Video content has become increasingly popular over the past few years. With the rise of TikTok and Instagram Reels, everyone shares videos on these platforms. It’s an excellent medium for conveying information – however, not everyone can enjoy it with sound. There’s a solution to this: to accompany the video with captions.
CapCut is a prominent app for editing videos, especially for social media like TikTok. Among numerous editing options, it also allows adding text to the content.
Here’s a quick guide on how to add captions when editing videos in CapCut.
Why You Should Add Captions to Video
Inserting textual elements into video content is a great way to convey compelling messages. That way, they also reach a larger audience.
Videos consist of visual and audio elements. However, if not accompanied by captions, they’re not inclusive to those who don’t have an opportunity to enjoy the sound. People with hearing impairments, for instance, cannot fully appreciate the information that the video provides if it’s not written on the screen.
Captions vs. Subtitles
There’s a difference between captions and subtitles, as they have different functions. The caption is a piece of textual content that accompanies the video but doesn’t necessarily transcribe the sound by heart. The caption’s primary function is to explain the content of the video and highlight keywords or the topic. Moreover, it replaces the role of the voice in conveying the message, making it versatile and open to creative undertakes.
On the other hand, subtitles translate the language of the video to text word by word. They’re beneficial for people with disability or hearing impairments because they provide a literal translation of the video’s message.
Add Captions in CapCut
CapCut is very user-friendly and allows easy video editing regardless of your device. Adding text to a video in CapCut is a simple operation, and the app enables various features for creative edits. There are two ways you can add text to your videos in CapCut, and they’re easy to access.
Add Automatic Caption to Videos in CapCut
CapCut provides an auto-caption feature which is handy for shortening the video editing process. It will automatically create subtitles for videos, which you can manually edit once the app generates them. To use the auto-generated captions in CapCut, you must choose the language used in the video. From there, the app will automatically create the text based on the video sound.
Here’s how to enable auto-generated captions in CapCut:
- Open the home screen of the CapCut app and create a new project.
- Import the video you want to edit into the project.
- Find the “Text” button in the bottom menu bar.
- Choose the “Auto captions” option.
- Choose the sound options from the pop-up dialogue box. There are three options:
- Choose “Original sound” if the video’s narrator is in the video.
- Choose “Voiceover” if the video includes a pre-recorded voiceover accompanying video content.
- Choose “Both” if the video combines the previous two.
- Select the language of the video.
- Tap “Start” and wait for the app to process the captions.
The processing time depends on the video length. Once the app completes auto-generating, you can manually edit the caption text if the app transcribed anything incorrectly. You can access this feature through the Batch edit menu.
CapCut also allows styling the captions, letting you experiment and provide a unique vibe to your videos. You can do this quickly by accessing the Style menu. There you can change the font type, color, and other fine-tuning features of your video.
Once done with editing, save your video to your library and share it on TikTok or as an Instagram Reel.
Manually Add Caption to Videos in CapCut
Manual video editing may be a little more complex in CapCut. Still, it lets you customize the text in your videos more precisely. Manual caption-making allows you to include text more creatively if you aim for more than just adding subtitles to follow the sound.
Here’s a walkthrough on how to manually include captions in CapCut:
- Open the CapCut app and tap “New project.”
- Choose the video you want to edit and tap “Add.”
- Adjust the white line that determines the part of the video which will receive the caption. You can do this by dragging the screen to the left or right.
- Click on the “Text” option in the bottom menu bar. This menu will present you with multiple options:
- “Add text” is the most customizable one, allowing you complete control over the caption.
- “Text template” will give you quick, pre-designed solutions for the caption design.
- Select “Add text.”
- Use the “Keyboard” tab to enter the text of the caption.
- Adjust the caption style and effects, add a bubble, or animate the text.
- Tap the checkmark and finish the edit.
Once you finish the caption design, it’s time to insert it into the video. After that, you need to position it on the screen and sync it with speech. You can do this by tapping the orange box and adjusting the white borders to synchronize the text with the video.
Tips for Creating Good Captions in CapCut
Naturally, you want to avoid additional edits when you finish adding captions to your videos. Although CapCut offers excellent features for designing video captions, it has some shortcomings too. Hence, you may want to avoid some things to ensure your videos’ captions won’t need extra editing.
Keep It Short
If you decide to add auto-generated captions to your video, ensure that they’re not overly long. It will make them harder for the viewer to read. Moreover, apps like TikTok or Instagram may cut them off after uploading.
To avoid this issue, ensure that you do a manual check. Take a look at each caption piece after auto-generating, and break up any lengthy sentences.
Keep It Basic
The second tip is to avoid handwritten or other fonts that might be hard to read. TikTok videos are famous for being easily digestible. If the viewer can’t instantly read the caption on your video, they will probably swipe up quickly. Choose the fonts that are easy to read, such as Classic, Bold, or Serif.
Get Creative With Captions
Adding captions to the video allows everyone to enjoy it. Transcribing the video improves audience comprehension and allows for flexible viewing independent of the environment. Additionally, most content creators aim for increased SEO and view count. Including textual content in the video adds to both those factors.
Editing videos in CapCut is the most common and straightforward way to make great video content. Next time you create a new TikTok video or an Instagram Reel, add a caption to it to enhance user experience. Your viewers will be thankful for it, and you will be making your video richer with information.
How do you prefer adding captions to your videos? Tell us in the comments section below.