Audio/Video Editing software?

The only two apps that I know that can do audio/video editing on the Mac are:

  1. iMovie
  2. Final Cut

One is $0 and limited. The other is $300 and overwhelming (to me, at least).

Is there anything decent in-between, or do I just need to bite the bullet?

Camtasia?


JJW

I think I saw that you had an iPad somewhere on this forum?! If so, LumaFusion ($20) and is the perfect sweet spot between iMovie and final cut.

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iPad: LumaFusion ($30, with IAPs).

Mac: Adobe Premiere Elements ($100). But FCPX is just such a bang-for-the-buck product for the $300 price I’d probably recommend anyone doing more than a handful of videos to bite the bullet and learn it.

I’ve heard people online recommend Camtasia, but I have no experience with it, don’t know anyone who’s used it. If you need more power than iMovie, Shortcut is a free, open source, cross-platform editor. But I hear it has quirks and almost as much a steep learning curve as FCPX.

Check out Davinci Resolve. It might fall into the overwhelming category, but the base features are free and may be enough for what you need.

https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/davinciresolve/

I do have an iPad, but I was actually asking because my son is looking for this, and his iPad is very old and creaky.

FYI it seems Apple will soon be offering a 90-day free trial of FCPX:

Also, for $100 less than the retail price of FCPX, you can get an edu-deal that includes final Cut Pro X, Logic Pro X, and related apps (Motion and Compressor for FCPX, Mainstage for Logic).

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Hrm. I wonder if they offer that price to non-profits. Never hurts to ask, right?

Is your son a student?

He is. A junior in high school.