Recommendations for software for editing/authoring

[Yanta]

I am working on a project where I have captured footage on my mobile phone. I want to make a video file (probably mkv), from a number of clips. I need to blur the faces of people on the clips and eventually burn it as a playable DVD.

From time to time I also capture footage with a camcorder. And at other times I want to take an existing mkv and cut bits out, add bits in and eventually create a blu-ray from the output.

The footage from my phone and camcorder is typically 1920x1080. When editing other mkvs the source could be 720p, 1080p or cropped video. There could be mixed audio (5.1, stereo, MA, True-HD etc).

What would be a good affordable software package to take care of these needs. I was considering TMPGenc's Authoring Works.

thanks
Tanya

[LMotlow]

TMPGenc Authoring Works is an excellent DVD/BluRay/AVCHD authoring program. But authoring and editing are different processes. TMPGenc does have a few editing features and even has a good smart-rendering encoder if it's needed, but notice the name of the program: Authoring Works. A better choice for the editing and multiple file conversions you describe would be SONYs budget version, Movie Studio. It has more conversion and editing features. If you go for the slightly more expensive Movie Studio Platinum you get extra features along with authoring (although IMO TMPGenc's authoring and encoding are a little better). You can learn to use TMPGenc Authoring in a day or so. Movie Studio would take a day or two getting started, but a few weeks to get through all the editing features.

[smrpix]

There is no single piece of software that will do everything you require.

TMPGenc Authoring works is excellent for making DVDs and Blu Rays but it will not do sophisticated editing such as blurring faces.

Something like Vegas Movie Studio will blur the faces but it largely won't accept MKVs. MKV is a very adaptable container that can hold many different types of audio and video files -- that's why it is so good for playback, but few (if any) NLEs handle them gracefully.

MKV Toolnix is good for manipulating MKVs, but again is limited in sophisticated editing functions.

AViUtl may be able to handle these things (I use other tools) but there is a steep, steep learning curve.

[LMotlow]

@Yanta should also note something that's extremely important. Containers and formats such as mkv, MPEG (DVD), BluRay, .mov, and other lossy formats are known as "final delivery" formats. They are designed for playback rather than editing. Editing involves changes in the basic video data that requires additional lossy re-encoding of video in several stages, resulting in quality loss. (Authoring, however, is simply a straight copy or reorganizing of video files and does not involve re-encoding).

[Yanta]

@Yanta should also note something that's extremely important. Containers and formats such as mkv, MPEG (DVD), BluRay, .mov, and other lossy formats are known as "final delivery" formats. They are designed for playback rather than editing. Editing involves changes in the basic video data that requires additional lossy re-encoding of video in several stages, resulting in quality loss. (Authoring, however, is simply a straight copy or reorganizing of video files and does not involve re-encoding).

Thanks for the educational tip.

Sadly, I cannot publicly screen video where the participants have not given consent for their faces to be shown. You see this all the time on TV shows. Unless there is "Lossless editing" I have no choice.

My Phone is a samsung galaxy s4. The video files from it are .mp4's.

[Yanta]

Thanks for the replies.

I'll download a trial of Movie Studio and have a play around.

I don't mind if I need to use multiple programs. It would be nice if there was an AIO package that did everything <sigh> Wishful thinking

[MaverickTse]

AviUtl + the recent MotionTracking MK-II can do the privacy protection semi-automatically.
The "Easy privacy" option detects faces and blur them (but far from 100% accuracy, you need to test if if works well with your own footage)
Can also cut, crop, overlay clips...
Outputs MP4, MKV and AVIs, while you can also add chapter points for MP4 and MKV.

What it can't do is the DVD/blu-ray mastering part.

You can find more details on MotionTracking MK-II plugin from the "AviUtl Support Thread", post #3