1. Shoot video with Adobe OnLocation

Adjust the video signal coming from your camcorder before you shoot, and then shoot directly to your hard drive with Adobe OnLocation, the signal monitoring application bundled with Adobe Premiere Pro. For a video on direct-to-disk recording, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0237.

Adobe OnLocation

2. Start or open a project

Open an existing project, or start a new one from the Adobe Premiere Pro Quickstart screen. When starting a new project, you can specify the television standard, video format, and other settings for your project. (See About projects.)

Quickstart screen

3. Capture and import video and audio

Using the Capture panel, transfer footage directly from a camcorder or VTR. With the proper hardware, you can digitize and capture other formats, from VHS to HD. Each file you capture to your hard disk automatically becomes a clip in the Project panel.

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Project panel and Capture panel

You can also import a variety of digital media, including video, audio, and still images. Adobe Premiere Pro also imports Adobe Illustrator® artwork or Photoshop layered files, and it translates After Effects projects for a seamless, integrated workflow. You can create synthetic media, such as standard color bars, color backgrounds, and a countdown. (See About capturing, digitizing, and importing.)

You can also use Adobe Bridge to organize and find your media files, and then use the Place command in Adobe Bridge to place the files directly into Adobe Premiere Pro.

In the Project panel you can label, categorize, and group footage into bins to keep a complex project organized. You can open multiple bins simultaneously, each in its own panel, or you can nest bins, one inside another. Using the Project panel icon view, you can arrange clips in storyboard fashion to visualize or quickly assemble a sequence.

4. Assemble and refine a sequence

Using the Source Monitor, you can view clips, set edit points, and mark other important frames before adding clips to a sequence. For convenience, you can break a master clip into any number of subclips, each with its own In and Out points. You can view audio as a detailed waveform and edit it with sample‑based precision. (See Source and Program Monitors overview.)

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Source Monitor, Program Monitor, and Timeline panel

You add clips to a sequence in the Timeline panel by dragging or by using controls in the Source Monitor. You can automatically assemble clips into a sequence that reflects their order in the Project panel. You can view the edited sequence in the Program Monitor or watch the full‑screen, full‑quality video on an attached television monitor. (See Timeline panel overview [F30903 Metadata 'Track' in Timeline] and Adding clips to a sequence.)

Refine the sequence by manipulating clips in the Timeline panel, with either context‑sensitive tools or tools in the Tools panel. Use the specialized Trim Monitor to fine‑tune the cut point between clips. By nesting sequences—using a sequence as a clip within another sequence—you can create effects you couldn’t achieve otherwise.

5. Add titles

Using the Adobe Premiere Pro full‑featured Titler, create stylish still titles, title rolls, or title crawls that you can easily superimpose over video. If you prefer, you can modify any of a wide range of provided title templates. As with any clip, you can edit, fade, animate, or add effects to the titles in a sequence. (See About the Titler.)

Titler

6. Add transitions and effects

The Effects panel includes an extensive list of transitions and effects you can apply to clips in a sequence. You can adjust these effects, as well as a clip’s motion, opacity, and Variable Rate Stretch using the Effect Controls panel. The Effect Controls panel also lets you animate a clip’s properties using traditional keyframing techniques. As you adjust transitions, the Effect Controls panel displays controls designed especially for that task. Alternatively, you can view and adjust transitions and a clip’s effect keyframes in the Timeline panel. (See About transitions and Working with effects.)

Effects and Effect Controls panels

7. Mix audio

For track‑based audio adjustments, the Audio Mixer faithfully emulates a full‑featured audio mixing board, complete with fade and pan sliders, sends, and effects. Adobe Premiere Pro saves your adjustments in real time, on the fly. With a supported sound card, you can record audio through the sound mixer, or mix audio for 5.1 surround sound. (See Mixing audio tracks and clips.)

Audio Mixer

8. Collaborate

Using the Clip Notes feature, you can easily send out draft edits for review, and import reviewers’ comments back into the timeline. The comments show up in sequence markers situated at the precise frames where comments were placed.

Export Settings set for Clip Notes export

9. Export

Deliver your edited sequence in the medium of your choice: tape, DVD, Blu-ray Disc, or movie file. Using the Adobe Media Encoder, you can customize the settings for MPEG2, MPEG4, Adobe Flash Video, and other codecs, to the needs of your viewing audience. (See Exporting basics.)

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Export Settings dialog box and Export to Encore dialog box