Wondershare Filmora is one of the best video editing utilities for beginners and general users. It has everything you need to create high-quality videos.

Benefits:

• The program is easy to master anyone, even if he has never edited the video before.

Disadvantages:

• Does not support storyboard editing.

Using the video editing software Wondershare Filmora.

Beginning of work

Double-click the software icon to launch Filmora. This will open the “Getting Started” window, in which there are 3 options: Project Library, New Project and Open Project. Library of the project - here are the latest projects, ordered by the date of their last change. Double-click a project to open it. You can also delete projects by clicking the trash icons on the right side of the window. Entering a project name in the search bar is another way to find a specific project. Click “Open Project” to select one of the projects (.wfp files) saved on your computer. Left-click on the “New Project” to enter the editing interface and start a completely new project.

Editing interface

Regardless of which parameters you select in Getting Started, the program will open the editing interface:

• Media Library - here you will find all your media files, including video clips, photos and music. It also contains transitions, effects, and many other resources that you can use in your projects.
• Preview window - shows the video in the timeline. The position of the playhead is displayed in the time code in the lower right corner. You can enter a new time code to go to a specific point in the video. There is also a snapshot button that can save a still image at full resolution and automatically add it to the media library as an image.
• Toolbar - The toolbar provides easy access to many editing commands. You can zoom in and out on the timeline and access various tools, such as cut and speed.
• The timeline is the place where media and effects are stored for your project.

Basic Editing

After your media files (videos, images, etc.) are imported, you can proceed directly to using the Wondershare Filmora.

Selection of clips in the media library:

• To select a single media file, click on its thumbnail.
• To select a sequence of media files, click the first (first) thumbnail, press and hold Shift, and then click the last thumbnail.

Certain multimedia files can be found using the search bar.

Removing media from the media library:

• In the library, click the RMB clip you want to delete, and select "Delete."

When you delete a video clip or other media fragment from the library, you delete it only from Filmora, but not delete it from the PC.

Add video and other media files to the timeline:

• Method 1 - click on the thumbnail of the project, then drag it to your timeline.
• Method 2 - right-click on the desired multimedia sketch and select one of the following options:
  • Insert - add media to the selected track in the play field. Any media that is already on the track to the right of the inserted media will move to the right by the length of the inserted clip.
  • Overwrite - add your media files to the selected track in the play area and replace all effects present here.
  • Add (add to the end) - add media as the last piece in the selected track.
  • Add to new track - add media to the newly created track, in which there are no other media files.

You cannot add media files to tracks with locking enabled. Similarly carried out trimming videos.

Attaching to a video

The merge function is intended for cases where you have several video clips and you want to merge them into one. To merge videos, place them on the timeline in the desired order, and export them as one video. Improving video clips - improve your projects by adjusting the white balance, tone, color, light, HSL and adding vignettes:

• Double-click the desired clip in the timeline to go to the Edit panel, and select the Color menu.
• Drag the sliders to adjust the color temperature, hue, contrast, saturation and brightness. You can also enter a numeric value if you know the exact setting. 3D LUT effects are also available if you want to change the entire look of your video at once. View the preview window to see how the new settings affect the appearance of the video.
• Click Advanced to go to the Advanced Color Setting panel, where you will find the presets, as well as options for adjusting colors, lighting, hues, saturation, brightness, vignettes, etc.
• You can also enter the Advanced Setup by right-clicking the clip and selecting Color Correction or Color in the toolbar.

A still image is a still image representing one frame of your video clip. Typically, still images are used to create the impression that time has stopped at a certain point in your video. Here's how to create a snapshot in Filmora:

1. On the timeline, move the playhead to the frame you want to capture.
2. Click the speedometer icon on the toolbar and select Freeze Frame.
3. Set the length of the freeze frame by dragging its edge. You can also change the default freeze frame duration by selecting File / Preferences / Editing.

Resizing video clips:

• If you need to resize a video clip, drag it onto the timeline.
• You can also change the resolution, frame rate and bit rate in the export window to reduce the file size.
• If you need to change the size of the video display, use the "Scale" slider.

Applying effects

With filters and overlays your creative possibilities will become limitless. You can drastically change the look of your video in just a couple of clicks. Wondershare Filmora9 allows you to add as many effects and overlays as you want. There are three ways to do this:

1. In the media library, click Effects, and then select the filters or overlays that you want to add to your project.
2. Hover over the sketch of the effect you want to use. When you see a plus sign in the middle, click on it - the effect will be added to the timeline.
3. Drag the filter / overlay and place it directly on the video clip in the timeline. Effects will be applied to the entire video clip.

If you are editing a “portrait” (9:16) clip in 16: 9 video, you can add background blur filters to replace the black bars.

To remove filters / overlays, use one of two methods:

1. Select a filter / overlay in the timeline and press "Del" on the keyboard.
2. Right-click the filter / overlay in the timeline and select “Delete” from the menu.

Filter Settings

All filters and overlays are sorted by subject category (for example, Faux Film or Bokeh Blurs) to make them easy to find. Go to the Effects menu and look at the left side of the screen to see the categories and start browsing. Wondershare Filmora allows you to change the duration or opacity of filter effects:

• The default length is five seconds, but you can drag the edge of the effect on the timeline to change its duration.
• Alpha opacity (transparency) can be set to 0-100. A lower value makes the filter more transparent. Double-click the filter in the timeline to adjust its transparency.

Favorite filters / overlays:

• Right-click the effect / filter in the Effects menu and select Add to Favorites. Then go to the "Favorites" category to quickly find the effect again.

Items

Elements are moving graphics that you can use to decorate your video. They can be added between your video clips to improve the video stream or improve its quality. Filmora includes over 20 free sounds.

To add an item to your project:

• Go to Elements and select the element you want to add to your project.
• Drag it onto the timeline.

To remove items:

1. Select the one you want to delete and press “Del” on the keyboard.

or

2. Right-click on the element in the timeline and select “Delete” from the menu.

To save an item, right-click on it in the Elements menu and select Add to Favorites. To add a transition between videos or images in your project:

• Go to the Transitions section, find the transition you like and drag it to the timeline between the two clips.

To apply a transition to a single video clip or image:

• Drag a video clip or image onto the timeline.
• Open the Transitions menu.
• Select a transition and drag it to the beginning or end of a video clip or image on the timeline.

To change the duration of a transition, double-click it in the timeline, and then enter a new duration. You can also click and drag the starting or ending point of the transition forward or backward within the video clip or image. The default duration is 2 seconds.

Advanced Editing

To play the video in reverse order, follow these steps:

• Run the program and select "Create a new project."
• Click the Import button or drag the video manually.
• In the “User Speed” panel, select the “Play Video in Reverse” checkbox.
• You can also directly click the “Speed” icon on the toolbar and click “Reverse”.

To stabilize the video:

• Run the program and select "Create a new project."
• Click “Import” or drag video manually.
• Double-click a video clip in the timeline or right-click to select “Show Properties” (“Change”). Then you will see stabilization in the media library.
• Once you achieve the desired result, click OK.

To record a PC screen:

• Run the program and select "Create a new project."
• Select “Record PC screen” in the “Record” section.

Panorama and zoom

The pan and zoom effect, also known as the Ken Burns effect, allows you to slowly zoom in on the main objects, and pan them from one to another:

1. Drag the video onto the track (the first line of the timeline).
2. Select the video, right-click and check "Crop and Zoom."
3. Select “Panorama” and “Zoom”, and you will see two frames marked “Start” and “End” above the video clip in the viewer.
4. Select the starting frame, drag it and resize it until the beginning of the clip is decorated as you need.
5. Select the end of the frame by repeating step 3. You can click the play button to view the instant result. If it does not meet your expectations, click Reset to repeat the operation.
6. Click OK to save the settings.

Export video

Here's how to save, export, and share your finished videos:

• Export video to PC.

To export video to a computer, click the export button and select the Local tab. Then select the format to export. Currently Filmora supports the following formats: WMV, MP4, AVI, MOV, F4V, MKV, TS, 3GP, MPEG-2, WEBM, GIF and MP3.

After selecting the output format, you can rename the video and change its location on the PC. You can also check the output resolution, frame rate, size and duration right in the program. To change the export settings (for example, resolution, bit rate and frame rate), click the Settings button. It is best to export videos with the same settings as the original one.

When you have finished setting the export options, click OK to save them. Then, after you close the “Settings” window, click the “Export” button in the “Export” window.

• Export to playback device.

On the “Device” tab in the “Format” section, you can select video output in accordance with the ideal settings for various types of devices, such as: iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Samsung Galaxy phones, PlayStation 4s and others. You can also make changes to the settings manually by clicking the Settings button. Click export when you are done.

• Direct video download in the social network.

You can upload your videos, even in 4k, directly to YouTube or Vimeo. You will need to enter your account details for the site to which you want to upload the project.

• Burn DVD.

You can burn video to DVD. Select the DVD tab and check the options you want, such as aspect ratio and disc type.

Watermark

There is only one difference between the free trial version of Filmora9 and the paid license: videos exported from the free version will have a Filmora watermark. If you used the free version and now you want to export video without a watermark, here’s what you need to do:

1. Save the project. Be sure to save the project file and all source documents unchanged (i.e., do not delete the video from the PC).
2. Upgrade to the paid version of Filmora. There are two separate paid plans to choose from: a life plan and an annual subscription.
3. Open the project and register. Open your project again and click the account icon in the upper right corner to enter your Wondershare ID. A popup window will show you that you have been successfully registered. Click OK to close the window.
4. Export without watermark. Click “Export” and select the format for the output file. After exporting, open the video and you will see that there is no watermark.

Wondershare Filmora is a good choice for one-time and novice users, but for more control over your projects you should pay attention to other more advanced editors.