Whether recording at home or in an office, you don’t need a large budget or significant experience to create professional voiceovers.

In this complete guide, we’ll walk through everything you need to record voiceovers that sound professional, from delivering an engaging performance to setting up a voiceover studio. 

Whether you want to launch a podcast, make viral TikTok videos, or convert viewers into customers, here’s how to record voiceovers from the comfort of your home. Let’s get started! 

TL;DR: How to Do Voiceovers from Home

• Create a DIY Voiceover Studio. Build a blanket fort, or use your closet. Record professional voiceovers for cheap by using low-cost materials to prevent sound from bouncing around the room.
• Choose a Software. Acquire audio or video editing software. Try out free trials of paid software before investing in a professional product. 
• Practice, Practice, Practice. Read the script internally and out loud. Internalize its message and find a natural pacing. Record once you feel ready to perform.
• Upgrade Your Sound Equipment. It doesn’t need to cost an arm and a leg to improve your voiceover quality with an audio interface and XLR microphone.
• Pay Attention to the Details of Your Setup. Invest in high-quality over-ear headphones, pick up a pop filter, and stay close to the microphone when recording.
• Get Multiple Takes and Edit the Audio. When it comes time to record, get multiple takes. Review each one with headphones. Don’t be afraid to splice parts of the best takes together or re-record over small mistakes in the editing process. 

What Is a Voiceover?

A voiceover recording refers to voice narration that does not feature the narrator’s image. 

Voiceovers are common in entertainment, such as audiobooks, video games, and animated television. But they are also ideal for businesses, whether you’re creating educational content, professional screencasts, or corporate commercials. 

In marketing videos, it is common for B-roll footage to play while an off-screen voice tells the brand story, describes the benefits of a product or service, and encourages the customer to take action. 

For businesses and creators, voiceovers offer the versatility to provide additional context and create an emotional connection. They are often used to narrate animated promotions, knowledge-based content, marketing videos, and social media shorts. 

How to Record Voiceovers in 7 Steps

We’ve broken down how to create a professional voiceover into three parts: pre-production, recording, and post-production. This guide will help you level up your voiceover’s quality.

Pre-Production

1. Create a DIY Voiceover Studio

Not all voiceovers need to be of professional quality. There are millions of examples of off-the-cuff voiceovers on social media that simply use a standard earbud’s microphone. For those videos, a quiet place free from interruptions is sufficient.

But if you’re buying a microphone for quality voiceovers, it’s time to upgrade your setup. 

A wide open room is full of dense, hard surfaces for your voice to bounce off; this creates “reflections,” which negatively affects the recorded audio quality. Luckily, you can create a cheap voiceover studio.

To develop good audio, consider how to prevent sound from bouncing around the room. Here are two common, incredibly low-cost options:

• Turn a closet into a makeshift sound booth. Line the walls with thick blankets, pillows, or foam boards to create surfaces that will absorb sound. 
• Create a blanket “fort.” A thick blanket over your head works surprisingly well; however, creating a blanket “tent” is even better to avoid picking up any movements. 

Of course, you can implement far more impressive setups. If you plan to record multiple voiceovers, consider creating an at-home studio. Buy (or make) sound-absorbing foam panels for your walls, or procure a portable booth with panels and a roof. The options are endless; choose the one that matches your needs and budget. 

2. Select the Microphone & Audio Software

At a minimum, you will need an external microphone and audio or video editing software. You can purchase a USB microphone that plugs directly into your computer for under $100. 

However, upgrade to an audio interface with an XLR microphone to create professional voiceovers. An audio interface will improve sound quality and latency. You can purchase a decent audio interface for under $250 and an XLR microphone for under $150. 

Also, consider getting a pop filter to avoid picking up “pfft” sounds in your recordings.

What Is the Best Software for Recording Voiceovers? 

Voiceovers can be recorded with the audio or video editing software of your choice; although, you can also use your computer’s built-in tools, like QuickTime to record audio. 

Most video editing software provides sufficient tools for cleaning up audio, allowing creators to avoid the process of importing and exporting audio across software. Popular video editing options include Adobe Premiere Pro and DaVinci Resolve. 

Consider using audio editing software if you need advanced audio editing or aren’t creating a video. The most popular options include Audacity and Adobe Audition.

3. Write the Script

A script illustrates your vision. It includes visual and spoken elements of the video.

Determine whether the visuals (such as a scene with a mix of dialogue and narration) or the voiceover (like a promotional product video) will set the video’s pacing. This decision will help you adequately convey the message in voiceover.

It can be tempting to skip the process of writing a script. But refining what you’re going to say and practicing your performance will go a long way in helping you craft a professional voiceover. When you’re ready to brainstorm, grab our free scriptwriting template as a jumping-off point. 

Voiceover Recording

4. Conduct a Test Recording

Everything has to work together in sync to capture a high-quality recording. Therefore, you should conduct a test each time you begin a new recording session. Skipping this step is the quickest way to get frustrated with the recording process. 

1. Set up your recording equipment and prepare the software. 
2. Press record and voice the first minute or so of the script.
3. Listen for errors in the recording with headphones. Check the audio levels. Alter your setup or audio settings as needed. Then, conduct another test. 
4. Repeat this process until you are satisfied with the initial audio quality.   

Audio Levels for Recording Voiceover

Avoid vocal distortion by watching your recording levels. An ideal recording level will average somewhere between -18dB and -10dB. The peak meter should never peak over -6dB while recording. Furthermore, a final mastered recording should never go above 0dB. 

Microphone Distance for Voiceovers

Make a fist and point your thumb and pinky in opposite directions, creating a Shaka sign. With your thumb to your mouth, your pinky should touch the pop filter of your microphone. 

You should be about 6 to 12 inches away from the microphone when recording a voiceover. This closeness helps the microphone pick up your voice instead of various noises in the room. 

The optimal distance will vary depending on the type of microphone you use and the level of sound treatment in your recording space, so determine the best-sounding distance with tests. 

5. Record Your Audio

It’s time to record! You’ve done all the necessary preparatory work. Now, it’s time to perform. Here are some tips to make recording easier and more enjoyable:

• Get in the Zone First. Find a way to loosen up. Watch a funny video, do yoga stretches, or dance to your favorite song. A great performance comes from a relaxed and centered place. Take a few minutes to get yourself in the right state of mind. 
• Don’t Stop for Mistakes. It’s good practice to complete each recording, even if you notice mistakes in your performance. You can fix some errors in editing; other errors will provide priceless feedback for future takes. 
• Record Five Takes or Less. If you need more than five takes, practice more before recording. Performing takes a lot of energy as well. If you didn’t get an acceptable take in five attempts, take a break and allow your energy to replenish. 

An effective voiceover makes it easy for the audience to absorb a video’s message. Keep the listener or viewer’s experience at the forefront of your mind when evaluating a recording. 

Post-Production

6. Edit Voiceover Audio

Before beginning the editing process, listen to your recordings with headphones.

In an ideal situation, your voiceover requires minimal editing. Using the editing software of your choice, you might rerecord a section, remove breaths and mistakes, or delete long pauses. 

Stop here if you will hand the recording off to an audio engineer; audio processing alters the recording in ways that limit the audio engineer’s ability to produce a high-quality mix. 

If you are creating the final mix, there are a couple of basic considerations that will improve the sound of your voiceover audio: equalization and compression.

This is called mastering a mix. Mastering is its own specialization and career path. So don’t fret if you feel overwhelmed during this learning process. The ultimate goal is to create a quality listening experience by making the audio as clear, crisp, and easy to hear as possible. 

Equalization

Different sounds fall into different frequencies. Equalization allows you to adjust the volume of certain frequencies without affecting others, making removing or boosting certain parts of a mix possible. Equalization removes background noise, word pops, and more. 

It’s better to capture audio with fewer background noises and high-frequency sounds. It’s generally preferred to need as little equalization as possible. For those who aren’t familiar with manually adjusting equalization, it’s common to use plug-ins and software presets.

Compression

Compression reduces the dynamic range of audio, which allows you to create a consistent volume. It prevents the highest highs from being too loud and the lowest lows from being too quiet. Compression also prevents distortion while allowing you to increase volume. 

7. Sync Audio & Complete Video 

Congratulations! You’re ready to sync your audio with the visual story of your video. 

Audio and video are recorded separately in traditional filmmaking. At the beginning of each take, the actor claps. This produces a spike that makes syncing audio and film easy.

Voiceover includes different challenges. Instead of syncing an on-screen actor’s lips with the spoken audio, you need to sync the voiceover pacing with the pacing of visual content. 

For this reason, you may decide to record voiceover first. This allows you to edit the video to match the voiceover, rather than trying to get one that matches an edited video. 

Either way, you now have all the tools to record a voiceover for your video! 

Why Are Good Voiceovers Important? 

Consumers want videos from brands. However, holding viewer engagement, even with short videos, can be challenging. After all, 20% of viewers click away in the first 10 seconds. Yet a website visitor who watches a product video is 64% more likely to make a purchase.  

It is paramount to grab and hold attention. Don’t give viewers an easy reason to click or scroll away by underestimating the importance of good sound quality and an engaging performance. 

Key Aspects of a Good Voiceover

Audio quality and vocal performance are two central aspects of a professional voiceover. As such, each has important attributes that result in a good voiceover. 

Audio Quality

Generally speaking, voice recordings should sound realistic. The goal is not to create a new sound but to fully capture the vocal performance. 

Therefore, recording hardware must be able to capture sound with a wide range of audible frequencies, the full dynamic range (the quietest and loudest sounds), and little-to-no distortion.

Errors can happen at any stage of the recording process. In a soundproof setting, use your equipment to create a test recording. Listen closely and alter your setup if you hear any of the following:

• Extraneous noises (hiss, hum, etc.)
• Background sounds
• Echos
• Vocal pops
• Audio processing errors
• Microphone bumps 

Don’t fret if this process requires trial and error. Multiple factors of your voiceover studio contribute to the sound quality, including the microphone distance, equipment, room treatment, location (city versus country), and more. 

Performance 

There are several elements to a good voiceover performance. Even if your audio quality is pristine, a monotone script recitation quickly puts viewers to sleep. To improve how your voice sounds when recorded, consider pacing, diction, tone or inflection, and emotive performance. 

Pacing and Volume

Pacing is the rate at which you recite the script. Aim for a natural, conversational pacing. Practice the script to internalize its messaging and make the words sound like your own (whether you wrote them or not). 

Diction

A voiceover must be understood. Therefore, the first task of a good performance is to say the words correctly at an audible level. 

Speak clearly and enunciate each word without letting it drop off. For example, “The boys walk down to the river and fetch a pail of water.” It would be easy for this sentence to sound like a garbled mess, “The boy wall dow to the rivah and fesh a pail of wafer.” 

Pay particular attention to words with “s,” “er,” “ch,” and “t” sounds. It will be easier to focus on delivery the more you can recite the words without needing to recall or read them. 

Tone and Inflection

Your tone is the pitch of your voice plus its resonating quality. You might speak in a higher pitch with a calming tone or have a deeper voice that naturally booms like an announcer. 

Inflection is the way you alter your tone to express the script. Your cadence (the modulation or inflection of your voice when reading) will convey context, underlying information, and emotions. 

Emotive Performance

The emotion and energy you bring to the performance will ultimately sell it and keep people engaged. The technical aspects of audio quality and performance ensure mistakes don’t cause people to tune out. But your emotive performance keeps people tuned in. 

How Do I Improve the Sound of My Voice? 

A common hurdle when you begin recording voiceovers is accepting the sound of your voice. It’s normal to feel shy or unsure about how your voice sounds. It may take some time to get used to it yourself, but you will focus on it far more than anyone else. 

Another approach is to learn from professional voice actors. Voice actors can adjust tone, inflection, and pacing to create an immersive recording with their unique voices. Consider working with a vocal coach to improve your technique and gain new skills.

Voiceover sets the mood and tone of your video. With some planning and the right equipment, it can take your video to a new level.

But bad audio can ruin good content. After spending hours or days on a video, the last thing you want to do is ruin it with an amateurish voiceover. 

Capturing professional recordings includes a learning curve, but producing an engaging, professional-quality voiceover is well worth the time and effort.

The post How to Record Voiceovers with Tips from Professional Voice Actors appeared first on SproutVideo.

Video editing can be a challenging skill to master, though it has become much more accessible in recent years. At this point, there is a broad range of apps, from basic to professional, that make it possible for anyone at any level. 

In this post, we’ll give you a general overview of apps for at every skill level, their best use cases, and our favorite picks — starting from those who want to edit right on their phone, all the way to industry-grade video editing tools.

When it comes to choosing the right type of software to edit videos, it is going to depend greatly on your own skill set. Simple apps are limited, making it easy for beginners but frustrating for the more experienced users. Professional apps have no limits, which is great for those with experience and can be confusing for beginners. Be sure to gauge your skill level before investing too heavily in a specific app.

Mobile Video Editing

The best camera is the one you have on you. These days, that’s typically your phone. Using your smartphone is cheaper than purchasing a camera and, if you’re just starting out, editing your footage right on the phone is ideal.

Mobile editing apps will provide you the bare minimum functionality, so social media content or simple straight-to-camera videos will be the easiest content to make. With a simple editing timeline, some transitions, and built-in effects you can apply to your clips, you’ll be able to stay on par with the latest trends. 

Additionally, most mobile editing apps are typically optimized to output directly to social media platforms. This makes it easy to create and post on the go, however it means you won’t have the ability to choose which file types or codecs to export. If you’re not creating for social, this lack of control might really hold you back.

Top Pick: Adobe Premiere Rush

Anyone familiar with creative tools will recognize Adobe Premiere, and Adobe Premiere Rush is like its little sibling. This mobile-first app gives you all the fundamentals you need to hit the ground running and is perfect for simple drag-and-drop video editing, making it intuitive even for the most novice users.

Available on iOS and Android, you can get started right away with a free plan, or upgrade to the paid subscription for $9.99, and gain access to more storage and the desktop version of the app. 

Runners Up: Splice, InShot, and Quik

Other useful apps are Splice, InShot, and Quik. All three work as a strong alternative to Rush; they have a robust amount of features including simple editing tools, transitions, and effects. These three applications can be downloaded for free. However, InShot will export videos with a watermark unless you upgrade to the paid version for $2.99.

Basic Editing

The next step up is to ditch your phone and edit on your computer. Desktop editing applications share a lot of functionality with mobile apps, while providing a much more robust editing experience. 

At this level, you’ll gain more tools to complete tasks more efficiently, without losing the simplicity and automation that comes with basic editing apps. These apps make it easier to create more polished social media videos, product videos, advertisements, and more, through access to more advanced features like chroma key, higher resolution file support, and even motion tracking for some applications. 

Top Pick: iMovie

If you use a Mac, Apple iMovie is ideal if you’re just getting started with video editing. This app is one of the most simple, straightforward, and popular video editing programs out there; it uses a very simple timeline approach to provide its users with everything they need to edit basic videos, and is jam-packed with a plethora of simple features like adding titles, trailer templates, image stabilization, and more. 

iMovie comes pre-installed for free on new Macs and can be used across iOS devices. Sadly for PC users, this product is exclusive to Apple.

Runner up: Filmora 

For those who don’t own a Mac or are looking for something different, Filmora is a great alternative. Boasting similar features to iMovie and other beginner software, Filmora does a great job of creating an easy experience for any user. They even provide an “easy mode” that walks you through how to edit videos with useful templates and guides. 

Filmora can be downloaded for free with a watermark, purchased outright for $59.99, or accessed with an annual subscription for $39.99 a month.  

Professional Editing 

Once you reach a certain level of proficiency, you’ll want software that can keep up with just about anything you can throw at it, and that is where professional software comes into play. These programs give you the most flexibility possible to create any level of video your heart could desire. 

This can range from in-depth how-to content and marketing videos, to blockbuster films with dazzling special effects. The sky is the limit with professional video editing software. 

Top Pick: Adobe Premiere Pro 

When it comes to professional video editing, most people think of Adobe Premiere Pro. Adobe Premiere Pro has been leading the industry for about a decade and continues to lead the pack with innovative and collaborative software. Premiere Pro has all of the features you could ever want and more, which makes it great for professionals … though potentially overwhelming for newcomers. Without proper training, even the easiest editing techniques are less intuitive with professional software.

With Premiere Pro, you’ll gain access to a huge library of effects, transitions, and advanced tools. This program supports 4K, 8K, and VR video editing and is constantly improving to stay up to date with the latest industry standards. One of the biggest reasons Premiere Pro stands out against the competition is its integration with the other Adobe applications, especially Adobe After Effects. After Effects is a motion graphics and animation application that connects seamlessly with Premiere pro which allows for amazing collaboration and speed between the programs. 

If you want to use Premiere for a team project, you can collaborate remotely using a feature called Productions. With this, you can improve project organization and synchronization so a team can work together on the same project as long as all the files are organized on a shared drive.

For a crash course on getting started with Premiere Pro, read our full guide video editing basics guide. Adobe Premiere Pro is available on Windows and macOS, with a single app subscription for $20.99 or a package with all of Adobe’s apps for $59.99.

Close Second: Final Cut Pro

The former leader of professional video editing software is Apple’s Final Cut Pro. Final Cut Pro has many of the same features that make Premiere Pro stand out as the favorite, but is restricted to macOS, leaving PC users out of luck. However, because it is made specifically for Macs, it can utilize and optimize the program to work faster and render clips quicker than Premiere Pro. It also features a “Magnetic Timeline” that allows you to quickly put together edits that are more or less chronological. However, more complex video edits tend to slow Final Cut Pro down, giving the advantage to Premiere Pro for those types of projects. 

Another benefit of Final Cut Pro is its fixed one-time price of $299.99 and generous 90-day trial period. This should give you plenty of time to test it out before making a full commitment.

At the end of the day, whichever program you choose will depend on your current creative needs and comfort level. Have you used any of the programs we suggested in this post or any we haven’t mentioned but are worth checking out? If so, let us know which ones and how you feel about them in the comments below.

The post Best Software for Editing Video at Every Level appeared first on SproutVideo.

1. Tutorial 

Tutorial videos and how-to content are some of the best ways to get your message across to your audience. Typically these videos consist of someone walking the audience through a number of steps that help them learn something new. 

This works as a faceless video because you can make your product the star. This will require you to film your subject in a way that puts it front and center. This works really well with physical products, food, and more. Typically, you’ll also need either a voiceover or instructions on the screen to help create a cohesive message. 

Buzzfeed’s Tasty does this incredibly well with their food series. They consistently put out a well-edited video featuring just the food and the hands that are preparing them. Check out the example below. 

2. Screencast

In the same family as tutorials, you have screencast videos. These types of videos have the same general idea of teaching or walking the audience through something but this time it will be through an all-digital format. 

This works particularly well for software companies, educational institutions, or application tutorials, but really, anything that you can show on your screen could become a screencast video. Essentially, you’ll use software to record your screen as you work your way through a program. We recommend using QuickTime, Snagit, or ScreenFlow. 

The key to making a screencast enjoyable is to treat it as a full-on video. Many think you can wing it and just record your screen as you work your way through the tutorial, but that will result in a less than enjoyable final product. For an in-depth tutorial on how to create a screencast, watch our Screencast How To Video episode for all the necessary steps.

3. Interviews

You may be thinking, how can you do an interview without showing your face? Well, similar to tutorial videos where the product is the focus, you can make your interviewee the focus of this video. This will take the pressure off of you to be on camera. 

These types of interview videos work well because bringing in experts in your field will undoubtedly bring value to you and your viewers. The best part is that interviews work for any industry. There will always be thought leaders outside of your organization that you can interview. For this, you’ll need to come up with a comprehensive list of questions, lock in experts, and possibly acquire B-roll to spice things up. 

GQ does a variation of this through topical video series with different celebrities and experts sharing their perspectives. GQ producers are never seen on camera, but having various thought leaders and excellent B-roll keeps it fresh. Check out the example below from their series ‘The Breakdown.’

4. Animation

Animation is a tried and true video method that can be used for any industry. This method certainly doesn’t require you or anyone to get on camera since everything will be created with graphics, which is equally a major benefit and a potential drawback. Unless you have someone on your team that is a trained video animator, you’ll have to hire someone, work with a studio, or use an online service to create the video for you. 

To get a result as close to your vision as possible you’ll need to provide as much detail to the animation producers as possible. In an ideal world, you would provide a creative brief, script, storyboard, and more. 

Another consideration would be the amount of time it takes to produce an animated video. Animation can be really time-consuming depending on the complexity of the project, so lead time will need to be adjusted accordingly. 

All that being said, the result should be worth the work. With animation, the sky is the limit. You can create just about anything you can think of. Check out this exceptional video from Ted-ED about understanding coronaviruses. They take a complex topic, infectious diseases, combine it with a solid voice-over and animation to make an easily digestible video for their audience.  

5. Stop Motion

An alternate form of animation is stop motion. Stop motion animation is unique in the fact that it involves shooting objects one frame at a time, then combining these shots in post-production to create a video. Typically, it is done with inanimate objects in a way that brings them to life. 

Another benefit of stop motion animation versus normal animation is that just about anyone can achieve this look if they have the tools to do so. All you’ll need is an idea, proper lighting, a camera, and a lot of patience. While it may take a fair amount of time to create, the final result is fun and captivating. 

Lego is famous for using this technique to bring their products to life, as you can see in their stop motion video below. If you can find a way to create a unique message using elements related to your business, this is a surefire way to stand out.

If this sounds like something you want to try, read our six secrets for stop motion animation for more tips. 

6. Stock Footage

If you have an important message to share, but don’t have the resources to film related scenes, stock footage is the way to go. Stock footage is video clips that folks have uploaded online that can be used for free or for a fee. There are tons of websites dedicated to providing stock footage for all kinds of niches. Pexel Video, Videvo, Shutterstock, and Storyblocks are just a few of the many options available. 

It may take some time to find clips that represent what you’re trying to show. Be sure to carve out enough time for a thorough search. Since you’re using a combination of clips from the internet, you’ll also need stellar music, a clear narrative, a strong voiceover, and text or graphical elements on screen to drive your message home.

We recently used this method for our annual Earth Day video. We workshopped a concept, found clips and music that played well together, created some on-screen graphics, and voilà, a full video. 

Bonus: Hire On-Camera Talent

While this isn’t a video format, it is something that you should consider if you’re in the market for expanding your team. With today’s boom of video content, you may be surprised how many potential candidates have on-camera experience or create content outside of their professional lives. If you’re planning on expanding your team, it won’t hurt to enquire about their willingness to be on camera. If they’re a prominent candidate that can also fill this need, it’s a win-win. 

However, if you do eventually want to take on the challenge yourself and get in front of the camera, we have resources for that as well. Be sure to explore our 27 tips for feeling like a natural on-camera post along with our How To Video on filming solo. 

Nothing should stop you from creating compelling video content for your business in this day and age. With all these options and more, you can get your video marketing efforts up and running in no time. Be sure to let us know what style of videos you plan on creating in the comments below.

The post 6 Videos You Can Make Without Showing Your Face appeared first on SproutVideo.

Live streaming for business is easier than you’d think. You can get up and running with live streaming in a matter of minutes on the SproutVideo platform. You can even test out these new features for free while on a 30 day trial of our platform.

If you’re unsure of how to hook up a camera for live streaming, check out our recent How To Video episode on the six steps to professional live streaming.

Separating the foreground from the background of a scene and creating virtual 3D cameras may sound impossible but that is exactly what we’ll be exploring in our final episode on Adobe After Effects. These advanced techniques are challenging to master but will set you apart from the competition. 

By the end of this post, you’ll have a good understanding of Rotoscoping, separating an element from the background, and how you can use a 3D camera to animate objects. 

In our first episode of our Adobe After Effects tutorial series, we established the basics. We looked at what After Effects is used for, created compositions, learned important functions, and how to export a project. In the second episode, we explored the power of motion tracking and the various ways you can use it in a project.

For our third episode in this series, we’re diving into advanced techniques of After Effects. We included another Example Project below you can download and a video you can watch to follow along.

Nick LaClair, Creative Director at SproutVideo, will take you through this example project. He’ll show you how rotoscoping and using a 3D camera can enhance the overall look when adding graphics to footage.  We’ve incorporated everything you need to get a good handle on the topics covered in this post. 

We recommend working through the projects in Episode 1 and Episode 2 before this episode for the most well-rounded learning experience. 

Example Project Objective

For this project, our goal is to enhance the scene by manipulating the nametags to appear as if they are objects within the original footage. This means making them appear to float right in front of our subjects but behind the laptops, tilting them at the same angle as the people, and mimicking the level of blur that occurs as the camera passes by the subjects. All of this can be accomplished with a combination of rotoscoping and 3D camera manipulation, which we’ll cover below. 

What is Rotoscoping?

Rotoscoping is the animation of masks across a selection of frames. This essentially allows you to take a 2D image and create a multi-layered space. You’ll then be able to edit the foreground object and background image separately. This allows for objects to go in between your foreground and background, or to make visual edits, or remove the background completely. 

Rotoscoping Methods

There are two ways you can go about rotoscoping in After Effects: masking with the pen tool, or using the Rotobrush tool. For this tutorial, we’re going to be focusing on using the Rotobrush tool, but we’ll quickly touch on masking.

Masking 

Masking is a technique that is found across several of Adobe’s creative programs. The first thing you need to do is duplicate the layer you want to rotoscope and rename it; we rename ours “roto laptops” in the example. 

Next, use the pen tool in After Effects to create an outline of whatever object you’re trying to isolate in the foreground. Once this is done, your roto layer will be just the foreground, and the original layer will act as the background.

The next step is where this method becomes extremely time-consuming. You’ll have to go frame by frame, and adjust that mask so it follows any movement that occurs with your object. If you’re interested in learning how to use the masking technique more in-depth, check out this tutorial from Motion Array. 

Using the Rotobrush Tool

The Rotobrush tool is a much faster way to rotoscope since it uses After Effects software to speed up the process. Essentially, it allows you to paint over the object you want to select and then After Effects’ artificial intelligence will automatically detect the edge of whatever object you’re trying to isolate. It will then propagate that selection across the timeline automatically, instead of having to do it manually with masking. 

Follow these steps below to Rotoscope objects.

• Duplicate the layer you want to Rotoscope, and rename it for clarity. 
• Double click the layer to open it in the Composition window.
• Select the Rotobrush from the top menu.
• Paint over the object(s) you want to isolate for the foreground.
• Press and hold the Option key to paint over areas of the mask that are outside of the object you’re masking. 

Your selection, or mask, will show up as a purple outline on your footage. When using the Rotobrush to add to the mask, it will show up as a green icon. When you’re holding the Option key to remove masking, it will show up as a red icon. Fine-tune this outline until you’re satisfied with your selection before moving forward. 

Unless told otherwise, your rotoscope will be applied to the entirety of your layer duration. If you just want it to be applied to a specific part, be sure to adjust the slider at the bottom of the Composition viewer window. For our example, we only need it to last as long as the nametags are visible within the frame.

Adjusting the Rotoscope Layer

At this point, you can return to your full composition to see exactly how Rotoscoping has affected your project. If you’re following along with our Example Project or applying these principles to your own project, you should see that the nametags are now positioned behind the laptops as if they are an object floating in 3D space in the video.  

When you toggle off the background layer, using the Eye icon in the far left of the Layers panel, you’ll see that just the laptops are masked out from our roto layer, which is why it appears to be over the nametag layers. 

Next, click the arrow next to effects to reveal parameters you’ll need to make fine-tune adjustments to the roto layer. There are two main adjustments you can make to help make this effect look more realistic are feather and motion blur. Feather will expand your mask in a way that will hide some of the inconsistencies associated with the edge of your mask. Motion blur adds a level of blur that makes movement seem more natural to the eye. 

Once you’re happy with the way it looks, you’re done with Rotoscoping. Since After Effects will have to render the roto mask layer every time you move the play head, you can turn this layer off for now while we move on to the next section, Animating in 3D space.

Animating in 3D

This next section will focus on adjusting objects so they better match the scene you’re trying to add them to. For our example project, that means changing the rotation and blur of our nametags to match that of the background. There are two ways to do this: manually with keyframes, or by adding a 3D Camera to move the object in 3D space. 

Manual 3D Space Movement

This is fairly similar to the adjustments we made to our objects in the first After Effects episode. We will be adjusting the transform parameters using keyframes to get the desired look we want. Where things change is when you enable the 3D option for your layer as seen below.

This allows the layers’ transform parameters to be adjusted in all three dimensions, X, Y, and Z. You can now use keyframes to adjust parameters, like Y rotation, to have it match the angle of the people in the background. Once you have the right angle, we can move on to adding the blur effect.

In our example scene, we want the Tyrion nametag to mimic the focus the camera has while it moves through the scene. We can do this by adding Camera Lens Blur to the nametag layer from the effect panel on the right side of our screen. Using keyframes we can add a keyframe for when the camera is in focus, keeping the blur parameter at 0, then add a keyframe at the beginning and end of our scene and match the blur value to what we see in the footage. This will have to be trial and error to see what looks the best.

Once this is complete, you can turn on the roto layer and you’ll be able to see your finished product in full. The adjusted nametag should slide behind laptops, blur with the footage, and be positioned at the right angle with the scene.

3D Cameras 

The second technique for achieving this look is a bit more advanced and requires the use of 3D Cameras in After Effects. Keep your roto layer off throughout this process to help with render speeds. 

The 3D Camera tool allows you to add a layer that acts like an actual camera within the program. Go to the Layer menu, New, Camera…, to add a camera to your composition. This will open a new menu that gives you complete control over your virtual camera, including sensor size, focal length, depth of field, aperture, F-stop, and more. 

For our purposes, we can leave almost all of those options alone, except focal length which we’ll keep at 50mm. The Camera 1 layer will now show up in the layer panel. 

Viewing the Camera

You may not see any differences right away once the camera is created, and for good reason. Only layers with the 3D option enabled will be affected by the camera. For this project, we’ll turn on just the Tyrion and Joffrey nametag layers. 

Furthermore, to see what the camera is doing, you’ll need to change the Composition window view from 1 View to 2 Views in the bottom right corner. This will display the active camera view on the right, and the top down of our camera’s field of view, composition, and other elements in our composition on the left.

Adjusting the Camera

The power of using 3D cameras becomes apparent when you start adjusting the transform parameters in the Layers panel. Since we want our nametags to mimic the footage, we can change various camera transform parameters to match the scene.

For starters, we’ll change the camera orientation to mimic the 45-degree angle seen in the footage. You can see with the top-down view how the camera’s viewing field is crossing the elements in your composition. 

To further match the look of the footage to your objects, open the Camera Options drop-down under the transform parameters in the Layers tab. This lets you dive into all the settings of an actual camera, which you can adjust to make the nametags really blend into the scene. 

As you can see in the image above, the number of options for manipulating the camera are vast, and very similar to how you would adjust camera settings in real life. For a refresher on camera settings, check out the Cameras section in our Video Library. 

For our example, we’ll be adjusting our focus distance parameter to have our objects come into focus when they cross the focal plane and aperture to adjust the blur when not in focus. This will take some back and forth to get just the right look, and you can monitor how this affects your objects in the Composition window. 

Once you’re satisfied with the look of your objects, you can turn your roto layer back on and see the final result. Just like with the manual method, you’ll see your nametags slide behind the laptops, go from out of focus to in focus, and also be aligned as if they were filmed in line with the rest of the footage. 

Learning Adobe After Effects is a huge undertaking that will take lots of time and practice to master. Adding rotoscoping and 3D cameras to your tool kit will certainly come in handy as you continue to explore and develop your skills in the program. Be sure to subscribe to the SproutVideo Newsletter so you don’t miss out on our next tutorial.

The post Adobe After Effects: Rotoscoping and 3D Camera Animation appeared first on SproutVideo.

This Adobe After Effects example project includes everything you need to follow along with this motion tracking article and video tutorial below.

In the first episode of our Adobe After Effects tutorial series, we covered all the basic fundamentals of motion graphics, multi-layered compositions, and visual effects. In this episode, we dive a little deeper into After Effects, exploring the power of motion tracking.

By the end of this post, you’ll have a good understanding of how to track objects in space, steady shaky footage, and replace screens on a device.

In the video below, Nick LaClair, Creative Director at SproutVideo, will take you through various applications of motion tracking in Adobe After Effects. 

For our second episode in this series, we recommend downloading our example project included in this tutorial so you can follow along. We’ve incorporated all the items you’ll need to get a better understanding of the various applications of tracking. By following along, you’ll be well on your way to implementing tracking in your own projects. Just click the link below to get the project.

What is Motion Tracking in Adobe After Effects?

Motion tracking is the process of using technology to track the movement of an object in your video. Once you have data from the tracked object, you can apply the motion data to other objects or elements and it will match that movement. 

The benefits of tracking truly shine through once you start to understand how they can be applied in your projects. We’ll be going over three popular applications: Tracking objects in space using null objects, stabilizing footage, and replacing screens. 

Tracking Objects in Space

We’ll be looking at single-point tracking first. This is, as the name suggests, uses After Effects to capture data from a single point to use for tracking purposes. You can then take that data and apply it to another layer or object in your composition. 

If you’re working with our example, you can choose a composition from the project panel. We will be using the ‘1.1 – Cafe’ to start. We are going to be using Name graphics to demonstrate how you can use motion tracking to have objects track with your videos at a certain point. This can be useful whenever you need a graphic or object to stick to a specific point in your video. 

The layers in this composition have already been formatted to include an animation to pop into the frame. Check out episode one of our After Effect series if you want to know how to create these animations from scratch or need a refresher. In our example, we’ll be creating a null object to track the footage.

What is a Null Object

A null object is an invisible layer that can hold any information you want. This makes it perfect for tracking purposes. You can attach motion data from your footage to it without having to manipulate other layers that contain the visuals of your project. You can later attach multiple layers to a null object and they will inherit its motion data without having to change their own motion parameters. This process is called parenting which we’ll cover later in the post. 

Creating a Null Object

First, we’ll create a null object by clicking on Layer in the menu bar, then New, Null Object. This will create a new layer in the layer panel. We suggest renaming it to help you stay organized. In the example, we are starting with the Daenerys layer, so we’ll rename it ‘Daenerys Null.’

Auto Tracking Motion

To track motion in your footage, you’ll need to double click the footage layer; ours is labeled “Cafe laptops.” This will open a new tab in the composition window at the top. Next is where the magic happens. On the right-hand side of the screen, you’ll see all the different editing tools you can choose from. Click on the tab that says, Tracker. If for some reason you don’t see this tab, you can access it by clicking View from the top menu, then Tracker. 

From here, follow the steps below to track a specific point.

• Click the Track Motion button in the Tracker tab.
• For this example make sure only the Position checkbox is selected, not rotation or scale.
• Click Edit Target, and select the Null Object we created in the earlier steps. This tells After Effects we want the motion were tracking applied to the null object.
• Adjust your play head to where you want the tracking to begin.
• Zoom in if needed and move Tracking Point 1 to a desirable tracking location.

Tracking Points

Tracking points are used as a way for After Effects to attach data to a specific object in the footage. The more contrast there is, the better it will be able to track it. The smaller box should be right around the object you want to track, while the larger box should be large enough so After Effects knows where to scan for the object you have in the smaller box. 

The smaller you can make these boxes, the better, since it takes a lot of time to render motion tracking. However, if there is a lot of movement in the scene, you may need larger boxes so that when the frames are being tracked, After Effects can continually find the target.

In our example, we place the tracker for Daenerys on her eye. This works well because of the contrast between her dark eyelashes and her skin. Make sure to pick a point that moves in a consistent way. Once you’ve picked a point, hit the Analyze Forward button ( )  in the tracker tab to begin analyzing the scene for motion. 

Alternatively, if you want to track backward in time, simply hit the Analyze Backwards button (), and your clip will play in reverse and add tracking points. 

One issue that may arise while tracking is if the object you’re tracking goes off-screen, but you want whatever you’re going to attach to the tracking to stay on that same path.

Adjusting Trackers

You can fix this by stopping the analysis on the last frame before it goes off-screen and switching it to a new point on the screen. To do this, hold Option on Mac or Alt on PC, and select and drag the outer box to a new track point. We chose a white square on the man’s shirt, which has plenty of contrast. After, hit the Analyze Forward button again until it reaches the end of the scene. This will take the tracking data from the new track point and extend the path of the original track point as if it were still on the screen.  

If you’re satisfied with your tracking, hit Apply in the tracker tab, select X and Y in the pop-up window, and hit OK. After Effects will switch you back to the full composition in the composition window, where you can expand your null object in the layers tab to reveal all the position keyframes that have been created from the tracking data. 

Manual Motion Tracking

In some unfortunate cases, After Effects won’t be able to track the object you need it to as cleanly as you would like. After pressing the Analyze Forward button in the Tracking tab, you may notice some crazy fluctuations or movements while it’s processing. 

If this happens, you may need to resort to manually tracking your object. You can move forward or backward frame by frame by selecting the Analyze One Frame Forward or Analyze One Frame Backward button. These are the buttons next to the Analyze Forward and Backward buttons.

For each frame, you’ll have to go to the composition window and move the tracking box to stay on your point of interest in each frame. This will be a tedious process but will result in a perfect tracked object. 

Fine-Tuning Your Trackers

If you realize you need to adjust your tracking later on in your editing process, simply go back to your footage layer, select which track point you need to adjust, either in the Layers tab or Tracker tab, and make any adjustments needed. Once you hit apply in the Tracker tab, it will update your project. 

Parenting The Layers

The last step is to attach this Null Object layer to the Name layer to which you want to apply the tracked motion. Here are a few definitions that will be helpful in explaining how this works.

• Parenting is the process of linking multiple layers so that the movement of one layer follows the movement of another layer.
• A parent layer is a layer in which those linked to it will follow its motion.
• A child layer is a layer(s) that will follow the motion of a parent layer. 

To apply this, go to the layer you want to be the ‘Child’, for our example that is the Daenerys layer, and under the Parent & Link section of the layers tab, select the Null object to make it the parent. 

Another way to create a parent-child relationship between layers is to click and drag the “swirl” icon, called a “pick whip,” from the child layer to the parent layer. Tracking motion with this method is helpful because it keeps the Name Layer’s attributes free for you to transform the way you want while still attached to the Null Object’s movement.

Repeat all these steps for the various layers in the example project to achieve the look we did in the tutorial video. Depending on the points you choose, you may need to do a combination of auto-tracking, manual tracking, and various adjustments to get it to look just right. 

Steadying Shaky Footage

Another amazing way to use the tracking functionality in After Effects is to stabilize shaky footage. This comes in handy whenever you need your shot to look super smooth as opposed to shaky or handheld. 

We’ll use the “2 – Stabilization Composition” in the Example Project to walk through this example.

• Just like before, we’ll double-click on the layer we want to track. In this case, it’s called “Handheld.mov.”  
• Choose Stabilize Motion from the Tracker tab.
• Make sure both the Position and Rotation boxes are checked, which will create two separate tracker points in the Composition window. 
• Place each tracker on high contrast points in the scene similar to how you placed tracker points in the example above.

You’ll want these points to be as far away from each other as possible. This will provide better tracking data. One point represents the position, and the other the rotation. Once in place, click Analyze Track Forward and hit apply. 

At this point, when you play your clip back, your scene will be stationary, and the edges of the frame will be moving to compensate for stabilized motion.

This will reveal black edges around your footage. To fix this, adjust the position and scale of that layer until those edges no longer appear in the frame. When you play it now, the footage will appear completely stable. 

Replacing Screens

Our last example comes in handy whenever you need to replace the contents of a screen on a mobile device, computer, TV, or a similar application. Typically, recording something on a screen can prove difficult because of glare and other factors, so it’s relatively common to replace screens in post-production. 

We’ll use the “3 – Screen Composition” in the Example Project to demonstrate how to pull this off. This composition consists of the “Monitor.mov” layer, where the monitor screen is located, and the “Footage.mp4” layer, which is what we’ll be replacing the screen with.

• Just like before, we’ll double-click on the layer you want to track. In this case, it’s called “Monitor.mov.” 
• In the Tracker tab, select Track Motion, then change the Track Type to Perspective Corner Pin.
• Four track points will appear in the composition window. Place each of them on a corner of the screen you are replacing.
• Click Edit Target in the Tracker tab to make sure that the “Footage.Mp4” is the target.
• Analyze Forward, hit apply, and your screen replacement is complete.

After Effects can compensate for any shakes, rotation, or changes in the footage, so this technique will work for just about any clips where you need to replace a screen. 

Learning to harness the power of motion tracking is an amazing tool to add to your video editing arsenal. Just like the basics, these techniques will require a lot of practice to master, but it’ll be worth it.  

Be sure to subscribe to the SproutVideo Newsletter to get the next episode of our After Effects tutorial series in your inbox.

The post Adobe After Effects: Understanding Motion Tracking appeared first on SproutVideo.

After Effects can be extremely complex, so this post will be the first in a series of tutorials. We’ll go over what After Effects is used for, creating compositions, important functions, and how to export a project. By the end of this post, you’ll have a basic understanding of After Effects and the ability to create simple animations.

In this episode of our How To Video: Post Production series, SproutVideo Creative Director, Nick LaClair, will walk you through the basics of Adobe After Effects. 

Since this program is a bit more complicated than other creative programs, we included an Example Project you can download to follow along with. By following along with the example project, you’ll get a better understanding of how the various elements of After Effects work, and be one step closer to creating animations in After Effects on your own. 

What is Adobe After Effects?

After Effects is one of the many tools provided by Adobe to help you creatively express your vision. With this particular program, you can create digital visual effects, motion graphics, animation, and compositions. It is used in the post-production process for a variety of mediums including videos, video games, and many different types of film production. 

Most motion designers tend to use it for titles, lower thirds, or opening title sequences. In the video above we focus on creating a lower third and animating an object. We’ll use these as examples throughout the rest of the post. 

Getting Started with After Effects

When you first open After Effects, you’ll be prompted to open a project or create a new one. If you’re following along with the Example Project, open it side-by-side with this blog post to follow along. Once your project is open, your workspace should look very similar to the image below. 

On the top left is the project panel (A), with all the footage, elements, folders, and compositions. The composition window is in the center (B). This is where you’ll view what you’re working on. Along the bottom are the layers and timeline viewer (C); we’ll spend a good amount of time here. And on the right is a long list of effects, presets, and more (D).

Composition Setup

Your composition in After Effects is similar to a sequence in Premiere Pro. This is where you’ll be creating the visuals for your project. When creating a new composition, click ‘New Composition’ in the main window, and you’ll be prompted to select a number of options as seen below. 

You’ll want to match the resolution, aspect ratio, and frame rate to the video that you’re building the graphics for. As for the duration, you’ll have to make an educated guess as to how long you think you need it to be. Overestimating is encouraged since you can always trim the project at the end before you export it. 

Since our project is just an example and not being created for a particular video, we left the settings as the standard. Full HD resolution, 1920×1080 resolution, 23.98 frames per second, and five seconds for duration.

If you are working with our example, you can choose a composition from the project panel. We will be using the ‘Lower Thirds Animation’ first; double click that option to open it. 

Exploring the Layers and Timeline

These areas are going to be where you’ll be doing the bulk of your work to manipulate your files to create an animation.

Navigating the Layers Panel

Once the example is open, you’ll see the various layers associated with the composition. In our example, we have two: “Name Banner” and “Title Banner.” 

When you add various items to your project they show up as layers. This could be images, text, files, shapes, compositions, and so on. You can alter the order of files by dragging them up and down. Bringing a file towards the top pulls it to the front of the composition, and moving it towards the bottom pushes it to the back. Clicking the eyeball icon at the far left turns that layer on and off. 

To take things further, you can edit the layers by clicking the arrow next to the layer’s number and color square. This will drop down more options, including the transform parameters, which we’ll cover in-depth below. 

Playback in the Timeline

To the right of the layers, you’ll see the timeline. The timeline is directly related to each layer you add to your composition. The long bar represents the duration of each layer. You can also see the keyframes you create when you expand your open drop-down menus for each layer. Your playhead is located in the timeline area as well. Using the spacebar, you can start and stop your animation to see what you’ve created. Since After Effects is a graphics-intensive program, you may not be able to play your animation back smoothly. 

The green bar just above your timeline will indicate if it has rendered enough to play smoothly. If the green bar isn’t lit up, there are two ways to go about seeing your animation. You could choose a lower quality playback to ease the load and allow After Effects to render the preview more quickly. Or, you can hit space to begin playback, and it will render each frame one at a time. This will populate the green bar so you can then go back and play it from the beginning. 

In addition to playing your animation in the timeline, you can move layers left or right, and trim them simply by dragging from the middle or the edges of the bar in the timeline. 

Keyframes & Parameters

Keyframes and parameters are some of the most important aspects of unlocking the power of Adobe After Effects. 

• A keyframe marks the start points and endpoints for actions in your animation. 
• A parameter is the value of the object, file, or layer you can adjust with keyframes. 

To edit parameters and add keyframes, go to the layer you want, click the arrow, to reveal the transform function. Next, click the arrow next to transform to reveal the parameters you’ll need to do basic animations. Anchor point, position, scale, rotation, and opacity are all parameters that are controlled with keyframes.

Creating Keyframes

In our example, we already have keyframes created with the Position parameter set to create an animation that slides the ‘Name Banner’ and ‘Title Banner’ onto the screen as time goes on. 

By creating two new keyframes in each layer further in the timeline, we can change the Position parameter to slide the text off-screen. You can apply the steps below to accomplish what we did in the example, along with any other parameter to which you want to add keyframes. 

• Select the layer you want to animate.
• Choose the parameter you want to change.
• Move the playhead in the timeline to where you want to keyframe to appear. 
• Click the stopwatch icon to the left of the parameter to create a keyframe on the timeline.
• To create another keyframe, scroll to the desired endpoint of the motion, adjust the parameter to the desired position and a second keyframe will be created. 

Throughout the process of creating keyframes, you can see how changing parameters affect your text by seeing the motion in the composition window. Visually, this will help you know how far to move the value of your desired parameter up or down to get the desired effect.  Beyond creating keyframes, there are a few more functions you can implement to create even better animations.

Motion Blur

Of the many advantages of animating objects in After Effects, adding motion blur is one of the simplest and most important. Motion blur is important because, without it, your animation may look a bit choppy. This effect adds just enough blur to make your movement look more natural to the eye.

At the top of the Layers panel, you’ll see three overlapping circles, which represent motion blur. Select the motional blur switch for whichever layer you want to enable it. 

In the example project, play the animation with motion blur on then off. This will show you just how big of a difference this feature can make. 

Interpolation & Graph Editor

Interpolation is how the program figures out the values between two points. In other words, this is how After Effects determines how the element you’re animating acts between two keyframes. 

Each keyframe can be adjusted to make your animation function how you want. For our purposes, we’ll only be looking at the “Easy Ease” function to help smooth out the motion we’ve added to our layer. For a more in-depth look at interpolation, check out this Keyframe Type article from the School of Motion. 

To apply Easy Ease to your keyframe, right-click the keyframe, select Keyframe Assistant, then Easy Ease. This changes the diamond shape of a new keyframe into an hourglass shape. With the click of a button, your animation will be much more smooth, starting out fast and then slowing down, easing itself toward the keyframe. 

To see the visual representation of this, click on the graph icon at the top of the Layers panel to open the Graph Editor. For each parameter, you can see all the keyframes and the curve that represents the speed of the movement between keyframes.

To adjust the curve and change the motion, click on the keyframes, and a small handle will appear. Moving the handle allows you to change the flow of motion. In the example we created, it starts slow, then speeds up for a smooth organic motion. 

Nesting Compositions

One of the most powerful aspects of After Effects is how you can use compositions inside of other compositions. Essentially, if you have an animation created and want to then edit that composition as a layer within your bigger composition, you can do that simply by going to the Project panel in the top left, and dragging any new compositions to your Layers panel. 

For example, the two layers we’re working on within our Example Project are compositions themselves, which include our last function, masking.

Masking

A mask allows you to control the visibility of a particular layer, typically by creating a shape or specific cutout. This is powerful because it allows you to cut out layers, combine different elements together and create unique transitions.

In our Example Project, you may have noticed that the text has some animation happening while it is sliding in. This is an example of using a mask in a composition, within another composition. You can double click either layer in the Lower Third Animation composition to reveal the composition where the masking is taking place. 

To create a mask, right-click the layer and choose mask, then new mask. A new drop-down layer under the main layer will appear.  To use the mask to make the text animate in, set keyframes the same way as before, only this time you’ll be moving the mask and the text stays still. 

Creating Text and Shapes

Another powerful tool is the ability to create text and shapes right in your project. Being able to create and manipulate them right in After Effects, can save you time going back and forth between other design programs.

At the top of the screen, you’ll see a T icon for text and a Rectangle icon for shapes. When you select T, you‘ll be able to begin writing your text in the composition window. Afterward, you can adjust the font, style, spacing, and more with the effects panel to the right. 

For shapes, you’ll have to ensure you don’t have a layer selected, then click and hold the Rectangle icon to choose which shape you want to create. In the Composition viewer, you can use your mouse to draw the shape. It will then show up as a layer in the Layer panel, where you can adjust all the same transform parameters we’ve gone over throughout the post. 

Advanced Keyframing

If you’re feeling adventurous, we included another composition in the Example Project that gets a bit more in-depth when it comes to keyframing. This is the Triangle Animation Composition. 

In this composition, we created a multi-point shape and then applied several different transform parameters together to create the desired animation. All of the same fundamentals we went over apply for keyframing and adjusting graphics in the graph editor.

This is a further breakdown of how we achieved the animation above. We chose the polygon option when creating a new shape, then navigated to that new shape layer’s transform parameters to choose ‘three points’ to make it into a triangle, then created keyframes to make it into a 10 point star. We applied keyframes for opacity, position, and rotation overtime to get the desired effect.

You can learn a lot by creating items like this, studying this example, and experimenting on your own. 

How to Export Your Project

If you’ve made it this far, we hope you’ve picked up the basics of changing up your motion graphics with After Effects. Feel free to continue experimenting, trying different effects, and adjusting keyframes until you have something you like. 

Once you’re satisfied with your creation, exporting your project is the final step. You’ll need to add your composition to the render queue. Either go to File, Export, Add to Render Queue, or hit CTRL M on a PC or Command M on a mac. Once in the Render Queue, which should show up at the bottom of the screen in place of your timeline, there are three menus that need to be addressed before exporting. 

Render Settings

First, you’ll want to click on ‘Best Settings.’ Here a window will pop up where you can double-check to see if all of your settings are where you want them to be for your export. These settings typically won’t change unless you’re exporting for a special reason. 

Output module

This window is where you will choose what variation of the composition you would like to export. This includes format, codec, color depth, channels, and audio output settings. In almost all situations you’ll export using the QuickTime Format with the animation codec, this is best for animations like the one we used in our example project.  

All the default settings for QuickTime work just fine unless you need to export your animation without a background. To change this you’ll need to change the channel from RGB to RGB+Alpha. Even in a composition like ours where we didn’t add a background, one will still show up unless you choose this option.

Output To

Last but not least, you will need to choose the destination for your exported file. You can also change the name of the file here if you need to make it something more unique than the name of the composition. 

Once all the settings are in place, simply hit enter or the Render button off to the right and you’ll be done with your first Adobe After Effects piece. 

Keyboard Shortcuts

We wanted to provide quick keys and shortcuts as a resource in this post as well. However, since After Effects is much more complicated than Premiere, we wanted to do things the “slow” way first. 

Once you start getting familiar with the program, these shortcuts will certainly help speed up your workflow. You can download or print this PDF to reference for when you start editing on your own.

This How to Video episode and blog post are just the tip of the iceberg for Adobe After Effects. Starting with the basics is vital for establishing a strong foundation for what is possible with this program. 

Be sure to subscribe to the SproutVideo Newsletter to get the next episode of our After Effects tutorial series in your inbox. Don’t forget to download the free reference sheet and example project included in this tutorial, too!

The post Adobe After Effects: The Basics appeared first on SproutVideo.

This free PDF includes all of the quick keys and keyboard shortcuts you’ll need to use Adobe Premiere like a pro.

Curious about getting into video editing but not exactly sure where to start? Many video editing programs have so much going on it can be intimidating at first, but once you learn the fundamentals, it’s not as bad as it seems. 

Throughout this post, we’ll be going over the basics of video editing with Adobe Premiere Pro. By the end of this post, you’ll have a better understanding of four key areas: quick keys, importing and organizing footage, editing and exporting, and workspace layouts. 

In the video below, SproutVideo Creative Director, Nick LaClair, will walk you through these different areas, using examples along the way to drive the point home. 

Quick Keys & Shortcuts

Like many creative editing programs, Premiere Pro comes stocked with a whole host of keyboard shortcuts to improve your workflow. While it may seem a bit counterintuitive to look at shortcuts for a program you don’t know how to use yet, you’ll find that once you get going, these shortcuts are going to save you an immense amount of time. 

Be sure to download or print this PDF to reference while reading through the rest of this post, and for when you start editing on your own.

Getting Your Project Ready

While everyone will have their own project workflow, it’s crucial to stay as organized as possible. Before you import your footage into your Premiere Pro project, it’s a good practice to have it labeled and as organized as possible wherever you are storing your assets. 

For project management of your files, check out Post Haste. This program allows you to create a template for folders you need on a recurring basis when organizing your footage before importing it into your project. Keeping your audio, main shots, b-roll, graphic assets, etc. labeled and arranged will make it that much easier when you’re organizing your assets within Premiere Pro.

Workspace Layout

When you first open the program it’ll be essential to prepare your workspace to your liking. Premiere Pro comes preformatted with several workspaces. At the top, you’ll see Learning, Assembly, Editing, Color, Effects, Audio, Graphics, and Libraries. Each of these layouts puts an emphasis on the type of editing you’ll be doing, and are designed to make it a bit easier as you progress through your edit.

If you prefer to create your own layout, feel free to drag any window around to arrange it in whatever way you see fit. Once you’re happy with your custom layout, you can create your own preset of that layout. Head to the Windows tab at the top of the screen and save it to your workspaces. The image below is an example of how one might switch up the workspace to better fit their editing flow. 

Importing Your Footage

Now that your workspace is set up, you’ll be able to create folders to organize your footage in preparation for editing. In Premiere, these folders are called bins. These bins could match how you have files organized outside of Premiere, or be named in a way that will help optimize your editing process. We prefer to organize in three buckets: Footage, Elements, and Sequences. 

Once the bins are created, simply drag and drop all of your footage and assets into them, and you’re officially ready to start editing your film. 

Creating a Sequence

A sequence is a visual assembly of your video and audio clips, or in other words, where you’ll cut your footage together to create your film. The best way to start is by dragging a clip to the “new item icon” in the bottom right of the project window. This will let you create a sequence based on the settings of your footage. 

If you shot your footage in the format that you want to edit it in, this will be the best route. If you have a variety of different resolutions, frame rates, or orientations, be sure to choose a clip that most closely matches what you want your final output to look like.

Alternatively, you can click that icon to start a new sequence from scratch, which will open up a whole host of options that may be overwhelming for a beginner, but might prove helpful as you progress. 

Understanding Your Timeline

Your timeline is where all the magic happens, also known as editing. The timeline is located in the workspace towards the bottom of the image below. The light blue bars represent your video tracks, while the gray bars below represent the audio tracks. You can scrub through your edit with the vertical line called the play head. You’ll also see the timecode in the top left of the section and along the top of your timeline, both shown in minutes, seconds, and frames.

The program monitor, where you’ll be able to see the footage you’re editing, is up to the right. You can navigate around the timeline with your mouse or by using quick keys. The J, K, and L keys will help you navigate through your timeline with ease, moving backward, stopping, and moving forward respectively. The footage will move faster forward or backward each additional time you press the J or L key. Additionally, the spacebar plays and pauses your footage.

Editing Methods

Next, there are two ways you can cut your footage: what we’ll call the “Proper Method”, and the “Legos Method.”

With the proper method, you’ll double-click on a clip in one of your bins, which will bring it up in the source monitor in the upper left of your screen. Here, you can begin selecting the portion of that clip you want to keep for your edit. Scrub through the clip with the J, K, and L keys, then, set your in and out points by using the quick keys, I and O respectively. 

Once you have the section of the clip you want, you can select the insert button to add it to your timeline where the play head is located, or simply press “,” and that will do the same thing. If you have multiple sections of the clip you need for your edit, simply repeat these steps to create as many clips as you need. 

Alternatively, you can use the Lego method. This starts with dumping all your clips into your timeline and trimming them there. Here is an overview of different techniques you can use to adjust your clips. 

• Selection Tool (V): For each clip, use your mouse to drag the sides of the clip to the desired points you want to trim
• Ripple Edit  (B): This trim tool allows you to trim a clip similar to the selection tool, but shifts all the prevailing clips the same amount as the edit.
• Razor Tool (C): Use this tool to cut clips into pieces, think C for “cut”
• Rolling Edit (N): This tool changes the point at which two clips meet.
• Track Select Forward/Backwards  (A / Shift + A): Use this to select everything forward of a point in the timeline and move them all at the same time.
• Delete Key: Use this to delete clips or space in between clips

Arranging Your Clips

Once all your clips are cut down to size, you’ll need to arrange them in the order you want. If you shot your project in chronological order and imported them as such, you won’t have much to rearrange. However, that is not always the case. Simply click and drag your clips back and forth to arrange them in the fashion you’d like. You can place them on different tracks if needed as well.

One thing to keep in mind is the associated audio track that is attached to each video clip. If you want to edit each separately, first, unlock them by hitting Command + L on a Mac, CTRL + L on a PC. Now they’re independent. To lock them again, highlight them both and hit that same key combo. 

Editing and Adjusting your Clips

Now that everything is in the right order, you can start adjusting your clips and adding effects. Click on a clip to view and edit properties. If your source monitor is still showing you the clip, click on the ‘Effects Control’ tab to access this area. Here you can change your scale, position opacity, volume for audio, and add effects. 

Premiere Pro comes stocked with tons of effects. Audio and video effects, audio and video transitions, lumetri color presets, and more advanced preset effects. The best way to learn what these effects do is by trial and error, but to see them all in action check out this great video from Justin Odishio. This shows you every effect in Premiere Pro in just six minutes.

You can drag and drop effects onto the clips themselves, or place them in the Effect control panel. In this panel, you’ll be able to further fine-tune the effect if there are options to do so. 

Adding Extra Elements

At this point, you may want to add some extra items to your edit to help complete your vision. This may be additional clips as b-roll, premade graphics, or any number of other items that weren’t initially brought into your timeline. 

In addition to visual elements, you probably will need music for your project. Finding the right music is going to be crucial to striking the right tone. To learn more about music selection, watch our How To Video episode on finding music.

Exporting Your PreProject

Once your edit is complete, it is time to export your video and share it with the world. In your timeline, set in and out points with I and O, then use Command + M on a Mac or CTRL +  M on a PC to open your export settings. 

At the top of the window, you’ll be able to select the settings for your export. Premiere Pro conveniently gives you some standard options and resolutions you can choose from to fit your needs.

You can then export right from the program, or send it to a queue where Adobe Media Encoder will complete the export at a later time. 

Video editing is a complex skill that requires a lot of practice. However, you’d be surprised how far you can get with just the basics. Be sure to explore and experiment as you continue to learn the tricks of the trade. And don’t forget to subscribe to the SproutVideo Newsletter for updates about future tutorials.

Header Image: Gorodenkoff / Shutterstock

The post Video Editing Basics with Adobe Premiere Pro appeared first on SproutVideo.

In this episode of our How to Video: Camera series, we will be discussing the history of 360 cameras, some of the current consumer cameras, and who can benefit the most from this technology.

We haven’t used 360 cameras on a regular basis so we decided to bring in an expert to chat about these cameras with us. Conveniently, Tom Pagut, SproutVideo’s customer success lead, has been using 360 cameras for years. In this video, Tom and Nick discuss his specific use case, and how others could benefit from a 360 camera.

History of 360 

Before modern-day 360 cameras, typically the only way you could create an immersive experience was by using several cameras mounted on a vehicle to capture video in every outward direction. Then, you could project them onto different screens in a circle around an audience to create a full experience. This technique was called Circle-Vision 360, a method that the Walt Disney Company refined back in the 50s. 

Fast forward to the 90s and early 2000s with improved technology and editing software, we began to see a small subset of earlier adopters utilizing 360 videos to fully immerse their audience. Also around this time, news outlets began integrating it into their programming, generally to show a full view of an area, like the wreckage of Katrina in 2008 for example. 

Evolution of 360 Cameras

Fast forward to the mid-2010s, and 360 video was on the rise again. Facebook and YouTube introduced support for 360-degree playback in 2015, which corresponded with the rise of 360 consumer-level gear. 

Camera Rigs

It was around this time that technology started making the process much simpler. For a while, the best way to achieve this look was just improving upon the circle-vision method by creating a rig that could hold multiple cameras in a circle. 

One of the most famous rigs was the GoPro Omni. This device would sync six GoPro’s together to allow users to create a full 360-degree video. Since then, companies have created spherical devices with cameras built-in for professional and consumer use. 

A huge drawback of this method was portability and price. In some cases, you would need 6 cameras to fill out the rig, not something most people have. 

360 Cameras

However, around the same time these rigs were introduced, full-on 360 consumer-grade cameras broke into the market. Typically these cameras featured two ultra-wide or fisheye lenses back-to-back. This allows for each camera to capture video at an angle just over 180-degrees, which would then be stitched together to create a 360-degree object using software baked into the camera.

Today, you’ll find a whole host of different companies with their own iteration of the modern 360 camera. GoPro and Insta360 are two of the biggest in the field, but companies like Samsung, Ricoh, Vuze, and even Garmin have created 360 cameras at one point. 

Hype Fallout

Around the time these devices were released, you probably saw 360 and virtual reality video just about everywhere. Big brands were incorporating it into their marketing, content creators were making full videos with it, even the average person could pick up a phone adapter and upload a 360 video to Facebook. Sadly, before long, the razzle-dazzle wore off, and 360 videos sort of vanished from the main stage. Big brands went back to normal videos and people’s patience for scrolling around virtual videos ran thin. 

While it’s no longer trendy, there are some more practical uses for 360 cameras that might inspire a purchase in 2020 and beyond.

Getting The Most Out of 360 Video

After our discussion with Tom, who uses 360 cameras frequently for electric skateboarding, one main point really stood out. The best use for a 360 camera is not 360 video; it’s flat video. 

It’s the perfect tool to capture everything around you, then crop to show exactly what you want in a flat video. You don’t have to worry about framing your shot, or your subjects. If you’re filming by yourself, that’s pretty major. 

Just Capture Everything

When 360 first started out, viewers had to scroll around and explore the video on their own. While that was entertaining or useful in some limited applications, all too often, you felt like you were missing the action, the narrative, or both. 

Today, it’s best used to capture the world around you and then create a video that stays close to the action. The very nature of the camera will provide you the opportunity to capture all the action, and yourself, without much thought. This makes it perfect for solo filmmakers, behind-the-scenes footage, tutorials, and many other applications. With a 360 camera, gone are the days of hoping you got the shot. 

See the Insta360 One X2 in action on Tom’s instagram.

Typically you’ll see 360 cameras being marketed toward action sports enthusiasts because of their versatility, water-resistance, and gimbal-like qualities. But in reality, anything that requires more than one view could benefit from a camera like this. From a mechanic to a baker, or even someone doing a knitting tutorial, this camera is perfect for filming yourself and your subject simultaneously. 

Where 360 Cameras Fall Short

There are some drawbacks to 360 cameras. While a top-of-the-line model like the Insta 360 X2 can record in 5.7K, it can only output in 1080p resolution. This might be okay for social media, but it won’t be suitable for all productions. 

In that same vein, since it is capturing footage from two fisheye lenses, there is a much higher chance of distortion depending on the angle you choose to output. Lastly, like any smaller sensor camera, the image quality itself won’t match up to that of a full-frame camera.

While these cameras might not be the big spectacle they were made out to be back in 2015, they can still be an essential part of your kit when used correctly. What would you use a 360 camera for? Let us know in the comments below. 

The post The Best Way to Use a 360 Camera appeared first on SproutVideo.

Color grading isn’t just about making sure the reds, greens, and blues are all in balance. It’s also where you can remove blemishes, or highlight specific aspects of your image to get the exact look you want.

Watch the tutorial below and keep reading for an in-depth guide to color grading using DaVinci Resolve.

Color Grading Tutorial

In this video overview, SproutVideo’s Creative Director, Nick LaClair, walks us through exactly how to color grade footage. You’ll learn how to work with nodes to map your changes to different elements in your clips, apply a grade to multiple clips, and hide or emphasize specific aspects of your visuals.

Getting Started

If you’ve followed the steps in our workflow for Adobe Premiere and DaVinci from last episode, you’ll already have your XML file in DaVinci. If you need to, head back to that article for step-by-step instructions on how to get your XML file imported into DaVinci.

Navigating the Workspace Tabs

By default, you’ll land in the Edit tab since we started by opening the XML file imported from Adobe Premiere. However, if you wanted to add footage, create timelines, or edit footage together, you’d want to navigate to the Media tab. Finally, the Fusion tab allows you to add graphics, like titles or text overlays.

Since we already took care of editing in Adobe Premiere, we’re heading straight to the Color workspace.

There, you’ll see your timeline, with each clip represented by a thumbnail. Select a clip to color grade, and it will open automatically in a node to the right of your screen.

Working With Nodes

Nodes allow you to map your color grade to your footage, and make precise changes to different elements of your footage. It’s a visual way to configure the changes you are making to each clip.

By arranging your nodes in different ways, you can change how the effects are applied. For instance, you can make the changes sequential by adding nodes in serial, or layer them as needed. You can create as many nodes as you’d like for your project.

How to Use Nodes

In our example, we used serial nodes, meaning that each successive node would apply new changes to the output from the previous node. Processing your image in this manner allows you to build the effect you want piece by piece.

When working with multiple nodes, it’s crucial to stay organized. Label each node you create with an easily recognizable name to avoid confusion over the purpose of each node.

For starters, we renamed our first node as “Primary Grade”, and the second serial node as “LUT”. Most color grading projects will have these two nodes at a minimum. That’s because most footage shot on a professional camera will be recorded in a Log format. A LUT converts flat Log footage into a colorspace for output. Essentially, it’s a shortcut for making colors more lifelike. Meanwhile, your primary grade allows you to make adjustments to the image before the LUT is applied.

The LUT node belongs at the very end of the color grade because LUTs are destructive. Basically, if your LUT creates blown out highlights, you can’t correct it with any further changes after the LUT is applied. So, any input being fed to the LUT node needs to already be edited as you’d like it.

Select the LUT that is suitable for your footage, and drag and drop the LUT node to the side of the workspace to allow for adding additional nodes.

After setting up those two nodes, we’ll add some more specific to the project we’re working on. Your nodes might be different according to the footage you’re working with and the effects you are going for.

For instance, we added nodes for Skin Tone, Eyes, Blemishes, a Vignette, a Secondary Grade, and a Creative Grade. Each node corresponds to a visual element we want to adjust in our footage. We’ll work through each of those so you can see the difference they make to our final output.

Using the Video Scopes

Now that the nodes are setup, we’re ready to start the color grading process. Navigate to the Workspaces menu to access the video scopes. These colorful graphs will be displayed to the left of your screen.

The video scopes tell us crucial information about light and dark areas of our image, as well as the levels of red, green, and blue in our image. They’ll help guide your color corrections throughout the color grading process. For more on how to interpret the information in the different scopes, check out our previous episode on color grading fundamentals.

Color Grading With Wheels

Professional colorists use tools shaped in the form of a wheel to make minute adjustments to visuals. The wheel tools in DaVinci Resolve mimic those tools very closely.

DaVinci gives us lots of choices for color wheels. Each wheel has two elements – the wheel itself for adjusting color, and another tool just below it for changing the luminance.

Above, you can see the wheels for lift, gamma, gain and offset. These basically correspond to shadows, mid-tones, and highlights, while offset changes the entire image.

In the Primaries set of wheels pictured above, each wheel affects its allotted area of the image, but it also affects much of the rest of the image as well. Review 1:51 – 2:00 to see how much the image changes as Nick adjusts the different wheels. Keep your eye on the waveform monitors to more easily understand the impact.

DaVinci also offers a set of Log wheels, which provide more minute control over each individual aspect of the image. This set of wheels gives you very finite control over shadows, mid-tones and highlights. Review 2:01 – 2:16 to see how these wheels work differently from the other set.

There’s a right time for each set of wheels, and as you get familiar with how they work, you’ll be really glad you have them both. 

Additional Controls

To the right of the wheels, you have additional tools for controlling how the effects are applied to your clip. There, you’ll find:

• Curves – adjust the hue or saturation of part of an image
• Qualifier – mask certain aspects of the image by selecting colors from the image
• Window – draw shape “windows” to create masks, allowing you to select or exclude parts of the image
• Tracker – track windows or masks across movement
• Blur – blend or soften the image, or selected parts of the image
• Key – change the input and output to determine how much of each node’s corrections will be visible in the image
• Sizing – control the rotation, aspect ratio, pan, tilt and more

Adjusting Each Node

Now that we understand the tools at our disposal, we’re ready to start color grading! First, click to select a node to make changes to that specific node.

Primary Grade

In our example, we start with the primary grade. This node is for setting your color temperature and general tones. If your image is too warm or too cool, this is where you should fix it.

Use the wheels to make any necessary changes. For guidance on using the waveform monitor to know when you’ve hit the right white balance, please refer to our episode on color grading fundamentals.

In terms of highlights, as a general rule, you don’t want to go above 896 on the waveform monitor if you can help it. Any higher than that, and you’ll risk blowing out the highlights, and losing lots of detail in the lighter parts of the image.

Skin Tone

Many videos feature people, so addressing skin tones is a common need when color grading. Here’s how to selectively make changes to a person’s skin tone.

First, click on the Skin Tone node to select it. Then, you need to isolate the element you want to edit. In this case, we’ll use the Qualifier tool to create a mask by using the eyedropper to select the color of our subject’s skin.

Toggle your center image to show what you’ve masked. It’s a little creepy-looking, but the greyed-out areas of the image will not be impacted by any changes you make.

To get rid of any hard edges in the mask, and ensure you have good coverage for your changes, adjust the blur radius. For instance, Nick usually takes the blur radius up to around 35. This helps reduce the chances you’ll omit an area of your image that should’ve been included in this node.

Once you have your mask in place, you can adjust your image as needed. In our example, Nick adds some magenta tones to make our subject’s skin color more vivid and lifelike.

Emphasize the Eyes

Think Frodo in Lord of the Rings. Sometimes, eye color just really needs to stand out on screen. This is how you can achieve a similar effect in your own video.

This is nearly the same process as creating a mask for the skin tone adjustments. After clicking the corresponding node, you’ll use the Qualifier tool and the eyedropper again to select the color of your subject’s eyes.

If you find that you have a lot of color appearing in areas of your image you’d like to exclude from your mask, you can use the Window tool to limit where the mask can be applied. In the image below, the window is the circular overlay on our subject’s face. This extra step ensures the changes we make will only apply to the blues located in the window.

Now that you’ve isolated the subject’s eyes, you can make any needed adjustments to the brightness or saturation of their eye color.

Blemishes

Blemishes are a fact of life. However, that doesn’t mean you have to see them in a finished film.

In most cases, the Qualifier tool won’t work because the color of the blemish would be hard to isolate from the rest of the person’s face. Instead, the Window tool is the way to go.

Be sure to select the blemish node, and then go to the Window tool. You can resize, rotate, and change the feather of your window as needed.

Next, we want to make sure the window we just created won’t stay in one place as our subject moves around on screen. Go to Tracker, and make sure you’re on the first frame of the clip. Then, track it forward so the window will follow your subject’s movement in the frame.

Finally, go to Blur, increase the radius, and it will blur that blemish into oblivion. If only it were that easy in real life… To see a before and after, go to 4:30 – 4:35 in our video.

Vignette

A vignette is a subtle artistic choice that calls attention to the subject in the middle of our frame. It essentially darkens the corners of our image ever so slightly, helping to emphasize the center of the image.

To create a vignette, you’ll also want to use the Window tool, sized to frame your subject.

Using the offset color wheel in the Primaries set, you can bring down the overall tone of the image. You’ll notice the area under the window darkening as you change the offset.

Adjust the offset according to the level of drama you’re going for. Finally, invert the window to highlight the center and darken the edges. Et voilà, a vignette.

Creative Grade

A creative grade allows you to apply a specific look to your footage by using a preset. For instance, if you want to make it seem as though your footage was captured on a specific type of film, you can do that with your creative grade.

In general, this is a fairly advanced option. It’s fun to play with, and you can always try different looks to see what works for your project.

In our example, we applied a Film Look located under the 3D LUT options in the LUT menu. We picked the Rec709 FujiFilm 3513DI D60 option, and then dialed back the intensity by using the Key tool to lower the gain of the output.

Secondary Grade

The secondary grade node is where you should make any fine-tune adjustments after all the other nodes are applied. This is where you want to perfect your image before the LUT is applied.

Typically, this is a necessary step even though you already have a primary grade in place. The reason is that any changes made to your primary grade will impact all of your qualifiers and masks in the other nodes.

For instance, if you set the qualifier for skin tones to a certain type of magenta, and then you change the hue of the image in your primary grade, the skin tone qualifier will be impacted because you edited the input to that node. You’re better off making tweaks in a secondary grade than trying to adjust your primary grade and redoing all your subsequent masks and qualifiers.

Applying the Grade to All Clips

Of course, that process would be unbelievably tedious for anything but the shortest of videos if you had to follow it for every single clip. Luckily, it’s easy to quickly copy a color grade over from one clip to other clips.

First, make a “still” of this clip by right clicking, and selecting “Grab Still” from the menu.

A gallery of all the stills you create will appear behind your scopes to the left of your screen. 

Next, select another thumbnail that needs a grade. Then, go back to the still, right click, and select Apply Grade. This will copy the grade from the still to the selected clip.

A handy shortcut for applying a grade requires the ability to middle click on a mouse. In this workflow, you simply select the thumbnails that need a grade, then middle click on a thumbnail to which you’ve already applied the grade you want. This is a little more streamlined than creating stills and navigating menus to apply a grade.

Of course, your mouse might not have a middle button to click. Don’t despair – you still have options. You can map a gesture to any customizable mouse, such as a Magic Mouse, or map the gesture to a button on a tablet with a stylus (Nick uses a Wacom tablet) instead.

Color Corrections

Sometimes, you might have a great-looking color grade for a clip, but find it contains elements other clips do not. In our example, we created a color grade for a shot of our subject’s face, but many of our other clips do not feature people’s faces at all.

In order to prevent any errors as you’re making bulk changes, and to simplify the grade, you can easily remove the nodes you don’t need. For instance, we removed the nodes for the eyes and the skin tone, as well as the vignette and the blemish removal. Then, you can easily apply your cleaned up color grade in bulk to any clips that need it by creating new stills or middle clicking as detailed above.

Compare and Contrast

As you’re finalizing your color grade, you might come across certain clips where your bulk changes don’t quite work out the way you’d like. In many instances, it’s useful to be able to compare and contrast those clips with a clip you want to emulate. This enables you to obtain a more consistent look across your entire video.

To do so, first, create or select a still to use as a reference following the process detailed above. Click on the thumbnail you want to compare to the still, and then click the Split Screen button near the center of your screen. This will place the still (on the left) and the selected clip side-by-side:

Select the primary node, and use the wheels to adjust the clip until it matches the still you’re using as a reference. This is essentially a trial and error process, so play around with the wheels until it looks right.

Putting It All Together

Once you’re finished grading your footage, you’re ready to export it back to Adobe Premiere. There, you can render a final output for your video, and share it with the world!

For details on how to do that, please refer to our second episode on color grading, which covers how to export and import footage between Adobe Premiere and DaVinci.

If you made it this far, we hope you saved some questions for the comments! Please share them below for expert advice on color grading.

Don’t miss the rest of our How To Video series! Subscribe to our newsletter today and get each new episode in your inbox, plus other video-focused tips and trends.

The post Making the Grade: How to Color Grade Like a Pro appeared first on SproutVideo.

Here’s how to make the round trip from Adobe to DaVinci and back more seamless and less error-prone. These tips take the guesswork out of the color grading process.

Video Tutorial

Join Nick LaClair, head of video production at SproutVideo, as he shows the entire end-to-end process for color grading with Adobe Premiere and DaVinci:

If you liked that episode, be sure to catch the rest of our How To Video: Post Production series! Subscribe to our newsletter to get each episode, plus other video-focused tips and trends.

When to Use DaVinci

DaVinci is most appropriate for advanced color grading needs. As a professional color grading tool, it allows you to make changes to your video’s visuals with a high level of accuracy and control. Since it’s a color managed application, you can be sure your final rendered output will look the same to your viewers on the web as it does on your computer.

When your video is edited down to a final cut, it’s time to color grade! This should be close to the very last step in your process, if not the last step. Color grading can be a lengthy, involved process, and it’s best to do it all in one go.

Here is an overview of the process to send your footage from Premiere to DaVinci, and reimport it to Premiere to finalize your video. Follow these exact steps to avoid common pitfalls along the way.

1. Preparing to Send Your Project to DaVinci

The process starts in Adobe Premiere. First, you’ll want to duplicate your video project to create a version you can import into DaVinci. This allows you to make changes without potentially losing any prior work from the editing process.

Then, remove the audio track, flatten your sequence, and remove any attributes, like effects. This will leave you with a clean sequence ready for editing in DaVinci.

Prior to importing the XML from Adobe to DaVinci, make sure your video clips will be formatted correctly in DaVinci. Under File > Project Settings, select Image Scaling and make sure it’s set to “Center Crop with No Resizing”.

Finally, check your timeline’s color space to ensure your video will appear the exact same in DaVinci as it will to your viewers on the web. Under Color Management, change your color settings to sRGB.

Additionally, if you really want to see the real world version of your video colors, you’ll need a calibrated monitor that allows you to use RGB color space. If one isn’t available to you, you can still make accurate color changes in DaVinci as long as your color space settings are set to sRGB.

2. Editing in DaVinci

Now, you’re ready to import your timeline to DaVinci for color grading.

Navigate to File > Import Timeline > Import XML. Select the duplicated XML file we created earlier.

Leave the import options set to the defaults, and DaVinci will import your timeline just as it appears in Premiere.

You’re now ready to color grade in DaVinci! Navigate to the Color tab at the bottom, and make any needed adjustments to your video. We’ll cover exactly how to do that in our upcoming episode next week.

3. Exporting Back to Premiere

After completing your color adjustments in DaVinci, you’re ready to send your footage back to Premiere. Here’s how to optimize your settings during that process.

Go to the Delivery tab, and at the top, choose Premiere XML. Select an empty folder for your final output, and under Render Settings, uncheck audio since this file contains no audio.

The result will be all of your individual clips rendered as an XML file with the new color grade. Once rendered, you’ll be ready to rebuild your timeline in Premiere.

However, one extra step can save you a lot of headaches down the road. If you find you need to make some small edits in the future, such as adding a half second here or there, you’d need to redo the entire process. Or, you can simply tell DaVinci to include a little extra footage when it renders your clips.

To do that, go to Advanced Settings, and select the option to Add Frame Handles. Typically, Nick adds 24 frame handles, which adds an extra second of footage to both sides of your clip.

You’re now ready to render your footage. Click, “Add to Render Queue.”

Then, on the right hand side of the screen, click, “Start Render.”

Putting it all Together

Back in Premiere, create a new folder called “Color Grade”.

Select that folder, then go to File > Import, and locate the rendered files from DaVinci. You’ll see all the individual clips, as well as an XML file. Select the XML file, and click Import.

Once the XML is imported into Adobe Premiere, open the new color graded timeline, and copy the new sequence over to your original edited version.

Now that your color graded footage is back in Adobe, your project is ready to be exported and shared with the world! We hope these tips helped take the guesswork out of color grading with professional tools like DaVinci Resolve and Adobe Premiere.

The post Optimize Your DaVinci and Adobe Premiere Workflow appeared first on SproutVideo.