How to Edit Videos in Blender Video Sequence Editor

Blender is widely known for 3D modeling and animation, but its built-in Video Sequence Editor (VSE) is a powerful, completely free tool for multi-track video editing. This article provides a clear, step-by-step guide on how to set up your workspace, import footage, perform basic cuts, add transitions, and export your final edited video using Blender’s VSE.

Setting Up the Video Editing Workspace

To begin editing, open Blender and select Video Editing from the splash screen templates. If you already have Blender open, you can switch to the video editing workspace by clicking the + icon at the very top of the screen, navigating to Video, and selecting Video Editing.

This workspace configures your screen into three main areas: the Sequencer (timeline) at the bottom, the Preview window in the middle, and the File Browser or Properties panel on the sides.

Importing Video Clips

You can add video, audio, and image files to your timeline using two main methods:

1. Drag and Drop: Drag files directly from your computer’s file explorer and drop them onto the Sequencer tracks.
2. The Add Menu: Press Shift + A inside the Sequencer, select Movie (or Sound for audio, Image/Sequence for pictures), browse to your file, and click Add Movie Strip.

Blender will automatically import the video track (usually colored blue) and the audio track (usually colored green) as separate, linked strips on the timeline.

Basic Editing: Navigation, Cutting, and Moving Clips

Once your clips are on the timeline, use these basic keyboard shortcuts to edit them:

• Navigating the Timeline: Left-click and drag the blue playhead to scrub through your video. Use the Spacebar to play and pause.
• Moving Clips: Left-click a clip to select it, press G (Grab), move your mouse to slide the clip along the timeline, and left-click to drop it. Hold Ctrl while moving to snap clips together.
• Splitting/Cutting Clips: Position the playhead where you want to make a cut, select the clip (or hold Shift to select both video and audio), and press K (Split). To cut only at the playhead without preserving the discarded side, you can also use Shift + K.
• Trimming Ends: Left-click the handle (the small arrow) at either the start or end of a clip, press G, and drag to shorten or lengthen the clip.
• Deleting Clips: Select the unwanted clip and press X or Delete.

Adding Transitions and Effects

To smoothly transition between two overlapping video clips:

1. Place the incoming clip on a track directly above the outgoing clip, overlapping them by the desired transition duration.
2. Select the first clip, hold Shift, and select the second clip.
3. Press Shift + A, hover over Transition, and select Cross (for a crossfade) or Wipe.
4. A new transition strip will appear above the clips, automatically blending them together.

To adjust video properties like opacity, volume, or speed, select a clip and press N to open the sidebar panel on the right side of the Sequencer.

Exporting Your Edited Video

When your edit is complete, you must render the timeline into a video file:

1. Go to the Properties panel on the right side of the screen and select the Output Properties tab (represented by a printer icon).
2. Set your desired resolution (e.g., 1920x1080) and frame rate.
3. Under the Output section, click the folder icon to choose where to save your file.
4. Change the File Format from PNG to FFmpeg Video.
5. Expand the Encoding dropdown menu. Set the Container to MPEG-4 and the Video Codec to H.264.
6. Set the Audio Codec to AAC (by default, Blender exports video without sound unless this is changed).
7. Go to the top menu bar, click Render, and select Render Animation (or press Ctrl + F12). Blender will now export your final video.