WesW wrote:I actually had straight cuts at the beginning at first, but they just didn't feel right with the music. The fades are only a fraction of a second- just enough to take the edge off the transition.
Trust me straight cuts will work - if they look awkward it means you don't have the cuts "on the beat". In fact a lot of your cuts are off the beat, or are on a minor beat that isn't strong or pronounced enough to register as the primary rhythm; that may be the reason why I feel your syncing is awkward, even though I know you paid attention to sync during edit.
I guess the most common complaint I get is that my shots are too long or the editing is too slow. My most common complaint with your typical AMV is the opposite- the cuts are so fast that it all becomes a blur after a minute or so because your eyes get strained. I just spent the last couple of hours watching some AMVs that I like and then comparing them to my work, and the biggest difference is that I use my cuts to compose whole scenes, whereas most everyone else either throws in unrelated cuts to try and emulate the mood of the music, or else chops everything to pieces to stay with the beat of the music.
If you get a lot of complaints then may be there IS an issue. While it is good to be confident about your editing choices, it is even more important to listen to what your viewers have to say - you don't have to agree with them all the time, but at least don't be so quick to argue against critiques.
I do agree that a lot of music videos (not just AMVs) are fragmented and use unrelated shots to sync mood or beats, BUT that doesn't mean you can't cut a music video with good mood/beat sync AND use corresponding shots/themes that flow together. I personally believe a balance between good content and good pacing can be reached. I am not a veteran editor or anything BUT that is my philosophy behind editing, so perhaps when you get the time you should look at the two AMVs I have on the Org:
Trinity Rising is fast-paced and
Masika is its opposite, very slow-paced. I maintain constant mood and beat sync without sacraficing the narrative - my shots are all shorter than yours but IMO are no less cohesive than your AMV's shot selections.
I'd compare your typical AMV to cotton candy- it may taste good while you're eating it, but it's empty calories. If that's all you want from a vid, then fine, sometimes it's all I want, too.
I'd like to think of my vids as full meals. They may not taste as sweet, but hopefully you'll have had time, because of the longer cuts and slower editing, to really take in what you are seeing and actually feel something.
I am afraid I have to disagree here. First off, you are completely missing the point. When we say your shots are too long, we mean that within the context of
your musical choice. If you choose a slow music like my
Masika video then nobody will tell you your shots are too long or your editing is too slow. But your music is fast and upbeat, so there simply can't be any slacks.
Secondly, don't underestimate the human eyes' ability to catch quick flashes of imagery. Have you looked at well-cut fast-paced AMVs like GitSP? Even when images flash by at only a few frames each, I not only can see each shot clearly but I don't find the viewing experience straining or forgetable at all. If that's too fast for you, try Magic Pad.
One thing I have noticed is that the posts in my threads aren't like those in your average thread, at least the ones I've looked at. In my threads people tend to speak in whole sentences and even paragraphs *gasp*, unlike the string of "me gets" that you usually see. They may or may not have liked the vid, but people don't take the time to compose these types of posts unless the vid has affected them at least a little, and I have to think that much of this is because of my slower editing style.
Actually it's because you make long replies to people's comments. Most editors don't bother to do that, so it becomes a very typical "Nice video!", "Thank you!" thread.
The only lip-flap in Descent is when Cher begins to say something and Darcia grabs her by the chin.
Every Time did have a lot, however, and I managed to eliminate or reduce all of it, except the one scene where I want the lip-flaps (when Aoi's admin. is lecturing the couple on why they can't stay together), so thanks for the heads-up here. There were a couple of instances where I had never noticed the flaps before, and a couple others where I didn't think anything could be done. It's amazing what you can get away with in certain scenes. I also went ahead and eliminated flapping from several scenes in Sunshine, which is the new vid I've composed over the last couple of weeks.
As a general rule, I would not leave a SINGLE lipflap in, period.
If the lips HAVE to move because that is a shot you MUST use, then try lip sync that shot. You can actually either mask or crop portions of a video out and overlay it on the original to manipulate a character's mouth and other facial features without affecting the other things going on in the shot. I have run into such a shot in my new Black Lagoon AMV and I did exactly that, works like a charm.
As for the sync being lax in Darcia, I have written an explanation that I hope clears everything up:
"I employed a good bit of what I call "energy-to-energy" sync in this vid, especially in the second half. In this technique, points of musical emphasis are matched with points of maximum visual movement, such as lunges, sword swings, etc. These points often occur right before or after cuts, and may be misinterpreted as bad sync.
What you wrote here is called internal sync, and it's nothing out of the ordinary I am afraid.
Regardless of how well-executed your internal syncs are, do pay attention to where your shots begin and end - the cuts will be more effective if they are also located on "musical emphasis".
And I don't see how this justifies leaving flapping lips in. Try masking or cropping to get rid of lip movements.
I assure you that the sync in the vid is spot-on, so if it seems off, try re-watching the vid with energy and emphasis in mind."
If you are so confident in your editing ability then I guess there's no need to look for feedbacks from others in the future? Not trying to be hostile but I really don't think this kind of attitude will help you grow as an editor. If your viewers disagree with your editing choices, you as the editor should be the one who revisits the issues to see if there is indeed a problem. not reject their feedbacks right away; I know viewers don't always know the editor's intentions right away but frankly it's rather insulting to your viewers if you treat them like they didn't pay attention when they watched your videos.
Listen more, especially if you actually
requested for criticism and feedback. And don't be too quick to reject other people's editing styles, even if they are not your cup of tea, there's always something good about them you can learn from.
