Not everyone who reads No Film School is an expert - in fact most of us are still trying to learn something - and that's really the reason why we hope people keep coming back each day. If you're new to filmmaking, your editing experience is probably very limited - and it can be overwhelming starting from scratch. One of the most important things you can do if you aren't very experienced is to learn good habits right from the start. This isn't limited to editing, but also shooting and managing media. There's always more than one way to do something - but there are certainly wrong ways to do many things that can lead to mistakes or slow you down. In terms of editing, organization is something every professional editor will stress above all else. Embedded below is a video describing that process.

This video, from Richard Harrington's Blog, takes you through the steps that you should take once you've offloaded all of your footage and audio:


Though the video is describing the process using Adobe Premiere Pro CS 5.5, it still applies to other editing systems (like the newly announced Adobe CS 6) and isn't too far removed from the way that it is done in Final Cut Pro X. If you still have access to Final Cut Pro 7, it is done almost exactly the same way. While it may seem that your 2 minute video doesn't really need this type of organization, the earlier you learn good habits, the easier it will be to transition to bigger projects. Having edited a feature length film myself, I can tell you that if you don't develop a good organizational structure with bins and clips labelled correctly, it's going to be a nightmare.

Even if you're not a beginner, sometimes it's good to be refreshed on the basic organizational structures and what bad habits you might be developing while editing.

[ via Richard Harrington's Blog]