free video editor?

Caraway said:
What is going on?
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Well, some people are interested in the thread, and post because they have something useful to contribute. That brings the thread back. Other people post asking why the thread is still going, ironically keeping it running even longer. If you want threads to die, don't post in them!
 
Ian_Edwards said:
OK I tried Windows movie maker, and it doesn't support MP4 files, which is the format my Android phone saves movies in.

So I looked at some file converters, the convert to AVI and WMF, both of which are supported by Windows movie maker.

I've not been able to find a free converter package that works, I tried Aimersoft, which works, but the free version only converts the first 1/3 of the movie.
Perhaps I'll give )penShot
Click to expand...

The one built into Win10 does MP4

How to Use Windows 10’s Hidden Video Editor
 
One annoyance with Shotcut is that they removed the HTML5 overlay - that was really powerful for graphics as you could do anything a modern website could do. It's still good for basic editing, if you don't mind the video output limitations.

DaVinci is good, but may be a bit of overkill for sailing videos for friends and family.
 
I use OpenShot 2.5.1 and works OK. It can handle a wide variety of video formats. For a free program, it is very powerful with lots of transitions available. The ability to separate the sound from the image is very useful to add sound to photographs added to a video. It is not perfect, but does work and create nice videos.

Currently I have 3 videos made using OpenShot, with another one very nearly completed. This was the latest, but I am using a few extra features in the next video.
 
Concerto said:
I use OpenShot 2.5.1 and works OK. It can handle a wide variety of video formats. For a free program, it is very powerful with lots of transitions available. The ability to separate the sound from the image is very useful to add sound to photographs added to a video. It is not perfect, but does work and create nice videos.
Click to expand...
Yes, OpenShot 2 still works fine but 3 is a disaster.
 
johnalison said:
Windows Movie Maker does what it says on the tin. It can also file in formats suitable for YouTube or Facebook.

I can use it, so it has to be simple.
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+1 thats all i use and can produce some very professional looking edits once you get the hang of it.

Highly recommended
 
Dan208 said:
+1 thats all i use and can produce some very professional looking edits once you get the hang of it.

Highly recommended
Click to expand...
+1...

I've been using MovieMaker for work since C19 created a requirement to produce videos for things that would otherwise have been delivered in person. Not the most feature-ful or advanced by any means, but does most of what you need for free! It's also super stable. I've never had it crash or hang when rendering for instance (while PowerPoint frequently does).
 
lustyd said:
Well, some people are interested in the thread, and post because they have something useful to contribute. That brings the thread back. Other people post asking why the thread is still going, ironically keeping it running even longer. If you want threads to die, don't post in them!
Click to expand...
You misunderstand my point. My query was why people have started trawling through old threads. I would just start a new one if I have a question to ask. - I realise we are not all the same.
I wonder if it is the members who often don't visit are using the forums more during lockdown, and wanting to look to see if their question has been asked in the past. The problem with old threads is they often have out-of-date info on them. Especially ones about computers.
 
st599 said:
DaVinci is good, but may be a bit of overkill for sailing videos for friends and family.
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I use Da Vinci Resolve as well as iMove. As you say the facilities are really good, especially for changing levels and sound throughout a clip, but you have to learn the tools , which are not teriffically intuitive.
There are loads of tutorials on YouTube. If you can find ones by British experts they are often much better than some of the US ones. Structured and progressive.
This is really helpful DaVinci Resolve: THE Total Guide to the Best Free Video Editor

I will often use iMovie in preference as things like titling have presets. In Resolve you have create more stuff.
 
Caraway said:
You misunderstand my point. My query was why people have started trawling through old threads. I would just start a new one if I have a question to ask. - I realise we are not all the same.
I wonder if it is the members who often don't visit are using the forums more during lockdown, and wanting to look to see if their question has been asked in the past. The problem with old threads is they often have out-of-date info on them. Especially ones about computers.
Click to expand...

It's possible someone was looking on Google and the thread came up, they then added to it.
 
At the risk of perpetuating an old thread:

I use Shotcut to edit movies .. from underwater GoPro footage to removing ums, ahs and guff from recorded Zoom sessions.

I then use Handbrake to post-process the Shotcut file .. to crop the image where appropriate, transcode for different resolutions, and output in a chosen format. It does everything ffmpeg does, but in a UI so you can preview the results.
 
Last edited:
Ian_Edwards said:
OK I tried Windows movie maker, and it doesn't support MP4 files, which is the format my Android phone saves movies in.

So I looked at some file converters, the convert to AVI and WMF, both of which are supported by Windows movie maker.

I've not been able to find a free converter package that works, I tried Aimersoft, which works, but the free version only converts the first 1/3 of the movie.
Perhaps I'll give )penShot
Click to expand...
File Converter - video converter, audio converter, image converter, eBook converter
 
Teddingtown said:
If people want something a bit more pro and up to date you can get Blackmagic Da vinci resolve for free here: DaVinci Resolve 17 | Blackmagic Design
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I don't think people realise what we have with that being free, the software most Hollywood films are made on for colouring but lately sometimes the full production. I have the studio version but these days they keep allowing more in the free one until there is barely any difference. Its so far from the range of freeware programs that you'd expect to find available.

The big but is if the computer will handle it. Really needs to be a gaming spec graphics card. Something around the level of a NVIDIA GTX 980 at least. But if it does handle it then Resolve is a no brainer, no need to look at anything else.
 
Athomson said:
The big but is if the computer will handle it. Really needs to be a gaming spec graphics card. Something around the level of a NVIDIA GTX 980 at least. But if it does handle it then Resolve is a no brainer, no need to look at anything else.
Click to expand...
I've used Resolve for video editing on a Surface Go, you don't need a big graphics unit to run this if it's properly configured unless you're actually rendering things (and most don't need to render, just encode). Any old chip can encode the video, but the speed of that will vary. Just make sure you set the resolution suitably low while editing.
 
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