DaVinci Resolve Essentials

Mixing Volume

Course contents

Questions

Course info

113 lessons / 13 hours 21 quiz questions 14 projects Certificate of achievement

Overview

Taught by video editor and content creator Brandon Baldovin, DaVinci Resolve Essentials is a practical introduction to one of the most powerful tools in modern post production. Whether you’re cutting a social clip, trailer, or documentary, DaVinci Resolve brings together editing, audio, motion graphics, and color in a single application. This comprehensive 12-hour course shows you how to wield that power with confidence, so you can focus on telling better stories instead of fighting the software. 

If you’ve ever opened DaVinci, felt overwhelmed by all the pages and panels, and closed it just as fast, you’re not alone. Brandon is here to guide you step-by-step with hands-on projects that don’t just teach you where to click but how to think about each editing challenge as it comes. You’ll work through a variety of videos from first import to final render, building skills through repetition, problem solving, and practical application. 

Together with Brandon, you’ll learn how to: 
  • - Navigate the relevant pages of DaVinci Resolve and skip the rest
  • - Create projects, timelines, and media bins that stay organized
  • - Use J and L cuts, b-roll, music, and sound effects to shape compelling edits
  • - Work inside Fusion to design your own motion graphics
  • - Build a simple, repeatable approach to color correction and basic grading (and learn the difference between the two!)
  • - Streamline your workflow with adjustment clips, compound clips, power bins, and proxies

Best of all, DaVinci Resolve is free. If you’ve always wanted to try your hand at video editing, whether for personal projects, content creation, or client work, there’s never been a better time or a better tool. This course is designed to help you focus on only the core features you need to get started, so you can build confidence and make intentional decisions no matter what type of footage you’re working with. 

By the end, you’ll have a reels’ worth of finished projects that reflect your editing sensibilities, including a talking head video, short form social content, a trailer, and a polished mini documentary. Even more importantly, you’ll have the confidence to open DaVinci Resolve and transform a blank timeline into your creative vision, time and again. Let’s get editing!

Note: Because the exercise files contain video footage, they’re large (32 GB) and may take extra time to download. EditStock has generously supplied watermarked footage for use in the course and course exercise files. If you’d like to remove the watermark and access a wide range of raw practice footage, use the link editstock.com/BYOL for 20% off.

Requirements
  • - Download DaVinci Resolve, either the free version or Studio (paid)
  • - A computer that meets DaVinci Resolve minimum system requirements, with at least 16GB of RAM recommended
  • - Enough storage space for exercise files and included footage, either on your computer or an external hard drive
  • - Headphones strongly recommended to properly hear dialogue, music, and sound effects
  • - A mouse can be helpful for precise timeline and Fusion work, though a trackpad also works

Who this course is for
  • - Beginners who want to learn DaVinci Resolve from scratch
  • - Self-taught editors who feel stuck clicking buttons without understanding the process
  • - Content creators and small business owners who want better video for their brand
  • - Designers and creatives who need to learn basic editing for client projects
  • - Anyone who has opened Resolve, panicked, and wants a clear, structured path forward

What you’ll learn
  • - How to download, install, and set up DaVinci Resolve
  • - Setting up frame rates, codecs, and project settings
  • - Navigating the Edit, Media, Fusion, Color, and Deliver pages
  • - Importing, organizing, and managing media with bins and timelines
  • - Editing talking head videos from start to finish
  • - Removing ums, uhs, and dead space to improve pacing
  • - Cutting footage efficiently with custom keybinds
  • - Creating smooth edits using J cuts and L cuts
  • - Adding and timing b-roll to support the story
  • - Choosing and placing music and sound effects
  • - Balancing dialogue, music, and SFX for clean, intentional audio
  • - Editing short form and vertical videos for social platforms
  • - Using adjustment clips to apply effects across multiple clips
  • - Working with compound clips to stay organized
  • - Creating and using power bins for reusable assets
  • - Using proxies for smoother playback on larger projects
  • - Rendering in place to simplify complex timelines
  • - Understanding the Fusion page and node based workflows
  • - Creating Fusion compositions for motion graphics
  • - Working with merge nodes, masks, and transforms
  • - Building simple logo animations and motion elements
  • - Creating lower thirds and animated text
  • - Keying green screen footage
  • - Tracking footage and attaching animated callouts
  • - Understanding the difference between color correction and color grading
  • - Reading scopes to guide color decisions
  • - Correcting exposure, white balance, and contrast
  • - Working with primary wheels and RGB curves
  • - Handling skin tones accurately
  • - Applying basic color grading to shape mood
  • - Creating and saving color correction presets
  • - Exporting and delivering videos for YouTube, social platforms, and clients
  • - Completing multiple real world class projects you can add to your portfolio
  • - Downloadable exercise files and professional footage to follow along
  • - Quizzes and hands-on projects to reinforce key concepts
  • - Practical workflows and techniques used by working video editors
Brandon Baldovin

Brandon Baldovin

Editor & Creative Engineer

instructor

I am a video editor, content strategist, and educator, and my mission is to help creators understand not just how to edit, but why video editing works.

I hold a Master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering and have taught at the college level as an engineering instructor. Over the past three years, I’ve also taught video editing to beginner and intermediate creators, helping them build a stronger foundation and how to edit with more intention.

My engineer’s mindset strongly influences how I approach creative problem-solving. I focus on breaking down complex editing concepts into clear, practical techniques that creators can confidently apply. Over the past five years, my work has centred on visual storytelling, with a deep emphasis on DaVinci Resolve.
I was born and raised on California’s Central Coast, and I create educational resources designed to help others create more.

Certificates

We’re awarding certificates for this course!

Check out the How to earn your certificate video for instructions on how to earn yours and click the available certificate levels below for more information.

How to earn your certificate

Work your way towards your certificate for this course by following these simple steps.

  • Watch the course videos
  • Complete the Class Projects - look out for the videos marked with
  • Upload your class projects into the My Projects area in your account
  • Complete and pass the Knowledge Quiz (Merit level courses only)
  • Complete the Distinction Certificate Project (Distinction level courses only) - look out for the video marked with
  • Upload your Distinction project to the My Projects area in your account
  • Request your certificate when you've completed the requirements for the certificate level you're working towards

Good luck!

Pass certificates

We're awarding 'Pass' level certificates for this course.

You can work your way towards your 'Pass' certificate by following these simple steps.

  • Watch the course videos
  • Complete the Class Projects - look out for the videos marked with
  • Upload your class projects into the My Projects area in your account
  • Don't forget to request your certificate when all your projects are complete

Good luck!

Merit certificates

We're awarding 'Merit' level certificates for this course.

You can work your way towards your 'Merit' certificate by following these simple steps.

  • Watch the course videos
  • Complete the Class Projects - look out for the videos marked with
  • Upload your class projects into the My Projects area in your account
  • Complete and pass the Knowledge Quiz
  • Don't forget to request your certificate when you have passed the quiz and completed all your projects

Good luck!

Distinction certificates

We're awarding 'Distinction' level certificates for this course.

You can work your way towards your 'Distinction' certificate by following these simple steps.

  • Watch the course videos
  • Complete the Class Projects - look out for the videos marked with
  • Upload your class projects into the My Projects area in your account
  • Complete and pass the Knowledge Quiz
  • Complete the Distinction Certificate Project - look out for the video marked with
  • Upload your Distinction project to the My Projects area in your account
  • Don't forget to request your certificate when you have passed the quiz and completed all your projects

Good luck!

Downloads & Exercise files

Transcript

I'm gonna bring my playhead all the way back

to the beginning and before I begin to preview

what we have right now, you're probably already wagering

that this is gonna be too loud.

Look at how big the waveforms are compared to our voice.

If I were gonna play this, the music is gonna come in so

stinking strong

and loud that we're not gonna be able to hear anything.

So again, I have my audio over here lowered a little bit so

that I don't blow out my eardrums,

but I'm gonna go ahead and hit play.

Let's talk about some editing mistakes

that a lot of beginners make.

So a mistake that a lot of beginning editors make is

that they focus on and wow, can you sure hear the song now?

Okay, so

what volume level should our audio be

with my music track selected?

I'm gonna go ahead and look to the upright here

to our inspector tab.

Now remember the inspector tab is what controls the video

and audio properties.

So if I were to click on a video track, go over

to the inspector tab and if yours isn't open,

it's this upper right icon over here

that says inspector on it.

On one of our video clips, I can go over to the video tab

and we have all of our video properties, right?

So we've got the zoom, we've got the

position, et cetera, et cetera.

I click these little reset icons to reset that.

When I click the audio track here, we don't have a video tab

because there, well there's no video,

but we do have this very big

and important slide over here called volume.

We're not gonna worry about any

of these other intimidating looking things down here.

We're just gonna look at the volume.

Now you see here how it says zero.

Well that might not quite make sense

because obviously we, we have sound,

our volume is not at uh, zero.

Well, what I'd like you to do is this up in the upper right

hand corner over here, click the mixer icon.

Now I can't remember what the default opener is,

but you might have one of two things.

It might say mixer or meters.

I would like us to just look at the meters.

So if you have the mixer on first open, go

to these three dots right next to it and turn it on meters.

Now we have one single bar over here to the right.

Now, it might be a bit hard to see,

but you, at the very, very tip top of this bar,

you see how it says zero.

Most of the time when we're talking about audio, the way

that it is produced is it's normalized on a tippy

top max of zero.

Anything that goes past zero peaks the audio.

And it's when you get that like real crunchy squeal noise.

And so what that basically means is that when we're working

with audio, zero is the max.

If we wanna lower audio, we need to subtract

and bring the audio down.

So if I were to bring my playhead all the way to the left

and play this, let's talk about some editing mistakes

that a lot of you see how we clip this zero mark,

which means our music is going

past the zero point, which is bad.

We do not want that. So again, how lad do we make our music?

Well, let me open up my handy dandy,

very official whiteboard. There are gonna be

Three very general volume ranges

that we can sit in depending on what we'd like to do.

If we want our audio to be the prider driver

of the video, meaning music video, a montage,

the audio is the thing that is making the video happen.

We can go anywhere from, I would say minus three

decibels, two minus 10 decibels.

What's decibel? Well a decibel is the unit

of measurement here for our audio.

So when we're subtracting volume here,

we are doing it in terms of decibel.

So it's, it's not just a random floating number here.

These are decibels.

If we would like our audio to be complimentary,

meaning something that is heard

but isn't quite as loud as our primary audio,

we're gonna go anywhere from minus 12 to

I will go minus 21 db.

This volume range is definitely still gonna be heard

by the viewer, but it's not gonna be in a way as much

as when we're up in this range.

If we want back round music.

So something that is not in the way

but can still fill in some of the dead spaces of our video,

we're gonna shoot for the minus 30 DB range.

We can go a little above and below this,

but minus 30 DB is gonna be our happy space.

So what I would like you guys to do is

with our volume track selected,

you can either type in in the inspector tab minus 30

or hit Ctrl z click and hold this property.

So again, I am left clicking and holding

and drag this to the left until you hit minus 30

or what you can do hit control Z once is go over

to the music track itself in the timeline

and it's gonna be a bit tricky to see,

but there's this little floating white line right here

and when your mouse hovers over it, the icon changes

to two up and down arrows

and you can drag the volume down directly on the timeline.

Now it's pretty fast when you do so.

So if you'd like to slow down how much it changes,

we can hold down the shift key

to add a little granularity when we're changing the volume.

And now our music is gonna sound like this

and I would recommend having headphones on.

'cause if you're on speakers, it might be a little difficult

to hear the music.

Hey, let's talk about some editing mistakes

that a lot of beginners make.

So a mistake that a lot of beginning editors make is

that they focus on the spectacle

of the edit over the story of the edit.

So see how in moments like this where there's just little,

little pauses between the things that are being said,

the music kind of fills that gap.

That's what we want. The music isn't the focus here.

What I'm saying is the focus,

and we wanna make sure we're hearing what I'm saying.

What I suggest doing in your own time is changing the audio

level of the music track here

and seeing how it affects your, the understandability

of what I'm saying.

I'd also suggest changing where the music starts.

'cause if you remember this

Section right in here is where the main beat

of the song kicks in.

When I say kicks in, I I, I all, I mean is

that it's starting right there, right where a lot of more

of the instruments are coming into play.

I increase the volume level a little bit.

So I make sure I can, I can hear the, the song editors do.

Opt-in is the overuse, right? It's right in here.

Optin is the overuse of, so

what I can do is I can make a cut here on the music track

exactly where the beat kicks in

and then I can shift this point around

to see how it affects the video.

So if I wanted to, I could actually have the beat kick in

much closer to the the beginning portion.

So I could drag this over to the left, grab the left handle,

pull it over, grab the right handle, extend it,

and then let's what happens if I were

to leave this at minus 18, right?

So somewhere in between this minus 12 and minus 21 range.

Hey, let's talk about some editing mistakes

that a lot of beginners make.

So a mistake that a lot of beginning editors make is

that they focus on the spectacle

of the edit over the story of the edit.

So you can still hear what's being said,

but the music becomes a much bigger presence of the video.

So again, experiment, play with these things,

see what makes sense to you.

Remember the whole point of this section in particular,

this course is to just experiment

and figure out how things affect one another.

So with that said, what I am gonna do is I'm gonna bring

this down back to minus 30.

'cause I would like this to be backing audio.

Again, I'm holding down the shift key to fine tune.

It doesn't have to be exact. Minus 30.27 is just fine.

And now we're ready to move on.

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