New editor trying to keep up!

[William Carr]

When I started editing with FCP years ago I had good creative skills and lots of edit experience, but no technical savvy and plenty of apprehension. My VAR was helpful, and I took some lessons with a trainer, and I struggled with the manual and 3rd party books, and I experimented a lot applying my editing logic to the application’s logic. I also supervised a bunch of edits and learned by watching the hands-on editor.

But the crucial, most essential overall knowledge that allowed me the opportunity to grow my skills with Final Cut and the Mac/systems stuff has been this forum. I read it every single day, whether I’m editing or not, whether I need help or not.

The attitude and skills of the official (and unofficial) COW Leaders are priceless, especially when measured over the years of learning from their advice and instruction to thousands of fellow editors.

Make a habit of reading this forum every single day; start with posts you understand the most that cover subjects you’re familiar with. Read posts you think you know the answer to and see if you were right.

Soon enough you’ll find yourself reading more arcane posts and saying, “A-hah! I understand that bit!”

Then comes the really cool day you see a post with a simple enough question, and you find yourself responding. And even more cool, the poster responds back that your advice did the trick.
And there you go.

[Steven Gonzales]

I think the reason few use the manuals is folks feel they have to read from cover to cover.

I think a good strategy is to read the table of contents, read the topic paragraph for each chapter. Then get in the app, use it a while, then start pulling down the menus, and look up things you don’t understand in the manual using the index.

You can also read online the basic topic of digital video. For example, there is an entry in Wikipedia called Comparison of Video Codecs.

My basic suggestion is: when you run into something you don’t know, let that trigger your creative, curious mind to learn about it. If the source you are trying to learn from confuses you, find another simpler source that explains at the level that helps you.

Another useful method: once you are comfortable with an app, find a super user and give them $50 to sit with you for an hour and give you their perspective. In the manual, all options are treated equally. With an experienced user, you will gain value judgements.

[Dan Atkinson]

Try the HD Survival handbook from these guys. Read it in an afternoon and thought it was a great help.

https://www.proappstips.com/

Dan

[Tom Matthies]

I agree that reading is good and I disagree that editors do not know know to read. I seem to be somewhat of a freak in the editing world, a creative technical person. I not only do the editing around here but I’m also the technical/maintenance person as well. I can cut with the best of them, but I also read every manual I can get my hands on. I know my gear inside and out. My wife kids me when I buy some new piece of electronics that the first thing I do is open the box and pull out the manual and read it from cover to cover before I actually unpack the goodies.
I believe that, although not absolutely necessary for editing, a good technical background in this business is invaluable. I started WAY back when we edited machine to machine with 2″ Quad tape. Over the years my love of this business has enabled me to not only keep up with new technology, but to actually push them to the limits. Along the way I’ve also managed to obtain several FCC licenses (old days) and also to earn a number of certifications with the Society of Broadcast Engineers. I am currently working at earning my Senior Broadcast Certification. Why? I just like to learn new things.
Just because a person is not all that technically minded doesn’t matter. A good basic knowledge of the workings of the business can only help in the long run. Yes it’s a lot of work. Yes it can be boring. But the more you know about what is going on under the hood, the better editor you will ultimately be at your job. You can’t be a racing car driver without going under the hood from time to time.
Read everything you can get your hands on. I cruise this (and other) forums every day. I go to websites and take it all in. I subscribe to over a dozen magazines a month. And I still manage to have time to actually get my work done. And have a life outside of it as well.
Ask questions, even if you think they might be dumb. And listen to the answers but remember that there are always several ways to achieve the same results. Develop a work flow that works for you in your situation, but be open to suggestions as well. I’ve been in the biz for a long time but I still am finding new or faster ways to do things. Never stop learning. Never sit still for long. Always try to experiment when you have the time. Push the limits just to see what happens. It’s a fun business to be in. I still can’t believe that I actually get paid to do this stuff for all of these years.
Always remember that if it was that easy to do, everyone would be doing it.
My 2¢ worth…
Tom

[Lisa Rolley]

What other forums to people recommend – online resources etc…

[Chris Poisson]

Steven,

That’s an interesting observation. Reminds me of learning Quark on a Mac Pro in 1988, only what I did was go through the glossary and highlight things I thought were important. Then I went to those pages and learned.

But bottom line is, manuals are good.

Have a wonderful day.

[Twann Hudson]

i first started learning to editing on a old machine running windows 98 – waiting for the program to load was as much fun as watching paint dry (smile)

the real fun begins when the program loads
running FCS & CS3 MS side by side on the Mac

[Twann Hudson]

i like the post from all – bottom line ” read the manual –
and if you want to get a document reader program and have it read the electronic manual for you so be it. it always helps getting info from the manual.

the real fun begins when the program loads
running FCS & CS3 MS side by side on the Mac