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Video Edit Magic Express
v4.11 |
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Learn the
Video Editing Basics |
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Anyone, even with a little
or no experience in editing can, create beautifully edited videos
with Video Edit Magic Express.
Rapid strides in the
fields of multimedia, hardware and software have made
video editing easy. Video Edit Magic
Express is ideal for learning the ropes and taking the
first strides in the field of digital video editing. |
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This article explains the
basics of Digital Video Editing, using
Video Edit Magic Express. |
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Starting a new
Project |
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The first step is to
create a New Project. The Project file contains all the information about
your project: what media files are used, and where
you have edited (cut, stretched, and moved) them. |
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To create
a new project in Video Edit Magic Express: |
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| 1. |
Start Video Edit Magic Express. |
| 2. |
In the File
menu, click on New
Project. |
| 3. |
Click OK. |
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Importing a
video |
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The next
step is to import a video into Video Edit Magic Express. |
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You can connect your
digital camcorder to your PC, switch on the VCR mode
and import your videos using Video Edit
Magic Express’s Capture utility. You can also
switch your digital camcorder to DV out mode and
capture video from it, live. |
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To import a
video file into Video Edit Magic Express: |
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| 1. |
In the File
menu, click on Open
file. |
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| 2. |
Browse to the location where your captured video
or any video file is present, select it, and
click OK.
You can select multiple files and add all of
them to the Collections window. |
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Using this procedure, you
can add all the files you need to work with to
the Collections
window
of Video Edit Magic Express. |
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Previewing
the imported videos |
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When you are preparing
a meal, it is useful to have all your ingredients and
utensils at one place, so you can get whatever you need
quickly. Video Editing is no different. To
work efficiently and effectively, it is a good idea
to import all your videos into the Collections
window, so you know how much footage you have. The Instant
Preview screen in the top left hand corner
shows the currently-selected video (or image) file for
quick recognition. |
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| 1. |
Click on the video clip you want to Preview. |
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| 2. |
Click on the Play button under the Instant Preview
screen, to get a quick view of the video clip. |
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Now, that you have reconfirmed
the contents of the video clips and the image files
you have imported into Video Edit Magic Express, you
can roll your sleeves up and start editing. |
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Getting videos
on to the Timeline |
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The Timeline is where all editing operations
are carried
out. With the Timeline, you can easily see how long
a video clip, audio track, transition, or effect is going
to last when the final movie is made. The Timeline
lets you see at a glance what video clips begin when,
and how long they last. You are in complete
control. |
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To add a
video to the Timeline: |
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| 1. |
Right click on the video clip in the Collections
window. |
| 2. |
Select Add
to Timeline. |
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You can
also drag the video from the Collections window on to
the Timeline |
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In the Timeline, you
can zoom in to and zoom out by clicking on the little buttons
with the magnifying glass icons on them. |
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Starting with
your video editing |
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Start by trimming
unnecessary footage from your video clips. This is extremely easy with Video Edit Magic
Express. After trimming footage from your video, you
will also be more familiar with working on the Timeline. |
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To remove a part of your video clip: |
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| 1. |
Add the video clip to the Timeline.
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| 2. |
Click on Selection
Sliders in the View
menu. |
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The Selection Sliders are an easy to use graphical
tool for editing operations to be carried out
on certain parts of the Movie track. You can delete,
copy, move, cut and paste using the Selection
Sliders. |
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Select the part of the movie track you want
to trim by positioning the Selection Sliders on
the Movie Track of the Timeline. |
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The selected portion is highlighted
in lavender color on the Timeline. |
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To delete the selected part, simply hit the
Delete
button on the keyboard. To copy the selected part,
click on the Edit
menu and select Copy. |
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Resizing and
moving video clips on the Timeline |
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You can resize your
videos, effects or music tracks by simply selecting
them first, and then stretching them to the new size.
However, note that resizing a track affects
the playback speed. If you stretch a video, it
will play slower. If you decrease the size of the video
on the Timeline, it will playback faster. If you resize a video clip to half
its size, it will play twice as fast and vice versa. |
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To move
a complete clip, select it and drag it to the new position.
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Undoing operations |
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All editing operations
involve some mistakes. As a beginner, you may
need some time to get it perfect. Video Edit Magic
Express provides you with the ability to Undo and Redo
changes to
the Timeline. |
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For example, if you
want to undo a Delete operation, just click on the Undo button
on the toolbar. To undo more than one operations at
once, you can use the drop down list the by clicking
the down arrow on the Undo button. You can now select any operation to
undo. |
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Adding Effects |
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Now, that you have removed
all the unnecessary footage and placed your video clips
at the right positions, you can use visual effects to
add sparkle and polish to your video. |
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Let us consider the
Color Balance
effect as an example.
With the Color Balance effect, you can adjust the brightness
and contrast of your video clips. |
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| 1. |
Click on the Video
Effects in the Collections
window. |
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Right-click on the Color
Balance icon and select Add
Effect to Timeline. The effect will
be added to the Effect track at the position where
the Seek Slider is. You can then position
it anywhere on the Timeline by dragging, and increase or decrease
its duration by stretching or reducing it. |
| 3. |
To specify the Color
Balance effect properties, right-click
it in the timeline. Select Effect
Settings. |
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The Color
Balance Effect can change the brightness
level to make dark videos brighter or bright videos
darker. It can also change the predominant
color in a scene, for instance compensating for
reddish lighting. You can Preview the effect in the Preview Screen. |
| 5. |
Click on OK. |
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You can
add other effects to your videos in a similar manner. |
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Working with
Audio |
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Video
Edit Magic Express provides you with a single track
to add music to the existing sound in your video
clips. This is ideal for beginners who can feel intimidated
by the presence of multiple and confusing tracks. |
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You can import an audio file, add it to the
Timeline, and position it to start and end at the
desired times. To remove the audio, simply click on the audio track on the
Timeline and hit the delete button. |
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Making your
movie |
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This is the final step. After you have finished all your editing, Make Movie
combines all the video clips, audio clips, and effects
into one movie file. You can
choose to export this movie to your digital camcorder,
create AVI format files (perfect for CD distribution or
further editing), or Windows Media Video files designed
for efficient distribution over the Internet. |
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Before making your movie
make sure that the Selection Sliders are hidden. If
they are visible, only the part of the Timeline that
lies between them would be included in the movie. |
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To make
a movie: |
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| 1. |
On the File
menu, click on Make
Movie. |
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In Step 1
of the Make Movie Wizard, choose the output format
depending upon your distribution requirements. Click on Next. |
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Specify the output format properties in Step
2 of the Make Movie Wizard. Click on Next,
and then click on Make
Movie to start making the final movie. |
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A final word |
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Video Edit Magic Express
is the ideal editing tool for getting started with video
editing. Once you are familiar with the editing basics,
and feel confident about doing more with your videos,
you might find that Video
Edit Magic gives you more control, more power, and
more flexibility. |
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