How to Edit Video

Use professional-quality, non-linear editing software. Non-linear editing (NLE) is just a fancy way of saying that you don’t have to manually edit the footage. The term refers to high-quality, high-end editing software with effective controls and features. You can choose the appropriate software:

• DaVinci Respve: New, free and open source video editing software. The software changes constantly, but the price tag is well worth a try.
• Adobe Premier: One of the classic choices, Premier works well on Mac and PC. If you use other Adobe products like Photoshop, you’ll find Premier very easy to use and intuitive.
• Final Cut X Pro: This is a special version of Final Cut, considered the industry “standard” for a long time, although later updates are not as powerful as before. This software is very popular on Mac.
• Avid: The standard of many professional movie editors, Avid has the full functionality of its competitors and an interface suitable for working on large-scale projects. ^[4]

Think about the “story” you want to convey. What is the content of the video? Does it convey a story or script? Or just an interesting incident you came across the other day? An eloquent speech you recorded? Figure out the purpose of the video — how would you like the viewer’s mood to change after watching the video? A good editor will clarify the idea and based on that to decide which direction to edit.

• What is the idea, image, main point of the video? How to show that?
• Not every video needs a story — you just need the ideas and the visuals to bring everything together.

Make the video short but without losing quality. If the video, moment, or photo doesn’t add meaning to the story, remove it. With a great video, every frame has a purpose — it’s not a movie, it’s just a short clip, so you need to keep your audience’s attention throughout the video.

• Using only one angle, you can mask flaws or slow moments with well-placed background music and text. ^[5]

Transitions should be smooth and unobtrusive. Flashy and crude transitions show the editor’s weakness. Skip the attention-grabbing transitions and use simple fades, fades, or no transitions between clips. If you want to use your favorite effect, you should use it at the beginning or end of the video. ^[6]

• Never use fancy cuts or transitions like “Star Wipe”. They distract the viewer.

Remember the 3-part layout rule, especially when it comes to headings. The rule of three has its roots in photography and is used to frame beautiful frames for both movies and photos. Silently divide the frame into 9 parts with 2 vertical and 2 horizontal lines. According to the rule of three, a good photo will have the object lying on the lines. When titled or edited photos, arrange text, horizon lines or special effects according to this virtual rule. ^[7]

Balance color, sound, and music to ensure content shines. The goal of a good editor himself disappears, and this is even more true with short videos. Use basic color correction tools, such as the built-in “color balance” effect (available in any program) for smoother and more attractive images. Lower the volume of the background music to hear the sound from the camcorder. Make sure the sound is not too loud when playing at the same time. Remember, you want people to focus on the content, not on why the music is so loud or the video “so bleak”.

• You can adjust the audio to gradually increase, fade out like a video to hear it naturally. ^[8]