Illustration : Diego Aguirre
A Quaker stopped by the other day to show me a telecasting of his cross - country bicycle trip-up . By the metre it was finish , I could have wheel across the state myself . The short cat did n’t have a clue how to cut his footage . He ’s one of many digital video television camera owners who do n’t make love how to get what they ’ve shot into viewable human body . Here ’s some quick and simple-minded post - production advice for anyone with a hankering to do digital videography .
Pick your program : Windows XP ’s Service Pack 2 include the detached Movie Maker 2.1 program . To open it , clickStart , All Programs , Accessories , Windows Movie Maker . This basic program ’s Movie Tasks pane in the upper left field takes you step - by - step through the physical process of creating your video ( seeFIGURE 1FIGURE 1 : Windows XP ’s Movie Maker 2.1 video redaction broadcast provides only basic editing single-valued function through its Movie Tasks pane . ) . Adobe ’s $ 99 Premiere Elements , a more full - featured editing program , offers special effect , titling , and the ability to incinerate a DVD right from the package , among other features . If you finally decide to make the leap to Adobe ’s professional - level app , the $ 699 Premiere Pro , you ’ll be able to use all the tricks you ’ve learned in the lower - cost package because the interface are remarkably consistent . All three programs take you from getting bleak footage into your microcomputer to output polished video .
FIGURE 1: Windows XP’s Movie Maker 2.1 video editing program provides only basic editing functions through its Movie Tasks pane.
Import your video : To move video from your camcorder to your hard movement , connect your PC and camcorder with a FireWire cable’s length , turn the camcorder on , and open up your video editing software system . The program should recognize the television camera automatically . In most TV redaction program , the Capture command opens a windowpane containing VCR - similar control for toy , stopping , fast - furtherance , and rewinding . Give your video clip names that will jog your memory about their subject when you ’re ready to begin edit .
blue-pencil your footage : The simplest direction to delete your picture show is to put the clips into your software ’s timeline in the ordering you prefer . The timeline shows your picture in frame - by - frame sequence ( seeFIGURE 2FIGURE 2 : The timeline in Adobe ’s Premiere Elements video redaction software demo your picture show frame by frame . ) . Once all of your clip are displayed on the timeline , pick out each clip in tour and specify the “ in ” and “ out ” tip . These are the flesh that mark where each video clip begins and finish . fundamentally , you ’re trimming the tops and tails from your clipping to remove unwanted pieces .
Add filters and transition : When you ’re satisfied with the order and duration of the clips , you ’re ready to fashion them into a moving picture . It ’s possible that all your clips calculate similar , but chances are you ’ll want to tweak at least a few of them to give the whole group a more consistent visual aspect . For example , you might find that some clip are bright or more colorful than others ( seeFIGURE 3FIGURE 3 : Adding a television camera - mounted light keep your subject visible , even when she ’s in front of a undimmed background . ) . Your editing programme should contain filter that allow you to adjust a scene ’s brightness , contrast , and colour residue . Bear in thinker , though , that there ’s a limit to how delicately you’re able to polish poorly lit or jerky footage .
You ’re better off shooting well - lit video in the first place ; a small camera - mounted light will avail keep your interior snap lustrous . A shelling - power lighter , such asSony ’s 10 - watt HVL-10DC , match into the accouterment shoe on the top of your camera . you could obtain these for less than $ 50 on sale . Often in picture , foreground subjects appear too sullen because too much Inner Light is behind them . A camera - mounted brightness level supply a steady horizontal surface of additional front kindling to overcome this job .
When you ’re satisfied with how your clips look , add transitions to polish shifts between clips or to tot up striking impact . Your television redaction software likely provides a slew of transition and wipes , but your best bet is to keep it simple . reefer to straight cuts , dissolves , and the ever - popular “ fade to melanize ” ( or if you ’re aSix Feet Underfan , “ slice to white ” ) . A cross - dissolve slicing out one snip as another magazine fades in . An additive dissolve tot a 2nd clip and then fade out the first one . Most other changeover available in programme , such as page curls and fancy wipe , are the hallmark of cheesy eighties videos .
summate title , graphics , and motion : Every TV editing political program allows you to contribute text edition overlay , title , and credits to your movie ( seeFIGURE 4FIGURE 4 : Give your television a professional look by lend titles to earmark chess opening and closing shots . ) . Some also boast built - in move so that , for representative , text can scroll down the screen or appear letter by letter . If you have a digital still camera , you’re able to spell mental picture from it and add them to your movie . If the still simulacrum are orotund than 720 by 480 pixel ( the size of a human body of telecasting ) , you could use your redaction program ’s motion capabilities to pan across the prototype , àla documentarian Ken Burns . This technique works particularly well to set the scenery at the start of a video .
One thing to hold in mind as you redact your video is the curvature of a television screen , which can cause images to look wring near their edges . Keep the important details of each shot near the meat of the screenland , and invalidate having words or sentences approach the edges . Oh , and that nasty buzzing you sometimes hear on late - dark TV ads ? It ’s because of modest white titles that generate noise .
Add euphony and narration : Few devoid television editing programs permit you spell multiple audio caterpillar tread , so you ’ll need to pony up some John Cash if you want to give your TV a more luxuriant level-headed data track . Adobe ’s Premiere Elements can handle up to 99 audio tracks in one movie . The lotion also gives you the power to class the audio that you import along with your video recording into case-by-case , editable tracks .
If you determine to add up a voice - over to your video , a simple trick is to utilise your camera to record the tale . Then you simply spell the video recording and audio together into your platform , throw away the unwanted video path , and then pose the audio track in your project . To help with your intelligent track ’s persistence , stagger the sound recording so that the strait from one clip runs into the next . If you do this , the cut will seem less abrupt because the audio and the video wo n’t end at the same meter .
You should be able-bodied to import MP3s and other unwashed audio formatting , such as .wav file , into your TV . If you ’re working on a corporate television , however , be sure to obtain the right wing to all the songs you expend . You may require to consider purchasing an inexpensive royal house - free medicine collection so your gaffer wo n’t get sued by Metallica . For example , Partners in Rhyme(has a broad choice of certificate of deposit to choose from .
Get on TV : Once you have completed your chef-d’oeuvre , receive it into TV - viewing shape is pretty square . The first footstep is to copy your video to disc : you could port the edited video from your computer back to your camera and rerecord it , or you could play it through your camera to tape on an attached VCR , or you could burn a DVD ( if your editing syllabus permits you to ) . And that ’s all – you’re done !
Now , do n’t expect these gratuity to make you the new Ang Lee , but they ’re a good start at least . Do n’t be afraid to adjudicate out all the features of your redaction program – you could always unwrap a wacky effect if it does n’t pan out ( if only Oliver Stone had used an undo button ) . Remember , less is always better in this light - attention - bridge world , so edit out your videos tightly .
Video Essentials
Before you shout “ Action ! ” make trusted that you have a few of these computer hardware and software program necessity heap beside your director ’s president .
FireWire : If you require to edit digital video , your microcomputer and TV television camera must have FireWire embrasure . The good news is that nearly all PC sold in the last couplet of eld total with FireWire port built in . If your system lacks one , you could buy a FireWire tally - in placard for about $ 50 .
Hard - disk space : One 60 minutes of digital video uses about 13 GB of hard - disk quad . To have enough room to edit the video , you ’ll involve at least 40 GB of free store space . And keep in mind that your ruined moving picture , stored on your hard drive , will exhaust up blank there , too .
Operating systems : Windows XP , 2000 , and NT are better operating system options for editing digital video because they put no limitation on data file size of it . Depending on the particular version you have , Windows 98 and Me limit data file size to 2 GB or 4 GB , which translates into either 10 or 20 minutes of uninterrupted video .
Processor f number and RAM : Because video is so data point rich , you ’ll need a machine that ’s rapid than a 750 - megacycle Pentium 4 microcomputer . Though it ’s potential to edit video on a slower organisation , your piece of work will suffer from jerky question and retentive wait as the monster picture file bog down down the CPU . Because the amount of RAM your PC has affects its operation , I recommend stimulate at least 256 Mbit of RAM installed .
Digital Video Tips: Cinematography 101
To capture first - rate video , get the most portable camcorder you’re able to open , persuade it wherever you go , and be ready to start recording at a moment ’s notice .
Use a tripod or monopod : The paradigm - stabilise characteristic on many camcorder simply ca n’t keep the image smooth . For truly steady shots and smooth pan , use a tripod to lock down your camera .
Avoid sudden zooms and pans : Nothing makes an audience queasier than speedy pans and zooms . Whenever you pan out , nurse the camera on your national , and then pan or zoom as slowly as potential . After completing the goat god , retain the horizon on the new field for several arcsecond .
ante up attention to inflammation : Shoot with the sun to your back if possible ( keep your phantom out of the frame , of class ) . If you pullulate indoors against a brilliant luminosity or open air and backlit , your camera ’s machinelike exposure will make your content too sorry against the backdrop .
buy a mike : Even though all cameras have a built - in mike , most are n’t very good and may pick up camera stochasticity . An external mike is less probable to peck up the rustles , cough , sniffs , and other haphazardness you make as you film . If you utilize a bunce ( overhead ) mike , be sure to keep it out of the frame .
Change camera angles : Shoot your scene from a wide perspective , then over the shoulder ( show the loudspeaker system but hinting at the listener ’s perspective ) , and finally from close up . This will give you more - dynamical clips to pick from when you part edit .
Name your work : After you finish a tape , be indisputable to pronounce it . Few thing are more frustrating than having to encounter a box of unmarked tapes one by one to find the picture you ’re looking for . hope me .
