Video transcription services can be invaluable not only in terms of subtitling, but also for the video editing and post production process as a whole. Capital Captions offer logging of rushes and transcription services which make it easier for video makers to reference and edit long reams of footage. This equates to them carrying out post production processes much easier and faster. This blog offers information on what exactly is involved in logging of rushes and transcription services and time coded transcription.

Time Coded Transcription for Video Production

When working with video editing, one of the major struggles producers face is actually in referencing back and locating the footage you want to cut. In film production, it’s no secret that to get that perfect shot, or perfect sequence takes time. With endless bloopers, background noises, disturbances and actors or speakers forgetting lines, a video that is destined to be three minutes long may take up as much as two hours of filming.

Time coded transcription really comes into its own here. Without a video transcript to work from, a producer has to sit through all of the footage, marking down the time codes or cutting the video manually ‘on the fly’. Transcribing speech and adding time codes means that to find that perfect ‘take’, all producers need to do is use the search function in a Word document and look back to the time code for reference!

Time coded transcription is incredibly cost effective when it comes to video production. Broadcast, video on demand, television and even online video production is an expensive business. Professional cinematographers and video editors typically charge by the hour, and watching endless raw footage all adds to the bill. In contrast, transcription companies charge per audio or video minute and offer highly competitive prices which are likely far cheaper than those that video production professionals charge.

In summary, time coded video transcription services help producers locate, reference and edit video quickly, efficiently and cheap as possible.

Logging of Rushes

Where shot changes, location changes and visual mechanisms are crucial to the video production process, logging of rushes is invaluable.

Time coded transcription and logging of rushes are in essence, very similar. Both include transcribing dialogue and inserting time codes for reference. The main difference between the two is in what is included in the final document. Rushes include information on shot changes, and visual descriptions, whereas time coded transcription will only include dialogue.

Logging of rushes and transcription services is great typing service for videos where there’s lots of changes in visual focus. In contrast, time coded transcription should be used where focus is on dialogue with little visual movement in the video.

Logging of Rushes and Transcription Formats

To summarise logging of rushes, typically, they should include:

• Time codes inserted at regular intervals, usually somewhere between every 30 seconds or every two minutes
• Dialogue written in a verbatim style to include repetition, erms, false starts and filler words. This helps producers quickly evaluate a ‘good take’.
• Indication of shot changes and description of shots, e.g. wide shot of street, close up on street sign, etc.

Logging of Rushes and Subtitling Services

While video transcription can be used to aid the subtitling process, it’s important to realise subtitles cannot be created from logged rushes. The reason for this is when cuts are made to a video, effectively, the time codes change. Subtitles and closed captions rely on highly accurate time codes to display correctly in sync with video. If edits are made to a video, the subtitles will cease to display correctly. For this reason, logging of rushes and transcription services, video transcription and subtitling services, while supporting the video making process, need to be used independently.

If you are interested in any of our typing services, subtitling services or transcription services contact us for your free quote today.