
There are no words to describe the work it takes to edit video. Right now as I write this, my body aches from sitting way too long, my eyes are over worked with vision blur, fatigue, hunger, and worrying about deadlines. I just got done with an intense video editing project and I must say, if you're ever thinking about doing video editing for a career or hobby, please understand, it's physical labor! You say what? All you do is sit there? Haha! Let me tell you my friend, sitting in front of a screen in a dark room, hearing and watching the same thing over and over again, then the tedious task of moving or creating elements that take hours to create for a couple of seconds of video, then to do it all over again when either you or your client want changes is not easy! Editing a single project can take hours, even days! It's a hard job and I didn't even mention the full production work. That's a whole other blog. I guess this is why in Hollywood, editors get paid the most for projects. At times, even more than the movie directors themselves. You see, video or film editors are the ones that make the magic happen when creating motion pictures. We take hours of footage, audio tracks, music soundtracks, and we put it all together with creativity, special effects, color grading, and audio editing. Yes audio editing comes with the job. Not only do you make your video look good but also it must sound good too.
Now for the client that thinks you can have your video done in a couple of hours, I tell you that it takes waaaaayyyy more time than you think. Unless it's a simple talking head with no grading, no audio editing, and no effects then maybe. You might as well just use the raw footage. Don't get confused with simple desktop and mobile apps that can edit slideshows or piece up completed videos with a click of a button. I'm talking about real editing and making your videos look professional. Please understand that real video editing is not something that can quickly and easily get done. In fact, video is the hardest thing a computer can process. So not only does it take time to edit, but it takes time to plan, research, download/upload, and sometimes waiting for the computer itself to process large amount of data.
Video editing can be challenging as well, for instance what to do when you don't have what you need or can't get it? At that point you have to either re-shoot or put alternative elements, yet still make it look fluid. What about when your computer crashes? Yes this has happened to me more than I can count. When projects get too big, computers can choke and therefore lock up and you'll have to relaunch the app. Hopefully your editing software has auto save or you can save constantly. The other is the wear and tear of your body. Sitting for a long period of time is really not healthy and staring hours at a screen in a dark room is not good for your eyes as well. Taking breaks, getting rest, and good exercise is essential for video editors. Otherwise you will experience unwanted physical problems. Another is your mind. If you're not careful, you'll forget a-lot of things because editors can sometimes be so consumed with the project development that they forget to make calls, run errands, turn off the stove, loose track of time, become unorganized and messy.
So why do I do this? Because at the end of the day, I look at what I've created and I become joyful, happy, pleased, and content. Not to mentioned, make money. Yes editing can be tough but to me it's a joy to see happy clients, and my videos being used everywhere for both personal and commercial use. Like it's often said, a picture can tell a thousand words. When editing done right, videos can be very effective and such a powerful impacting tool wether you're telling a story or selling a product.
So think twice about it if you want to get into video editing. You'll have to live in a dark room pretty much, definitely get frustrated at times, and deal with getting fatigue. Or you can hire people like myself that's experienced, can get the job done for you sooner, and help you be at ease with a completed project in hand.