Videos and images are fundamental assets of visual art in the digital era. Each has its own benefits and sometimes it’s hard to choose which format would be more suitable to convey the right emotion to the audience. This is where cinemagraph comes into play, allowing its advocates to make the best of image’s stillness and focus and at the same time enrich it with video dynamics for a more vivid picture.

In this tutorial, we will cover the most practical ways of creating a First things first: find the right softwareFirst things first: find the right software.

First things first: find the right software

Many people choose image editing software as a starting point for making a cinemagraph and end up covered in piles of Photoshop tutorials. We suggest an opposite approach and strongly recommend downloading VSDC Video Editor for three reasons:

• It is designed to work with motion videos and offers a number of video editing features, so it’s a better fit for cinemagraph than Photoshop;
• The software has a completely free version that doesn’t impose any limitations for our purposes;
• It doesn’t require much practice to become good at it.

How to make a cinemagraph: method #1

There are two ways to create a cinemagraph with VSDC. We’ll start with the free option first.

A video tutorial on Method #1 is available here:

1. Open VSDC Free Video Editor.
2. Select “Import Content” option in the main menu.
3. Choose the video intended for cinemagraph from your desktop and click “Finish”. The Video will be added to the timeline.
4. Use left-mouse click on the timeline to select the right moment in the video that you want to freeze and use as an image.
5. Proceed to the “Cutting and splitting” tab in the top menu and select and wrench icon. In the drop-down list select the “Create snapshot” option. The image will be added to the resources window (under the “Images” section) on the right-hand side on the screen.
6. Go back to the timeline and drag the time indicating “needle” to the very beginning of the video. This way the rest of the timeline items will be automatically added to the beginning of the clip.

   

7. Drag the snapshot to the preview area. It will automatically be added to the timeline.
8. Choose the green “Add free shape” option in the left-hand side menu and press ok.
9. Add the “Free shape” to the preview section by holding the left mouse button and dragging the mouse over the preview area.
10. Double-click the “Free Shape” box on the timeline.
11. Delete all the ShapePoints in the timeline.
12. Proceed to the top menu, select the “Free Shape” tab and click the “Insert point” option.
13. Use left mouse clicks to select exactly the area that you want to “come alive” in your cinemagraph.
14. Go back to “Scene 0” in the left-hand side of the timeline.
15. Go to the “Properties” tab in the bottom right corner of the screen and select the black color for your free shape. Make sure you select the color under the “Brush” section, not under the “Pen” section.

    

16. Right click the layer with your video on a timeline and choose “Cut”.
17. Double-click the “Free Shape” box on the timeline.
18. Proceed to the top menu, select “Video Effects --> Transparency --> Clipping”. The clipping box will be added to the timeline.
19. Double-click the “Clipping” box.
20. Use the right mouse click on the preview area and select “Paste”. You have now inserted the video in your Clipping object.
21. Click the “Preview” button above the timeline to make sure you like the outcome.
22. Proceed to the “Export project” tab in the top menu. Select the format and the location on your desktop where you want to place the cinemagraph.
23. Finish the process by clicking the red “Export project” button in the same title tab.

Here is a graphic description of method #1. Basically, in this method, you are placing a free shape with a video inside it over a static image.

How to make a cinemagraph: method #2

Method #2 uses the mask feature. It is an option for cinemagraph, but it requires you to buy the Pro version. A video tutorial on Method #2 is available here:

1. Repeat the first 6 steps from method #1.
2. Left click on the preview area. This way you will deselect the video layer on the timeline and ensure that the new objects will be added to the front layer.
3. Drag the snapshot to the preview area from the resources window. It will automatically be added to the beginning of the timeline.
4. Double-click the newly appeared Image layer on the timeline.
5. Choose the green “Add Ellipse” option in the left-hand side menu and press ok. You may also use the Rectangle option for your purposes.
6. Add Ellipse by holding the left mouse button and dragging the mouse over the preview area.
7. Place the ellipse in such a way that it covers exactly the area that you want to “come alive” in your cinemagraph.
8. Go to the “Properties” tab at the bottom right corner of the screen and select the black color for your Ellipse. Make sure you select the color under the “Brush” section, not under the “Pen” section.
9. On the left-hand side of the timeline menu click the “Blend” button on the ellipse layer and choose the “Mask” option.
10. Click the “Preview” button above the timeline to make sure you like the outcome.
11. Proceed to the “Export project” tab in the top menu. Select the format and the location on your desktop where you want to place the cinemagraph.
12. Finish the process by clicking the red “Export project” button in the same title tab.

Here is a graphic description of method #2. Basically, in this method, you are cutting out a hole in the static image to see the background video through it.

The major difference between the methods is indicated in the table below.

You are all set now. Select a preferable method and get down to cinemagraphing. Good luck!

Video reversing has become a popular feature among both experienced and amateur video bloggers these days. There are many online applications designed for these purposes out there, but they don’t guarantee the security of your private content, have a very poor toolset and impose certain processing limitations that wouldn’t allow you to edit hefty high-quality videos.

This how-to guide is aimed to show you one of the fastest, easiest and yet reliable ways to impress your family and friends with this stunning effect.

First off, download free VSDC Video Editor. Unlike online editors, VSDC doesn’t require you to upload private content on the Internet. In addition, the free version of the editor doesn’t have those unpleasant limitations for video sizing, allowing you to work with high-quality videos shot with a GoPro for instance. Finally, the output video is free of any watermarks on it.

Once you are done with the installation process, launch the editor and click the “Import Content” button from the top menu.

Select the desired video file from your computer with a double-click. Click “Finish” in the new window to complete the import. Now that you have imported the video, it is ready to be edited. Proceed to the side menu at the right corner of the screen (called Properties window). Find the “Playing backwards” section. You may have to scroll down to find it. By default, you will see a “no” to the right of this section indicating that the video hasn’t been reversed yet. Proceed to the dropdown section and select the “yes” value.

You are almost done. Now it’s time to save your video. Select the “Export project” tab at the top of your screen. Here you can choose the desired file format, the name for your video and the location where you want to save it. You may also choose the quality of the exported file in this menu.

As soon as you are ready, click the “Export project” tab again and select the red “Export project” button right next to the red flag. Wait for a brief moment until the export is complete and – voila! Go ahead and share your video with friends.

Now let’s recap the whole process.

• Download free VSDC Video editor on your computer and install it.
• Import your video.
• Select the “Yes” value in the bottom right corner menu for the playing backwards section.
• Export the video on your computer.

Additional Tips and Tricks

Reversing a video is presumably not the only feature you might need when editing your clip. Cutting and splitting the video before export may also come in handy. For this matter, select the imported video on a timeline and go to the “Editor” tab at the top of your screen. Choose the necessary cutting and splitting tools to crop your video.

Another important feature is video speed adjustment. Remember the part of the menu with the “Playing backwards” section? Well, that’s exactly where the speed adjustment options are located. You will find the speed percentage indicator right under the “Playing backwards” setting.

Type in the desired speed value and make sure you preview the altered speed video to see if you like the result. Here you will find more detailed guides on how to slow down or speed up your videos.

The last feature that we will cover in this tutorial is sound adjustment. Let’s be honest – reversed audio is rarely as good as a video. Luckily we don’t have to dig deep to find sound control options with VSDC Editor. We will return to the very same Properties window we used for the initial reverse and speed adjustments.

1. Select the video on a timeline, scroll down the right-hand menu to the very bottom and you will see the “Audio track” setting.
2. Choose the “Don’t use audio” option from the dropdown list and enjoy the silence.
3. Alternatively, you may add a different soundtrack to it. To import new content, go to the top menu and select the “Editor” tab. Click the “Add an object” button and select “Audio” from the dropdown list. Choose the audio file you want to import and press “ok”.
4. Adjust the length of your audio file with the same tools you used for cutting and splitting your video.
5. Don’t forget to preview your work before exporting the clip.

You may learn more about working with the volume of video files in this tutorial.

Well, now you are armed and ready to reverse your video. If something remains unclear, feel free to refer to this brief video instruction to visualize the whole process.

Shooting ultra HD videos used to be a prerogative of video editing professionals, but those times are over. Nowadays action cameras are eagerly adopting this new format while video hosting services like YouTube are offering its users the ability to upload 4K clips introducing more and more amateurs to this new technology. But where do we stand with 4K video editing software? Is it already available to wide audiences?

According to numerous articles on the Internet if you are planning to work with 4K videos – the money spent on the actual camera is the least of your expenditures. They say that unless you are willing to invest over $2500 on computer upgrades, ultra HD video editing isn’t for you. Fortunately, the Internet is not always right and there are much cheaper ways to edit a 4K video. One of the easiest methods is to find the right software, capable of utilizing even average hardware to the full.  We suggest that you download free VSDC Video Editor. VSDC is known for its comparatively low system requirements and the capability to process 4K footage even on low-end computers with limited memory.

Below, we’ll help you get started with VSDC and provide a few tips on editing 4K videos in particular.

Video import

Upon completing the installation process, launch VSDC and click the “Import Content” button from the top menu. Select your 4K video from the computer. This way your video will be imported to the scene without quality loss and the whole editing scene will be adjusted to your ultra HD video parameters.

Color correction

Now it’s time for the actual editing. 4K videos work as a magnifying glass exaggerating the upsides as well as the downsides of your clips, so attention to detail is necessary.

Ultra-realistic videos oftentimes deserve color correction to mask either the bad weather or poor lightning. To improve the color spectrum, proceed to the top left corner of the and select “Video Effects” >> “Adjustment”. Choose between available options to enhance contrast, gamma and other visual aspects of your clip.

Video export

When you are done with editing, it’s time to export your full HD video. Proceed to the top menu and select “Export Project” >> “Web” >> “For YouTube”. Choose a name for your file and the location where you want to save it in the “Output file(s)” field. Complete the process by clicking the “Export Project” tab. This may take some time depending on your hardware.

If you still have any questions about exporting you 4k video, please refer to a one-minute video instruction below.

Want to reduce 4k?

If 4k is too cumbersome for you to work with or the video it doesn’t fit on your storage device you can always shrink the size of your clip with VSDC. For this matter import your video, select the “Export Project” tab and proceed to the “Edit Profile” section. Find the “Profile Filter” option to choose the necessary resolution. 1080 (Full HD) or 720 (HD) will most likely be more than enough for the intended outcome. Press “Apply Profile” to save changes and move on with exporting your project from the top menu.

Bonus features

If you are planning to edit many 4K videos you might want to increase the processing speed. This is made possible with the Pro version of VSDC that allows for hardware acceleration. The Pro version leverages the capacity of your video card (if the video card supports it) speeding up 4K video export.

If you purchased the Pro version, make sure you activate hardware acceleration in the program options. Hardware acceleration is not the only bonus you get with a Pro version of VSDC.

If you are shooting videos with an action camera, you will most definitely find video stabilization tool useful. You will find a detailed instruction on how to use it here. If you prefer visual guides, there is a video instruction for your convenience.

Another feature that may come in handy is advanced resizing. When you import a 4K video to the editor and resize it making it occupy only a part of your scene, you normally lose quality. Well, that’s not the case with the Pro version of VSDC. Advanced resizing methods will help you prevent quality loss and enjoy your videos in the best resolution possible. If you want to learn more about resizing and other advanced features of the pro version, feel free to refer to a detailed guide.

That’s it for now. Enjoy your 4K experience!

MP4 is probably the most common video format because the majority of recording devices including cameras, smartphones, and drones produce MP4 files. It’s also the most widely recognizable format that can be opened by iOS and Android phones, most TVs, gaming devices, and DVD players.

Naturally, many people are either looking for a way to quickly edit MP4 videos or to convert their videos into MP4 and edit them afterward. If you’re one of them, this tutorial is for you.

Meet VSDC, a free MP4 video editor for Windows with no watermarks or quality restrictions. VSDC is your best bet because it’s a one-stop shop for working with multimedia files. You can use it when you need a powerful converter, a full-featured MP4 video editor, or when you just need a quick MP4 video splitter to break down your footage into multiple fragments.

Download the latest version of VSDC

We’ve compiled this tutorial, based on the most common tasks involving MP4 video editing. Keep reading it to learn:

• How to edit MP4 videos using VSDC
• How to split MP4 videos into parts
• How to add music to an MP4 video
• How to remove audio from MP4
• How to slow down or speed up MP4 videos
• How to reverse an MP4 video
• How to create a GIF from MP4 (or convert it to any other format after editing)
• How to make MP4 video file - instruction for export project from video editor to mp4 file

Here is exactly what you get when you install VSDC Free Video Editor to your PC

Before we jump to a more detailed review of how to edit MP4 videos in VSDC, here is what you’re getting when you install this video editor to your PC.

First of all, this software is very lightweight and requires minimum resources of your PC. That means you can safely use it even if you have a slightly outdated computer with not-so-much memory left. To be precise, you’ll only need 256Mb of RAM and 50Mb of free disk space.

Downloading VSDC may take a few minutes depending on your Internet connection, and when you launch the program, here is what the start screen looks like.

VSDC has a PRO version you’ll be offered to upgrade to after installation. At this point, you can simply close the promotional banner (or click “Continue” if it pops up at the export stage) if you aren’t ready to upgrade.

The suite includes multiple tools, and it’s not just an MP4 video editor. There is also a video grabber, an instrument for capturing desktop screen, a slideshow creator, a video converter, a voice recorder, and a YouTube uploader.

To start working, click on the large “Import content” button and choose a video file from your PC. A “Project settings” window will pop up, and unless you want to change any parameters – resolution, framerate, size of the video – just click “Finish”.

How to edit MP4 videos on Windows

Now that you have a file uploaded to VSDC, take a look at the key menu sections you’ll need for editing it.

Once imported, the file is automatically placed on the timeline – your main working area. You’ll be using the green cursor for splitting videos precisely and the red Preview button for checking the results of your actions. If your PC processor struggles with the file size, the video may look choppy during the preview. It doesn’t affect the output file in any way, however, for your convenience we recommend decreasing preview quality using the dropdown menu to the left from the Preview button.

Now, the top ribbon menu contains all the basic tools you’ll need for your project. Add new audio, video, or image files using the green round button and refer to the Cutting and Splitting menu for – you guessed it – cutting and splitting. The latter is also your go-to tab if you need to crop or rotate an MP4 video. Some other tasks, such as playback speed or audio adjustments, are performed in the Properties window – a sticky tab on the right. We’ll get to it in a couple of paragraphs. And finally, the Export project tab is where you get to save the file to your PC after editing.

Now that you have a better understanding of VSDC interface, let’s proceed with some basic tasks this MP4 video editor will help you with.

How to use VSDC as an MP4 video splitter

Splitting an MP4 video is no different from splitting any other video file:

• Place the cursor at the exact moment you want to split the video into parts.
• Hit the icon looking like a razor from the Splitting and Cutting menu at the top.
• Click anywhere on the timeline to cancel the selection of the entire video, then select the fragment you need and hit Delete or drag it across the timeline – depending on your final goal.

How to add music to an MP4 video/How to remove audio from MP4

To add music to an MP4 file, simply hit the green Add object button and choose a soundtrack from your PC. The audio file will be placed on the timeline, and you’ll be able to split and drag it just like you would do with a video file. To adjust the volume, you’ll need to select the audio file and go to the bottom of the Properties window menu where the Audio volume parameter is available.

Sometimes you may need to do the opposite: extract or remove audio from the MP4 file. Here is how to do it:

1. Click on the video file or a fragment you’re working with to select it on the timeline.
2. Go to the Properties window and scroll down to the very bottom.

   

3. If you choose “Split to video and audio”, you’ll get the sound of your video as a separate track on the timeline (see the illustration, the audio track is placed above the video on the timeline). Splitting is a good idea when you need to apply audio effects, adjust the volume, cut out an audio fragment – in other words, work with the existing audio more precisely.
4. If you need to remove audio from your video completely, you can either delete the audio track you’ve just got by splitting the file OR you can choose “Don’t use audio” in the Audio track menu section highlighted in the illustration above.

How to slow down or speed up MP4 videos/ How to reverse an MP4 video

To slow down an MP4 video, you need to reduce the playback speed of your file. This is a very easy task:

1. Select the fragment of the video you want to slow down.
2. Go to the Properties window and scroll down to the Speed% menu section.
3. Change the speed according to your needs. For instance, setting the speed at 50% will make your video twice slower.

If you need to speed up an MP4 file, use the same settings to increase the speed % to the desired level. We have a separate detailed tutorial on how to speed up a video and achieve a fast-motion effect, if you’d like to learn more.

Finally, if you’re trying to find out how to reverse an MP4 video, switch from “No” to “Yes” in the dropdown “Play backward” menu above the Speed% parameter as illustrated above.

Remember that when you change the video playback speed, its audio adapts automatically. Therefore, you might want to mute it or replace it with a more appropriate soundtrack.

How to create a GIF from MP4 (or convert it to any other format after editing)

If you just need to convert an MP4 video file to any other format, we recommend using a free video converter. But if you want to create a GIF from MP4 after editing, just select the corresponding format at the export stage as illustrated below.

As you can see, there is a large number of other formats you can choose based on your goals. Besides, VSDC allows you to save videos using social media profiles. That means if you’re planning to publish your clip to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, or Vimeo, the program will apply the parameters required by these social media platforms to your file automatically. And if you need to adjust video quality, you can do so using the “Edit profile” button in the lower right corner of the Export screen.

Then use the preview window for a final look and hit the Export project button when ready.

Final thoughts on VSDC as a free MP4 video editor

MP4 is an industry standard supported by most devices and multimedia software. One of its key benefits is high image quality preserved due to the H.264 codec. So, when you need to edit an MP4 video file, you should take this factor into consideration because some free video editors put severe limitations on the file formats and resolution at the export level.

When it comes to VSDC, not only does it allow you to keep the highest quality of the video, it also supports H.265/HEVC – the successor of H.264 codec. That means even if your video is in 4K, you’ll be able to keep its preciseness after editing.

If you’d like to learn more on what VSDC Free Video Editor is capable of, check out its YouTube channel.