If you’re making any of these video editing mistakes it could be costing you lots of time or views on your videos. Let’s dive in and talk about eight video editing mistakes beginners make, and how to avoid them.
The first video editing mistake actually starts in the filming process, and that is…
1. Filming without a plan
What is the purpose of your video?
Filming with the edit in mind will help you to ensure you get all of the necessary shots to tell the story. If you jump in without a plan for how you want your video to unfold you could get to the edit and realise you can’t tie all of your clips together in a logical way.
You don’t have to create a full script to record your videos if you don’t want to, a rough outline is all you need to set yourself up for success and avoid a lot of frustration in the edit.
For some ideas on how to outline your videos check out this post.
2. Getting carried away with the details before you’ve assembled the content
Don’t worry about colour correction, effects or transitions before you have all of your content laid out.
You don’t want to spend heaps of time on the pretty stuff only to realise you have to reshoot or you don’t have enough shots to finish your video.
Or you might put a lot of effort into effects and transitions on a sequence of off footage that doesn’t even make the final cut!
Get the content right first, then focus on the look of your video.
3. Bad file management
This might sound like a really basic tip, but I stress its importance because I have seen a lot of shocking file structures. Like seriously… They were shocking.
It is so important to set up a proper file structure for your video projects. So often files get lost or unlinked from a project because they were left in the downloads folder, on the desktop or in a completely unrelated place to the project file itself, never to be seen again.
I usually work with quite a large number of files in my video projects, so I separate them into six different folders;
Admin, for any notes or scripts,
Project Files
Clips
Audio
Graphics, and
Output, where all the exported files are saved
Every file that contributes to the project is saved in an umbrella folder with the project name so it can be moved or copied and nothing is ever misplaced.
4. Not learning Keyboard shortcuts
You can save so much time by learning keyboard shortcuts for your most-used tools.
Investing a bit of time in following along with some tutorials and getting to know the program you’re using will really help the speed and efficiency of your editing in the long run.
You can even make your own keyboard shortcuts to personalise your workflow even further and have all your favourite tools literally at your fingertips.
5. Not keeping drafts
Editing can be like cutting hair. It’s easy to take away, not so easy to put back if you cut too much off.
Unlike the days of working with tape, we can simply hit the undo button if we make a mistake, but a great habit to get into is keeping multiple versions or multiple drafts of your video in case you want to take a step back to what you had before.
My workflow usually consists of;
an Assembly timeline; the most basic cut where I keep all of the usable interview or piece to camera footage. I duplicate this timeline to create;
Draft 1, where I start to get more specific on the direction of the video and cut anything I know I won’t use. I duplicate this again to create;
Draft 2, where I really narrow down the essence of the video
And you can see where this is leading. At any stage, if I change my mind I can go back to the previous draft and draw any footage I need from there.
6. Not saving often enough
My autosave is set to every five minutes. You may think this is overkill… or you may think that five minutes isn’t often enough! Either way, trust me when I say it is better to be safe than sorry when it comes to saving your video projects.
7. Over editing
Using too many cuts or transitions can make your video really overwhelming and off-putting. Quite often, less is more when it comes to editing. Master the basics first, and work your way up from there.
8. Using the wrong music – or having it too loud so you can’t hear the voice over
Music should drive the emotion you want your audience to feel when they watch your video.
Choosing the wrong music can make your viewers uncomfortable or switch off from what your video is about. Your music should complement the feel of the video and help to draw your audience into your message.
It should also be at a much lower level than your voice-over audio so your viewers have no trouble hearing and understanding what you have to say.
So there you have it, eight mistakes beginner video editors make. Tell me in the comments if you have ever done any of these things and what happened.
Are you ready to overcome your fear of the camera? Here’s how.
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The first video editing mistake actually starts in the filming process, and that is…