Simple Video Editing
Alan German
February 14, 2018
Yesterday…
Video equipment was
usually large, expensive,
and came with a long
learning curve…
Today…
We all have digital cameras and
smartphones that will take videos
at the press of a button!
Why edit videos?
• Crop videos for length (running time)
• Reduce storage requirements (file size)
• Eliminate shaky starts (and ends)
• Smooth out zoom-in/zoom-out sequences
• Combine different shots
Software Options?
But, free is even better!
https://shotcut.org
Shotcut
• Open-source software
• Multi-platform (Windows, Linux, Apple)
• Powerful features but simple to use
• Excellent on-line tutorials
User Interface
Open File
Video controls
Crop the shot by moving the end points
Fine-tune the frame selection with the counter
Export Video to Disk
Export File
provides multiple
options including:
file type (MP4)
resolution (1080p)
using original
format as default
Export File
gorilla_baby.mp4
Size: 57,614 KB
Length: 00.00.33
Be patient!
Rendering video files
takes time (even on a
fast machine)
Creating a 58 MB file
(33 second running time)
required 56 seconds
Combining Video Clips
Drag clip to the timeline
First clip on the timeline
Open/edit a second clip
Drag second clip to the timeline
Second clip on the timeline
Combine the two clips
Now, drag the second clip
to overlay the first clip
Transition created
Automatically creates a
transition (fade out/in)
Create a final transition
Select the second clip
Create a final transition
Select Filters…
Create a final transition
Select Filters… then +
Create a final transition
Select “Fade Out Video”
to fade to black
Let’s see if the demo godsare smiling!