Capturing the action is only half the battle when it comes to creating a great sports video; as more content creators embrace social media, the ability to edit dynamic footage is vital for engaging an audience.
Sports videographer Owen Yu has spent the last two decades travelling the world creating videos with skateboarders and is constantly embracing new technology to bring new visual experiences to the audience. Among some of the gadgets in his arsenal are the iPhone 14 Pro and the iPad.
Being able to edit on the iPad seamlessly allows Yu to take advantage of his time on the road and produce content in real-time.
"Now that social media has created this urgency to be instantaneous, it's great to export a clip directly to my iPhone or send it to a skate who also wants to post the reel on their account while we're at the skate spot," he says.
By exploring different editing software and using the intuitive touchscreen, Yu shares ways the iPad enhances the editing experience, especially for content creators who are constantly on the road in pursuit of action.
He created a homage to Hong Kong exclusively for The Sporting News with local skater Luk Chun Yin, to share his take on enhancing the editing experience using an iPad and an Apple pencil.
Don't waste time rendering
The beauty of filming and editing on smart devices is that you can take your office on the road wherever you go. Yu says accessing and working on footage quickly is especially important when creating content for social media while travelling. Not having to wait for footage to render before editing, Yu says, is a huge plus when it comes to filming and editing on the iPhone and iPad.
"With the iPad, you can quickly transfer your footage and start editing in iMovie without rendering. It can handle H.265 codec with ease, and export is quick too."
Take advantage of the app ecosystem
While technology is constantly changing, being able to work using the same familiar software across different devices makes the creative process a lot less stressful.
"The number of editing programs available for iPad has grown enormously, so editors can now easily work with programs they've already been using on their Macs. I use Adobe Rush on the iPad since it is very similar to Adobe Premiere, which I've always used on MacBooks; this app ecosystem makes it easy to transition between MacBook and iPad."
Despite being a fan of Adobe, Yu says he's all for exploring other apps, if nothing else, for inspiration. "I've been playing around with iMovie. It's always nice to see what other possibilities are out there with different software, and it's always good, creativity-wise, to look at your footage from a different perspective."
eHe recommends editors who use the iPad for editing projects, especially those who've just started transitioning from laptops and computers, to do the same and try different software. They might be surprised to find that it gives them new inspiration.
Being able to transition between his Mac, iPhone, and iPad easily is essential as he often takes his projects on the road; the iPad allows him to travel light while still meeting all his editing needs.
Make use of all the tools available
The touchscreen interface of the iPad has its advantages, especially when you can make use of tools like the Apple Pencil.
"Editing with the Apple Pencil is also a breeze as it is a precision tool that is very intuitive to use. For me, it comes even more naturally than with a mouse and has changed my way of editing on a linear timeline."
The ease that the iPad and Apple Pencil provide when it comes to manipulating footage and trimming clips has made the overall editing experience smoothing and much quicker, too, Yu says.
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