Can you really edit a video and add music _afterwards_ ? (newbie requests editting technique help)

jmk396 wrote on 4/16/2005, 10:16 PM
I've made a couple of slideshows before with Vegas 5 and they came out really good. Now I'm trying to edit video for the first time (footage from a carribean cruise) and I'm having a really, really hard time, but I think my technique might be the problem.

My technique is to usually pick a song and then try to adjust my footage according to the beat. Well, with the carribean cruise I'm finding that I can only find enough clips that match the beat for about 30 seconds and then I'm out of ideas.

So, when you create a video... do you add the music first or edit the footage first and add it afterwards?

I'm thinking about buying Sonicfire Pro so I can easily create soundtracks, but if I do that then I will have to edit my footage first and the thought of editting footage without having music already added just blows my mind...

Comments

busterkeaton wrote on 4/16/2005, 10:48 PM
There's dozens of ways to do this, with experience you'll find what works for you.

Here's a way to do this, pick a song and put it on the timeline without video. Listen the the song and click M on the strong beats, this will put in a series of markers and then you can add the video to those markers.

Another thing to remember is that the video does not have to stick to the rhythym of the song. You can have the video play for several beats if the emotional content of the shot warrants it, just let the video play, then when you need to cut again you can go back to the rhthym of the music. For example, it's a child's birthday party, you have a bunch of fast clips of the guests and the pile of presents, decorations, etc. Then you get to a clip of the child opening a gift, and this clip you let play out as he unwraps it and you see his reaction. The you do some other quicker cuts and then you get to him blowing out the candles on the cake, you let this play out too. You could even drop the volume of the song you are using and let the audio from the party play in.

You can edit all the video first too if you want to. Look up subclips in the Vegas help and then cut larger pieces of video into subclips and give each subclip a meaningful name. I would make a subclips of any bit I wanted to capture, even if it's brief. You can then work just on the video of these get all the clips you want on the timeline in the order you want and then add the music. Then work the transitions between each clip in with the mood of the music.
Fleshpainter wrote on 4/17/2005, 12:31 AM
Most of the time the imagery will follow the soundtrack. It's very easy to run out of images. if you watch television, motion pictures, or music videos, with a stopwatch and a clipboard, you'll notice that most clips only last a few seconds, which means that a normal length song may have hundreds of them.
PossibilityX wrote on 4/17/2005, 1:19 AM
JMK396, another thing you can do if your clips are too few or too short is to stretch them out, perhaps to double the actual length. Then you can chop these clips up and move between them.

One technique I've had fun with is to double the length of a video clip, then cut out every other second of video, then combine all the pieces remaining. (This example assumes 60 beats per minute on your audio; adjust for your actual BPM requirements.) So what you have is a kind of stuttering effect where the footage proceeds logically in sequence but with parts obviously missing, like an old film with missing frames, only smoother because the missing frames come at intervals that match the beat.

Or you can HALF the video to the beats, so you have two cuts per beat, but this is pretty annoying to watch except in VERY brief sequences.

I have an example of this on my website under the link SAMPLE CLIPS. I think it's the last clip in the series called "Actor Preparation Ritual #12."

But probably one of the best ways to learn is to just drop the music on the timeline and then select video (sometimes just randomly) atop the music. Stretch the clips, shorten them, cut between them repeatedly, etc.

Have fun!
epirb wrote on 4/17/2005, 6:19 AM
I agree with the above comments, for me its it definatly the music that drives the edits. Sometimes it doesnt have to be a downbeat for the trans but maybe a swell in the music or a note held long.
make sure your disolves are the right length to so as not to rush the transitions. Something the folks here helped me with/understand.
Here's a link to one I posted here a while back to maybe give you some more ideas, like PossX 's too.

"SAMPLE"
PierreB wrote on 4/17/2005, 6:25 AM
JMK,

I go the opposite route when making my vacation videos: start with the video clips I want to show, edit them together, and then add music as a last step. On one I'm just finishing now, I had twenty minutes of video and about a half-dozen songs.

The songs fade in and out, sometimes from starting from the middle to end at an appropriate spot, sometimes there is no music at all to focus on the soundtrack from the clip, etc.

Whatever feels good for you.

Pierre
Jimco wrote on 4/17/2005, 6:41 AM
What I typically do is use the awesome audio editing capabilities of Vegas to edit the audio as well. I can usually lengthen a song by repeating various portions of the audio. In a recent video I did, I was able to take an Acoustic Alchemy song and double its length. If done carefully, you can't even tell when watching the video.

Jim
Orcatek wrote on 4/17/2005, 7:09 AM
It tends to depend on the music and the desired effect. I have added music later and then just tweaked the edits.

For a slower song, I would look to have cuts on major changes in the music - be it verse/chorus/bridge for a typical "song style" piece to orchestral pieces that switch moods/tempos.

Now for fast music with a strong beat, I would edit to the song and cut on strong beats - not every one - but just when a cut is right, line it up on the beat.
BillyBoy wrote on 4/17/2005, 8:56 AM
Take a clue from the big boys in Hollywood. RARELY is the music the focus of the movie. Its in the background for a reason... its background music. For slideshows since we're taking stills, you can easily stretch or shrink the timespan if you want some visual event to be in time with the music. Again, if over done, it shows and you set up anticipation which then may be expected for the entire length of your presentation. Miss just once and it isn't going to "feel" right. It also gets old fast. Like too many visual transitions can spoil the video causing the viewer to focus on the eye candy rather that the content of the video, trying to micro manage where or if every key scene needs some audio tie-in is equally amateurish. There are exceptions, like some music videos, but for blander less loud stuff, don't overdo it.

The sample eprib offered is a good example of having the right balance. The music is pleasing, appropriate to the video and not overpowering. You can enjoy both the scenes and enjoy the music without either overpowering the other.