Many graphics and animation programs generate square‑pixel assets meant for display on square‑pixel computer monitors. Adobe Premiere Pro, however, typically generates files with non‑square pixels for display on television sets. Adobe Premiere Pro automatically conforms square‑pixel assets to the project’s pixel aspect ratio. After the asset is conformed, however, it no longer has its original frame aspect ratio. Also, its frame aspect ratio is not likely to match that of the project, even if it did before it was conformed.

For example, suppose you generate a square‑pixel asset at 720x540 and import it into an Adobe Premiere Pro DV project with an aspect ratio of 720x540. In this case, the asset will be wider than the screen when it is conformed. You can use the Scale control to set the size of the asset’s frame within the project’s frame. However, to preserve the asset’s frame aspect ratio, Adobe Premiere Pro often needs either to crop the asset or to frame it within black bars.

You can prevent this kind of cropping and framing by generating assets from your square‑pixel graphics or animation programs in a frame aspect ratio that, when conformed, matches the project’s frame size exactly. For best results, use programs such as Adobe Photoshop® and Adobe After Effects® that include pixel aspect ratio settings, and set the frame dimensions and pixel aspect ratio to match those of your project. If the pixel aspect ratio setting is unavailable in your program, do not try to match the frame dimensions (for example, 720x540). Instead, ensure that the overall frame aspect ratio matches that of your project (for example, 4:3 or 16:9). Adobe Premiere Pro automatically adjusts the video so that it is not distorted.