- So here's the thing,
the general rule of thumb when it comes to creating videos
is you want people to be engaged in your story
and the content that you're creating
and not be focused on the intricacies
of the actual video process.
However, one of the most prominent areas
where people tend to mess up
is how they cut their video.
Because if you're not using the right tools and techniques
to cut your video efficiently,
then people will notice the cuts
and, therefore, they'll notice
that they're watching a video
and, therefore, that will pull them out of the story
and your content.
So in today's video I'm going to be talking
about three types of cuts
that are going to help your videos
appear to be more seamless
and help your viewers to notice the cuts less
and notice your video more.
J cuts, L cuts, and match cuts.
Let's get into it.
(bubbles popping quickly) (calming music)
So the first cut that we are talking about
in this video is a J cut.
And a J cut is basically just a fancy name
for a sound bridge.
Now, again, that does sound complicated
so let me break that down even further.
Generally, when you're cutting videos,
the video and the audio cut at the same time.
So when the video cuts, the audio also cuts.
So if you're cutting two video clips together
where people are talking,
as soon as one video clip goes into the next,
you also hear the new audio
at the same time you see the new video.
But the problem is this can become quite jarring.
Because you're having to process
new video and new audio at the same time,
this can just be a little bit overwhelming for the eye,
and it can pull you out of the video
if that cut lands at an awkward time.
So a J cut actually splits that
and you hear the audio before you see the new video.
So you'll be watching a video
and you'll hear the next audio cut in
and then you'll see the video a moment later.
(swooshing) Focused on the intricacies
of the actual video process.
However, one of the most prominent areas where people...
(swooshing) Now, the reason why this works
and the reason why this is less visible
than cutting the video and the audio at the same time,
is because you're only having to process
one thing at a time.
So you hear the audio and then you see the video.
So you process the audio,
then you process the video.
And it becomes less noticeable.
Now, J cuts are really handy
if you're cutting together an interview, for example.
So let's say we're just looking at a montage
of what's being talked about.
So we're going to see some GVs of some buildings
or whatever is happening on screen
and then we hear the interview appear in our headphones.
We actually can hear the interview
and we can't see the interview on screen yet.
And then after a moment or two,
the interview footage appears on screen.
So we've got a brief moment of voiceover
before we go into the actual video footage.
So again, this is really useful
because it's helping to seamlessly get us
into that interview, rather than just suddenly going
from GVs into interview footage.
It becomes less jarring.
Now the opposite of a J cut is an L cut.
And it's doing exactly the same as a J cut is doing,
but it's flipping it 'round the other way.
So with the L cuts, you're splitting
the audio and video again
so you're staggering them on at different times.
But with the L cuts, you see the video first
and then that second audio comes in a moment later.
And this achieves the exact same effect as a J cut.
It's just helping to make that cut
more seamless and less noticeable.
Again, this is really great in interviews
or when you're piecing together
some form of dialogue-based content.
Now, moving on, let's talk about match cuts.
And match cuts are far more complex
than J cuts and L cuts.
J cuts and L cuts are very simple
in comparison to match cuts.
Now, a match cut can be split
into three different categories.
You've got a graphic match cut,
you've got a match on action,
and then you've got the sound bridge.
So that's graphic match cut,
match on action and a sound bridge.
Now, essentially, a match cut is finding two elements
within a scene that are very similar
and cutting them together.
The whole point of this, again,
similar to the J cut and the L cut,
is to make that cut less visible.
It's more of a seamless transition
because you're going from something into something similar,
there's less processing involved in your mind.
You just very quickly move on into this new scene.
So the first example is your graphic match cut.
And this is where you're visually cutting
between two elements that look the same.
So these can be shapes, colors, or framing and composition.
Let's focus on shapes first.
In the first shot, we can see a shot of the London Eye.
In the second shot, we can see a cereal bowl.
If you're cutting from the London Eye to the cereal bowl,
even though these are two very different objects,
because they are both round,
if they're framed up in the scene exactly the same,
then when you cut from this one item to this other item,
even though they're very different
and in very different environments,
because there's a visual match,
because there's a graphic match there,
that's more of a seamless cut.
We can apply that same logic to colors as well.
So if we cut from an item which is blue,
and then we cut to another item which is blue,
this becomes an easier cut on the eye.
These can be drastically different items, by the way.
They don't have to be a T-shirt and another T-shirt.
This could maybe be a blue T-shirt
going into the sky, maybe.
Because these are both blue,
there's a graphic match there,
and that's going to make for a more of a seamless cut.
And then, of course, we've got the framing and composition.
So you can match your framing and your composition
to create a graphic match cut.
So maybe you've got completely different objects
in the frame, but you frame them up exactly the same
and then when you cut between these two items,
it's a really seamless transition because there's not much
of a change in the frame.
The framing and the composition stays the same,
therefore this is less information to process
when you're cutting from shot A to shot B.
Now the next type of match cut is a match on action,
and that is exactly what it sounds like.
So you do a similar action
in your first shot and your second shot.
So maybe you do a back flip, for example.
So you do a back flip in the first shot,
you do a back flip in the second shot,
and then when you cut these two together,
because it's that same big action,
you notice the cuts a lot less than you would do
as if you were cutting from a back flip
to somebody standing still.
So you're using that action to motivate that cut.
And then when you're cutting at that point
where there's the most action in the frame,
because you're so focused on the movements,
the cut becomes less noticeable
and, therefore, that becomes a really seamless cut
from the first shot into the second shot.
And then the third type of a match cut is a sound bridge.
And a sound bridge can take advantage
of sound effects, dialogue, music,
any sorts of audio file that is going to travel
from the first shot into the second shot
to make those two shots blend into one another.
This one doesn't need to be complicated.
You could literally just fade the audio from the first shot
into the second shot,
and then you can do the same the opposite way,
so fade the audio from the second shot
into the first shot.
And because you're fading that audio across the cuts,
it's making that cut feel less noticeable.
Because, again, this is going back to what we know
in J cuts and L cuts.
Because there's less noticeable difference in the audio,
the visual cut becomes less noticeable as well.
Because we're only having to register one thing at a time,
it becomes less noticeable.
And there you go.
That was our roundup of the three most important cuts
that every filmmaker and videographer should know
if you want to create seamless edits.
If you found this video useful
and you would like to learn more
about filmmaking fundamentals,
then please do click on the playlist,
which is now on screen.
This is Chris with InVideo,
and I will see you on the next one.
See you there.