Video editing

[Rednek]

I have had a MacBook since 2018 when I ditched Windows 10. I have to admit I am disappointed with the photo editing, management and ability to upload and share. Maybe I am missing something? But when I have to do any serious photo editing, downloading , uploading etc. I have to dig out my trusty old, slow and clunky Lenovo with Windows 7 to get it done. But the issue at hand is I am getting into videos and need some tools to edit and piece individual videos together into a watchable format. What programs or apps would you recommend? I have experience with photos and Adobe Photoshop but am a complete novice regarding videos. I have two iPads plus this iPhone and would like to become proficient in their use, especially regarding the photography features. Briefly there are two areas that I can’t seem to figure out regarding photos on my MacBook. 1, I can’t share a photo to anyone or any website unless I move it to desktop first. No tools seem to be available to allow this function from photos. 2, when I plug in an SD card from my camera the MacBook won’t always read it, and cannot format it???? I get around this by using my Windows computer, but surely there’s a better way?

 

[Lufbrarunner]

For videos, you can use iMovie (free) or invest in Final Cut Pro (free trial available).
For photos I use Adobe Lightroom, Gimp and Pixelmator.

You can share from photos by selecting the image and clicking the share icon (square with up arrow) and choosing what to do. i.e Mail, message, airdrop etc.

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hi,

Here are a few guides that may help:
-Photos User Guide
-iMovie User Guide

1.) As Lufbrarunner mentioned, you can use the built-in sharing tools in Photos to share in some ways. To get an original out of Photos for uploading to a website, you do need to use File > Export.

2.) What brand/model is the camera, how is the SD card formatted, and what file format are the photos in?

C

 

[Rednek]

Hi,

Here are a few guides that may help:
-Photos User Guide
-iMovie User Guide

1.) As Lufbrarunner mentioned, you can use the built-in sharing tools in Photos to share in some ways. To get an original out of Photos for uploading to a website, you do need to use File > Export.

2.) What brand/model is the camera, how is the SD card formatted, and what file format are the photos in?

C

Thanks for the help. My SD cards are formatted FAT32, which I believe is the default? If it changes anything I just upgraded to Big Sur yesterday. When I insert an SD card I don’t seem to even get an option to format, is that tool even available?

 

[Lufbrarunner]

You should be able to format it using 'Disk Utility'

 

[Rednek]

Thanks, I will try this.

 

[Lufbrarunner]

I have used SDFormatter.app in the past with no problems.

 

[Rednek]

Okay, thanks for the advice.

 

[Rednek]

I have had a MacBook since 2018 when I ditched Windows 10. I have to admit I am disappointed with the photo editing, management and ability to upload and share. Maybe I am missing something? But when I have to do any serious photo editing, downloading , uploading etc. I have to dig out my trusty old, slow and clunky Lenovo with Windows 7 to get it done. But the issue at hand is I am getting into videos and need some tools to edit and piece individual videos together into a watchable format. What programs or apps would you recommend? I have experience with photos and Adobe Photoshop but am a complete novice regarding videos. I have two iPads plus this iPhone and would like to become proficient in their use, especially regarding the photography features. Briefly there are two areas that I can’t seem to figure out regarding photos on my MacBook. 1, I can’t share a photo to anyone or any website unless I move it to desktop first. No tools seem to be available to allow this function from photos. 2, when I plug in an SD card from my camera the MacBook won’t always read it, and cannot format it???? I get around this by using my Windows computer, but surely there’s a better way?

An update here. I upgraded to Big Sur from Catalina. Beyond that I tried iMovie, maybe it’s just me but I thought it was crap. So I bought Adobe premiere elements 2021 and Photoshop elements 2021 and installed it yesterday. Now the learning curve starts.

 

[Nukeban]

I may be able to help here...

First, lots of people don't like iMovie, so you are not alone. Lots of people like iMovie too. I'm not familiar with recent versions and so will not state an opinion.

When I first got in to video I did what you did, and purchased both of the Adobe programs you've mentioned. I spent a month or so in both, and then discarded them for Hitfilm.

Hitfilm is a video editor for both Windows and Mac, and they have a free version.

Before you start on the Elements learning curve you may want to explore Hitfilm. It will have a learning curve too, but it seems a much better time investment than Elements.

Here's one of the reasons I switched to Hitfilm. I found the Adobe support forum to be close to worthless, and the Hitfilm support forum to be excellent. When I was getting started I asked about a billion questions, and received prompt help on all of them.

Another reason for the switch is that Adobe is a huge corporation which could care less about you, while FXHome (the company that offers Hitfilm) is run by small group of friendly people.

I still have Elements and Photoshop, but can't even launch them anymore due to some kind of confounding scheme which Adobe uses to connect the software to your account with their website.

The best thing I can say about Elements is that it's probably more aimed at video newbies than Hitfilm. And, Hitfilm is free last I looked, so there's nothing stopping you from using both while you decide which you prefer.

Whatever program you use, here's my best advice. Don't jump right in to trying to do something creative that you care about. It's wiser to spend the first month or more focused on learning. Once you've got a handle on the basics, being creative will be a lot more fun.

 

[Rednek]

Thank you for the insight.