Editing videos (1 Viewer)

[Richard Hole]

Hi

Is Media Portal capable of doing the below or do you know what software is? I am trying to find the most user friendly video editing software for my purpose.

I am hoping to get some software that would enable me to quickly delete a number of separate scenes in the middle of a video that I record. I would like to be able to play the video and press a button or key stoke to start a deletion. Then I hope the video will play again for a while before I press another button to end the deletion. Then I want the video to resume playing at the point of the end of the deletion. Then after playing through the part I want preserved, I want to press the “start deletion point” button again to start the second section to be deleted. Then after the video plays, I want to press the “end deletion point” button to delete the second segment. Then I am hoping to resume playing at the point of the end of the deletion. After it plays through the part I want preserved, I hope to be able to press the “start deletion point” button again before the video plays and then I would press the “end deletion point” button to delete the third segment

I tried Windows Movie Maker. However, a problem was I could not find out how to delete a scene in the middle of a video. It did the opposite where it saved the scene between the start and end points. This meant that I had to move the full video again on to the story bar, start the video from the start and then save a scene further along in the video so that it could be joined to the earlier scene that I saved.

It would be quicker if the scenes could be erased so that the video could be resumed at the end of the part erased. To save time, I would rather just resume at the end of the erased part instead of having to start the video again to delete the second section. If the video has to be started every time a segment is deleted it would be time consuming if many separate sections are to be erased in a long video.

Also, I would want to be able to easily play in reverse or rewind if I play past the point where I want to start the deletion.

Also, I would like to be able to add an audio recording to a video so that I can talk in a video to explain things. In the original video I recorded with the camera I did not talk, so it would need to be added via the computer.

Do you know of any software that easily does the above?
What software would do it the fastest?
If you have not tried many types of video editing software, do you know who has?

Your help is appreciated.
Regards Richard.

 

[Owlsroost]

If you are starting with MPEG format video files, this is probably the fastest/easiest tool - MPEG editor and DVD editor - Womble Multimedia, Inc. - this has a second audio track for your narration requirement, and is the fastest timeline-based MPEG file editor I know - it will scroll through MPEG files as fast as you can move the mouse...

Tony

 

[Richard Hole]

Hi Tony

Thanks for the info. I will probably try Womble Multimedia. Have you tried Windows Movie Maker and found it to be much slower than Womble Multimedia at performing the task that I want? If so, I will forget about trying to work out how to use Windows Movie Maker. I have not fully worked Movie Maker out yet and I thought there may be some way to use it so that it can do what I want faster.

Your help is appreciated.
Regards Richard.

 

[Owlsroost]

I've never used Windows Movie Maker - I started doing video editing before it appeared, so I've always used other tools....Sony Vegas Pro and Vegas Movie Studio are my usual tools for more complex or non-MPEG editing.

What format are the source video files you are using ?

Tony

 

[Richard Hole]

Hi

The video files I captured from the camera are “.wmv” type. However, I thought that the file type could be easily changed with software. Alternatively, I could perhaps capture the video from the camera with some other software to get a different file type.

I received a reply from Womble Multimedia. It could do what I want but am still not sure.

It would be good to have software that enables deleting parts of the video as they are watched at normal speed so that after the section is deleted, the video just continues playing again AFTER the section that has been deleted. I have a DVD recorder that does not do this because if a section is deleted after a scene that I want, it plays again from the start and I am forced to watch or fast forward through the section I have already watched before deleting the second section. It also forces you to click “OK” to approve the deletion. This takes extra time and the editing can only be done in a small screen size in a separate process to normal play mode. These things are a major inconvenience.

It would be good to have software that enables editing a video as it is been watched in ALMOST full screen size so that the fast forward, rewind, stop and play buttons are easily accessible at the bottom of the window playing the video. It would be good to also have easy access to the Windows taskbar underneath which would mean that the video does not want to take up the full computer screen.

Does Womble or any other software you know do the above?

Doesn’t media portal software have a function to enable editing like this?

PS. I cannot use Media Portal at all at the moment due to the problems explained on my earlier post at https://forum.team-mediaportal.com/...-just-tv-server-there-another-solution-66317/ . I have not had any replies to this post. Do you know anyone that can help?

Your help is appreciated.
Regards Richard

 

[Paranoid Delusion]

The inbuilt video editor only works for TV recordings done as mpeg2 in ts wrapper, h.264 does not work currently, so for editing out adverts great or joining video, say it was a two part show, but that's its complete functionality, unless someone would like to do a major rework on it.

You save, the start\end points that are added by yourself, the only way to find if it does what you wish on a basic level is try it.

 

[Owlsroost]

Hi

The video files I captured from the camera are “.wmv” type. However, I thought that the file type could be easily changed with software. Alternatively, I could perhaps capture the video from the camera with some other software to get a different file type.

Are these being created in the camcorder as .wmv or are you capturing analog video from the camcorder via a capture card/box ? It's just that it's a bit unusual for camcorders to capture directly to .vmv

In most editing software, the sort of simple 'assemble' editing you describe would be done by placing the whole movie onto the 'timeline', scrolling/moving along the timeline to position the cursor at the first 'cut' point using the mouse and cursor keys, doing the cut (which splits the movie), moving to the next cut point and doing the cut, then deleting the section between the cuts. If the software does 'ripple' editing it will then automatically shuffle the remaining parts along to fill the gap left behind. This is the direct computer equivalent to taking a strip of movie film, cutting bits out with scissors and sticking the remaining bits back together with sticky tape.

The other way of doing the above is to select each part you want to keep in a 'source', 'input' or 'trimmer' window, then move each part onto the timeline (where they will normally be automatically butted-up against each other).

There are loads of editing applications around, both commercial and freeware - take a look at Video Editors (Advanced/NLE) , Video Editors (Basic) , Video Editors (WMV/AVI)

Tony

 

[Richard Hole]

Hi

I am using a fire wire card to capture the video. The camera has a tape to do the filming. The camera has a DV port and plugs into the fire wire card. The files on the hard drive on my computer are in “.wmv” format.

So are you saying I would need a program with 'ripple' editing to do this?
Thanks for the links. I plan to write to the developers of different video editing software to ask them if their software can easily do what I want. Please let me know if you find a good program.

Ray (Paranoid Delusion) appears to suggest that Media Portal can also do some editing. I am not sure whether it could do most of what I want? I cannot try it yet because my Media Portal seems corrupted as explained at https://forum.team-mediaportal.com/...-just-tv-server-there-another-solution-66317/ . Do you know anyone who could help with this? I am not sure whether to completely reinstall Portal or not.

Your help is appreciated.
Regards Richard.

 

[Owlsroost]

Just so I'm sure what we're talking about, what make/model is the camcorder ?

It sounds very much like a DV-format camcorder, so if this is the case the software you are using for capture must be converting to .wmv format. This is unusual, most editing software captures to DV-format .avi files.

Assuming you can capture to DV .avi files, I'd take a look at Sony Vegas Movie Studio and Corel (Ulead) Video Studio - both of these are easy to use, and have 30-day trial versions so you can check them out. You may be able to get a good deal on one of the older or OEM versions if money is tight.

Tony

 

[Richard Hole]

Hi Tony

I have a NV-GS25 Panasonic video camera. There is some info at Panasonic NV-GS25 Digital Camcorder Reviews Australia www.panasonic.com.au
I managed to convert the wmv file to an avi file using the software I downloaded a while back at SUPER &copy . It also converts other formats.

Thanks for the software links. I could try them. However, I am not sure whether it could be worth trying Media Portal to do the editing. Have you tried it and if so, do you know how to do it?

Would Sony Vegas Movie Studio and Corel (Ulead) Video Studio have an advantage over Womble Multimedia for my purpose?

Your help is appreciated.
Regards Richard