hi

can anyone recommend a reasonable but fairly basic video editing software?

something free or cheap!

something that i can trim and join video clips together, convert to a file format suitable for upload to youtube, add captions etc.

I don't need it to do much really. i keep things simple!

I have lightworks at the moment but i hardly ever use it and it's a monthly subscription fee.  to be honest I only want software to use on a very occasional basis.


cheers


tim


ps. i've not made any videos lately but this is my channel.  it's just for fun and not monetised - and I don't care about views or subscriptions, but of course like to interact with other enthusiasts! it's just an infrequent hobby though.

https://youtube.com/@timstrainvideos142?si=EyXTXdnT9AFl-iv0

I use iMovie.
Very simple and does what you want it to do.

I use VideoPad on our Windows machines @ home.  Had it for years and I forget how much I paid for a basic licence.  It wasn't a lot. 

https://www.nchsoftware.com/videopad/index.html

For the little editing that I do, Shotcut serves me well - at a nice price, i.e. zilch

https://www.shotcut.org/download/

I chose the Portable version, as I try to do for most stuff if it's available, since it installs into a single folder with nothing hidden away in system folders, and can be transferred to another machine simply by copying that folder.

I've downloaded the free version of Videopad and will be seeing how well I can stitch some clips from my dashcam together. Thanks, Nick

I used Movie Maker for putting together my two Deadwood movies. Pretty simple to use. Mine came with my computer operating system which is Windows 7.

Good enough for me.
Webbo

Davinci Resolve is a powerful but easy to use free editor.  It can even render and automatically upload to your Youtube or other social media for you.
https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/uk/products/davinciresolve. 

The initial interface can be daunting as it's almost the same as their paid studio version, but the basics are still there.  Drag, drop, trim, add transition and titles if needed, render and upload.  This is my goto application for all the videos on my youtube channel

I've also used HitFilm Express
https://fxhome.com/product/hitfilm

Its good, and can do the same basic things, but transitions and titles are limited and additions are not free.

hi

thanks for all the replies much appreciated!

I cancelled lightworks so that's ten pounds a month saved. (I'm reviewing all the subscriptions and standing orders I have).

I'm going to download a few of these suggestions and try out.  Just make a few test videos.

I seem to recall trying the free windows software btw but it couldn't do something or I did'nt like it - this was a few years ago so can't even remember now.

if I can get to the gbrf gala at nene valley or the international n gauge show I might upload a few short videos!  need to regain my mojo with it.

Cheers


Tim

I guess it depends on what you are actually looking at doing.  On one extreme there is the simple drag, drop and trim a clip to  time line and then render out a basic video, and on the other is one where complicated cut away edits and effects turn the video in to a more polished and professional one. 

I don't use 80% of what Resolve offers.  Drop clips to a time line, trim, and add the occasional transition between clips or a backing music track and add titles and credits at the end, all of which are well within its abilities.  Where it does score is in its rendering of the assembles video - it has lots of pre-sets and is very quick at rendering the video.  There isn't much that is difference between the standard version and the studio version, so that means the rendering process has been designed to render footage quickly.

But even when it comes to doing something a little more fancy its not as difficult as you might think, plus there are stacks of YouTube channels demonstrating "how to" videos

Powerdirector is another application, not free, but around £70 to purchase.  Its GUI is less daunting than Resolve, but is still a nice program to use.  I purchased a copy decades ago and used that before I found Resolve.

To give you a feel of what Resolve can do I took Fords demo video for their electric mustang and edited it to fit a copyright free audio track... cutting the video to match audio clues in the track.


It was fun and relatively easy and only took a couple of hours of an afternoon