Quick and Easy Video Production with Honestech Video Editor

Honestech Video Editor is a program a digital video newbie would have no trouble getting started with. The interface is inviting. After one look at it you know it’s not going to cause a beginner much headache.

If your screen resolution is 800 x 600, you’ll get a message to the effect that honestech requires 1024 x 768 to function.

You don’t have to go to the Control Panel to change your screen resolution. The message would prompt whether you want to change your screen resolution to 1024 x 768.

If you click Yes, the program resizes the screen for you. If you click No, the program does not start.

You are also informed when you start the program that you will be given a free thirty-day trial.

The program starts in the default storyboard mode. However, you can easily switch to the timeline mode by clicking on the timeline button on the left bottom corner of the interface.

Adding your multimedia files to the program is simple. There’s a bin provided on the upper left hand corner for that purpose.

However, you can’t simply add any multimedia file. You would have go to the drop down menu and choose whether you want to add video, audio, images or colour.

This separate selection mode will allow you to focus on specific multimedia files. For instance if you just want to work with images, you get all the images you want to work with listed easily.

The color mode will be ideal for those who want to create slide shows for YouTube or a quick text- based video. There are background colors from white to cyan to dark brown.

All you have to do is drag any background into the timeline and start adding your text.

Capture Mode

Under the capture mode you can grab video from a webcam. When I clicked on it, it was able to detect my Snazzi SVC 300 video capture device and display video in the preview window. However, it could only record video but not audio.

There are also capture options from TV, Digital Video Camera and also microphone audio capture.

Special Effects and Transitions

There are 82 cool effects to choose from and all you have to do is drag the ones you fancy and drop them on to your clips. The 84 transitions will also be more than enough for your video projects.

You also have plenty of titling options. Just move the mouse over a title icon and it shows the animated version of how it will appear in the video.

Auto Save Function

With the Honestech Video Editor you don’t have to worry about forgetting to save your video projects. The project file auto save function takes care of that for you.

Output

After you’ve done with your editing, you can output to file – MPEG1/2, DV-AVI, AVI and WMV. Under WMV, you can output to Pocket PC format and also for the web.

Alternatively, you can burn your project to DVD, VCD, SVCD and mini-DVD, among others with the built-in disc burner.

Writing your edited video back to tape is also supported.