Video Editing

With the recent addition of albums to Instagram, photographers have a fantastic opportunity to add videos such as behind the scenes, short vlogs, or even short clips along with their images. However, if you are like me, cinematography is kind of a new world. While setting up the camera to film isn’t incredibly complicated, editing the content afterward is like learning Photoshop all over again: a nightmare! Thanks to YouTube and amazing people like Ben Brown, getting a grasp of Adobe Premiere’s basics isn’t too difficult.

In the world of film and commercial video work, there are so many working components that need to come together in order to have a successful production. So when it comes to bringing all those components together, you want it to be as smooth and simple as possible to minimize stress and streamline efficiency so that production does not fall behind schedule. One of those components that is insanely critical for a finished product is the coloring — not an area you want to skip on.

Want to win $25,000 by showing off your video editing skills? Imagine Dragons has teamed up with Adobe by offering fans full access to uncut footage from the lead single, "Believer," from their upcoming third album. Video editors can download the footage and create their own version of the video for a chance to win numerous prizes.

It so happens that ultraviolet light bulbs (or black lights) weren't discontinued in the 90s. In fact there are plenty of photographers out there who are shooting some incredible stuff under black lights. But shooting video in this guise brings its own set of unique challenges. Here are some tips to create video in this hedonistic and fluorescent style.

Some view editing as the place where the magic happens, while others see it as a necessary evil before they can get back out to shoot some more. Either way, we'd all love to be more efficient at it. These five tips will help you speed up your workflow in Adobe Premiere. 

With the prices of 360-degree cameras dropping every day, and more people embracing the medium, it was only a matter of time before more video streaming services joined the 360 party. Showing up fashionably late is Vimeo. The company announced support for 360-degree video on its blog yesterday.

The video showcases and discusses the latest desktop computers and what features you can get with regards to screens and processor capabilities in the category. I've used a laptop for most of my photography and videography career. The idea of not being able to take the machine with me when I need to go has been my reason for not getting a desktop machine, and the work I do requires me to get up and go when a job arises. 

All films start with a small seed. An idea. It’s something we as filmmakers all have in common — we want to turn a thought into something tangible, a place where we can meet someone and share a thought. These ideas change with the season, but there’s always something there. It’s what makes us filmmakers.

Ever wondered how to create Instagram Stories in any editor? Bobby Burns (a videographer and occasional photographer) from Wedding Cinema University, has created an online tutorial to assist industry amateurs and professionals with this very problem.

Texting is more ubiquitous than ever, having become a central part of our culture. This useful tutorial shows how to create convincing text chat boxes to overlay on your video work.

Whether you're working on limited time, limited budget, or you just want to expand your arsenal of filmmaking tricks, these five quick tips will give you some great workarounds and techniques for achieving better results more efficiently.

Looping videos without any noticeable sign of a start or end adds so much production value to your work. The cool thing is this technique only requires Photoshop and is so simple you'll be kicking yourself for not knowing how.  

Video is a beast of an undertaking. Every element: pacing, storytelling, lighting, etc. must be working in top form to achieve a truly successful result. Here are five quick and free ways to improve your video work.

So you're interested in filming video with your DSLR. I don't blame you, I 100 percent prefer to shoot video over stills. I came across this super creative YouTuber, and in nine minutes, not only will you learn about the basics of shooting video, but you'll also save money by not spending it at an art school like I did. You're welcome.

Casey Neistat built a name for himself with his documentaries and unique editing style long before his daily vlog started. When CNN purchased his team for $25 million, he had over 6 million subscribers on YouTube, but it wasn't clear what he'd do for CNN. But the latest news is that he will be getting his own daily show at CNN which will run at 5 p.m. and is planned to launch in March. 

On Sunday night, "Moonlight," Director Barry Jenkins' beautiful film about the coming-of-age of a young man dealing with issues of race and poverty, while simultaneously discovering his own relationship to sexuality, won the ultimate prize, the Best Picture trophy at the Academy Awards. LensCulture just posted a lengthy interview with the film's talented cinematographer, James Laxton. Here is a bit of what he had to say.

We've all been there. You were hired for a run-and-gun shoot only to find the location has terrible lighting. Or your shoot is running later into the evening and the sun is going down fast, without any lighting to plug in. The ISO gets cranked up, and your exposure is saved at the expense of adding unwanted noise to your image. This is where noise reduction software becomes useful, and a new product from Red Giant has changed the way it approaches this task with Denoiser III.

We all know that visual effects have come a long way in recent years, but it’s always worth remembering that the best of the lot are the kind you don’t notice. This video – a wonderful tribute to VFX – is a smart way of showing off exactly what can be done.

How did technology make "Planet Earth" so much more cinematic? If we go back to how it was done back in the day and compare it to the technology we have today, it's quite a leap. Back in the day 35mm was the broadcast standard. The 35mm cameras were bulky and heavy, they were perfect for studio and not for the shots that they needed. In the filming circles and the BBC insiders saw 16mm film as being for amateurs. But, thanks to David Attenborough first taking his 16mm camera out to shoot abroad and coming back with footage of animals never filmed before, it changed opinions. This made the program that later became one of the best wildlife documentaries of all time.

Being a filmmaker gives you a lot of power to manipulate the emotions of the viewer. This can be achieved in several ways. Peter McKinnon shows examples of the same clips edited with various techniques to evoke entirely different moods.

If you are a shooter or video producer, you know that there are many things that go into creating great video. Sure, using the right gear is key. Composition and lighting are key. But after the video is shot, shot selection, pacing, and color correction have to be considered for the edit. Then there are graphics. Titles, lower thirds, transitions, and the like have to be designed and animated. There are tons of parts that go into making one complete, great-looking video. And it’s hard to master every aspect of video production – not to mention the fact that time and budget constraints make things even harder.

DSLR Guide, created by Simon Cade, is one of my go-to resources for all things film and cinema. With almost a half-million subscribers and over 21 million views, his channel is an awesome resource for anyone interested in becoming a film maker, particularly those who are DIY-savvy or on a budget.

I've always had this issue with regards to the sound design of video and how to actually get something that is usable for the video you are working on. It's either getting audio from a stock library, having a friend compose something, or making it yourself. And the latter is really very time-consuming, and I'd rather focus on the stuff I enjoy and am good at, like shooting photos or video. Once I watched the latest video by Film Riot, it seems like the problem of finding audio might be over. 

Filmmaker Walter Stoehr just released his newest project, "Horrible Prospects." It's a timely short with all that is going on in our world; with a new president in the U.S., there is much that is unknown for the future. But what goes bump in the night is actually more scary than you might think. 

I was initially drawn to photography mostly because of color. I find its usage both beautiful and fascinating and a power narrative tool. This great video celebrates some of the best uses of color in all of film.

Vimeo launched the upgrade to their Profile Pages a couple of weeks back and they aren't sitting back. They just came out with Review Pages, based on team and client collaboration. It's a space for notes that can be made at certain points of a video.

The music video might be the perfect vehicle for an artistic statement: It's succinct, it has a built-in springboard, and it's conducive to both abstract and literal statements. Here are 18 of the most creative and interesting music videos out there.

Shortcuts for Adobe Premiere Pro are like the force is to a Jedi. The alt/option key on the keyboard allows you to remove some time-consuming drags of footage across the timeline. It speeds you up. Moving footage around on your timeline can often be exactly that: a drag. Enter the alt or option key.

Often, lower-priced LED panels will have a color cast that can be difficult to correct in post, particularly if you're working with mixed lighting. This great video shows both how to detect the issue and how to correct it.

There is always something going wrong on set. Always. It could be something minor, like the gaffer forgot to tape a section of a stinger or something major, like the talent shows up hours late and then refuses to get out of the car. That's what happened to Co-Director Ryan Staake in his latest Vimeo "Staff Pick" video of rap artist Young Thug's "Wyclef Jean." 

Your smartphone is about to take another step toward becoming a professional videography tool. Filmic Pro will soon be releasing an update that will include a log mode, increasing the app's versatility and capabilities all the more.

"Rogue One" is the latest addition to the epic space battle in the "Star Wars" universe, and damn, did it impress. From all angles, the film looked to hit on all the cues that made the original 70s and 80s films incredible, yet still filled it with plenty of new and relevant stories to bring it to life in 2016. Capping off a wild year of many celebrity deaths, it brings an interesting question: should we bring back deceased actors to fill a role?

Cinema glass has always been way more expensive than still camera lenses. Combined with the cinema camera sensors these high end lenses provide an image that's far superior to DSLRs capable of recording video. But yet, there are decent films created with DSLRs with still camera lenses. I'm not going to compare the glass quality here. I'm about to talk only about this peculiar T-stop measure on the cinema lenses while still camera lenses have an f-stop. Why should they differ?

Even if you're not much for holiday films, chances are you've seen the Will Ferrell movie, "Elf," that came out in 2003. It's a silly but fun tale of Buddy the Elf searching for his real father in New York City. The trailer seen here though, created by Cinefix, would have you believe that Buddy might just be an insane psychopath, spreading Christmas cheer in the form of violently stalking a person he believes to be his dad.

The Nerdwriter is a Youtube channel run by a guy called Evan Puschak. He uploads great analysis video essays about movies, writers, and most recently, about one of the great vloggers of our time, Casey Neistat. Now although Casey finished his daily vlog, it’s still important to analyze and see how Casey as an editor of his vlog went about shooting, and most importantly, how he edited his vlogs to make it entertaining and fun to watch.  

The long take might be my favorite shot in all of film. The blocking, timing, thought, and technical mastery that go into a successful one are astounding. So, when you take some of the best in history and bunch them all together, it's a film lover's dream.

Internationally acclaimed time-lapse film maker and photographer Rob Whitworth brings magical Cappadocia alive in his flow-motion hyperlapse film for Turkish Airways. The visually stunning clip, which highlights the tourist attractions in the region, took six weeks to shoot over the course of two months and two seasons. The effortless blending of multiple photography techniques and precise After Effects work culminates in a breathtaking finished product which pushes boundaries and leaves no doubt as to why Whitworth's videos have over 9 million online views.

Motion Array has been hard at work adding new features recently. For example, they recently came out with a video portfolio site builder. With this feature, any paid subscriber can create a custom site to show their video work, complete with text, images, and contact information (all editable). Users can even use their own custom domain or have one supplied by Motion Array. But now, Motion Array is at it again with Requests. Essentially, any paid member of the Motion Array community can put in a request for any type of creative asset that Motion Array offers.

It's set in a ghost town, the Tianducheng development in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. It has an Eiffel Tower replica and empty buildings which sets a perfect scene for this incredibly choreographed music video. Directed by Romain Gavras, the video has hundreds of kids with peroxided, yellow-white hair and matching outfits running through the deserted city to the foot of the replica Eiffel tower, and a very unique dancing style captured with great aerial video. 

For those of you familiar with the band OK Go, in addition to their catchy songs, they've also made a name for themselves with their intricately planned out and executed music videos. With their newest video "The One Moment," they sought to literally film the entire video in just one moment.

For many filmmakers who are getting into raw workflows for the first time, or perhaps wanting to up their postproduction skill set, color grading can at first appear to be a big, scary monster full of weird tools and a puzzling workflow that makes college physics seem simple. In this Q&A video from Film Riot, Colorist John Carrington answers some frequently asked questions regarding his approach and process to doing color work on video footage.

The new MacBook Pro's release has stirred the Internet with a mix of positive and negative reactions. We've seen praising and hating. We've seen reviews claiming faulty ports, cables, and adaptors. We've seen the fancy videos. However, there are still few real-life experience reviews from working pros. Here's one of them. It's quite intriguing.

Adobe Sneaks is the software company's behind-the-scenes sneak peek into ongoing projects that could eventually — if we're lucky — find their way into one or more products. This year at MAX, Adobe previewed a number of tools that should excite virtual-reality editors, desktop designers, and audio editors working on long-form speech formats.

Adobe concentrated its Creative Cloud 2017 updates heavily in newer media areas as it announced an After Effects improvement to render 3D elements up to 20 times faster, a Premier Pro update that automatically detect and create settings for different types of virtual reality content, and a new project, Project Felix, to aid in the creation of photo-realistic images by combining 2D and 3D assets. Meanwhile, cloud-based document collaboration across Creative Cloud, universal search in Photoshop, and other new features improve usability across a number of applications.

Encoding video files can become a crazy technical feat. I don’t blame people for using the preset options, even if they’re usually rubbish. Here’s how to fix three common problems, in unusually clever ways.

With the advancement and affordability of video technology available to consumers now, the number of budding and aspiring film and video makers has seemingly raised exponentially. One of those advancements has most definitely been in regards to how the color correction process is handled. There's certainly no one path to success sort of idea with this either, but there are some things that you can do to help simplify and organize your process in order to work quicker and more efficiently.

Audi took advantage of Monday night's presidential debates with its "Duel" ad spot. Nearly the entire clip plays in reverse, allowing the chronology of the true story and how the action unfolded to the point at which you began to unravel itself in an action-packed scene. The rewound clip -- fit for a 007 film -- features quite the production, complete with excellent, blockbuster-born sound effects to sell every punch and shattering glass shard. But it doesn't take much studying to see this was hardly as easy as rewinding an otherwise-normal action sequence: it took great audio to create this spectacle.

Once you start doing a lot of video editing, watching your favorite movie or TV show is never quite the same. The way dialogue scenes are cut together, the framing of characters in a shot, and of course scene transitions. In this supercut from the popular TV Show "Stranger Things," see how the editor used a variety of cuts to create compelling transitions.

Chances are, if you're serious about this industry or have been doing your homework, you've heard about the importance of having color-accurate monitors in order to produce the best quality images possible. This point cannot be driven home hard enough: you can have all the correct techniques and execution, but if you're working on a monitor without a correct color calibration, your final image will not deliver the same impact as what you see on your monitor. The answer? A color calibration system.

It's about time for a new approach. There are a few online stores and stock libraries where you can get templates, videos, and music that help you save time when creating professional videos. Some of them can get really tricky when dealing with prices and licensing.