Video editing in South Lake Tahoe
Editing and color grading for footage you already have. Concerts, events, action sports and business video, cut to the music, graded properly and delivered in the shape each platform wants.
Services offered
Editing your footage
Phone, action camera or cinema camera footage, cut into a piece worth watching.
Social cuts
Vertical, square and widescreen versions, each cut for its platform rather than cropped.
Music edits
Cuts placed on the beat and on the song’s phrases, so the edit moves with the track.
Highlights and recaps
A full show, game day or event cut down to the moments worth sharing.
Color grading
Log footage graded properly, and footage from different cameras matched so it reads as one shoot.
Delivery
Full-quality files through a private clips page, ready to post.
Editing tools
References I use in my own edits, free to use in yours.
Cut Pacing Reference
Starting templates for five pacing styles at 15 to 90 seconds, drawn as clip tracks: each block is a section of the edit, each bar is a shot. Select a track to play it at real speed. The music and the motion inside each shot have the final say.
Scene change: a new place, activity or subject. A new angle on the same moment isn’t one.
Notes for the edit
These apply to every style and override the shot lengths above when they conflict.
- Motion counts as pace. A 3s whip pan feels faster than a 1s locked-off shot. Treat the lengths as a starting point and adjust by eye.
- Cut to the song’s structure. Pick the track first. Change sections on bar lines, ideally at 4- or 8-bar phrase changes, and make the piece a whole number of bars that ends on a downbeat or ring-out, even if that moves the length a second or two. Beats view does this.
- Cuts that feel late. If a cut placed on the beat feels late on playback, move it 1–2 frames earlier.
- Music drops are short; silence never happens. Cut the music on a downbeat for 1–2 bars and bring it back on beat 1. Under the drop keep natural sound, room tone or a sound-effect tail; true silence plays like a broken video. For longer quiet stretches use the song’s own breakdown, a filtered bed, or retime the track (Premiere’s Remix) rather than muting it mid-phrase.
- Audio edits. Put a 1–2-frame crossfade on every audio cut so fast cuts don’t click. In Slow Burn, let sound lead the picture: bring the next shot’s audio in 0.5–2s before the cut (J and L cuts).
- Text needs its own layer. Put on-screen text on a layer that spans several cuts, and hold a hook line at least 1.5–2s, long enough to read twice. Burn in captions for any voiceover. Keep hook and call-to-action text inside the platform’s safe zone, clear of the caption area and the buttons on the right.
- Flashing limits. Fast cuts count as flashes when they flip more than a quarter of the screen between bright and dark, and more than three flashes in any second fails UK broadcast rules (Ofcom guidance, WCAG 2.3.1). Alternating bright and dark shots of 0.2s (5–6 frames) or longer stay under it; a cut to or from saturated red counts at any brightness. Stutters repeat the same clip, so they don’t flash. Use 1–2-frame white flashes only as single hits, never in trains, and run a Harding or PEAT check on anything with strobes. TikTok warns viewers about flashing content (TikTok).
- Loops. Reels and TikTok replay automatically, so the last shot is also the cut back into the first. Keep final holds to about 5s or less, and for a loop, end on a frame that cuts cleanly into frame one.
How it works
Send the footage
Share what you shot, where it’ll be posted and when you need it.
The edit
I cut and grade it. You review the cut and send notes.
Delivery
Final versions for each platform through your private clips page.
Questions
What footage can you work with?
Most phones and cameras, including log footage from cinema cameras. If it’s unusual, send a sample clip first.
How do I get my footage to you?
A shared folder or download link works. For big shoots, a drive dropped off in South Lake Tahoe works too.
How much does editing cost?
It depends on how much footage there is, the length of the edit and the versions you need. You’ll get a clear answer before I start.
How long does an edit take?
It depends on the edit. You’ll get a delivery date before I start.
Can you cut it to a song?
Yes. The edit is cut to the beat and the song’s phrases. For posts, use a song you have the rights to, or one from the platform’s library.
Can you film it too?
Yes. I shoot too, so filming and editing can come as one job. That’s the Video production service. Video production
What’s the cut pacing tool?
A free reference for pacing short-form edits: five styles at 15 to 90 seconds, with a player that runs each one at real speed. It’s on this page under Editing tools.
Got footage that needs an edit?
Send what you shot, where it’s going and when you need it.
