Creating clips from GoPro video & Workflow Questions

[Ianw58]

First, I spent hours yesterday searching for this information, but didn't really find the answer. Perhaps someone else can point me to an appropriate thread if there is one.

When Shooting GoPro video underwater, do you shoot continuously or do you stop and start throughout the dive?

If you shoot continuously, how do you break the video file into separate clips? Since a dive typically lasts an hour and the max size on a Go Pro (3+ Silver) is about 19 minutes, four separate files are created running continuously. Do you create clips of them to build your videos?

What is your normal workflow from shooting to final product? What software do you use for the various steps?

Thanks for your input!

 

[Hatul]

I set my GoPro to keep the viewfinder on all the time but only shoot when I see something interesting, so on a typical dive I have several clips that I put together. Each clip is about 20-60 seconds long. I use PowerDirector for my editing software. There are lots of Youtube videos on using this software.

After each dive I change the battery (carefully) on my Hero4. It's also nice to switch to photo mode underwater shoot a few stills and put that in my movie in PowerDirector.

 

[Bubblesong]

Lots of little clips, which i get screenshots out of.

 

[ReefHound]

I do not shoot continuously. I'm only interested in stable quality clips and there would be too much waste. As time goes by, I am getting more judicious in what i shoot. I don't need another clip of a French angel or Spotfin butterfly unless it is some new behaviour. Here's my workflow.

Delete thumbnails and lowres files. Copy video files from SD card to SSD hard drive.

Adjust timestamps, if necessary. (Easier to make sure date/time is correct on camera but sometimes I forget.)

Add metadata tags to videos. I use a free app called MP3Tag to store basic info like description title and dive site and quality rating (A, B, C). This makes it much easier to find specific clips later in a folder.

Copy all video files from SSD hard drive to external drive for archive. (This step skipped if I edit the clips right away. The above steps are done while on or right after my trip. The following steps are done as time allows.)

Create clips. Even starting and stopping leaves crappy footage, esp. at beginning and end. I use a free app called Lossless Cut. It's super fast and does no re-encoding and outputs clips with filename and clip start/stop times embedded. I'll start with the A clips, then the B, then the C if time allows. Rating is obviously very subjective. Mine is A = awesome, def a keeper. B = pretty good, could be better. C = decent, esp. if I have no similar A or B clips.

Copy and update metadata from base video to clips. (This is a frustrating redundancy because the above clipping tool doesn't preserve the metadata in the original clip. But often the new clip needs updated metadata anyway since I might make multiple final clips from one original clips.) After this step, I now have all my quality clips from the trip. Anything else can be deleted (or archived if you're a digital packrat.)

Copy all video files from SSD hard drive to external USB drives for archive.

For editing and making a movie, copy folder to SSD drive for speed. I use Magix Movie Edit Pro Premium.
a. Open template and save as trip project. My template is based on my preferences.
b. Import all clips in folder into Clips movie. This project becomes the base for this trip.
c. Apply necessary post-processing (crops, WB/color adjustments, etc)
d. Arrange desired clips on movie story board for final product. Not all clips may be used and there may be more than one movie.
c. Export movies for finished product.

 

[Ianw58]

I set my GoPro to keep the viewfinder on all the time but only shoot when I see something interesting, so on a typical dive I have several clips that I put together.

Great idea! I use PowerDirector, too.

THANKS!

 

[Ianw58]

Wow! Terrific ideas in that post. Exactly what I was looking for.

Thanks so much for the time you spent on this.

 

[Ianw58]

Lots of little clips, which i get screenshots out of.

Very cool. Thanks!

 

[ReefHound]

Wow! Terrific ideas in that post. Exactly what I was looking for.

Thanks so much for the time you spent on this.

It really wasn't a lot of time. I have all the steps in a workflow text file that helps guide me through it each time. So consider that another suggestion. The only time spent was deleting all the parts that are specific to my computer or software.

 

[ReadyDiverOne]

Copy and update metadata from base video to clips.

Great post. Curious about the quoted portion. How, precisely, do you do this? And are you able to mheaintain the original recorded time and date stamp? I've found that when I cut my GoPro into clips using QuikTime (yes, it sucks), the resulting clips have different time and date stamps such that when I import them into Apple Movie I can't redate them, even using the Movie redate tool.

Thanks.

 

[Ianw58]

Reefhound...

I dl'd Lossless Cut and threw together a quick 30 sec spot in a preview version of Adobe Premiere Rush to see what it would look like. The video is not great, but gives me an idea of how the software works.

Thanks for your workflow and write up. Good stuff there!