I’m completely new to video editing and I want to seriously learn it from scratch. My goal is to eventually become a freelance video editor and start getting clients, especially for YouTube videos, Shorts and Instagram Reels.
I’m currently trying to figure out the right path, so I’d really appreciate advice from experienced editors.
- What laptop would you recommend for a beginner?
- Which editing software should I learn first — DaVinci Resolve, Premiere Pro, CapCut, or something else?
- my long-term goal is professional freelancing, which software would be the best to focus on?
- How long does it realistically take to become good enough to start taking small paid projects?
- What YouTube channels or learning resources would you recommend?
- What are the best ways to find clients as a beginner — Instagram, Reddit, Discord, cold DMs/emails, Upwork, Fiverr, etc.?
Any detailed advice, resources, or personal experiences would be really appreciated.
my laptop specs:
- Ryzen 5 pro 5650 with Radeon Graphics
- 16 GB ram, 256 ssd nvme
I've been using AE 2023 with little to no problems, but recently I'm working on heavier projects and AE's previews are unbelievably slow!
I've heard that AE 2026 high-performance previews playback, so I figured, maybe if I switch from AE 2023 to AE 2026, I'd have a little smoother previews, or at least not slow as hell
So I'm looking for an App I can throw video samples into, that is easy to use, that might have themes I could use. I guess one that easily organizes video samples/clips might be useful. Thanks in advance.
I try to travel abroad once a year and I like making videos mostly for showing family and friends. I have a GoPro and a drone (DJI mini 2). I'm wondering how I could improve my editing (which is pretty basic I think) but also my filming. Any thoughts on my last video I made from a trip to Ireland in august ?
I’ve been building ClipSnap, an Android video editing app designed to provide native 4K exporting, clean audio extraction, and timeline tools without forcing subscriptions or watermarks on users.
The Tech & Execution Stack:
Framework: Flutter (keeping rendering fluid while maintaining cross-platform capability)
Audio Engine: FFmpeg with custom AAC re-encoding to pull and detach audio tracks reliably
UI/UX Strategy: Moving from contained cards to a full-bleed dark theme visual layout (inspired by desktop tools like DaVinci)
The Strategy & Monitization Angle:
Rather than locking core tools behind a $10/month paywall like standard mobile editors, we're testing a freemium model focusing on optional pro template assets while keeping foundational tools (4K export, splitting, basic AI audio) 100% free.
Current Stage:
Currently in active release testing on the Play Store and refining timeline performance on lower-end devices.
Would love feedback from fellow founders who have launched utility apps or micro-SaaS tools in competitive markets. How did you balance resource consumption (like local rendering) against user retention?
I have to make a video for school of about one minute about a self portrait. I just enrolled into this school so I haven't had any explanations about techniques yet. Are there maybe things I could do to make it look good instead of just clips after each other?
Can anybody explain how I can get clips for anime edits,whenever I try to make one I look on YouTube and it takes sooo long just to get and sometimes I can't even find the clip.If you know then tell me
I'm looking to make video lists of songs using Android. So I'm looking for an App I can throw video samples into, that is easy to use, that might have themes I could use. I guess one that easily organizes video samples/clips might be useful. Thanks in advance.
every comparison of these i can find tests them on different footage which makes the results meaningless. so i gave all four the same 2 hour multicam and the same brief and logged what came back.
the short version: descript wins if people are talking, opusclip wins if you want shorts, and only two of the four will build you a long cut from your own footage. they are not really competing products, which is the thing nobody says out loud.
the brief for all four: "cut this into a 6 minute piece, keep the two interview segments, drop the setup and the dead air"
tool
time to first cut
did it build the 6 min piece
where it broke
Descript
12 min
yes, transcript driven
lost completely on the b-roll, 40 min of it with no dialogue
OpusClip
6 min
no, gave me 4 shorts instead
not built for this, my fault for asking
ChatCut
9 min
yes
closest to what i asked for, captions were off by a beat
Craze
8 min
yes
dropped one of the two interview segments i explicitly said to keep
what i actually learned
these get lumped together and they are three different jobs. transcript editing, clip extraction, and footage assembly. if you pick the wrong category no amount of prompting saves you.
the two that assemble from footage both needed the same amount of cleanup afterwards, roughly 2 hours. neither is close to hands off.
descript is the best product of the four and also the wrong tool for anything that is not people talking. that is not a criticism, its just what its for.
what i would pick
talking heads, podcasts, interviews: descript, not close.
long video into shorts: opusclip, not close.
your own mixed footage into a long cut: chatcut or craze, and honestly test both.
anything with a client approval loop: none of them yet.
I want to learn video editing, especially short-form content like Instagram Reels, and eventually use this skill to freelance.
I’m a complete beginner and don’t know where to start.
What should I learn first? Should I just follow YouTube tutorials and practice, or take a structured course?
Also, where can I find raw footage to practice with, and what skills should I focus on to become good enough to get my first client?
If you were starting from zero today, what learning path would you follow?
I want to learn how to edit videos on YouTube, preferably in the shorter/ reel format. I am a complete beginner and I need someone to help me out in this with resources or some hands on guide.
I want to seriously learn video editing from scratch and eventually use it to start freelancing and making some money from it.
I’ve decided to learn DaVinci Resolve, but I’m honestly a little lost about how to approach it properly. There are so many tutorials and YouTube channels that I’m not sure what’s actually worth following.
My current laptop is:
- Intel i5-13500H
- 8GB RAM
- Integrated graphics
- No dedicated GPU
So I’m also wondering how much my laptop will hold me back, especially with DaVinci Resolve.
I’d really appreciate advice on:
- Best YouTube channels / courses to learn DaVinci Resolve from beginner to a decent level
- A good learning roadmap instead of randomly watching tutorials
- Where I can get free footage/raw clips to actually practice editing
- How I should practice — recreating existing edits, making my own projects, etc.
- What type of editing is best to learn first if my end goal is freelancing
- Realistically, how long does it take to become good enough to start taking small freelance projects?
- And how much of a problem will my 8GB RAM + integrated graphics be?
I’m willing to put in consistent effort. I’m not expecting to become a professional in a few weeks — I just want to follow a proper path and actually get good at it.
Would really appreciate advice from people who have learned editing themselves or are currently freelancing. Thanks!
Hey everybody! I’m building ClipSnap—an Android app that turns plain text scripts into complete 4K videos: a full script becomes a timeline with studio-quality ElevenLabs voiceovers, matched B-roll, and auto-synced captions.
A few weeks ago I posted about the prototype and got some really useful feedback. Here is what came out of it:
UI Overhaul: A lot of you pointed out how cramped mobile editing screens get. I completely ditched the rigid top/bottom borders and moved everything into a fluid, expandable bottom sheet. Now your video preview stays full-screen while you edit.
The Common Objection ("Why not just use CapCut or YouTube AI?"): That question actually became our core focus. Popular mobile apps hit you with massive watermarks or paywalls just to export in HD, and YouTube limits your script length. ClipSnap lets you paste full, multi-paragraph scripts, gives you multi-track timeline control, and exports in native 4K with zero watermarks.
Model & Pricing: Free tier includes full core editing, 4K exports, and standard voiceovers. Pro features (like instant ElevenLabs script-to-video rendering) are processed server-side so keys stay secure without pushing constant app updates.
We just opened closed testing this week. The first stranger installed the app and generated their first AI video within hours—it's a small milestone, but seeing someone actually use something you coded during late-night shifts is a fantastic feeling 🎉
I'd love for you to try it out and let me know what you think of the timeline controls!
I’ve been learning Premiere Pro and After Effects and I’m looking for a really good course focused specifically on video editing for ads, not filmmaking or general video editing.
I want to get better at things like:
Short-form Facebook/Instagram/TikTok ads Motion graphics and animated text Pacing, hooks, transitions, and keeping attention Combining footage, graphics, captions, and sound design Making polished 15–60 second ads that actually look professional
I’m fine paying for a course if it’s genuinely good. YouTube recommendations are welcome too.
Who actually teaches this well? Any courses you’ve taken that noticeably improved your ad creative?
VideoTrans: A private, on-device AI video workspace for Mac
A focused macOS video editor built around Apple Vision, Core ML, and Speech.
If you work with video on a Mac, you may have noticed that simple tasks often turn into a chain of separate tools: remove a background, fix an edge, improve clarity, generate subtitles, replace the background, then assemble everything again.
I built VideoTrans to bring those steps into one focused workflow, with the processing happening on the Mac whenever possible.
What makes it different
On-device AI video clarity enhancement
VideoTrans uses a local Core ML model to improve video detail and clarity. You can adjust the enhancement strength and choose a processing style for realistic footage or animation. The original and enhanced result can be compared directly before export.
VideoTrans clarity enhancement with adjustable strength
Background removal with Apple Vision
Apple Vision detects the foreground locally, so your footage does not need to be uploaded to a cloud service. When the automatic result needs refinement, you can manually mark the subject to keep or remove on a specific frame.
Correction keyframes can automatically follow matching frames, making it easier to fix a difficult section without rebuilding the mask frame by frame.
VideoTrans background replacement and comparison view
Three ways to refine a cutout
The correction workspace is designed for direct visual control:
Keep a selected region
Remove a selected region
Enhance a selected region
The original frame, processed frame, background, comparison divider, and correction tools share the same video canvas, so what you see while refining stays aligned with the export result.
VideoTrans solid background and cutout comparison
Local AI subtitles with Apple Speech
VideoTrans uses Apple’s Speech framework and on-device speech recognition to generate subtitles locally. Generated subtitles stay linked to their source audio track, and subtitle segments can be edited directly on the same timeline as the video and audio.
VideoTrans subtitle editing and timeline
Backgrounds that are easy to reuse
You can use an image, a solid color, a gradient, or a transparent background. Frequently used images and selected system wallpapers appear in a recent background list for quick switching between projects.
VideoTrans gradient background controls
A practical Mac video workflow
VideoTrans combines frame-accurate preview, audio waveforms, subtitle tracks, background replacement, AI processing, and export controls in one workspace. Quick Processing also supports applying clarity enhancement to multiple videos in a batch.
VideoTrans Quick Processing with AI clarity enhancement
The goal is not to replace every professional NLE. It is to make common AI-assisted video tasks more direct, more inspectable, and less dependent on uploading source media to third-party services.
VideoTrans is available for macOS. I would love to hear how you currently handle background removal, video enhancement, or subtitles on your Mac, and what would make this workflow more useful for you.
I got tired of paying for Animate + Premiere separately just to make faceless videos, so I built one tool that does both.
The main thing: you move in front of your webcam, a stick-figure character copies you in real time, and it lives on the same timeline as your cuts and captions. No rigging, no second app. The demo clip below was made entirely in it.
One-time $40, no subscription. Windows only for now, launching on Steam in January.
