360-degree Video Editing

How to Edit 360 Video in Premiere?

There are a few things you need to keep in mind while editing a 360-degree video without losing the virtual reality element. The editing software I use is Premiere Element and the editing process works similarly to Premiere Pro CC. However, I am not sure about other editing software. In this blog, I will share my experiences with editing a 360-degree video and highlight 6 steps you should do before you upload your edited 360-degree video. I use LG360cam to film my 360-degree video.

4 Easy Steps to Edit your 360-Degree Video

Step 1: Download your video to your computer from your app (LG360cam).

There are a few ways you can download your video via your LG360cam app on your phone. You can either download and save the files to your Google drive, connect the LG360cam (physical camera) to your computer, email yourself the file, or just upload to YouTube instantly (but this will not enable you to edit your raw file in any editing software).

Step 2: Upload that raw footage to Premiere Element

Once you have downloaded the raw footage, upload the video file to your editing software. I use Premiere Element but this works the same for Premiere Pro, and Microsoft Movie Maker.  If you have a large file (long video), you will need to wait a while till the raw footage is fully uploaded. Once the raw footage is uploaded, you can decide on how you want to edit your video. For example, with a guided template or from scratch (see Fig.1).

Edit your video as to how you would edit a 2D video. One thing to note is that, when you add text, you want to make sure that you have it located at a location where the text can be seen when the video is rotated in a 360-degree view. In other words, when you view the video (in 360-degree), you want to make sure that the text is visible from all angle and is not covering your face or any object that you are trying to portray.

Step3: Download the zip file provided by YouTube.

Fig. 1 YouTube video uploading instructions

Once you have completed editing your raw footage, you want to save it. Save it under a name that you can remember. Also save it under as a JPEG file, which is the accepted format in YouTube. Next, download the zip file (Metadata app) provided by YouTube. Run the YouTube downloaded file (Metadata app) and click “open” and search for your edited version of your 360-degree video. You can find this file under “Step 2: Download the 360 Video Metadata app for Mac or Windows” (see no. 1 ofFig. 2).

Fig. 2 Downloading Metadata injector

You will see a screen like this (see Fig. 3) once you downloaded the Metadata app. Check box “my video is spherical (360) then click “open”. You will then upload the video you wish to post on YouTube. Next, follow the rest of the instructions in Step 3 of the Youtube support page.

Fig. 3 Spatial Metadata app

Step 4: Test it in your YouTube channel before making it public

Make sure that you test your uploaded video before making it public. The way you can do it is to have it either as private or unlisted when you are prompted to upload your edited video. When you are uploading your video, you will see a time bar which tells you how long you will need to wait for the edited video to get uploaded.

While waiting for your video to be uploaded, you may be notified (a notification yellow pop up) on the stability of your video. If it says that YouTube will be able to fix the “shakiness” of the video, and asks if you would like to fix it…don’t fix it! Once you do any editing (including background sound) in YouTube, your 360-degree element will disappear!

That’s it!

Here you have it! 4 easy steps for your to edit your 360-degree video. This process may come easy for some but may be confusing for those you are trying out for the first time. Don’t worry, practice makes perfect! For those of you who use a different type of editing software, you may experience a different process. Share with me in the comment box below!