Finding the Right Video Editor
Last year, when I was looking for some suitable video editing software, I found that people would often recommended DaVinci Resolve. It is indeed an outstanding tool but totally beyond my needs. It is also a beast to run and occupies a substantial percentage of real estate on your SSD, so I dismissed this option for practical reasons. Let it suffice to say that finding a suitable product that met my requirements was quite difficult. Video editors often seem to be either quick and easy tools for clipping content on the fly, such as Bandicut (which is great for exactly that purpose) or huge, professional quality behemoths, used by people who work in the appropriate industry. DaVinci Resolve is a textbook example of this. It begs the question what products occupy the middle ground, assuming they exist.
Projects and Problem Cascades
As the New Year is still young, I have embarked upon several new projects that I’ve been planning since Autumn last year. These undertakings have gone beyond the planning stage and are currently being implemented. The fun thing about the phrase “implemented” in this context is that it implies that it is by far the easiest and most straightforward part of the process. The initial brainstorming of ideas has been completed. A cogent and detailed plan has been written. The costing of materials and time required have been determined. These are the hard parts. All that remains is to “just do it”. It should be a piece of piss (a British phrase indicating that something is easy). It virtually “implements” itself. However, that is a load of bollocks. Because there is always scope for something to go wrong. It may well start as something minor and innocuous but it all too often ends in a “problem cascade”.
Experimenting With YouTube Part 2
I spent most of this morning and afternoon editing video content I captured while playing Sniper Elite Resistance. I assembled 26 minutes of highlights and then recorded a narration. After adding appropriate branding for Contains Moderate Peril, I then uploaded the finished video to YouTube. Sadly, the picture quality was problematic, often becoming pixelated and blocky when there was rapid movement. The volume of my narration was also too low, so I decided to delete the video from my channel. I was somewhat disappointed by this outcome and initially thought that the day had been a waste of time. However, as I write this post, it becomes very clear that this is just part of the learning curve. I have given some thought to the problem and I believe I have determined why this video was not up to the standard of the previous one. Ultimately, this is an invaluable lesson.
Experimenting With YouTube Part 1
I recently wrote a post about how I wanted to have a go at producing some gaming videos for YouTube. “How hard can it be?” I asked rhetorically, knowing that there would probably be a lot more to the process than meets the eye. Two weeks on and I can report back that there is indeed a learning curve but it is not insurmountable. I managed to figure out how to record a video game, edit it and then add a narration as well as a simple animated logo. Furthermore, I succeeded in doing this without spending a lot of money. I bought some video editing software and a year’s subscription to XSplit Broadcaster but got a really good deal on both. In total I paid £41, which is very reasonable. Hence yesterday, I posted my first video on the officially relaunched Contains Moderate Peril YouTube channel.