Another what video editor thread, doesn't need to be free, and effects?

[porina]

This is something I've dabbled with on and off over the years, never seriously, and I fancy another go. I'm not expecting to make the next Hollywood hit, but you could say I'm a youtube wannabe. Content could be a mix of video (mainly 1080p) and screen captures (including but not limited to gaming) (various resolutions, will be resized/cropped down to 1080p).

 

Before we get too far, here's what I tried already, and what I think of it.

 

Davinci Resolve - I didn't get along with its interface, but maybe that's just me not getting far enough along its learning curve?

NCH Videopad - I found this kinda ok, and have actually bought a licence since it is so cheap, but I feel like it is a bit basic and wouldn't mind something nicer. The activation restrictions may be a problem in the future - not sure it is easy to move between systems.

Adobe Premiere Pro (ancient version) - we're talking Windows 9x era, and I like the product as it was then.

Adobe Premiere Elements (recent versions) - can't stand the interface

 

I haven't tried HitFilm Express yet. I'm not enforcing a "free only" thing either. I'm willing to pay for the right product. I'm more likely to go for a one off payment than subscription model. *cough*Adobe*cough* I'm obviously not going to throw hundreds of local currency units at it unless I'm really sure it is the one. I might also have to get a trial of Sony Vegas some point. I note they do a consumer version, but I fear they do an Adobe and dumb down too far on those.

 

As an additional question, I always wanted to do more effects type stuff. I understand one of the go-to choices is After Effects, but it is Adobe... are there other similar alternatives to consider?

[slightlyjaded]

Just now, porina said:

Just pointing out old versions of vegas (before the latest and greatest come up on special regularly on steam for sub 100 dollars) Most of the special effects seems to be plugin based, but if you're happy to work within that framework the community building the plugins seems to be thriving

 

[chris76816]

FCPX if you have an apple computer or want to do a hackintosh dual boot. Otherwise, I use Premiere Pro

[AkiraDaarkst]

Non Apple/Mac alternative to Adobe would be DaVinci Resolve for video editing and color grading (frankly color grading in Resolve is easier and better than Premiere) and BlackMagic Fusion for motion graphics/effects work.  Alternatively you can try the free version of Avid Media Composer.  Anything better costs more.

 

If you have a Mac/Apple, try Final Cut.

[Guest]

I use Magix Movie Edit Pro. Just a recommendation.

[porina]

 

6 minutes ago, slightlyjaded said:

 

I never would have thought of looking on Steam for software like this. Vegas Pro 14 is currently on 65% off for next two days making it rather affordable, but I have no idea if I will like it or not...

Just now, chris76816 said:

FCPX if you have an apple computer or want to do a hackintosh dual boot. Otherwise, I use Premiere Pro

I'm waiting for Apple to release some hardware worth looking at (maybe next mac pro) without charging through the nose for it, and can't see Hackintosh as a serious option. In case it wasn't clear in original post, I don't want an Adobe subscription. Presuming up front buys are no longer possible, and even if they were, I wouldn't want to pay what they want.

1 minute ago, AkiraDaarkst said:

Non Apple/Mac alternative to Adobe would be DaVinci Resolve for video editing and color grading (frankly color grading in Resolve is easier and better than Premiere) and BlackMagic Fusion for motion graphics/effects work.  Alternatively you can try the free version of Avid Media Composer.  Anything better costs more.

Grading is not even on my radar at this point. Looking up "Avid Media Composer First" seems to be the free version I can try.

1 minute ago, deXxterlab97 said:

I use Magix Movie Edit Pro. Just a recommendation.

Will give that a closer look too.

 

[AlTech]

From my experience, I'd say try HitFilm Express 2017 and if you like it (and it runs well on your PC) then buying HitFilm Pro 2017 might not be too bad.

 

I'm not a fan of Adobe CC's pricing either but a lot of Standalone video editors with one time payments are too expensive. I personally use HitFilm Express 2017 although i occasionally use OpenShot (That being said, OpenShot needs a lot of help before I could recommend it to anybody remotely serious about editing).

 

OpenShot seems to have issues with 60fps videos and has lots of bugs in general.

[porina]

1 minute ago, AluminiumTech said:

(That being said, it needs a lot of help before I could recommend it to anybody remotely serious about editing).

Good point actually. As hinted at, I didn't get along too well with Resolve, but I wonder if that is just in part due to me not being far enough on the learning curve. How much time would expect to be needed to get to know reasonably well an editor software package?

 

I'm at the "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing" stage I guess. I know enough to be dangerous but not good at it. I only did one more serious edit to make a gaming video as a competition entry, and producing that (including capture) took some hours over several evenings just to produce 90 seconds of content...

[chris76816]

12 minutes ago, porina said:

I'm waiting for Apple to release some hardware worth looking at (maybe next mac pro) without charging through the nose for it, and can't see Hackintosh as a serious option. In case it wasn't clear in original post, I don't want an Adobe subscription. Presuming up front buys are no longer possible, and even if they were, I wouldn't want to pay what they want.

21 minutes ago, AkiraDaarkst said:

I agree, apple need to step up thier game

[slightlyjaded]

8 minutes ago, porina said:

 

I never would have thought of looking on Steam for software like this. Vegas Pro 14 is currently on 65% off for next two days making it rather affordable, but I have no idea if I will like it or not...

 

Picked up vegas a few months ago because I needed something, and like you I don't like the subscription model. The basics are easy enough to use with a few minutes of trolling through the help program. the rest is going to require far more time than I have to invest at the moment. Honestly. it's cheap, well reviewed, and seems to have an active community trying to make it better.

 

From what I have seen professionals seem to be split between adobe, and black magic, but they're also making serious money with their videos to pay for the software.

[AlTech]

2 minutes ago, porina said:

 I wonder if that is just in part due to me not being far enough on the learning curve.

Nope,

many editors have problems. It's just a matter of which editors have which problems.

 

OpenShot doesn't handle 60fps videos well and is buggy (but also Open Source and Free).

HitFilm is CPU demanding but so is Premiere Pro and Vegas.

LightWorks' free version is too limiting and their Pro version is too expensive.

Premiere has problems with macros and editing performance (that's what Taran complained about iirc)

2 minutes ago, porina said:

How much time would expect to be needed to get to know reasonably well an editor software package?

At least a week, possibly weeks or months. I'd suggest slowly trying new features one at time. It takes a while to learn all the nuances of a video editing software.

 

For example,

One day when using HitFilm, I discovered that it had a Timer you could add on top of the video and so I tried it out in a video which necessitated showing how long something took when sped up. I liked how it worked and I learned how to apply it in a dedicated video.

 

Another time, I tried out a Witness Protection effect in a video where I thought it could look cool.

 

Trying features one at a time can be less intimidating than trying 10 or so different effects at once. Once you're truly comfortable with the editing software, mixing and matching effects might not be a bad idea.

 

2 minutes ago, porina said:

I'm at the "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing" stage I guess. I know enough to be dangerous but not good at it. I only did one more serious edit to make a gaming video as a competition entry, and producing that (including capture) took some hours over several evenings just to produce 90 seconds of content...

It's hard to comment on this. Different style of videos require entirely different amounts of editing. It really is up to your style.

 

A benchmarking video in my opinion requires some serious editing and a pretty good idea of how to keep the audience engaged. A gameplay video with a voice over may not necessarily require much editing depending on style. E.g. You could decide to cut out only the loading screens and tedious parts but keep most of it in. Or you could choose to only show specific parts of the video.

 

It's entirely up to the creator to decide on a style. But different types of videos can have different styles.  Some audiences prefer more raw and natural videos rather than highly edited ones. But the exact opposite is also true.

 

So basically, try to do what you like . I personally adapt my style depending on the video type. If I record a gameplay video, I tend not to spend significant amounts of time editing it. if i make a tech video then I may up spending a few hours across a multiple days working on a single video.

[porina]

2 minutes ago, slightlyjaded said:

From what I have seen professionals seem to be split between adobe, and black magic, but they're also making serious money with their videos to pay for the software.

That's the thing, if it is your day job, the decision points are very different than the occasional power user. I'm not even sure I qualify for the "power" part yet...

 

As a parallel, I went though same in past as I used to do a lot of photography. I needed more than the "home" versions of software, but couldn't justify the price tag of "professional" software. So now I have a mix of various tools to do various things, not one tool to rule them all.

[xQubeZx]

18 minutes ago, porina said:

Good point actually. As hinted at, I didn't get along too well with Resolve, but I wonder if that is just in part due to me not being far enough on the learning curve. How much time would expect to be needed to get to know reasonably well an editor software package?

 

I'm at the "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing" stage I guess. I know enough to be dangerous but not good at it. I only did one more serious edit to make a gaming video as a competition entry, and producing that (including capture) took some hours over several evenings just to produce 90 seconds of content...

A few hours for 90 seconds on content is not too long tbh if we are talking some serious effects work and so. Sure of you edit a lot you get faster but its all the little details that take so god damn long. I know people that literally spent an entire month on a few miniutes edit for games. 

[xQubeZx]

But for what program, look at older Sony Vegas versions? I kinda liked it however I preffer Premiere Pro now that I've gotten used to it. 

[Rassuke]

If you feel worried about DaVinci then go with Premiere Pro. Premiere is the most versatile and has the biggest knowledge base on the internet. Premiere is also a good stepping stone to go from to DaVinci because I worked years on Premiere Pro and after I spend about a day working with DaVinci I got the basics down easily and it's way better for color correction.