No matter how experienced we might get with editing video, it’s easy to get complacent, especially if you’re creating video content regularly for platforms like YouTube and other social media. We start to get sloppy, make mistakes, and our videos suddenly aren’t as popular as they once were. And for those just starting out, you might still be trying to figure out how you can get your videos seen and shared in the first place.
Well, Matti Haapoja is here to help. In this video, he walks us through five of the biggest mistakes that you can make when video editing, particularly for social media. I have to admit, I’m guilty of making a few of these mistakes myself and they can creep up on you without you even realising you’re doing it.
Matti’s list might sound a little harsh at first (and if you’re taking it personally, that means you’re probably guilty of these things, too) and the main section headings don’t really do his explanations of them justice. But he’s pretty spot on and if you’re struggling to see your video content take off or if you’ve seen a lull in your viewers lately, it’s worth having a good watch and a think about how you edit.
- 1:10 – Your edit is just boring
- 2:22 – The pacing is all off for the subject matter
- 3:59 – You’re getting lazy because you’re slow and wasting too much time
- 8:58 – You’re not using all the tools available (transitions, sound design, music, etc)
- 9:44 – Not paying attention to the cuts
There have been times when I’ve been guilty of all of these, either through inexperience in my earlier days or simple complacency as my abilities have increased. I’ve definitely made some boring videos with pacing that doesn’t quite match the subject matter. I’ve gotten lazy and bored with the edit because I’ve shot way too much footage that I have to sift through (sometimes, more choice can be a bad thing!), I’ve forgotten to add music and I’ve had cuts where the timing was a little off.
That last one was really driven home to me this week as I filmed a live music performance that I had to edit together from multiple cameras that were filming simultaneously. I’d never shot and edited something like this before, but cutting between cameras just a couple of frames ahead or behind from where they ultimately ended up massively changed the feel of the video and made it a little… awkward and uncomfortable. The same thing can happen in videos even when just speaking to the camera. Having a few extra frames too many or too few before you cut can spoil the flow and take you out of the video. And remember, the video and audio don’t both have to cut at the same time!
There are no guarantees that if you get on top of these things (and stay on top of them) then your YouTube channel or other social presence will grow, but at least they’ll be some of the major hurdles out of the way. Because if the video sucks, then it really doesn’t matter what else you try to do.
Have you made these mistakes? Are you still making them?
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