Saturday, July 7, 2012

Video Editing

Lately on my FaceBook account, I have been "sharing" some of my old videos (namely my Harry Potter 7-2 Trailer rehash "War" and the Doctor Who "End of Time" trailer, which I'm still proud of to this day).

Because of this sharing, I have had several friends ask me why I gave it up.  This brings back memories of my mom saying I have a gift with timing the music to videos...

It has been nearly a year since I last edited a video.  I made this post last August giving some detail as to why I was giving the hobby up.  However, as the year has gone by, I've come to realize some things regarding this hobby that was nearly 10 years in the making...

To start off, the reason I think I loved it so much was because I am a visual learner and have always been fascinated with movies.  And we all realize the power music has in movies--it defines so much, especially the mood/emotion of the scene.  Because I am a visual learner, and things visually appeal to me, when I listen to music I can see images in my head as though I'm watching a movie.  If I can then take what I see and give it physical dimension, it's like a dream come true.  I find it incredibly satisfying.  Not to mention how when I sat down at the computer to edit, the hours just FLEW passed.  I would sit down at 3 PM and the next thing I knew, it was 12 AM and I had forgotten to eat dinner!!  It was truly amazing and I have yet to find something that interests me as much or makes the time fly as quickly as editing did...

No, not even my writing can compare...

On top of that, when I became fascinated with movie trailers (especially its music), I was thrown into a whole new world.  Prior to movie trailers, I had been making music videos--videos to an entire song with lyrics.  But this new development (spawned by seeing the Spider-man 2 trailer and hearing the song "Lacrymosa") threw me a new curve ball.  I then made it a pursuit to make movie trailers, and for a while that was my dream job.

Then reality hit me.

Could I really see myself sitting at a computer editing a movie trailer once I married?  Had kids?

No, I couldn't.

And as I was editing in 2010, I kept having impressions that I needed to be doing something else with my time (especially since I did--and still do--want to get married and have a family).  Therefore, something needed to be done.  All the hours spent ripping footage, editing, and cursing software amounted to absolutely nothing.  What did I have to show for all my hard work?  A mere 2-minute video.  Wahoo...

I was naive enough to believe that if I gave up my hobby, my social life would instantly improve.  Well, it did for a little while (see this post).  But then it fell flat again.

Video editing was not my problem...

And it's taken me nearly a year to realize what the problem truly was:  Just like with any hobby, my video editing simply needed to be balanced with other things.  My problem was learning how to balance it, hence the reason I believed I needed to give it up.

Even at that time, I didn't say, "I will never edit again" but rather, "I may get back to editing one day, but right now I need to do something else."

And what has happened in this last year?

I have expanded my social circle, I've read more books, and I've done a whole lot more writing!!

Will I ever go back to editing?  Possibly.  I'll admit, I would absolutely love to do my wedding video (you know how they show videos at the reception of the bride and groom and engagement photos?  That's what I want to do!).  My biggest problem is I currently do not have a computer that can handle the software I would need.  My big PowerMac finally died (I fried the motherboard... lol!  That's the third computer I have killed, and I blame my editing) and I'm currently in no hurry to replace it.  If I ever did get another computer, I would probably buy the latest Adobe Premiere and Adobe After Effects because they have been my dream programs ever since I started editing.

Yes, I would like to see myself get back into editing, but do it with more balance in my life.  Use it as a reward rather than an escape.

Even now, I still can see "videos" in my head, or I get inspiration to make a trailer, but then I remind myself that I "can't."  But in all actuality, I CAN, it's just a matter of priorities.

As much as I love editing, making trailers, and timing music to video footage, I am resigned to the fact that there is still more for me to learn before I pick up the hobby once again... otherwise I would have already done it.

In the words of my hero:

"Tunnels end in light"

And this is my tunnel...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Also, for those interested, here is the Spider-man 2 trailer that altered my world. "Lacrymosa" starts at 0:40, but really takes off at 1:48 and gives me shivers.


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