At long last, my best friend has arrived – that is Camtasia 2020! I’ve been a Camtasia user for about five years and I’m pumped about this latest installment. I thought I would share with you why I like it, a video on what’s new, and a few tips to make the most of this upgrade.

Watch the Full Video Review of Camtasia 2020:

What’s New in Camtasia 2020

I won’t go into a crazy amount of details here as you can simply watch my video overview, but I will tell you what’s got me excited…

1 – New and improved recording and screen capture

Oh baby, this one had me shakin in my boots, even though I don’t really wear boots. I’ve loved the ability to do webcam record in Camtasia, but it was always choppy at higher resolutions, so I was limited to a smaller video inside the screen record. Or I had to record in a separate program and import my talking head video.

Not anymore. In the demo video, everything was done right inside Camtasia and the webcam can now go up to 4K at 60 FPS! So with a Logitech Brio Webcam I can get crazy high quality video (I used HD in the example). You can also record your 4K screen.

And even cooler yet, they FINALLY allow you to record JUST the webcam if you like and de-select the screen capture. Much more control, and you guys rock.

2 – Replacability feature

This is where your workflow gets fun. I have a bunch of videos on my Youtube Channel that I have always designed to look similar, but I had to use creative ways to make them templates and it was a hassle. On the timeline, you would need to delete an old video and drag new videos to replace, adjust the timeline, and risk losing the flow of your video.

Now, you can drag a video, image, audio, or transition overtop of another media item on the timeline and simply REPLACE it. You can replace it in four ways:

  1. Ripple Replace: This just switches the image or video with the new one and adjusts the track on the timeline
  2. Replace from start: This replaces the media with the new one and clips the end to match the length of the original
  3. Replace from end: This replaces the media with the new one and clips the start to match the length of the original
  4. Replace with Clip speed: This is kinda cool – it matches the length of the new clip to the original by adjusting the speed. Handy if you are trying to maintain the exact length

Keep in mind you can replace audio with new audio which is cool. You can also replace images with videos and vice versa! And you can easily swap out images and transitions – lots of great options here.

3 – A more organized library and media bins

This feature is something you will need to explore, but you can now sort media by type, change views, and you can replace selected media right in the media library.

A cool feature is the ability to right click on the media in the library and “select it on the timeline” AND right click on media on the timeline and “select in the media bin”

4 – Placeholders

Now we are getting to the good stuff. I am a big fan of presets and templates, wither for myself or clients. Now, we can create a killer presentation and convert any of the elements to placeholders. It’s as simple as a right-click!

So now I can take my standard, well edited video, with all the elements, and convert the parts that would change each time to placeholders. This will allow me to know exactly what to adjust. Booyah!

5 – Templates, packages, presets, & favorites

I’m excited that Camtasia has stepped up even further in how they sort files. Once you’ve made your killer presentation, course, or video you can convert it to a template for YOU to use over and over again. Great.

Even better, you can take all those presets, animations, and branding elements with that template and EXPORT IT AS A PACKAGE.

Now, you can move that package to another computer, to a client, or share it online to allow others to use everything you’ve created. Aint that a peach?

6 – Templates are editable in the properties area

I’m a big fan of this new feature where you can click on a template like an intro or outro from your library and simply edit the text and logo right ion the properties section. Likewise if you download additional assets from the Techsmith Assets Library.

Much easier to edit and maintain the integrity of the animations and templates.

7 – Magnetic tracks

Be careful with this new feature, but on the left of the timeline, you now have the ability to click the little magnet icon and all the media on the timeline will snap together, removing the gaps.

I couldn’t see how to do this for multiple tracks, so be careful when using annotations or audio on separate tracks.

Still very cool to remove any gaps.

8 – Detachable timeline

Easy peasy, right-click and “detach timeline” so you can use multiple monitors and spread the work out. The end.

9 – Reverse transitions

Another easy one, but cool. In the properties of any transitions, you can select the “reverse” tickbox and change the direction of the transition. Nice.

10 – Alpha and transparency (Track Mattemodes)

I played with this a bit, and will be diving in further, but ohhhh man does it look like a solid new feature. In the example video I show how we got animated lettering to show the video behind – you can see it here at about 20 minutes in.

I think there will be some crazy new ways to use transparency and alpha channels, so I’m pumped to use them!

Camtasia 2020: Worth the Upgrade?

Yes. Click here to get your copy and get editing those templates. If you plan on making videos consistently, the workflow elements in this new edition will make you a speedy mofo. I’m stoked to use it and see what I create. Go to my Youtube Channel, subscribe and follow along in the journey!

Let me know if you have questions.

(Note: some links in this post are affiliate links, so if you click and end up making purchases, I could get a little piece of the action, so thanks!)

Joe Girard
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