What is a 5x5 video?
5x5 videos are (very) short films or vignettes that teach you the power of video editing! The next time you go out to enjoy the beautiful summer weather, pay attention to what you see. What are your favourite things you see out in nature? Maybe you like to look at the birds or watching leaves blow in the breeze. See our example below:
Materials
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A camera with video capabilities (can be a phone or tablet too!)
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A device with video editing capabilities
The Process
To get started, grab a camera, go outside and start recording! 5x5 videos are made up of 5 clips that are each 5 seconds long. Challenge yourself to only record videos that are 5 seconds in length! How much nature can you show in 5 seconds? Experiment with different angles, movements, speeds, shadows, subjects, and so on!
Once you have your 5-second videos, re-watch them to determine how you want to order them. Do you want it to be serendipitous or do you want to create a narrative? Maybe you can go from macro to micro, or day to night? 5x5 videos are a great introduction to video editing because you do not need to trim down the clips if you stuck to the 5-second rule! All you need to do is place your 5 video clips into the editing bar/timeline and arrange them until you are happy with the way it flows.
Mobile devices and tablets have various free editing programs. You can also upload your clips onto your computer and use free video editing software such as ShotCut and Adobe Spark. See below for an example of what your video will look like in Adobe Spark.
