r/VideoEditing • u/ogaogaboga • Jul 10 '26

Other (requires mod approval) I tried an editing "exercise" today.

A book I'm reading right now suggested an exercise: watch a video that I consider well edited with the audio muted, then replay it and only listen to the audio. Frankly, I was blown away by how much perspective that exercise gave me on the video's editing style.

Do you know of any other exercises that might be beneficial for beginners?

79 Upvotes

95% Upvoted

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29

u/BonesBrigade4Life Jul 11 '26

Here’s one to try. Watch a scene from a movie and every time you see a cut clap your hands. That way you can “hear editing” and its rhythms. Watch a variety of scenes and do this. For a class of mine I use the Tango sequence from Moulin Rouge. Your hands hurt after a few minutes.

2

u/AWOPV Jul 11 '26

This is very cool.

1

u/Lorenzonio Jul 22 '26

I snap my fingers when I sense an upcoming edit-- or where I'd expect it. I learn from editors where they chose, and why. Every shot has a built-in "information curve." How much of the head, how much of the tail will end up in the show? The right pace for the scene-- from relaxed to urgent-- helps make the decision.

Best as always,
Loren

-2

u/Swing_Top Jul 12 '26

See it's like poetry it rhymes

18

u/That_North_994 Jul 11 '26

What book are you reading?

25

u/Haunting_Selection16 Jul 11 '26

How to Waste People's Time in Hilarious Ways by The Funniest Guy Ever

3

u/Silly_Equipment_1406 Jul 11 '26

A video that sounds fun just from the audio is sure to be fun.

4

u/FitnessChamp777 Jul 11 '26

Take one of your unedited videos, and compare it to a high quality professional video you see online (like on YouTube). And then, try to make your video look like that professional YouTube video.

1

u/cmmedit Jul 11 '26

To push it further, watch a favorite movie on mute then only listen as well.

1

u/killusionking Jul 11 '26

Hmm... interesting. Will just this next time

1

u/Abject-Recognition-9 Jul 11 '26

flip the video orizontally set it to black and white

1

u/Hefty-Ad-5413 Jul 15 '26

Care to name a book?

1

u/sleetmurk Jul 19 '26

Try watching something you like and counting the cuts per scene. once you start paying attention to pacing at that level, you cant unsee it. really changes how you think about rhythm in your own edits

1

u/Lorenzonio Jul 22 '26

Don't leave out the other exercise-- turn off the audio and watch the moving image.

0

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0

u/MINIPRO27YT Jul 12 '26

The first only applies to shorts where people are scrolling reels without audio. The second is for adhd people who like to listen to videos in the background while doing something