Needed: Video editing program that will allow me to do simple moving pan / zoom.

January 19, 2012 4:48 PM

Needed: Video editing program that will allow me to do simple moving pan / zoom.

I'm going to start making videos for youtube. I want to achieve an editing effect to make the videos a bit more interesting. I like the pan / zoom effect this user seems to have used on this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNtp3hFlcQA&feature=related

I tried to replicate that effect with Windows Live Movie Maker but didn't really think the results where that great.

I also tried Adobe After Effects and it sort of overwhelmed me with all the options.

Suggestions? Thanks!

posted by ryker to technology (2 answers total)

Probably doesn't help you since you're on Windows, but I'm 99% sure that video you linked to was made in iMovie and uses iMovie's Pan & Zoom tool
posted by BurntHombre at 6:34 PM on January 19, 2012

You don't want After Effects for something like this, that's overkill. Adobe Premiere is their video editing software, and it can do that without much problem (it is also much easier to use).

Honestly, though, I find that effect to look very amateurish, and would much prefer to see several different camera angles edited together, or even a stationary shot. The best thing you can do to make your video's look more professional is to learn a little bit about lighting, and make sure you light things well (you don't need expensive lights to do this). Even a simple little video camera or web cam can look pretty good if you get your lighting right.
posted by markblasco at 9:24 PM on January 19, 2012 [1 favorite]