Beginner’s Guide to Basic Editing Techniques
Mastering the fundamentals of video editing is crucial; if you are beginner or taking your video editing skills to the next level, it is the foundation of all video editing work!
In this blog, we will teach you the basic video editing skills needed by every video editor whether they are just beginning or are a professional editor.
1. Selecting, Moving & Trimming Clips
The first thing you will learn when you first begin editing your videos using an edit software is how to use clips on the timeline. The three main things that you will be doing to create your edits will include: selecting your clip, moving your clip within the timeline, and trimming your clip.
Selecting Clips
To select your clip, click on it to highlight it. To select multiple clips, hold Shift and click on the multiple clips you would like to select or, click and drag a box around the clips you would like to select. In most editing software, you can use Ctrl (or Cmd) and A to select all clips currently on the timeline.
Moving Clips
Once you have selected your clips, you can move your clips left or right in the timeline (to change the position of your clips) as well as move your clips to another track (moving your video clip from V1 to V2 to put it above another clip).
Trimming Clips
Trimming your clips is the act of cutting your clips down to only keep the parts that matter to your edit. If you hover over the edges of your clip, you will see the trim symbol appear, drag the edge toward the center of the clip to shorten the clip from that end. You can always drag the edge of your clip back out toward the edge again to restore your original footage. Trimming a clip does not affect your source footage because it is non-destructive.
Pro Tip: Use the J, K, L keys for fast shuttle playback while trimming. J = rewind, K = pause, L = fast forward.
2. Razor Tool, Slip & Slide Tool
With these specialized tools, you will have complete and accurate control over where your cuts occur and how clips are located on your timeline.
Razor Tool (C)
The Razor is the slicing tool to use when you wish to slice a clip in two at the playhead by starting at the playhead and slicing the clip. The razor is ideal for slicing out undesirable content (e.g., removing an undesired region in the middle of a clip). To do this, slice the clip at the beginning point of the undesirable region, at the end point of the undesirable region, and then remove the undistorted middle piece.
Slip Tool
The Slip tool allows for movement of the contents of a clip without changing the current position or duration of that clip on the timeline. For example, you have a 10-second clip that begins on time and represents the first 10 seconds of the source video.
By using the slip tool, you can move it to represent the 5th through 15th seconds of the original video. The clip has not changed physical position, only the contents of the clip have changed.
Slide Tool
The purpose of the slide tool is to slide the clip to a different location along the timeline while automatically moving any adjacent clips to fill in the space created by the slide. This tool is useful if, for example, you want to reposition a clip without leaving an empty space behind.
Pro Tip: Use Slip when the clip is in the right place but showing the wrong moment. Use Slide when you want to reposition the clip itself.
3. Ripple Edit & Rolling Edit
These two tools (slide/slip) are very powerful (and are some of the most commonly misunderstood) trimming tools, and once you know how to use them, your editing will be exponentially more productive.
Ripple Edit (B in most editors)
When you apply a ripple trim to a clip, all clips forward in the timeline are shifted backward in order to eliminate any gaps created by the ripple trimming of clips. For example, if you trim three seconds from one clip, every other clip will be shifted back by three seconds from the point at which the clip was originally located.
This allows you to have complete control over your edit time without having to manually reposition every other clip next to each other after you've trimmed them.
Rolling Edit
A rolling edit allows you to change the location of the cut between two adjacent clips without changing any of the other clips in your timeline. If you have two adjacent clips and you move the cut between them by two seconds to the right, one clip will receive two seconds of extra length, while the other will have two seconds taken away
Therefore, the total duration remains constant. This gives you a way to adjust your cut point without affecting the rest of your timeline or requiring additional work on your part.
Pro Tip: Ripple Edit = changes total duration. Rolling Edit = keeps total duration the same. Remember this and you'll never confuse the two.
4. Snapping & the Magnet Feature
Snapping is what enables you to edit your clips accurately without putting forth a lot of effort. When snapping is turned on, any time you move a clip, it will automatically snap or stick to the closest point in the timeline, including the nearest edit point, playhead, marker or other clips in your timeline.
Why Snapping Matters
When snapping is turned off, you could accidentally create a very small (sometimes called a black frame) gap between two clips that you cannot see on your timeline, but you will be able to see during your playback of the project. Snapping creates an automatic snap between the two clips, therefore eliminating any possible gap between the two clips.
When to Turn it Off
There may be times when you need to only move a clip by one or two frames. Snapping to the next closest anchor point would cause the clip to go more than the intended number of frames; therefore, you would disable snapping (using the " S " key typically) for these types of moves. Once you have completed the intended move, you would then enable snapping again.
Toggle snapping: S (Premiere Pro) / N (DaVinci Resolve)
Hold Alt/Option while dragging to temporarily override snap
Snapping works with markers too, great for syncing to music
Pro Tip: Place markers on your beat drops or key audio moments, then snap your clips to them for perfectly timed edits.
5. Copy/Paste & Clip Duplication
You do not have to start fresh each time you work with repeated elements, effects, or segments of your project. Copy and paste or duplicate saves a huge amount of time when dealing with repeated elements.
Copy & Paste
You can copy a clip by selecting the clip and pressing Ctrl+C or Cmd+C. You will typically paste your copied clip by pressing Ctrl+V or Cmd+V. V your copied clip will usually be pasted at the current playhead position. This makes it very easy to duplicate anything like a lower third graphic or logo bug or an intro card, if it is going to come up multiple times.
Paste Attributes
One of the best ways to paste is with Paste Attributes (Alt+V in Premiere Pro). This allows you to copy your color grade, effects, and speed changes from one clip and apply it to another clip without having to re-do all of the adjustments that you made.
Clip Duplication
Some editing software allows you to hold the Alt/Option key while dragging a clip to instantaneously duplicate it and to a new position. This is a quicker way to repeat a clip on the same track without having to copy and paste it.
Copy/Paste: Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V
Paste Attributes: Alt+V (Premiere) — copies effects/grade from one clip to another
Duplicate by dragging: Hold Alt/Option while dragging
6. Timeline Ka Neat Workflow
A messy timeline shows that the editor is unorganized. A cleanly organized timeline saves time and reduces errors and makes it easier to collaborate with others. Here's how to keep your timeline clean.
Track Naming & Color Coding
Label your video and audio tracks with a descriptive name. For example:
Video Track 1: Primary Footage
Video Track 2: B-Roll Footage
Video Track 3: Graphics / Titles
Use labelling colors to visually group clips in the same category. Most software gives you the ability to right click on a clip and change its labeling color.
Use Bins/Folders for Media
Organize your raw footage, music, graphics, and exports into separate bins or folders in your Project panel. Do not put everything into one folder. A foldering structure like this will help you stay organized: (Footage > Audio > Graphics > Exports).
Nest Sequences or Compound Clips
When a complex section of your timeline occurs (for example, an intro with multiple layers), nest that section into a single compound clip. This will keep your primary timeline organized, but also allows you to open the nested sequence when you want to make changes to it.
Remove Gaps Regularly
After deleting or moving clips on the timeline, there will sometimes be an open area (gap) in between your clips. Use the 'Ripple Delete' (Shift+Delete) function to remove a single clip and close the gap in one action. At least once a week or so do a 'remove all gaps' pass on your timeline.
Name every track — never leave them as 'Video 1', 'Audio 2'
Color-code clips by type: interviews, B-roll, music, SFX
Lock tracks you aren't working on to avoid accidental edits
Save versions as you go: v1, v2, v3 — never overwrite your only copy
Use markers to flag sections that need review or revision
Pro Tip: Spend 10 minutes at the end of every edit session cleaning up your timeline. Future-you will be very grateful.
Wrapping Up
Professional video editing consists of creating and manipulating clips, employing various types of editing tools (Razor, Slip, Slide), knowing how to use both Ripple and Rolling edits, using Snapping, copy and paste commands correctly, and maintaining an orderly timeline.
None of this is too difficult. It takes some practice. Just go into your video editing program, upload a few clips, and start editing. Make mistakes, undo them, and try again. You’ll have muscle memory developed more quickly than expected.
