Looking for advice on how to improve

[alba]

What would be your main advice for how to improve as a vidder? (as in, bullet points) I have no idea how to do most of things I see in vids. My vids are pretty simple, at most I add transitions or change the color saturation. I'd like to be able to do more complex things but I don't really know how to go about it. I have a couple of manuals for my program (Final Cut Express), but it's kind of overwhelming. How did you all learn how to do this, beyond the basics?

[jansam]

I'm still learning but I've learned to do more advanced techniques by watching tutorials and just experimenting on my own (just be sure to save A LOT ). Don't be afraid to ask others if you just can't seem to get it to work.

[obsessive24]

Great thread topic! I think the first thing to ask is there a specific area that you want to improve on? The technical editing and musicality? How to narrative/structure effectively? Building emotional connection?

[alba]

Jansam - thanks for the tip. I didn't know about online tutorials and I found a bunch just with a quick search.

obsessive24 - er, well, I'd say any of those as I generally feel like I don't know what I'm doing. I just go with my intuition and what feels right or looks good to me, letting the music and lyrics guide me.

[obsessive24]

I think a really useful thing to do is to take a few vids that you really love, and really study them. Rewatch them over and over and over to pick apart what it is exactly that makes you love them so much, and try to figure out what exactly the vidder did that really appealed to you.

And then, if you have any specific questions about what they did in that vid, I think having the questions focussing around that vid (instead of a very general question of "how do I get better?") makes it easier to initiate a one-on-one conversation because who doesn't like to talk about themselves and their work? I mean, asking for general guidance publicly is great and it is helpful, but for vidding, I think a lot of people would say that having a mentor or a specific go-to person is particularly useful. That's on the pretext of you two being on the same wavelength and not wanting vastly different things out of vidding.

[legoline]

alba: I know how you feel I'm just doing it in baby steps, really. I can't do most of the fancy stuff, but I'm trying to improve by reading tutorials. I can do little things in Avisynth now. Joy! ;D

As for storytelling--ha, I have no idea. I'm not an elaborate storyteller in vidding and one thing I've learned in this forum is that it's perfectly okay not to. I try to tackle moods and overall themes, really. So when I try to convey "happiness", I'll try to find shots of the characters bouncing or smiling, for example :-) But I can't do the thing where I construct an entire new story out of pictures perfectly set to music.

[littleheaven]

I have to say that being complex is not necessarily the key to a better vid, IMO. Yes, it can be impressive to have technical bells & whistles, but the basics have to be right first. Some of my favourite ever vids, as a viewer, have been really simply edited, from a technical standpoint, but have lovely musicality, good timing and pace, and a sense of emotion generated by song and clip choice. I've been vidding for almost 10 years and I'm still trying to get that balance right! ;D

[franzeska]

Feb 10, 2012 22:08:39 GMT -5 alba said:

I have no idea how to do most of things I see in vids.

Do you mean specific effects? If so, just post a link here. Most things are easy to find a tutorial for once you know what to call them.

[alba]

franzeska - Yes, that's what I meant. I did find resources for tutorials, which I'm thrilled about and am slowly making my way through. Didn't even know they existed! When I have a specific question, I'll be sure to ask here.

Obsessive - thanks, I'll try that. I need to watch more vids. Although a lot of times I don't know how people achieve their effects, don't even know what to call it.

littleheaven & legoline - good to know!