Avid Editing: A Guide for Beginning and Intermediate Users [With DVD]

When I purchased my Avid Express DV software I had zero video editing experience. I knew the software was fairly complex, had a lot of capabilities, and the learning curve would be steep, so I also purchased the Avid turorial DVDs. However, with no editing background, after viewing these DVDs I just wasn't "getting it." Kauffmann's book was perfect for me. It starts with the fundamentals (video formats, hooking up the hardware and turning the system on, etc.) and goes on from there to cover everything though fine tuning audio and doing color correction. By reading the book (mostly) though once then using it as a "cookbook" while editing, in just a few days I was up and running and capturing, editing, and fine tuning my videos. Admittedly, Kauffmann does not go into great depth in some areas (which he acknowledges) but for someone who's just getting started this is an excellent book and will get you well on the road. I would highly recommend it to anyone just getting started and trying to learn Avid.

Avid Editing has been a useful tool for me both as a student and as a professional. As a film student, I first picked up Sam Kauffmann's second edition in a production class. Most of us had never touched an Avid before, and yet by the end of the semester, using Kauffmann's text as a go-to guide, my classmates and I were producing dynamic and adeptly edited pieces. Not only does the book provide simple exercises for the reader to try, it also includes a DVD with actual footage to work with. Avid Editing is carefully organized for the beginning editor, but I also use it as a reference now that I am out of college, working as an assistant editor. This new third edition not only expounds upon all the steps, shortcuts and settings covered in the previous editions, but also dedicates entire chapters to editing with 24p and HD footage, making this book invaluable to editors entering the professional world. I strongly recommend this guide for anyone who seeks to teach, learn, or refresh his or her memory.

I came across this book when I looked up Avid and bought it immediately. I had read all of the previous edition reviews before I purchased this book and bought it without reservation.I really felt like I grasped the concepts for each chapter before moving on. Mr. Kauffmann not only shows you the tools in the AVID system, but with every tool gives you the reason and purpose behind it.

What impresses me most about Avid Editing: A Guide For Beginning And Intermediate Users, is its instructional design. What Sam Kauffmann has managed to accomplish in this new edition is the creation of a comprehensive program with which to gain proficiency in the operation of a complex filmmaking tool. It is neither an overly broad text on the post production process nor a dry "missing manual". It is an interesting, well-guided tour through the creative process of editing using the professionalÕs most prevalent interface. The bookÕs progression is wonderful. It logically leads the editor through the process of organizing, digitizing, script notes, editing, effects, sound work, and much more. Features of the software are described in practcal terms, not technical. It demonstrates the various tools' applicablity in real world editing scenarios, describing not just what the tool does but why and where itÕs useful. Its chapters on film are especially valuable even for those whose work will never be printed on celluloid.Part of the bookÕs charm is KauffmannÕs sense of humor. ItÕs freqently in evidence and makes the book an enjoyable readÑsomething very rare in this type of text. This edition is all new and broader in scope from the first edition. It deals extensively with Avid XpressDV but includes and explains features in other Avid models so users gain knowledge of the range of tools available to them.The included DVD contains practice footage and scripts so even those students without their own materials on hand can get right to work.

Undoubtably the best book for the beginning Avid editor. A clear, easy to follow comprehensive look at the basics fo avid editing that is perfect for the beginner.