How do I zoom in on a video (or add a zoom effect)?

Two different things: a static punch-in — scale the clip up and reposition so the subject fills the frame (used to fake a second camera angle or hide a jump cut) — and an animated zoom, where you keyframe the scale from 100% to, say, 130% over a second so the camera appears to push in. In EseCut, select the clip and scale it directly, or add scale keyframes / a motion preset for the animated version.

Zooms are a retention tool: a slow push-in during an important sentence signals 'this matters' and re-engages drifting attention. One caution — zooming past ~140% on 1080p footage starts visibly softening the image.

Related questions

• How do I blur part of a video (face, license plate, screen)?
• How do I fix shaky video footage?
• How do I speed up just one part of a video?

Browse all video editing questions, or see how EseCut compares to other editors.