As part of my week 2 assignment for EDLD 5363 Multimedia, we were asked to research and evaluate video editing software for the purpose of media production. I selected Pinnacle Studio 12 and Microsoft Movie Maker to evaluate to compare video editing software programs. Thru the course of my reading and participating in the weekly video conferences, I was directed to the following Wikipedia site which offers a very thorough comparison of video editing software:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_video_editing_software
I chose Pinnacle Studio because I've been using different versions of their software for my personal use for about 10 years now. Typically, the software ranges in cost from $75 to $125, depending on which software package you choose. The difference in cost is the additional add-ons, such as DVD authoring and such. Pinnacle is a great video editing tool which allows beginning to professional consumers to create professional looking videos. Pinnacle is extremely versatile because it includes hundreds of different transition effects as well as quality functions such as Chroma Key, which enables you to add someone into a video scene. I particularly use the pan and zone tool as I edit digital pictures into my projects. I think one of the most valuable aspects of Pinnacle Studio is that you can upgrade to almost professional grade editing features if you so desire. This program will allow you purchase various add- on packages that you may want as you expand your abilities. Finally, this program has one of the most useful features I have found - the ablitity to render your final product in 12 different formats, such as real player or dvx. I also like that in each format I can pick and choose the amount of audio and video compression I need to produce my project in high definition or just to run on my computer. This program will allow for 1280/720p mpeg4 audio compression so you can take advantage of the quality audio and video images of the new high defintion cameras on the market.
In contrast, Movie Maker is one of the most basic video editing programs that comes pre-installed on most new computers. One of my colleagues uses Movie Maker and taught this as a district inservice I attended. Movie Maker allows you to create, edit, and share home movies and has simple drag and drop features that make it friendly to beginning users. Movies can be rendered and shared via the Internet and stored on a CD. The downside of the program is that it does require capture software (downloaded free from Microsoft or other third party vendors) to get the video from your camera into your computer. Movie Maker is a Microsoft program, so it should continue to be supported in the future, meaning you should not need to worry about having to learn a new program. All in all, it is really designed to get your feet wet in the area of video editing. I feel that most users will outpace the program's ability fairly quickly if they are even somewhat interested in video editing. Movie Maker will default to produce your video and audio files in a 640/480 format in 16 bit stereo. While this format is not bad for replay on your computer or standard definition TV playback, it does not allow for the quality endproduct the new high definition video cameras are designed to provide.
My experience with video editing has enabled me to use these tools in my work with students. I am a swimming and diving coach and use these tools to shoot and produce videos for All-American diving applications, video's for college coaches to review, and sometimes to edit and insert videos into my swimming blog as a motivator or reminder of good technique. http://www.hphsswimming.blogspot.com/
I also use my editing skills to edit and create unique learning segments to be placed in my power points to highlight an objective. Using video editing allows me to interact with my students and make them want, in turn, to utilize thier creative skills to design a unique project for their classes.
In Andrew Garrison's article "Video Basics and Production Projects for the Classroom," he states: "Media production offers a means for students to talk to whomever they think is an important audience." With the explosion of YouTube videos, I think there are alot of students that want to express themselves. My ablitity and experience with editing will allow me to continue to be a mentor to these students to help foster creativity in the classroom and beyond.
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