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Author Topic: How much work is needed to post-process video?  (Read 7675 times)

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« on: May 12, 2018, 22:46 »
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I am a photographer by trade, and have experience with both micro and premium stock, but when it comes to video it's mostly b-roll for some videos I do. I am absolutely not an expert when it comes to video filming or editing, but thinking I might be able to use some of the footage rather than just discarding it.

Wondering though how much work has to go into it - color grading, mixing clips, anything else? Or can an almost-raw-take be uploaded+sold on these platforms like pond5?


« Reply #1 on: May 12, 2018, 23:22 »
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Really depends on a lot of things.

a) It seems most sites now prefer as a minimum HD footage (1920x1080). So if it's not that, except in special circumstances (i.e., unique historical/archival footage), probably won't be accepted.
b) Raw is what most people seem to upload - although I've seen some remarkable footage that I know obviously has been edited. I'd say understand what people want. If they want raw, give them raw. But if you think they'd like properly color graded clips, etc, then give them that.

« Reply #2 on: May 12, 2018, 23:26 »
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Really depends on a lot of things.

a) It seems most sites now prefer as a minimum HD footage (1920x1080). So if it's not that, except in special circumstances (i.e., unique historical/archival footage), probably won't be accepted.
b) Raw is what most people seem to upload - although I've seen some remarkable footage that I know obviously has been edited. I'd say understand what people want. If they want raw, give them raw. But if you think they'd like properly color graded clips, etc, then give them that.

Cool - my footage is from 5D Mark IV (only shoot 1080p) and 4K from DVI Mavic Pro or Hero 5/6. Guess I should at least start uploading some clips and experiement!

Is there a good site to start with? Some of the agencies I already submit to also provide video, but then others I don't submit anything to like Pond5 or Storyblocks

« Reply #3 on: May 12, 2018, 23:29 »
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While I am 'relatively' new to this video/photo game - a lot of people recommend submitting to the sites on the right, in the order listed. I haven't yet submitted to the top 3 (so I could be potentially missing out on a lot of sales at the moment) - but - those are the sites you could start with.

The time consuming aspect is titling, keywording, and editing your video clips.

Hmm 5d Mark IV - I "suppose" thats an "okay" camera :)

What kind of footage do you have?

« Reply #4 on: May 12, 2018, 23:35 »
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While I am 'relatively' new to this video/photo game - a lot of people recommend submitting to the sites on the right, in the order listed. I haven't yet submitted to the top 3 (so I could be potentially missing out on a lot of sales at the moment) - but - those are the sites you could start with.

The time consuming aspect is titling, keywording, and editing your video clips.

Hmm 5d Mark IV - I "suppose" thats an "okay" camera :)

What kind of footage do you have?

Here's an example of mostly drone footage... and then there is a mix of drone+gopro footage in my other videos

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VHY9H3OAFg
« Last Edit: May 12, 2018, 23:37 by kmclachlan »

« Reply #5 on: May 13, 2018, 02:19 »
+1
Here's an example of mostly drone footage... and then there is a mix of drone+gopro footage in my other videos

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VHY9H3OAFg

Hi!

There is some great footage in there that would absolutely sell.

I would not agree with "most people upload RAW". At least not most people who SELL a lot. I would say 99% of all bestsellers have been edited/post-processed quite a bit. There are definitely very few RAW shots to be seen.

Of course, be careful of over-editing, but buyers seem to prefer a finished look - ready-to-go levels of contrast, saturation etc. That being said, horrible shots with white balance from Mars also sell if the subject matter is right.

But the goal is to create bestsellers, right?

The type of clip also matters. An editorial shot of a riot should probably look as natural as possible. A slow motion clip of a mountain climber can be heavily graded and have a cinematic look.

It also depends on what camera the footage comes from of course. Usually, I wouldn't edit GoPro footage too much, because it can't handle it, and you would usually film with a finished look anyway. If you have model releases for your skydiving shots they would be great stock clips. The POV kayaking clips too.

As for drone shots, I usually pull down the contrast a bit so that highlights don't get blown out and I color grade a bit. I don't personally think that the 4k footage from Mavics/Phantoms (before the 4 Pro at least) is OK to sell as 4k, because compared to a real 4k camera, it's just not there... I know people do, but...

Also watch out for the typical "drone camera moves" = robotic pans and tilts. In my opinion, that instantly ruins a clip.

If you are a perfectionist, you will find that editing and post-processing is very time consuming. For drone shots from the cheaper drones flicker reduction and noise reduction is usually required to get a clip I would feel comfortable charging money for.

---

Some people upload directly from their memory cards, but after what I've seen from forums, their huge portfolios of 10,000+ clips don't really get many sales. In my opinion, I think it's a giant waste of time.

Get the clips as perfect as you can and you will find that one really good clip will outsell 100-1,000 mediocre clips that are just mass uploaded. Not too different from stock photography. You just might want to leave a LITTLE more room for the buyer to color grade since stock footage usually needs to fit with other clips.
« Last Edit: May 13, 2018, 02:39 by increasingdifficulty »

« Reply #6 on: May 13, 2018, 03:02 »
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Hi, I totally agree with increasingdifficulty response.

I thought your footage was excellent and how amazingly natural and rugged New Zealand is. (Hoping to visit in a couple of years when the kids are bigger)
You have no worries with your editing skills. You played around with timing shots to the music which I liked.

For stock you shouldn't really need to edit a clip. Just cut the start and end bits for camera shake when you press record. As for colour grading. Yes deffo. I colour grade all my clips.

I could imagine that you could be the go to place for New Zealand extreme / natural / lifestyle shots. If you did this right you could make a lot of money:)

« Reply #7 on: May 15, 2018, 11:09 »
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Some beautiful footage there. I especially liked the lone tree immersed in the water.

Increasinglydifficult, would AVCHD clips be okay to colour grade without too much damage? I would only be doing minimal grading with mine.

« Reply #8 on: May 15, 2018, 11:46 »
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Some beautiful footage there. I especially liked the lone tree immersed in the water.

Increasinglydifficult, would AVCHD clips be okay to colour grade without too much damage? I would only be doing minimal grading with mine.

Well, I have never graded AVCHD clips myself for professional use. I worked with it 10 years ago but I didn't know much about grading back then.

However, I see that the maximum bitrate is 28 mbit/sec and that 21 mbit/sec is the highest for Panasonic AVCHD. That is quite low for 1920x1080, about half of a GoPro, which can't handle too much tweaking. They both use the h.264 codec so it would be a good comparison I believe.

But in the end, it all comes down to your eyes. You will see how quickly the footage falls apart. It just starts looking very ugly when you tweak too much. A RAW file from a professional camera can handle almost anything while a GoPro clip falls apart almost right away.

Of course, how the shot is filmed also plays a big part. If you have exposed to the right with plenty of light it can handle a lot more post processing.

If not much moves in the frame, you will have retained more quality compared to a shot where lots of things move around.
« Last Edit: May 15, 2018, 12:01 by increasingdifficulty »

« Reply #9 on: May 15, 2018, 12:25 »
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Yea it's Panasonic AVCHD. Hmmm Ive checked the bitrate of individual clips from my Panasonic and GoPro cameras and generally, the Panny files appear to have a higher bitrate. Some of the GoPro clips are 15469kbps and 15270kbps. Whereas two random Panasonic clips are 23050kbps and 32636kbps respectively. Recently, I did some light grading of Panasonic footage that I shot through a microscope of aquatic organisms and I didn't notice any degradation of the image. So I guess I'm good to go.

« Reply #10 on: May 15, 2018, 12:39 »
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If it looks good, it is good.  ;)

The newer GoPros record at 45 or 60 mbps, but of course it can be set to lower bitrates to save space, which is probably why you saw the 15 mbps clips. I wouldn't use that unless I had to though.

30 mbps 1920x1080 can work well, so just try it and see. The official maximum AVCHD bitrate seems to be 28, but maybe that's more of a guideline than an exact number.

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« Reply #11 on: May 15, 2018, 20:13 »
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Pond5 should be one of your first ports of call. There are certain varying reasons why some people avoid the following sites, but the top Tier on the right are the highest earners on the whole... Shutterstock, Adobe, iStock, Pond5... plus VideoBlocks.

But I think most people agree that Pond5 is one of the most popular. Set your own price, 50% commission, decent sales etc.   

« Reply #12 on: May 15, 2018, 20:20 »
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Pond5 should be one of your first ports of call. There are certain varying reasons why some people avoid the following sites, but the top Tier on the right are the highest earners on the whole... Shutterstock, Adobe, iStock, Pond5... plus VideoBlocks.

But I think most people agree that Pond5 is one of the most popular. Set your own price, 50% commission, decent sales etc.

Pond5 set some default prices for my uploads, but how much are most people typically setting their prices at? When I see a price in my dashboard but then see the file online, the buy price isn't the same (it's higher on buy page)?

« Reply #13 on: May 15, 2018, 21:07 »
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The newer GoPros record at 45 or 60 mbps, but of course it can be set to lower bitrates to save space, which is probably why you saw the 15 mbps clips. I wouldn't use that unless I had to though.

I have an older GoPro Hero 3 Silver and as far as I know, the bitrate can't be changed. I don't really have any choice but to use those clips for stock as Ive got some nice footage from that camera. I won't colour grade those clips however.

Though there's an additional issue. It looks like my GoPro has some dust on the sensor - sometimes it shows up as a dark spot in the footage, depending on the background colour. For some scenes, I could 'hide' that dark spot by importing the background colour from Photoshop and filling it in. Unfortunately, with some scenes with busy, constantly changing backgrounds, it would be impossible to fix.

« Reply #14 on: May 16, 2018, 00:24 »
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Though there's an additional issue. It looks like my GoPro has some dust on the sensor - sometimes it shows up as a dark spot in the footage, depending on the background colour. For some scenes, I could 'hide' that dark spot by importing the background colour from Photoshop and filling it in. Unfortunately, with some scenes with busy, constantly changing backgrounds, it would be impossible to fix.

Have you opened your GoPro (more than usual)? Replaced the lens or tinkered with it?

It's unlikely that you would have a sensor spot on a GoPro, although of course it COULD happen if you open it. It's more likely that the spot is on the lens itself or on the case, which would mean it's easy to remove. Sure it's not on the lens?

If it's a real sensor spot you would have to open up the GoPro and clean it. Since your GoPro has a fixed aperture, the spot would always be there, so do some tests and see if it randomly shows up or if it's always there.

You're right that for typical GoPro footage with constant movement, sensor spots would be very hard (not impossible, but time consuming) to remove in a nice way.
« Last Edit: May 16, 2018, 00:31 by increasingdifficulty »

« Reply #15 on: May 16, 2018, 01:18 »
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Dust spot would have to be on the sensor. The lens has been cleaned and the dark spot appears in footage with and without the underwater housing. I wouldn't trust myself to open up the camera or the lens lest I stuff it up. I enquired about getting it serviced / cleaned at a camera shop but they said the cost would be prohibitive because of the tiny size of the sensor. The guy reckoned it would cost just as much to buy a new GoPro which is not an option for me cos money is tight at the moment.

« Reply #16 on: May 22, 2018, 06:39 »
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I have filmed around 20,000 stock videos.

I record each video such that I do not need to do any editing. I avoid having to edit 99% of my work, and upload the camera native file. when I first started, I spent too much time editing mostly due to mistakes that could be corrected while recording.

it takes practice to get everything right during the recording process. but it saves tons of time.

« Reply #17 on: May 22, 2018, 08:57 »
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I have filmed around 20,000 stock videos.

I record each video such that I do not need to do any editing. I avoid having to edit 99% of my work, and upload the camera native file. when I first started, I spent too much time editing mostly due to mistakes that could be corrected while recording.

it takes practice to get everything right during the recording process. but it saves tons of time.

Holy, 20k is intense! Got a link to your portfolio?

« Reply #18 on: May 24, 2018, 15:38 »
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you said: "Got a link to your portfolio?"

here is a link to some of my portfolio:
https://www.shutterstock.com/video/search?contributor=cheapbooks

this has 17,590 videos:
https://www.pond5.com/artist/tiberio

« Reply #19 on: May 24, 2018, 15:39 »
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please be aware that anytime you post-process a video you will degrade the quality of the video, as compared to the original, unless you are trimming and recording to the native codec, and have software that supports storing the original frame.

the best option is to keep post-processing to a minimum.


 

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