Smooth Editing Course Lecture Notes

Introduction

• Learning smooth editing style used in top content creation.
• Covers fundamentals, five dynamic principles, creativity, and transitions.
• Tools mostly in Adobe Premiere Pro, not After Effects.
• Focus on mastering one software deeply.

Fundamentals of Smooth Editing

Key Concepts

• Elements on screen: Backgrounds, Foregrounds, Adjustment Layers.
  • Backgrounds: Full screen content, can be footage or artificial (e.g., color mats, custom images).
  • Foregrounds: Smaller elements like subtitles, PNG images, overlays, etc.
  • Adjustment Layers: Apply effects globally to all layers beneath them.
• Importance of motion blur in making transitions smooth.
• Transform effect: Preferred over standard motion for applying movements with motion blur.

Basic Movements

• Entry Animation: Element entering the screen, fast at the start, slows down.
• Exit Animation: Element leaving the screen, fast at the end, starts slow.
• Intermediate Animation: Element moving while on screen, smooth constant speed.

Dynamic Principles

1. Composition

• Use guides (Rule of Thirds, Center Lines) to arrange elements.
• Focus should be on avoiding placing elements at screen edges.
• Size elements appropriately; not too big or small.

2. Digestibility

• Singular Focus: Introduce one element at a time.
• Comprehension Time: Give viewers time to understand new elements.
• Tracking Eyes: Predict where viewers' eyes will naturally move and place elements accordingly.

3. Constant Movement

• Overlapping Curves: Combine effects for continuous movement.
• Handheld Shakes: Adds natural, constant movement to elements.
• Long and Sharp Keyframes: Makes animation smoother and continuous.

4. Depth

• Layering: Use multiple levels (backgrounds, midgrounds, foregrounds).
• Drop Shadows: Create a sense of depth and realism.
• VR Glow: Adds glow effect to deepen elements.
• Contrasting Colors: Use opposite colors on the color wheel for foregrounds and backgrounds.
• Blurs: Different types of blur to push some elements to the background.

5. Rhythm

• Timing with Audio: Sync animations with peaks and valleys in audio waveforms.
• Emotion Matching: Match speed of animations with emotional tone of audio.
• Constant Directionality: Keep element movements in consistent directions.
• Macro Rhythm: Vary pace between faster and slower segments.

Transitions

1. Dissolves

• Use 'cross dissolve' or 'VR light leaks' for fading transitions.
• Overlap the next scene slightly before ending the current to avoid hard cuts.

2. Slides

• Slide In: Bring new scene elements from off-screen into the screen.
• Slide Out: Move current scene elements off the screen to reveal the next one.

3. Screen Wipes

• Use a moving PNG to cover both old and new scenes.
• Crop Masking: Utilize opacity masks to align with PNG movement for seamless transitions.

4. Zooms

• Fill screen with a color or element by zooming in.
• Maintain movement through nested adjustment layers while cross-dissolving into the new scene.

5. Impact Transitions

• Build-up with zoom-in followed by a shake or hard cut for the next scene.
• Use brightening effects like 'tint' or 'HLS color balance' to enhance the impact.

Creativity

Building Creativity (Sand Dune Theory)

• Allow yourself to make mistakes; start with small ideas and build on them.
• Flexibility to create and discard drafts helps in finding the best outcomes.

Inspiration Bank

• Use tools like Notion to collect and catalog inspiring edits from other sources.
• Keep tags and examples linked to revisit and remix ideas.

Using Presets

• Save frequently used effects and animations as presets for efficiency.
• Stack multiple presets and manipulate values to create original animations quickly.

Practical Tips

Tracking Progress

• Keep a tally of edited videos to focus on daily progress rather than end goals.
• Stick visual progress indicators on the wall as motivation and accountability.