Anyone use DaVinci Resolve 18 for Video?

hark

hark

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
So I am looking for video editing software and have heard great things about DaVinci Resolve 18. Has anyone used it for video editing? I'm a newbie when it comes to video so am not looking for anything expensive at this point.

Any pro/cons to mention? Or do you have other suggestions that aren't overly expensive?
 
Fred Kingston

Fred Kingston

Senior Member
If I were you, I'd start with iMovie on your Mac. It's already installed... Video editing software all pretty much follows the same work-flow process... and layout... You import video clips, you assemble/drag the clips on to a timeline that tells a story, you adjust the length of the clips, insert transitions between the clips so the story flows evenly, and you add a soundtrack to the timeline, and export a finished video... Different software just refines or adds more tools/features to each of those processes...but they all do the basic stuff as outlined...
 
hark

hark

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
Fred Kingston said:
If I were you, I'd start with iMovie on your Mac. It's already installed... Video editing software all pretty much follows the same work-flow process... and layout... You import video clips, you assemble/drag the clips on to a timeline that tells a story, you adjust the length of the clips, insert transitions between the clips so the story flows evenly, and you add a soundtrack to the timeline, and export a finished video... Different software just refines or adds more tools/features to each of those processes...but they all do the basic stuff as outlined...
Click to expand...
Thanks. I will definitely look into this.
 
W

WaltE

New member
A definite YES to Davinci Resolve! I've used other NLE's and DR is the best I've used. It is the industry standard for color grading and it handles all other editing functions very well. I just got my Z8 so I haven't had a lot of time in working on Nikon Raw files but from what I can tell, DR handles it very well. I've already pushed the files a lot and they do not break up. DR also works relatively great with 4:2:0 8bit files. DR is a powerhouse and with that comes a learning curve but you're working with a second to none and best in class color grading NLE. It's a one time purchase and for some about the same as one month's McDonalds budget. One caveat, if you are going to do a lot of raw and especially multi camera shoots, you will need a very good graphics card. DR relies a lot on the GPU.

Regarding the free version of DR, Blackmagic did a nice job of including functions that a more casual user would need. It is a very powerful NLE with a learning curve. I used it to see if I could conquer the learning curve. It's my perspective that it is worth a try.
 
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W

WaltE

New member
Here's a quick sample clip from the Z8 and DR. I'm posting in a hurry so it may be awhile before 4k is available from YouTube. Also, please remember youtube squashes the video for easy streaming.

 
hark

hark

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
WaltE said:
Here's a quick sample clip from the Z8 and DR. I'm posting in a hurry so it may be awhile before 4k is available from YouTube. Also, please remember youtube squashes the video for easy streaming.

Click to expand...
Thanks for your thoughts on the software and for posting the video!
 
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