for my covers I use an old and very minimal video editing software called VideoPad. it works but it’s very limited ; it’s somewhat the Audacity of the video world
I’m looking for a different video sofware and ideally I would like :
an easy way to sync the audio and the video tracks
a multicam function : I would sync several video tracks (one time each) and be able to switch from one to another during the song
good color / white balance / contrast / brightness corrections
a free software if possible (or cheap at least)
it’s not a vital need but at some point I could like to upgrade from VideoPad so, I’m open to your suggestions ! thanks !
I used to use VideoPad also, even purchased the inexpensive lifetime license. However, it is lacking severely in the way you mention, plus many other areas.
I switched to Adobe Premiere Pro, which does everything I need and all the things you listed, however, it is not free but not overly expensive either.
My second favorite is Movavi. It was very inexpensive for a lifetime license, and it does Chroma Key almost as good as Pp, as long as the green screen lighting was perfect during the shoot. I’m not sure whether or not it does multi-cam, but it does do audio syncing, which I like. I may switch back to it after my year of Premier Pro is up.
Davinci Resolve.
Pros - its free (I still cannot believe this is free!), it does everything and anything.
Cons - figuring out how to do everything and anything takes some time, take a bit of computing power so make sure you have something that will run it.
I plan on looking for some courses to sort out multicam editing etc, as I am a total Noob on this…rainy day task.
Has anyone tried Blender.org? It was originally developed as an animation creation tool, but has quite a few video editing (including chromakey) features.
It seems to be well liked by people who use OBS for live production.
Yes, I see that it does keying, it took me awhile to find it because it goes by a different name. I’ve got too much on my plate today, but I’ll check it out another time.
@John_E, I got through most of my to-do list and decided to spend some time on Davinci. I must say, this is a pretty cool video editor, especially with no price tag. I did notice that it’s in Beta, so I wouldn’t be surprised if somewhere down the line we end up paying for it. For now, I’m going to spend some time on it and maybe create my next cover video with it.
Here’s my initial review: (Oh, I feel like it’s 30 years ago when I was working for PC Magazine)
For someone who has worked with other video editing software, most of it comes intuitively, albeit with different procedure names, different places on the menu, etc.
My number one concern was its Chroma Key capabilities, which for any video creator is highly important. Every video editor I have ever evaluated or used has a different name for their keying module, and Davinci is no different. It took me awhile, but I discovered several different keying modules that the app offers: 3D Keyer, HSL Keyer, Luma Keyer, Delta Keyer, and Cleanplate Keyer. I dabbled with Delta and Cleanplate, but found that 3D seems to be the quickest, easiest, and most effective method (I could change my opinion as I dig deeper).
I created a short video using media that I had on my computer from previous projects, and was pleasantly surprised how easy and efficient it was, and what a clean key I was able to produce. I truly believe this is even better than Adobe Premier Pro which is $20 per month. For certain it’s significantly better than VideoPad or Movavi.
Converting the finished product to MP4 was a bit of a challenge, because Davinci doesn’t present an intuitive method such as “Export” or “Render” or any of the usual terms found in other editors. Instead, they included a tab at the bottom of the workspace labelled, “Deliver”, which when selected, presents a new window in which I was able to select all the parameters. The rendering process was quick, and the output was a perfect MP4…
I have yet to explore the multi-cam or audio sync features, but I’m sure they’re as capable as I found the keying to be.
All in all, this is a great product which could easily command a hefty price tag. The fact that it’s free is amazing.
Thank you @John_E for finding this. @terb I think this is your answer.
You’re welcome. I think it’s V17 that’s beta. The V16 whatever wasn’t I think. It upgraded itself along the way. Yes I too was confused with the deliver vs export. Muliticam is next on my list to sort for a cover of Heatwave with bass and sax. So much to learn!1
Does it support visualizations like VSDC? VSDC is awful but they did this cool thing where it will load WinAmp visualizations and generate video from them, and I love it.
@John_E check this out. I have been watching this guy’s videos since yesterday and he is awesome. He has a way of explaining everything and making it much simpler than you thought it was.
