Video Editing and the emotion the final product evokes is dependent on many aspects, be it the source clips, the cuts introduced or the way of presentation. But to get to the end, there are several steps involved in the production process, and not every instance of it is perfect. But we all know, editing does often help iron out any kinks, with its ability to solve basic problems, like footage that is askew, or upside down. Thus with the steps listed in this article we will help you understand how you can rotate videos to ensure your edited project looks as intended.
This particular article considers the pre-installed Windows Media Player and WonderShare Filmora.
Note: We documented the steps in this guide with Windows Media Player (on a device running Windows 10) and WonderShare Filmora.
How to Rotate Videos with Windows Media Player?
Imagine you’re in a situation where you have gone ahead and finished the filming portion of a project on your smartphone but realise that the capture footage is upside down. Fortunately, this sort of a scenario is a common occurrence and it has quite a simple fix. If you look around the gallery app on your phone, you should be able to rotate the footage there itself, but if you’ve already moved it over to your laptop, hopping into a video editor can get this done in a jiffy.
Unfortunately, if you were planning to do this with the pre-installed Windows Media Player, you will not be able to rotate the clip. The software is only capable of being used as a Media Player that can help keep track of stored videos in a neat and easy to view format. It also has the ability to burn inserted discs, although we doubt any modern laptop comes with a disc drive.
Hence, to rotate video and still ensure its compatible with Windows Media Player, you can use free tools like VLC Media Player or Wondershare Filmora. The steps on how to use Wondershare Filmora to rotate video clips have been elaborated ahead in this article.
TIPS FOR WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER
In case you want to use Windows Media Player as your default software to manage stored content, read this section to understand how you can control displayed video libraries.
While Windows Media Player will pull all compatible files present in the Default Video Library, you can customise the information made available by using the Organises Function.
To configure the Videos Section to display specific content follow the steps listed below.
- Click on Organize.
- Then move onto Manage Libraries
- Now click on Videos.
Click on Add to enter File Explorer and choose a new folder to add to this section.
Once you add the new folder, the screen will update itself with all the video files present in the folder.
An alternate way to Rotate Video with Wondershare Filmora
With Windows Media Player only being a playback tool, we feel free software like Filmora Video Editor are a great option to have installed on your device.
In Wondershare Filmora, footage rotation can only be done via the Edit Option — in my experience this straightforward approach felt quite simple and intuitive. And in case you wish to incorporate Keyframes into the rotation step, the feature is available near the Timeline.
The emphasis on accessibility for every function in Filmora, provides a significant advantage. The use of modern iconography also betters the familiarity users may have with the software. These factors make Wondershare Filmora a great option to consider. If you do not already have Wondershare Filmora, you can download the software by visiting the official website.
Now, the steps we have listed below will help you learn how to use the rotate function in Wondershare Filmora and get the desired output.
For Win 7 or later (64-bit)
For macOS 10.14 or later
Open a new video project in Filmora and follow the steps listed below.
Step 1: Import a Media File for editing into the newly created Video Project.
Step 2: Drag and drop the selected video clip on your Timeline and select it with your mouse to activate it for the next set of interactions.
Step 3: Choose the Edit Option, which we have marked in Red. Doing this will bring up the Edit Window on your screen.
Step 4: Click on the checkbox next to Transform and then use the Rotation Slider to modify the orientation.
Now that you’ve read this portion of the guide, you may have realised the simple nature of Wondershare Filmora.
BONUS – KEYFRAMING IN WONDERSHARE FILMORA
While the steps we listed above showed how to perform rotation with just a few clicks. You can make the end product more dynamic with the use of Keyframes.
Definition: Keyframes in Video Editing is a software-based tool that will let you configure start and end points on the timeline, within which you can configure different clip properites. The set of changes that you create will occur gradually as the playhead continues through the playback. Some properties that can be modified with this method are zoom, rotation, colors, positions, etc.
Click on the Keyframe Button (marked in Green) to access the Keyframe Menu in Wondershare Filmora.
The Bottom Line
Rotating video is unfortunately impossible in Windows Media Player, thus the access and ability to free software like Wondershare Filmora is a huge positive for the creative community. Speaking of how rotation is done in Filmora, the intuitive number-based system is a huge positive, as there are some software which prefer using swivels. The integration of Keyframes into a free tool is also welcome.
This marks the end of our guide on how to rotate video in Windows Media Player and Wondershare Filmora. Once again, if you wish to not use a proper video editing tool, you can consider alternate players like VLC, which can rotate footage.