Best practices for subtitiling vids?

[frayadjacent]

I'm doing some subtitles for Wiscon, and I'm wondering if anyone knows of guidelines for subtitling vids; i.e., is it best to start a subtitle a moment (how long of a moment?) before they lyric starts, or right at the same time? What about ways to get the subtitles to flow best with the music, or the vid itself? Is it better to keep a subtitle up a few frames longer than necessary when there are brief pauses in the lyrics so that you don't have a stutter effect (a few frames with no titles between two different lyric lines), or is it better to match the timing of the titles exactly with the lyrics?

Comments

[frayadjacent]

in general terms I tend to think that in case of doubt the more time a subtitle is on screen, the more time I got to read it.

Yes! Seems like a good principle, and is probably what I should generally adhere to. My only concern would be if there are times when it's more important for the timing of the subtitles to capture the rhythm/timing of the vocals? I think that would be more important for deaf/hard-of-hearing vid watchers than for vid-watchers who can hear that *something* is being sung, but can't make out what it is.

[endeni]

Oh, didn't think of that. Good thought, I can see how you may be conflicted. *nods pensively*