells you how many pixels are present on the screen. The higher the number, the more detail you can see in your videos.
- Aspect Ratio – This is a ratio of the height and width of your video, based on your resolution of choice.
- B-Roll – These are shots taken separately from the main footage and used during editing to make transitions look smooth to the eyes.
Be Selective
Do not shy away from shooting more footage than needed as it is common to find shots that are not in focus or shaky during the editing phase. As a video editor, you should ideally have a lot of footage to work with so you can easily cut out the parts that you feel will not complement the type of content that you want to create.
Jump Cuts: The Enemy
A jump cut occurs when you have two consecutive shots of a scene with a similar camera set up but a difference in the subject, or a difference in the placement of the subject. If you leave the two shots side-by-side, the audience will get jolted by the sudden change in position or subject. It is better to use a fade or a B-Roll in between the shots the make the transition seem smooth. If the subject of the B-Roll is the same as the A-Roll, use a fade or a cut-away transition instead.
The Music
Music can add a whole new layer of depth to your videos. However, it is easy to ruin your video with unengaging music in the background.
Choose tracks that go well with the tone you are trying to set with the video. An emotional video with dance music in the background has never pleased anyone. You should take your time and choose tracks that you like as they bring out your personality in your videos for your viewers to see.
The Backup
Always have a fun time when you edit videos. However, do not forget to save your work from time to time. You should keep extra copies on external drives as a backup if something unfortunate happens to your editing computer. Losing data can be very disheartening as a video editor, and no one wants to lose hours of work over such errors.
Conclusion
Video editing, like a lot of other things in life, is much easier than it seems. With the help of modern tools like an online video editor, you, as a newcomer can easily make professional video content without much of a hassle and achieve the finishing you always wanted in your videos.
