wowbmw Loc: Grant, Colorado

Just found this forum. My husband purchased a canon g15 and wants to do videos like "man on the street" comments. At one time he did this using 3/4 inch equipment. Don't see me helping him since all my spare time goes to still photography. So, please help me point him in the right direction.

BrentHarder Loc: Southern California

My son who is a pro photographer and video guy suggests to use iMovie for simplicity. I hope you are on a Mac? Note: He is much more advanced than that and wants to have more control so he uses other software.

wowbmw Loc: Grant, Colorado

Hey, thanks for the info. I am a Mac user but not my husband. Tried to get him to switch but no luck. I think he is going to try a windows product but not sure how committed he is just now.

Papa Joe Loc: Midwest U.S.

I've used Pinnacle over the past five versions, including 15, which I still use. Good editing software, but not the best for creating/burning DVD's for TV viewing. I use Cyberlink for that final step.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

I'm not familiar with Canon, but Sony and Panasonic provide pretty good basic video editing software with their cameras that shoot video. So the free choices are Canon's, iMovie and Windows Movie Maker.

Video editing software changed names in the transition from tape to digital. We now call the "Non Linear Editors" or "NLE". Search for NLE on Wikpedia and you will get to a list of about 30 that are on the market.

Many are expensive and aimed at Movie Production or Television Broadcast.

There are a bunch in the $100 range. Based on participation in another camcorder forum, I think Sony's Vegas Home Studio and Adobe's Premier Elements have the greatest shares of the market.

A unique part of NLE use, is that when a user becomes succesful with one, he/she will defend it as "the best" until death do they part.

The one I defend is Adobe Premier Elements, now in version 12. I tried several and it provided me with my quickest success. Now that I know how to use it, mountains would have to move before I would invest the time learning anything else.

Practical Reasons Why I Think Premier Elements Is Best.

1. You can buy it in a combo pack with Photoshop Elements where they share the Organizer. They also work well with Lightroom. (BTW, Lightroom now can make videos too.)

2. Related to #1, as I've learned the use of PE, PrE and Lightroom together, the "whole" is greater than the "parts". There is a synergistic relationship that has developed by keeping the three key parts of my photo/video habit in the same Adobe house.

3. There seems to be far more free and paid for online training available for Adobe products than any other. This is a big one for me. It is fun to learn this stuff because the online teachers have become so good.

4. Unique to Adobe Premier Elements and Photoshop Elements is that, if you buy the boxed set at B&H, Amazon, Costco, etc., the 2 computer license can include one PC and one Mac because there are versions in the box for both.

5. Buying into the Adobe system gets you good RAW support. Not well known is that Premier Elements has ACR, and its updates, built in. You can load a batch of RAW photos, make a slideshow or mix them with video clips. You can do the "Ken Burns Pan and Zoom" on a photo next to a video clip.

Be forewarned, that NLE systems need strong computers. A digital video takes from 24 to 60 photos per second. Even 10 minutes of that creates a lot of work for a computer to process. If your spouse does not have one, he will be needing one to prevent hair loss and cold sweats.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

I forgot a couple.

6. Premier Elements has a Simple, Guided and Expert modes and you can switch as necessary.

7. Premier Elements has extraordinary management of the audio part. You can manage the original track, a background music track and even add a narration track buy talking to your computer mic.

8. You can output versions from within the program optimized for everything from YouTube to smartphone, to tablet to DVD or Blu-Ray. There is no need for video conversion tools.

jimmya Loc: Phoenix

I would suggest he look into TrakAxPC. I find it simple to use and it handles "rolling shutter" very well. It's also inexpensive but boasts lots of features.

edfed Loc: Melbourne. Florida

I have used Avid and Pinnacle Studio over the years until just recently. I am now using PowerDirector 12 by Cyberlink. I find it to be a great program, not hard to learn, lots of free extras out on Director Zone. You can always download a free trial and give it a whirl.