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Module 56 |
Updated: 07/14/2009 |
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Video Editing, Part VII
Dedicated andSoftware-Based Editors
Dedicated editing equipment was the norm until desktop computer software started to become available in the late 1980s. Software-based editors use desktop and laptop computers as a base. Video editing is just one of the tasks they can perform; it all depends on the software you load. It was in the early 1990s that sophisticated video editing Historically, the Video Toaster system for the Amiga computer was the first widely used system. The basic screen for that system is shown here. The Toaster was both a video switcher and an editing system. Thereafter, several software companies introduced computer-based editing systems for the Apple and Windows operating systems. Today's desktop and laptop computers can rival the capabilities of dedicated editing systems.
Simple, Free Editing Systems
Although many people prefer the Mac editor, the new Windows Live Movie Maker shown here is simplicity in itself. You only have to drag the video clips (either stills or movie clips) from anywhere on your computer to the area on the right. You can trim segments as needed, add filter effects, and create special effect transitions between video segments. If you wish, the program can automatically space the timing of the video segments to correspond with selected music or audio. The result can be output in the .WMV file format. These simple editors can be used to create a quick "blueprint" of a production to get an idea of how shots will flow together. Later, the original footage can be used in a more sophisticated editor to develop the final product.
Note that in this representation one sequence of video segments is represented in the dark blue area at the top of the illustration and another in dark blue below that. In between, transition effects, filters, and special effects are represented. The audio elements (music, narration, and special effect tracks) are shown in light blue. Relative levels and transitions are controlled by a mouse and drop-down menu selections. |
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Examples are various types of blur, color corrections, cropping, sharpening, fog effects, geometric distortions, and even image stabilization. The latter attempts to lock onto a central element in a scene and keep it from moving, thus canceling moderate camera shake. More on that later. Although it's not possible to create detail that isn't in video to start with, with some plug-ins it's possible to rather convincingly convert standard definition video (SDTV) to HDTV. |
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With nonlinear editing the video and audio segments are not permanently recorded as you go along as they are in linear editing. The edit decisions exist in computer memory as a series of internal digital markers that tell the computer where to look for segments on the hard disk.
This means that at any point you can instantly check your work and make adjustments. It also means that you can easily (and maybe endlessly!) experiment with audio and video possibilities.
Sony's complete high-definition NLE (non-linear editing, or random access editing) system is shown below. This editing system compliments Sony's line of XDCAM cameras.

Although a sophisticated nonlinear (random access) editing system such as the one above may take a while to learn, once you figure one out, you can transfer the basic skills to other editing programs.
After you finalize your edit decisions most editing systems allow you to save your EDL (edit decision list) preferable on some removable media that you can take with you in case you need it again. This will save you from having to start from scratch if you later want to come back to the original footage to make revisions.
The final edited video and audio output can be handled in two ways.
It can be "printed" (transferred) in final, linear form to videotape or a DVD or it can remain on a computer drive to be recalled and modified as needed. The latter approach, which is often used for segments in newscasts, requires high-capacity storage devices such as...
Video and audio segmentsespecially HDTVtake up a great amount of hard disk storage space.
Instead of trying to replicate the needed storage in each desktop computer, many
facilities use a centralized mass storage device called a file server, sometimes called a media server or video server (shown here.)
These were introduced in an earlier module. Even the editing software can be run from a server.
A centralized video server not only gives all of the computer editing stations the advantage of having access to large amounts of storage, but it means that segments can be reviewed, edited, or played back from any of the editing workstations (desktop or laptop computers equipped with a network connection) within the facility.
As high-speed, Internet connections become commonplace, you will be able to link to a media server from any location even your home and edit and re-edit pieces. In fact, many professionals are doing that now.
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