r/fanedits • u/DigModiFicaTion Faneditor💿 • Dec 31 '24
Fanedit Help Editing Tips & Tricks
What are some fanediting tips and tricks that you've found over time?
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u/imunfair Dec 31 '24
I find an iterative approach is the fastest and most satisfying way to edit. Make a rough cut quickly, just using constant power transitions as much as possible, then after watching the edit and taking timestamp notes, go back and clean up any narrative errors or rough edits.
I think a lot of people fall into two camps - either taking an incredibly long time obsessing over the minutia of a single edit and not getting around to releasing it, or slowly working on half a dozen edits and never finishing any of them. It's a lot more motivating if you're actually getting something out and off your plate, and you can always come back with fresh eyes later for a third/fourth/fifth pass without burning yourself out on one movie/franchise!
Using the right tools is also incredibly important. If you pick an NLE that doesn't flow with the way you edit - allowing you to smoothly make cuts quickly and without thinking - then editing will seem like more of a chore and take a lot longer. Using hotkeys is a large part of this, if I had to click with my mouse every time I wanted to scroll along the timeline or switch between cut and point tools, it would take 10x longer - so learn your hotkeys and use them until they're second nature.
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u/MiDKnighT_DoaE Dec 31 '24
I'm doing an edit now and wondering how some of you handle audio transitions. Particularly to avoid that "clipping" sound. Any tips? I've got some things that mostly work but always looking to get better.
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u/Bailey-Edits Dec 31 '24
If you’re getting a clipping sound, it sounds like you are making a hard cut on it. I almost always do some kind of crossfade on sound cuts. At the cut, extend the sound clip from the left, into the right of the cut about a half second, maybe a full second, then fade it out. Fade it a half second to full second. Then take the sound clip on the right and extend it into the left a half second or full second. Then fade it in the same as you faded the other out. Most simple cuts I’ll do a half second, but some I’ll go as much as 2 or 3 seconds depending on background music and stuff. This almost always works for me. Sometimes you’ll get a tricky one that will require adding in some score, but this method works for me 90% of the time.
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u/MiDKnighT_DoaE Dec 31 '24
OK ya that's pretty much what I have been doing but still occasionally getting a little clip. I eventually find a way around it but it's annoying :)
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u/DigModiFicaTion Dec 31 '24
Crossfading the audio of the incoming and outgoing scenes can help with avoiding the clipping sound. These are referred to as J and L cuts in the editing world.
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u/TriggeredPuppy Dec 31 '24
If you have the hard drive space, render to a professional mezzanine codec first (ProRes, Cineform, or Avid DNX) and then compress using Shutter Encoder or Handbrake. You'll end up with a higher quality file at the same size (or a smaller file size with the same quality). Most NLE programs have terrible h264 and h265 compression schemes.
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u/k-r-a-u-s-f-a-d-r Dec 31 '24
Edit in 5.1 surround with the entire surround mix one one track (breaking out a channel into a different track as needed). This will keep the timeline cleaner and save a lot of time making cuts.
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u/wotfanedit Jan 01 '25
I break out all 6 channels and group them, then selectively ungroup when I need to make complicated transitions where different tracks need to be cut at different places for a scene transition.
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u/RyanCorven Dec 31 '24
When adding text to older films, add a very slight gaussian blur to your text layer to make it look less like a digital overlay and more like an optical composite.
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u/DigModiFicaTion Dec 31 '24
Save project files often. If you are trying a new idea, save it as a new name.
Enable autosave in your NLE and find where those files are stored. This is a life saver if your program crashes.
Vegas tips:
preferences > video > thumbnails to show in video events > drop down menu set to "None" > OK/Apply. This will speed up your workflow as Vegas won't be forced to re render a thumbnail for your timeline events every time you move or zoom in.
preferences > video < GPU acceleration of video processing (select your GPU) > OK/Apply. This will hopefully create a smoother video editing preview.
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u/Davetek463 Dec 31 '24
I’ll have to give these a try. As a practically lifelong Vegas user I’m always down to learn some new tricks.
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u/wotfanedit Jan 01 '25 edited Jan 01 '25
One project at a time.
Edit top down then bottom up. First make HUGE cuts taking out absolutely everything you think isn't core to your story, get it to the minimum required assembly cut quickly. Be very strict, ask why each scene, shot and line of dialog exists, does it advance the story and cut mercilessly. Then watch it all the way through. THEN start adding back the bare minimum scenes you need to close any narrative gaps and make the story flow better. This way you end up with the tightest cut possible that still tells the story and your pacing will be really good.
Finally, consider the more artistic flourishes: a line of dialog using AI to fill in a gap, cross cutting audio and video from different scenes, combining and moving scenes out of sequence to advance the story faster, adding location titles and other elements, etc.