In all video streaming as well as in social media sites, we see tons and tons of new videos every day and there seems to be no end to it. According to statista.com, there are around 30,000 hours worth of videos that are uploaded every minute into Youtube alone. Add it up to the still undetermined number of videos on other sites, and the result would surely be too baffling for us to comprehend.

Truly, the demand for video content on the internet is higher than ever and will continue to rise for the years to come. Also Included in the crafting of videos are the sound elements that are embedded into them. Obviously, nobody wants to see something without hearing something.

If people are always expecting to consume more videos, then there have to be people that must be tasked to make them, and you could be one of those people reader, if you wish to, if you want to. If you will it so, you can be a video editor who’s one of those who contribute to ever-rising demands of video content on the internet.

According to careerexplorer.com, a video editor typically earns $25 per hour. Maybe you’re considering learning about a video-editing job. If so, you have to pay high attention to the...

Basic skills that a video editor must have

1. Cutting and sequencing

This is mainly about cutting video clips and putting them in cohesive sequences so that they can be understood easily by the viewer. When you are commissioned to create a video project, you will most likely be provided with not only one, but dozens of video clips. Most clients will just tell you, “Make a beautiful movie out of these.”

So basically, what clips will show and how they will appear on the finished product will be mostly up to you. This means that in order for your clients to be happy with your output, you have to be good at deciding what segments of a certain clip are to be left out and picked out.

Once you have picked those clips and segments well, you may then set them into proper sequences so they may tell a captivating message or story. This is one of the most important skills that an aspiring video editor must learn.

No matter how good you are with the other skills, all of them would just amount to nothing if you don’t know how to properly arrange video clips in the most comprehensive sequence.

2. Effects and transitioning

This is where you’ll put styles and embellishments to your video. Included in these techniques are the proper blending of colors and image brightening or darkening – tasks that make a video clip more fitting to be included in the entirety of the video project.

What color schemes are to be used? Should shadows be more emphasized? Should the background be changed? Those are questions that must be dealt with in this phase as well. How one clip to another should be transitioned is also important. Terms like wipe, dissolve, fade-to-black are what’s focused on in this aspect.

By applying the right enhancements to a certain clip, it makes the visuals of your entire video project more consistent and more faithful to the desired theme.

With today’s advancements in software technology, dealing with such tasks has never been easier. This makes your task as a video editor so easy too.

3. Sound syncing

The other half of a video element is the sound that got recorded along with the shooting of the images that comprise it. From the perspective of all professional videographers, any video output can never be classified as good if the sound is very poor or unclear. For this reason, all video editors should learn the basics of sound editing.

If you read other web articles or watch video-editing tutorials on Youtube, many video professionals would unanimously declare that great sound is really a very crucial element in all video projects whether they’d be tutorials, short films, music videos, and even full-length movies.

In editing videos, the inclusion of sound is something that needs to be truly emphasized. As you do your job, there will be instances when you will deal with a separate sound file that you will just embed into the video timeline.

Such a task really calls for highly accurate and very precise rhythm and timing. You will surely need to watch for every activity that takes place on the screen: the physical impact of the objects, the body movements of the actors, and even those moments that require an appropriate background music.

Syncing music, sound effects, and musical scores are something that you really need to master to come up with the best results. This is a skill that needs thorough practice.

4. Subtitling

Also known as captioning, this is also an important aspect of video editing. Allowing the viewers to read the dialog or conversation that takes place in your video while listening to the audio that flows with it can really enhance their viewing experience.

In situations in which your viewers can’t hear your audio, or if they have audio problems with their computers, or maybe they’re incapable of understanding the language spoken, subtitles can give them the comprehension that they need.

Today, many Youtube vloggers edit their materials in such a way that subtitles are very clear and comprehensive to their viewers. This is because the most recent search engine optimization (SEO) methods highly prefer videos with subtitles. To put it simply, videos in which you can read the dialog apart from hearing them appear to be more searchable – the more your videos are likely to appear in web searches, the higher the revenue you can get from them.

There are lots of technicalities that a video editor should attain the skills for. But if you’re able to learn the ones mentioned above, you should be totally fine as you seek for attaining freelance gigs for such a job category. There are of course clients who demand advanced skills in dealing with videos. But a majority of clients only look for editors with basic skills… as long as they can deliver quality work outputs.

Now, let’s talk about the equipment needed. Let me be truly honest, taking on the job of a video editor requires you to acquire some pretty powerful computer equipment. In fact, it is one of the most resource-hungry jobs there is when it comes to the aspect of purchasing hardware.

Doing video tasks requires you to have a computer with high processing speeds and large storage capabilities. Owning one can be actually expensive, to put it simply.

The good news, however, is that there are video-editing freelance gigs out there that you can do using a standard PC. Let me tell you though that the possible earnings you can get from such gigs are not that high, compared to the ones commissioned by high-profile web businesses.

But if you want to get the highest-paying clients, you really must invest in a high-end, powerful machine. Read more…