Getting Started: In-Camera Editing (page 2)

With your completed shot sheet in hand, set up your first shot. I would suggest fading up from black at the beginning of your program; most camcorders have a function that lets you do this as you shoot.

Record your first shot, then pause the camcorder. Set up your second shot, and lay it down to tape. Continue in this manner, as you move sequentially down your shot list. Don't worry if you have to turn off the camcorder to wait for a shot or run to dinner. As long as you don't remove the tape from the unit, your camcorder will make sure that your shots will flow seamlessly together, whether you simply pause the camcorder or turn it off overnight. Be careful to re-cue the tape properly if you switch to VCR mode to play back your production part way through. If you miscue, you could wind up with a snowy break in the control track of your tape.

When you reach your last shot, fade to black, as a way of putting a period on your program. Voila! Now you're not just a videographer, but an in-camera editor as well.

Unless your camcorder has a lot of built-in special effects, such as wipes and dissolves, in-camera editing is a cuts-only exercise. That means no fancy transitions between scenes, just one shot right after the other. At first blush, the cuts-only nature of in-camera editing can seem pretty boring. To be honest, though, they are the bread and butter of the editing process. Should you want to add a pinch of spice, however, you do have the freedom to get creative, even with cuts-only editing. For example, you can creatively blur your shot for seamless scene transitions. How? Many camcorders have a manual focus option. Simply turn on manual focus and blur the end of one shot and the beginning of the next shot. Let your camcorder bring the shot back into focus on cue by reactivating autofocus. Now, rather than an otherwise jarring edit, you soften the transition with the blur.

You can take this technique a step further. Try cutting your scenes on a uniform color or texture. For example, you can end your first shot by filling the screen with a close up of Cousin Bill's navy blue sport coat and begin the next scene with an extreme closeup of your navy blue Chevy Truck. If your camcorder supports it, try colorizing your shots electronically to get the same effect. Or close the first shot by tilting down and zooming in on the pavement in one location, and opening the next scene with a similar closeup in another location. In each case, you're cutting on a uniform color or texture, making it difficult for the audience to tell where one shot stops and the other begins. The cut is smooth and transparent.

You can cut on similar shapes, as well. End one scene with a closeup of a round object--a pizza, for example--and begin the next shot with a similarly shaped object of equal size, like a closeup of a bicycle wheel. While this technique doesn't work to hide the cut between shots, it does create an interesting transitional effect that will enhance your presentation.

Want to get really extreme? Combine any of the aforementioned effects with some cool audio. Many Mini DV and S-VHS camcorders support audio dubbing.

Audio dub allows you to replace the original audio, recorded with the video, with music or narration.

Audio dub can be used only after your video is recorded. A few camcorders offer a video dub option, which allows you to record a track of music first, and then listen to the track in headphones as you shoot.

I mentioned earlier that it is important for you to get each shot right the first time. You won't get a second chance to correct mistakes. For best results, rehearse your shots before you roll tape. It's likely that you haven't tried many of the effects described above. Why risk blowing your whole program? Instead, set up the camcorder and rehearse the shot--several times, if necessary. Then, when you feel you've got it down pat, press the "Record" button and hope for the best.

In-camera editing is a way for you to take video production to the extremes. Even if you are faint of heart and not into extreme anything, you will find in-camera editing a useful technique for producing impressive videos on the fly. You will become a more disciplined shooter as well, and that discipline will appear in the quality of the videos you produce.

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