Video editing

Video editing is the process of editing segments of motion video footage, special effects and sound recordings. Motion picture film editing is a predecessor to video editing and, in several ways, video editing simulates motion picture film editing, in theory and the use of non-linear and linear editing systems. Using video or film, a director can communicate non-fictional and fictional events. The goals of editing is to manipulate these events for better or for worse communication. It is a visual art.

Early video recorders were so expensive, and the quality degradation caused by copying was so great, that 2 inch Quadruplex videotape was edited by visualizing the recorded track with ferrofluid and cutting with a razor blade or guillotine cutter and splicing with tape. Improvements in quality and economy, and the invention of the flying erase head, allowed new video and audio material to be recorded over the material already recorded on an existing tape. This technique was referred to as linear editing. If a scene closer to the beginning of the videotape needed to be changed in length, all later scenes would need to be recorded onto the tape again. In addition, sources could be played back simultaneously through a vision mixer to create more complex transitions between scenes.

There was a transitional analog period using multiple source VCRs or LaserDisc players, but modern non-linear editing systems use video digitally captured onto a hard drive from an analog or digital video source. Content is ingested and recorded natively in the appropriate codec which will be used by software such as Sony Vegas, CyberLink Power Director, Avid's Media Composer and Xpress Pro, Apple's Final Cut Pro, and Adobe's Premiere to manipulate the captured footage. High definition video is becoming more popular and can be readily edited using the same software along with related motion graphics programs. Clips are arranged on a timeline, music tracks and titles are added, effects can be created, and the finished program is "rendered" into a finished video. The video may then be distributed in a variety of ways including DVD, web streaming, Quicktime Movies, iPod, CD-ROM, or videotape.