While this makes sense to experienced editors, it can also be an intimidating workflow to follow for simple projects. You can see the icons for these pages at the bottom, shown in the image above. These pages allow you to deal with asset management, assembly, audio mixing, color grading, VFX and export independently.
For example, if you trim a clip in the "Edit" page, the "Color" page will reflect that change. Resolve utilizes multiple "Pages" that organize the stages of an edit into separate interacting sections. Finally, unlike most NLEs (free or otherwise), DaVinci Resolve's features, though extensive, are still limited to the program itself, so plugins (3rd-party or otherwise) are not an option.
Since then, each update has brought it closer and closer to the 360 post-production solution it is today. Its original developers, da Vinci Systems, were bought over by Blackmagic Design in 2009. That's because its paid version (now named DaVinci Resolve Studio) has been the single most widely used color grading system in Hollywood for years and maintains this position today. Many of you will likely have heard the name DaVinci Resolve before, but perhaps in the context of color grading as opposed to non-linear editing. And although it makes us biased, we did everything we could to make this comparison as objectively as possible.
To begin this comparison, let's introduce you to DaVinci Resolve and HitFilm Express.īut first, full disclosure: Back in July 2021, Artlist acquired FXhome, the HitFilm software developer. In particular, you'll want to know how these differences might impact you, personally, in your editing journey. So, that's how these 2 NLEs are similar, but to make the right choice, you'll want to know how they differ. Over the years, this has led to significant advancements in both NLEs, further narrowing the gap between them and their price-tagged competitors. Lastly, both have teams of developers constantly improving the service and responding to their respective community's feedback. Second, they both offer a competitive set of features against many of the pro/paid programs out there, but we'll be getting into those in much more detail shortly. This alone affords them credibility, but it also means you can confidently take on either NLE knowing there is a wealth of fellow users who have stress tested the software, encountered and resolved issues, and who form a support community. So, first of all, why compare these 2 specific NLEs in the first place? It's certainly not to say there are no other respectable choices out there, there are, but these 2 make for an obvious comparison for several reasons.įirst, both HitFilm Express and DaVinci Resolve have similarly sized and significant and loyal user bases (both boast over 2 million users). In this article, we'll take a look at 2 of the best freemium NLE offerings (DaVinci Resolve and HitFilm Express) and discuss which one might be right for you, specifically.
Programs like DaVinci Resolve and HitFilm Express, amongst others, which are completely free to download right now, are able to offer industry-level features that rival (and even beat, in some cases) the big players like Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro X and Avid. While there are definitely some free NLEs out there that really aren't worth your time, the landscape has changed dramatically in the past few years in the "freemium NLE" market.
This is where free editing software programs come in. If you want to experiment with editing before making a pricey commitment, or maybe you just don't think you'll need all the bells and whistles that expensive NLEs offer, it can be painful paying out potentially hundreds of dollars without needing to. If you are keen to get sucked into the world of film and video editing (and who wouldn't be?!), one of the biggest roadblocks stopping you could be the financial stakes involved.