Lost Video Island

[scarlett_106]

Me again.

What do you guys think about transitions between clips? Aside from my WMM days when I admit I tried some cheesy transitions like "shatter," I usually do either crossfade or fade in/out. My question--can you mix and match? I feel like some moments in my vid call for a fade in/out, whereas others call for a crossfade. Is it weird to mix them? Also, do fade ins get too jarring and ruin the flow of a vid? I definitely use them at "stopping" points in the vid, like a transition in the song or for emphasis. But during a montage of short clips or during a particular sequence, I use crossfades.

Just wondering what you guys think about transitions and which are better. I don't want my vids to look weird! Thanks!

[Uruviel]

Hi!

I always have a hard time deciding about transitions. Sometimes they look really cool, but sometimes can take away from the vid. Crossfades are usually the smoothest, but even too many of them can make a vid look messy.

I think it's fine to use more than 1 transition in a vid, as long as it goes with the music! And keep it consistent. Sometimes I will use all crossfades during the verses of a song, and then use a different transition, or none at all, for the chorus.

[scarlett_106]

Thank you! I decided to keep it a mix between crossfades and fade in, depending on the music and how the clip fit in. Hopefully it looks natural and not distracting.

I just wanted to make sure I wasn't breaking a cardinal rule of vidding or something.

[tjmack1986]

Depending on the song speed, I will generally use one or two transitions.

Like, I'm working on a video right now that has a soft slow first verse, and then it has a very beat heavy chorus ... and is generally beat heavy after that. The beats a very consistent, but I didn't want to use the same transitions/effects from my chorus for my second verse part,so I'm using 3 different transitions in that video (crossfade, fade to black/fade to white, and addictive dissolve)

Though I don't generally like many of the transitions in vegas, there are some that I do like that I use tons in my videos. Sometimes it's nice to use those in different ways.

Like if I have a really beautiful slow song, I'll extend the clips all the way through the next clip so that they completely overlap and it makes for a really smooth, slow transition into the next clip.

For faster paced songs I generally stick with quick crossfade edits, or fade to black ... and sometimes even addictive dissolve.

Hope that helps!

[scarlett_106]

Thanks for those suggestions! I've never used the dissolve you're talking about...I'll check it out!

I have a hard time with longer crossfades because I personally get distracted seeing both images for a second, plus I find that many of my clips are shorter. Back in the days of seasons 2 and 3 of Lost, when there were only so many clips to use, I was kind of forced to use longer clips because there weren't that many. Now, I try to use shorter ones because I've noticed all the great vids do. That plus the fact that I try not to get people talking or distracting motion that's not necessary for the scene (so I cut the clip if, say, Jack is about to get up and walk away, unless I need that walk away for the clip). But for nice slow gaze-y scenes, I love a long crossfade! I guess it's all just trial and error.

Thanks again!

[scarlett_106]

Bumping this because I have a new question...how do achieve this effect? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1PmVVCx_cps (I hope it's cool to post to a random vid)

Is is overlay? Or is she just using really long crossfades? I like the transitions but am not sure how to achieve that.....kind of clueless haha.

Also, when you want something stronger than a crossfade, do you fade OUT to black or fade IN typically? I usually do in but I feel like it's more jarring. Does anyone ever use the dissolve transition instead of fade out/in?

TIA!