From bore to Blockbuster in 18 simple steps

Posted on 12 Dec 2008 at 17:26

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Gallery

MiniDV cameras record an image at preset intervals every second, regardless of what's in the frame. The footage can be either 'progressive' or 'interlaced'. Progressive footage is recorded as a series of complete images, 25 every second, much like traditional film. Interlaced footage records only the odd lines in the first frame - the first row of pixels, then the third, the fifth, and so on - and the even lines in the second, and so on. Although only half the frame is stored, frames are captured twice as often, 50 times per second. (The same distinction arises in high definition video, giving us the1080p and 1080i formats, representing progressive and interlaced encoding respectively.)

You've been framed

Unlike MiniDV devices, memory card and hard disk cameras normally use MPEG compression to squash all the picture data into a reasonable amount of storage. One feature of MPEG is that rather than recording a frame or half-frame every umpteenth of a second regardless of content, the camera's internal software chooses specific moments, known as 'keyframes', within the footage and analyses the differences between each keyframe and the next. If not much has changed between the two - for example, if the footage shows a person sitting still and talking to camera - much of the data in the intervening images can be thrown away without this being obvious when the footage is played back.

While this kind of 'lossy' compression prevents HD's higher resolutions from overwhelming the available storage space, it can visibly damage action footage or shots with lots of camera movement. You're unlikely to be filming many car chases or James Bond stunt sequences, but videoing sports is an example that's common in real life consumer shooting. Here, an HD camera may not always produce better footage than a good MiniDV camera, despite the extra pixels. And if you're planning to distribute your finished video on a website or burn it to a conventional DVD, you'll be throwing away the extra resolution anyway.

In the cut

With your footage imported, it's time to trim it into shape. A typical editing workflow would be: rough cut, fine cut, effects, music, and finally export. The whole process can take many hours to complete, and proper planning will improve the chances of success while avoiding wasted time.

In simple terms, a good video project tells a story. It may be the story of your friends' wedding or a visit to the park, rather than Citizen Kane, but nonetheless, distilling the original footage into an engaging and coherent story is what will engage your audience.

Your first goal is to assemble a rough cut. To do this, import all the scenes that you want to appear in the final project and place them onto the timeline. Trim them down to eliminate all the obvious 'flab', but don't worry about the details yet. Just get all your footage onto the timeline so each shot flows into the next. This is your rough cut.

Now comes the hard work. The editing process is one of continual refinement. Analyse each clip, each scene and each sequence, and trim every frame of unneeded footage. The aim is to tell the story or get the desired message across in the shortest possible time, as expressed by another classic movie axiom: 'Cut to the chase.' In other words, get to the interesting stuff, fast! We've all had to endure holiday videos that meander on for hours; you don't want to subject your audience to those horrors. Unless you're Sir Ranulph Fiennes, a fortnight's trip probably won't yield more than ten minutes of really worthwhile footage. Be ruthless: if a clip is eight seconds, could it be three? Do you need it at all? Apply this mentality to every shot and the project will invariably benefit.