Any form of visual art is about lighting. Think about how painters use the light to create a dramatic effect in a sunset or to highlight someone or something in their frame. Nature is incredible though and if you’ve ever tried to capture light on film then you know how hard it can be. Our eyes just don’t process light in the same way that a camera does. Therefore, the more you can show light accurately in your video then the better it will look. Having said that, these days we’re very lucky because any online video editor, such as the one in this link, thinks about the lighting on your behalf in the templates it offers for download.
How Lighting Impacts your work with an Online Video Editor
There are actually different ways that lighting impacts your online video and it’s worth exploring them, as detailed below before you get started with your first video for social media:
- Exposure
- Direction
- Quality
Exposure
This refers to how much light you actually have in your images when you make video clips. For example, your online video can be too dark because it’s underexposed at one end of the scale and too bright due to overexposure at the other end. Trial and error to set up your camera before you start shooting can be helpful. Although, of course, you can also use your online video editor to fix small mistakes before you upload the final content.
Direction
Imagine all your favorite horror film characters shot in bright light coming from all around them. Somehow they would look less scary because lighting plays such a big part in the mood and atmosphere of any online video. You can clearly adjust this when video editing but it’s easier to edit something that’s almost right.
When you make your first video, you should therefore consider your three-point lighting. This means getting the right balance between your backlight, fill light, and key light. Essentially, the backlight is a strong light that’s diagonally positioned across your main subject. The fill light then acts as a slightly less opposing light to counteract any shadows in your video creation. Finally, the key light separates the background from the subject to bring clarity.
Naturally, all this has already been included in your video templates but it’s useful to bear in mind if you want to create your own content before including other features and music. All video editor tools allow you to easily drag and drop your own images and even music though.
Quality
There are many different types of lighting available ranging from hard to soft. Hard lights that are just too white and bright, like hospital lights, make a scene look very harsh. Softer lights, on the other hand, provide a gentler transition between objects and people, making it easier to edit videos. Getting the right lighting though is about studying your shadows which you can then easily do with your video editor.
How an Online Video Editor can Fix your Lighting
There’s no magical fix when it comes to video editing. A bad video is simply a bad video. Having said that, nothing in life is perfect and that’s why we have video editor tools. They help us fix mistakes and enhance images before launching any free video online. So, the more you can get your lighting right by studying your shadows then the easier it is to do your video editing. You’ll then want to adjust some or all of the following:
- Brightness
- Contrast
- Color Balance
Brightness
Your video editor will have a range of high to low that you can easily apply when you create videos. A good rule of thumb is that happy scenes tend to be brighter than scary or sad scenes. Of course, you’ll want to follow your own instinct and judgment though when editing videos.
Contrast
This refers to the ratio between the darkest and brightest parts of your images. It’s related to brightness but it’s more about enhancing or diminishing shadows. Like most things, the trick is to find the right blend of the two when adjusting it in your video maker.
Color Balance
Again, any video editor allows you to play around with the lights and how the blue, red, and green colors blend and change in respect to each other. You’ll know what feels right when you adjust this as you edit though. The idea is to get as close as you can to what the images look like in real life.
Main Takeaway for Working with Light and your Online Video Editor
Light can be your friend or your enemy when you make a video. That’s why you’ll want to practice when it comes to creating your own content and working with video editors. Then again, if this is your first video, you might want to start working with the video templates on offer. They’ve all been professionally made so that you don’t have to worry about lighting. Furthermore, as you spend more time getting comfortable with your video editor, you’ll start picking up what works and what doesn’t. The templates are a great way to start and you can still customize so that your brand stands and then gradually evolve to including your own content. Regardless, do what feels right for you but don’t forget how easy life can be with an online video editor.
