Editing can be a pain and a tedious process. You have a lot of fun developing the idea and shooting on set, but once the footage is in front of you, it can take hours and even days to finish your video. This can delay your posting schedule and become a frustrating process when you’re a busy person.

So what if I showed you how to edit quickly through a process I’ve learned from 15+ years of editing videos?

From product videos to fashion lookbooks, I’ve edited a variety of video ads for social media. I’ve learned from seasoned editors and film school, as well as numerous courses that have helped me develop an editing method that has cut down my editing time in half. Keep reading below and watch the video for more game-changing advice on video editing!

Planning Your Shots

The secret to efficient video ad editing lies in meticulous planning. Before you even pick up your camera or launch your editing software, you need a solid plan. This involves creating a shotlist or storyboard that outlines the sequence of shots you want in your final video. Having this roadmap in place allows you to work backward, ensuring that you capture all the necessary shots during your shoot.

Capturing Efficiently

During production, it's crucial to capture your shots efficiently and with the highest quality possible. While mastering the technical aspects of filming quickly and effectively is a separate topic, suffice it to say that this skill is paramount to achieving fast editing results.

Ingesting and Organizing

Once your shots are captured, it's time to transfer them to your computer and import them into Adobe Premiere, your trusty editing software. Now, here's where the magic unfolds. Start by reviewing your original storyboard or shotlist, and create your sequence accordingly. Identify the best takes for each shot on your list and set in and out points to select your clips. Drag them into your timeline in the intended order.

Timing is Everything

Next, you must calculate how much time each shot can occupy on the screen to fit within your designated time limit, typically 15 seconds for ads. Editing in a 24fps timeline is essential for smooth playback.

Maintaining Consistency

But what if you need to tweak shot durations to include more shots, extend or shorten some, or remove others? Here's a pro tip: keep each clip's length in multiples of 6 frames. This consistency ensures that your video looks polished even when watched without sound. Clips can be 6, 12, 18, or 24 frames, or 1 second, and 1 second and 6 frames, and so on.

This approach creates a rhythmic feel to your video, enhancing the viewing experience for those who watch without sound. It also simplifies your decision-making process, as you can focus on cutting in 6-frame measurements.

Managing a Plethora of Shots

If you find yourself overwhelmed with numerous shots to fit into your timeline, and you're unsure where to begin, consider this technique. Drag all your shots into your timeline, select them all, and make them either 12 or 24 frames. This makes it much more manageable to work with smaller clips rather than lengthy ones.

In conclusion, editing video ads at lightning speed is not reserved for professionals or those with extensive resources. With careful planning, precise timing, and a consistent approach to shot lengths, you can create compelling ads efficiently. Remember, the key is to work smarter, not harder.

Have a plan, know your software, and remember your deliverable requirements. Putting it all together will help you become an editing machine!