Creating and uploading videos on YouTube is one of the most effective methods of online marketing. Fortunately, almost all the steps of video-marketing such as:
- Writing the video script,
- Setting up the shooting area of the video,
- Recording the video using Windows Movie Maker,
- Editing the video to remove extraneous bits and defects,
- Adding transitions, titles, and captions,
- Adding background music, and,
- Uploading the video to YouTube
are quick, easy and extremely cost-effective.
Thousands of videos are uploaded onto YouTube and other video-sharing websites daily. So it is crucial to create high-quality videos that will have the desired impact.
The best way to make one’s videos memorable and more effective is by adding titles, captions and video transitions. (Video transitions are special effects that are inserted between two pictures, video clips or titles.) All of these can be added easily in Windows Movie Maker as part of the editing process of the video.
Steps Before Adding Titles, Captions, and Video Transitions
- Save the video file as a Movie Maker Project File.
Click on “File”, and then click on “Save Project As” in Windows Movie Maker and save the recorded video file. For example, if you save the video file in “My Videos” as “Video1”, Windows saves it as “Video1.mswmm”.
- Import the Video File Into Windows Movie Maker
Click “Import video” under “Capture Video” and double-click on the video file already recorded. For example, double-clicking on “Myvideo.wmm” in “My Videos” will import it into the “Collections” area of Windows Movie Maker.
- Drag the Imported Video File Into the Editing Section
Select and drag the video file from the “Collections” area into the video track in the “Editing” section. The video file can now be seen in the “Video” track (in the Timeline view) ready to be edited.
Edit the video in the “Timeline” view because it is easier to find the parts that have to be removed in this view. (The “Timeline” view shows the progression of the video in time whereas the “Storyboard” view displays the video as separate clips.)
Adding Titles at the Start of the Video
- Click on “Edit Movie” and then on “Make titles or credits”, which will open a dialog box.
- Here, click on “Add a title at the beginning of the movie”, which opens the “Enter Text for Title” box.
- Enter the title of the video in the upper box. For example, “How to Lose Weight Naturally”.
- In the box below it, add a subtitle, for example, “Without Starving Yourself!”
- Two more options are displayed below:
“Change the title animation”
“Change the text font and color”
- Click on “Change the title animation” and choose one of the options such as “Fade”, “Ellipse Wipe”, “Mirror”, “Scroll”, “Banner”, etc.
- Next, click on “Change the text font and color”, and choose one among the following options:
“Font” (for example, Verdana),
“Bold, italic or underline”,
“Color of font”,
“Background color”,
“Transparency”,
“Size of font”, and
“Left, center or right text alignment”
- After selecting the above options, click on “Done, add title to movie”, which will add the title to the video.
- Finally, view the title and subtitle of the video in the "Preview" and make any changes, if desired.
Adding Credits at the End of the Video
- Click on “Edit Movie” and then “Make titles or credits”.
- Click on “Add Credits at the end of the movie”, which opens the “Enter Text for Title” box.
- Here, enter the text of the credits within the boxes in this window.(You can enter the link to your website or blog and information about your products or services, including special offers and discounts.)
- You can modify the format of the credits by clicking on “Change the title animation” and “Change the text font and color options”.
- Finally, click on “Done, add title to movie” and view the credits in the “Preview” and make any changes, if desired.
Adding Video Transitions
- Click on “Edit Movie” and then on “View video transitions”, which will open the Video Transitions box containing many different transitions such as “Dissolve”, “Fade”, “Bars”, etc.
- Click on the desired video transition and drag it into the video track to the location where you want to place the transition.
- Check the video transition by playing the video in the "Preview", experiment with different transitions and select the one that you likes best.
Saving the Movie File and Uploading it to YouTube
After adding all the special effects to the video, save the edited project file as a movie by clicking “File” and then clicking “Save Movie File” in Windows Movie Maker.
Once the movie has been saved, you can watch it in any media player or in a Web browser. You can then distribute it by uploading it to YouTube and other video-sharing websites.
Related Articles:
The Simple No-Frills Way to Shoot High-Quality Videos for YouTube
Learn how to position the five elements of the shooting area (video script, camera, microphone, lighting and the subject of the video) before the actual recording of the video.
How to Shoot Great Online Videos for YouTube Using Free Software
Learn a simple step-by-step technique to create high-quality online videos for YouTube using free software and inexpensive equipment.
Edit Online Videos Easily and Quickly Before Uploading to YouTube
Learn how to to edit YouTube videos quickly and easily by using free Windows software that does not require any technical knowledge.
How to Add Music Easily to YouTube Videos Using Free Software
Learn how to add background music in mp3 or other file formats to online YouTube videos quickly and easily using free software and without any technical knowledge.
Join the Conversation