One of the most common things you will see in tutorial videos is the “just do it” or “just start” mantra.
Of all of the handy tutorial catchphrases, those ones can be the most frustrating because if you could do that, you wouldn’t be scrolling through endless YouTube tutorials!
So here’s a strategy to get you past that point and into the “already started” phase.
One of the most common movements you are going to be making in any video editing app is moving the playhead around the timeline.
The video below covers some of the most common ways of doing this especially by using different modes and keyboard shortcuts.
Even if you aren’t using PowerDirector as your editor it is worth taking a look at this one and seeing if you can find the equivalent settings in your own app.
Another quick tips video from the folks at Movavi for this week.
This one covers making a Sims style effect on a clip but it is important to note that the whole “Sims” reference is secondary.
The key here is seeing how titles and motion tracking are carried out in the app so that you can apply it to any project.
OK, this is a long one!
Dina and Agnes is a YouTube channel that specializes in using CapCut as a video editing solution.
They have many, many videos online so if you are using CapCut, they are a great resource to check out for tips and tutorials on the subject.
In this video Dina breaks down a particular documentary style of video that is used by Magnates Media, another very successful YouTube channel with a particular style.
The reason for the “this is a long one” warning is that in this video Dina takes us step by step through every shot of one of those videos showing how it can be replicated in CapCut.
Of course the key to that is not CapCut itself because just about any video editing software can do it as well as long as you know what it is you are doing!
At this point in time Filmora offers a number of video enhancement modules that operate from within the user interface.
These are in addition to more traditional tools like color correction and sharpening.
The most basic is an A.I. based module that runs locally on your computer and is free to use providing pretty good results as long as the footage is not too bad.
After that they move up into remotely located A.I. tools that may be necessary if the footage you have is of bad quality but you still want to use it.
In the videos below you can see all the model in action with a good indication of expected result.
One of the key modules in DaVinci Resolve and in fact the one that it all started off with is the Color Page.
Because that page and the rest of Resolve for that matter was developed for professional editing, it can look wildly complicated and complex.
It has to be that way because of the enormous variation of potential workflows that could be thrown at it at any given time.
One of those variations is the way the color in the video files you shoot is recorded.
Because of that, there are settings within Resolve that control that factor and this comes under the heading of Color Space Management.
Those different ways of storing the color data are called “color spaces’ and in order to effectively use Resolve for color correction and grading, it has to know what color space you are importing and which one you want to export at.
Most online tutorials on this subject are generally pretty complex because the subject itself can get quite complex.
However most of us at the general population level don’t really need to get into it too much because consumer cameras and phones are recording in a color space called Rec. 709.
Here’s the full definition of Rec. 709.
On top of that when exporting a project that same color space, Rec. 709, is the default one used on every social media platform.
Given that our needs are pretty simple I finally found a great tutorial that doesn’t go all technical on us too much covering how to set DaVinci up correctly for our usual color space.
Yay! Free stuff!
This week I happened to come across a few relatively (well to me anyway) new freebie sites for assets you can use in your own projects.
It is the nature of sites like this that they have a tendency to either suddenly disappear or get eaten up by one of the big boys.
Both of those scenarios are as a result of the original owners discovering that hosting and serving mountains of video, audio and image assets comes at a pretty steep cost!
So for the moment this one and the ones below are active and looking stable.
First up is Zapsplat with over 160,000 sound effects, 700+ SFX packs and over 800 royalty free music tracks free for commercial and non commercial use.
Next we have Eyecandy which is essentially a filmmaking platform that allows creators to exhibit their work, exchange ideas, and find inspiration.
Eyecandy offers a range of resources for filmmakers, from practical tutorials to inspirational content.
You can select something from the navigation menu or scroll down and select an image.
This will take you to the associated asset where you can either download it or check out any tutorial connected to the effect technique page.
And finally we have Mixkit which is another straight up free assets site offering about 46000 video clips, more than 1000 music tracks, 3000 sound effects and over 800 video templates you can use for free.
Let me start this one off by saying that I do not have or even need anything like this for my own studio setup.
In fact it would be a bit generous for me to describe where I shoot as a “studio!”
The setup shown here is for someone that shoots videos for online content, conducts webinars and carries out coaching calls… so it’s pretty complete!
What I do think is that if you isolate the individual components that would be applicable to your own situation there are some good tips for getting it all right.
One of the keys to being able to continue creating content is having a convenient setup that you can just slide into and start.
If you have been reading this blog for any amount of time you may be…
Image Source: Deposit Photos How to Use an Effect as a Transition and Combine Effects…
(Here's What You Actually Need) If you've ever searched for "best video editing software for…
This One Move Makes You Look Natural on Camera If you are anything like me…
Why You Don't Like Yourself on Camera For every new content creator or person making…
After Filming 1,000s of Presenters - The Confident Ones All Did This. Some people seem…