Posts Tagged ‘video editors’

An important aspect of choosing video editing software is the price you are willing to pay for that software. Of course if you are on an unlimited budget then hey… just purchase everything available and go with the one you like!

Working out an acceptable price point, for the rest of us, is a smart way to narrow the field and makes things more simple. One thing to also keep uppermost in your mind is a realistic evaluation of your level of skill now and how greatly you want to widen those skills.

Beginning Video Editing Software

If you are just starting out and all you will ever really want to do is the most simple video editing then there is probably no point in buying specialist video editing software.

You have access to Windows Movie Maker as part of the Windows operating system. It is pretty limited in the features that it packs as well as the video file formats it can handle. Nonetheless, it can handle simple video editing tasks reasonably well and the price is ideal! Mac users have an even better free alternative in iMovie.

Something else worth looking at as a beginner are multimedia suites like Roxio Creator 2009 or Nero 9. These programs come with a wide range of features that include video editors. Because the Roxio program has a lot of wizard driven auto functions for video editing it is well suited.

Because they are not solely video editing programs they can also include a number of other useful features such as photo editing, sound editing and advanced DVD authoring.

The only real downside is that if you decide in the future to pursue video editing more enthusiastically they offer no upgrade path to a more advanced product. Expect to pay about $80 or so.

An interesting program of note within this group is Muvee AutoProducer or Muvee Reveal (high def). This is almost fully automatic video editing software that can be quite surprising in it’s effectiveness.

Home Video Editing Software

If you are already interested in video editing and know it then the choices available become much wider. The majority of what we would describe as consumer video editing software costs from about $50 to roughly $120.

There are many, many choices at this level which seem to have almost nothing distinguishing them from each other. Some more well known ones are Sony Vegas, Corel VideoStudio, Adobe Premier Elements, Pinnacle Studio and Magix Movie Edit Pro… and on and on!

A vital point to consider when choosing at this level is just how far you want to take your video editing in the future. Sony, Magix and Adobe having high end products in their catalogue, all offer upgrade paths from the consumer products.

Prosumer Movie Making Software

As we move up the video editing food chain here we are entering the “prosumer” level. At this point the difference between what is prosumer video editing software and what we would call professional video editing software.

Full versions of Final Cut Pro, Sony Vegas, Adobe Premier Pro etc. You can expect to fork out anywhere from $500 to $1000 or even more. The trap here is that you end up spending money for capabilities you might never need. They are all quite complicated and you will need to face a steep learning curve so beware.

A stand out exception at this level is Magix Video Pro X which at around $200 represents excellent value for prosumer video editing software.

Which Video Editing Software?

Thoroughly go over the available products and take your time. Take note of the technical features that you think you may need as well as the ones you know you will need. Use the price to narrow the field then take a look at the upgrade possibilities if that may be relevant to you.

Regardless of which… make use of free trials.

Choosing the best video editing software can seem a daunting task given the wide range of products available at the moment. However with a little help to remain focused on what is important you should be able to make a good choice.

One of the key points to keep in mind is:

“What is it that I am I REALLY going to do with the video editing software that I choose?”

The answer to that question has to remain uppermost in your mind when selecting the best video editing software for you.

All of the major home video editing software companies offer camcorder to DVD video editing solutions that make them almost inseparable from each other. So stick to what you REALLY need.

Like any other competitive market, video editing software is caught up in a never ending race to keep up with technology as it develops and still make the product seem “sexy” to the customer. The point being you most likely do not WANT to purchase video editing software. What you probably WANT is a finished video.

The software company’s problem is they know you NEED video editing software but it’s not what you WANT! They need to make you WANT it! So because of that you see “bells and whistles” features that cause you to WANT IT but may never need.

Video File Formats

The first thing to establish is what is the format of the material you will be working with and what will be the formats that you will want to produce in the end. Input will be determined by your camcorder or your DVD recorder or whatever the source of your material is. Find out the video file format your device use to record in and make sure it is covered first.

Then realistically take a look at how you would most likely distribute your final videos. DVD? Blu-Ray? Uploading to YouTube or something like it? Make sure the software you choose can output to the format you want.

So, your first task in deciding on what video editing software is suitable for you is to work out what your most common source video files will be and what your most common video output will be. That covers the foundation of what you will be doing with the software and must remain as your main focal point.

Video Transitions

Transitions are the little inserts that go in between two clips to make the scene change. When you watch a movie you can see that when a scene changes it often cuts to the next scene with no transition, this is called cut or a straight cut. It fades to black then fades into the next scene from black called a cross fade through black. And lastly the two scenes sort of dissolve into each other softly and this one is called a cross fade or dissolve. That’s it, the whole range of transitions you usually see in a professional production!

All video editing software programs offer at least 50 transitions each. Newbies cram in all the transitions they can because the effect looks so cool when they first see them. The reality is NOBODY ever, ever wants to go back to their house again to look at their latest production because their heads are still spinning from the last one! Ignore transitions as a deciding factor, all video editing software programs have them and they all have more than you need.

Video Overlay

An overlay track, simply put, is the ability to put one video in the background and have another visible on top of it. It is that “picture in picture” effect you have seen on TV and in movies. You can also add subtitles to overlay tracks or images or other things to get really creative. About five are needed for reasonable control but you wouldn’t use more because again, nobody will want to view the craziness you have made!

Audio

There is no video editing software at the consumer level that offers truly excellent audio control and features. They are not audio editing programs they are video editing programs. A few have quite good control, a few do not. If you want pro audio features then you should get pro audio software.

Dolby Stereo and 5:1 Surround are the minimum standard you are looking for here. The program should offer two audio tracks to play with in addition to the sound in the video track. That allows lots of space for additional effects, narration or music.

Smart Render

Rendering is the term used when the video editing software is making the final file of your newly created video. Up until rendering, in any consumer level video editing software, all the cuts, additions, changes and adjustments you have been making are “virtual.” The original footage is never touched. Rendering produces a new video file by putting all that together in the format you have chosen for viewing.

All the compressed video file formats like MPEG2 (for DVDs) or MPEG4 etc always lose quality to at least some degree when they are re-rendered. The amount of quality lost is variable but it is vital that the video editing software you select can identify files that don’t need to be re-rendered and just copy them to keep the highest quality possible. It should also offer good control over the properties of the final video.

Well that’s the basics covered so remember to keep your attention on the important stuff and try not to get pulled into the “bells and whistles” stuff and you should be able to make a good choice!