Final Cut Express

When it came to editing our footage and composing our trailer we decided to use a software called Final Cut Express. This is a different software to the one in which I used within my foundation portfolio. The one in which I used within my foundation portfolio is Imovie which was more advanced with the technology and last year I did not find that Imovie was easier to use than Final Cut Express. Below I have included some print screens of how we used Final Cut Express to create our film trailer. 
   
The first step in which we had to do was import the footage and pictures from the SD card to the mac as we used both still images and running footage within our trailer for different effects. The screen shot below shows that the footage in which we required is on the bar at the bottom where we can edit the footage to make it as effective as what we can do with this software. By using this software we have the ability to import a large amount of footage in one go which makes it more effectively and efficiently.

After we had imported the footage it was time to start composing our film by clipping some footage. This step is where we started to combine footage sections together, within this stage we hadn't added in any transitions so the footage was jumping from one scene to another so it was not in a flowing matter at this stage. However by using the software to its potential we was able to shuffle the footage around into different places so that we could create our desired plot as well as to make sure that the footage made sense.

After we arranged the footage as well as editing and cropping the desired footage to what we needed and required we then began to slot it all together with the addition of transitions. We used a variety of different transitions to start off with but then we decided to keep the consistency throughout the trailer, so we decided to stick to fades of black and white. The reason for this is because as a group decision we felt that it looked more professional when we had consistency throughout the trailer. The fades to white added more of an action feel to the trailer and it gave the trailer a quicker pace with the transition, however the fade to black gave the opposite which was the corresponding feel which is what we were looking for which was fear which is what we wanted the fade to black to represent.

The editing process in which we under went involved the following steps;  cropping, cutting, inserting, adding filters, removing and overlapping sound, using two different software's together, changing speed and many other steps. Two members within the group had the most strongest skills and knowledge about using Final Cut Express within our group and so everyone within the group still had a go at using the software so that they can also gain confidence and contribute to the trailer. This was a benefit to the group as we was able to make the trailer a success between the three of us.