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Editing workflow

Whatever editing programme you choose to work with, an editing project generally follows the same workflow. Below you will find more information about each step in the editing process.

First, some general advice before you start editing:

  • Organise your video footage and additional media in a systematic way.
  • Create a dedicated folder on your computer so you can easily find material during the editing process.
  • Make sure you create a backup of all your material.
  • Create a project and import media within your editing programme. You will be working in this project file for the duration of the editing process.
  • Make sure you save your project regularly!
  • Assemble and trim the video. Start assembling your video by placing your media in the desired order on the timeline. Once the order of the video is as you want it to be, you can start trimming. In this process, you will trim the start and end of each video clip to make sure they start and end at the exact point in time that you want.
  • Add video transitions and effects. Depending on the editing programme you are using and the desired style of your video you have many different video transitions and effects at your disposal. Keep in mind that you don’t use too much. This can be very distracting for the viewer.
  • Add titles. Now it's time to add titles.
    • Main title. You can decide to show the main title of the video at the very beginning or let it appear after a short introduction or teaser. A title is a great way to tell the audience something about your video, so give it some thought.
    • Sources. At the end of your video you should add a list of your sources and name your CC licence.
    • Subtitles. Most editing programmes will allow you to add subtitles to your video but you can also decide to subtitle your video after you have exported the final version with the help of special subtitling software. There are how to’s for KalturaVimeo and Adobe Premiere Pro. For YouTube you can choose between automatic caption or uploading your own. Keep in mind that you should always review the automatic captions. Since they are generated by speech recognition technology.
  • Mix audio. Audio is an important part of a video and can consist of voice-over, dialogue, background sounds and music. Think carefully about if and what kind of music you would like to accompany your video, for it can make a big impact. Place all additional audio on the timeline before you start mixing your audio.
    • Try to equalize the volume of the voice-over and dialogue throughout the video. If you have added music, set it to a lower volume than the spoken text.
    • You can smoothen audio transitions with the help of crossfade effects.
  • Export video. A common supported video file format is .MP4. Other common video file formats are .MOV or .WMV.
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