Adobe Premiere Pro – Speed up editing processes by working with numbers

There are many little tips and tricks to speed up your repetitive editing processes but one of the main things I find is to get used to working in numbers for resizing, scaling positioning etc

One of the major pluses to editing using premiere pro is the ability to drag and drop different video formats straight into you project and then on into the timeline, no rendering and no re encoding video to a specific .mov file but this means you’ll often need to re size clips. You can set this to automatic as you bring it into the timeline but I often like to do this manually and refreme the shot too.

I work with a notepad in front of me and any values I think I will repeatedly need in that project I jot down. This is also a good tip for scaling over time, timecodes, clip lengths and color values. It might seem obvious but on a large project it’s amazing the amount of time and frustration it can save. I’ve included a screen grab where you might find this useful in the video effects tab.

Adobe Premiere Pro – The difference between Track Volume and Clip Volume

If you are used to using Final Cut Pro you will no doubt prefer to control your audio channels in the timeline rather than on the effects tab. At first this appear difficult if you use the button to the left of the timeline depicted here you shall reveal further controls in Adobe Premiere Pro.

This will allow you to control the levels from the timeline over time which is very handy if you have a soundtrack or voice over that needs to be taken in and out during your edit. Often these level changes will be clip dependent, meaning that if you move the clip around the point at which the levels need to change will remain the same. Sometime these changes in sound level will be relevant to the edit and if you move certain clips you will still require the levels to change at that point. Using the drop down here you have access to show clip toggles or show timeline toggles. Remember that clip levels works on that clips audio independent of the timeline and the timeline audio works on the timeline audio independently of the clips.

Add keyframes at the playhead using the black diamond next to the track or by using the Pen Tool.

Using Camtasia to Screen Capture / Record Video Tutorials

Despite pushing for Adobe Captivate we have installed Camtasia on the edit suites at work for screen capture and tutorial recording. I’m not disappointed though it does the job!

Firstly, the majority of recording the company will need to shoot will be on PC based software so we have bought the PC version and installed VMWare on the Macs. This should improve the workflow from recording to edit. The software is easy to set up and get started with, like most programs.

Load up Camtasia Studio and you will first be faced with an option screen. Choose screen recording.

A small window in the bottom right hand corner of the page will load. In this window you have options for Camera, Audio and Select Area.

Once you hit the record button the window is minimized to the tray and everything you do on screen or within your assigned area is recorded.

When you are done hit the Esc key or go down to the icon in the tray and click to reveal the stop option.

The recording is now in a ‘cache’ state and you now need to decide how you will save the file down.

Click the Save button in the bottom right corner of the window.

Save the files down as an AVI as we will not be editing the video in Camtasia Studio. Organise your clips well so you can quickly identify them and their order later.

Adobe Premiere Pro – Scratch disc options, Same as Project, Documents or [Custom]

When setting up a project on Adobe Premiere Pro, the second tab on the New Project window presents you with the option to set your Scratch Disc. This is where all your supporting files including your videos will be saved to your Hard Drive or external drive.

Saving to your Documents folder only seems to cause issues. If you know you will have multiple projects open the files will get lost very easily lost or even corrupted. If you use a machine with multiple log ins then projects will not open when signed in as a different user. I recommend using the Same as Project option or if you wish to be even tidier create a separate folder within your project folder to separate them further.

This also means that if you need to move your project onto a different machine to work you can. All the relevant files can be transferred by copying one project folder without breaking any links to supporting files.

Premiere_Pro_Scratch_Discs

Adobe Premiere Pro – Controlling Sound and Volume Level over time

There are two main ways to control the sound levels in Adobe Premiere Pro over time outside of a simple constant gain, expositional fade transition.

Firstly, it is not straight away that obvious that this can be done in the timeline in much the same way as in Final Cut Pro and the use of pushpins.

Adobe_Timeline_Toggle_OnLocate the button to the left of the timeline and highlight it. You should now be able to place pushpins along the levels line.

Place the playhead where you would like your fade or gain to begin and then click the grey diamond where you see the text “Audio” to the left of the timeline. You will notice a pushpin / keyframe appear on the audio track and the grey diamond turn black.

Move the playhead and the diamond will turn grey again, place the playhead where you would like your fade to finish and add another pushpin / keyframe in the same way. Grab the level beyond your second pushpin / keyframe and drag it down.Premiere_Pro_Audio_Timeline

You have created a gradual fade over time.

The second way is much the same as creating motion with images and takes place in the effects tab. If you have the Show Clip Keyframes drop down selected, you will notice this in the timeline to. With your clip selected place your playhead where you would like the fade to begin.

Levels_ControlExpand the levels controls under effects and locate the stopwatch symbol. Press this and a small black diamond (keyframe) will appear in the clip timeline. Drag the playhead to the end of the fade and repeat. You should now be able to reduce the levels beyond your second keyframe without affecting the sound before the first. The diagonal fall between the two signifies the fade over time.

Audio_Effects_Tab

Adobe Premiere Pro – Selecting audio or video independently in the timeline

In Final Cut pro you are probably used to toggling on and off this button in order to break he linkage between audio tracks and video tracks. It is not as obvious in Adobe Premiere Pro although once you know how it makes sense and it might even be easier to incorporate the action into your editing.

Apple_Alt_KeySimply hold the alt Key while clicking either the audio or video track. You will notice only one is selected, you can now move this independently from the other, delete a track or copy and paste it. Note if you move the track a indicator will appear showing just how many seconds and frames you are out of sync from the original partner.

Premiere_Pro_Select_Track

Using iDVD to quickly output your videos with professional Chaptering and Menus

Often you will not have time to create DVD menus, chaptering, fancy graphics etc but you do need some that looks good, plays like a DVD and serves a purpose.

I personally wouldn’t use iDVD for professional output to client although it can often provide a quick solution.

Open iDVD, choose New Project and you will be faced with the default template of your current version. On the right hand side you will see a panel where you will be able to scroll through all the templates, be sure to switch through the dropdown at the top as this will show more templates from pat versions of iDVD. More templates are available on the Internet.

iDVD_Interface

Switch_iDVD_16_9Choose your template and be sure the aspect ratio still matches that of your original movies. You should of by now exported all the movies you require for each chapters as separate movies (usually full quality DV or HD) and iDVD will encode them as it creates the DVD. iDVD does support chapter markers but more on that in another post.

Once you have all your movies neatly in a folder you are ready to bring them into your project. You can simply drag and drop each movie to the menu frame and a chapter menu button will be automatically created. This button is customisable.

iDVD_PreferencesYou are almost ready for authoring. Just turn off the Apple branding in the bottom right hand corner of the screen by clicking iDVD > Preferences > Show Apple logo watermark

Hit the burn button. It will become ready and prompt you to put in a blank DVD. Do so and press burn. Your DVD will now be created. For multiple copies keep adding DVDs after each burn, this will reduce the disc creation time as the multiplexing and encoding only needs to be done once at this stage.

Adobe Photoshop – Cropping, Resizing, Re Framing and saving images for web tutorial

Open your image File > Open and browse to your file

Cropping, using the crop toolCrop_Tool
If you require a thumbnail or web specific sized image, best practise would be to use the Crop Tool.

Set the size in pixels that you would like your final image to be  using the toolbar at the top of the photoshop page. Be sure to update the images intended resolution, for web you would usually choose 72 pixels/inch.

Crop_Toolbar_Settings

Example, I chose 150 px X 150 px

Next, go to your image, left click (hold) and drag your cursor over the section of the image you require.

Cropping_Windsurfing_Image
Double click on the highlighted area and the image will be resized to you new proportions.

Marquee_Tool

Cropping using the marquee tool – re framing

Select the Marquee tool from the toolbar.


Go to your image and again, left click (hold) and drag the curser over the section of the image you would like to keep.

Cropping_Windsurf_Image
Once you have selected the area, choose Image > Crop and the image shall be cropped to your chosen selection. If it is still the wrong dimensions see below.

Resizing the image
If your image is correctly framed and the proportions are correct simply resize the image.
Click Image > Image Size

Resize_Image

Constrain_Proportions
Make sure you check the box Constrain Proportions otherwise you will distort your image.

Tutorial requested by Jane Bassett of www.2xs.co.uk Windsurf and Kitesurf online shop.

Video Camera Review: JVC Everio GZ HD40

jvc_everio_hd40

My JVC Everio GZ-HD40 arrived the other day and I have been doing some testing and establishing some best settings for different filming scenarios. I chose the Everio for specific reasons, I wanted to move away from a tape work flow and the massive 120 gig HD provides this with a bit of future proofing thrown in for free. For personal use I wanted a compact camera that I could expand with peripherals rather than have it all on board. My largest needs were for a quality waterproof housing that would not only take a bit of a knock but also provide ease of use to film in the water and for general single person video production. The majority of housing on the Market, although are expensive don’t really do the job. If you are filming action sports it is important to know that your subject is within frame otherwise you often don’t quite get shots that don’t come about very often. The JVC WR-MG200 Everio Marine Case not only allows you to comfortably hold the camera but use the LCD display too so that even in surf you know you got the shot there and then.

So, back to the HD40. Very impressed with the camera so far. My first impression is that for a small stylish consumer camera it comes with many pro features including the 1920 PRO HD resolution and the ability to now shoot in a AVCHD format as well as to an mpeg compression, CD supplied provides quicktime codecs for editing support. Using the AVCHD codec you will expect to get 15 hrs at PRO HD resolution (XP AVC) 55 hrs at standard definition or long play (EP AVC) and 22hrs on standard play. Using an Mpeg codec you will record around 10 hrs of footage. I know what you thinking, on such a portable device what is the point unless the battery can last out. It also allows for plenty of capture time before the need to transfer across to the edit suite. I have not yet decided how I shall be archiving or keeping hold of footage as I transfer it from the camera. I shall look into the share station, but if this just compresses a viewable DVD the I shall sway towards the external hard drive or data DVD.

For those of you who like your manual settings and I know we all do, the everio will take a little getting used to. There is an auto / manual button located under the LCD display. Press and press again to switch between the two, you then control many of the settings that you may need to use immediately with the joystick located on the left hand side of the display. It is here that I discovered the tidily hidden on board lamp hidden away to the lower quarter of the lens. The rest of the settings can be found using the menu button and then choosing the option > Manual Setting. Here you will find, Adjust Brightness, Shutter Speed, Aperture Priority, White Balance, Effect, Tele Macro, Zebra and Sharpness. Enough to tweak your shot just like the pro’s.

Obviously if you intend to shoot using a Pro HD resolution you will not want your footage to be let down by the sound from the on board microphone. Although hard to see on the images, the HD40 comes with a shoe hidden under a plastic clip in plate so I invested in a Rode DVCam Directional Video Condenser Microphone which comes with a 3.5 m plug for the mic socket on the camera.

videomic_replacementI also bought a lens hood from eBay and will soon purchase extra lenses such as wide angle, fish eye and tele macro and put the camera through its paces.

One thing that I am slightly disappointed about is the lack of iLink or firewire port on the actual camera (although this is on the dock) I was looking forward to shooting some time lapse footage using Dragon Stop Motion but will need to find and alternative camera to do this in conjunction with my Apple Macbook Pro.

Extreme Filming and Action Sports videography, on and in the water

Having sound knowledge and experience as a cameraman, a background in teaching / participating in watersports, places me in a unique position in the UK to shoot water based videography that far exceeds that of the a regular watersports enthusiast jumping in the water with a camera, or the most experienced cameraman placing themselves literally out of their depth.

I have filmed events at a national competitive level and intend to do a lot more in the near future with the boom in the demand for online video / video marketing.

In the past I have survived with home made waterproof housings and rain covers, pining for an improvement in technology that would allow me to achieve the highest standard of footage at ease on or in the water. A large hard drive would be essential, with the backup of a laptop and external hard drive would mean getting plenty of footage without any annoying tape changes. Pro HD footage would be ideal and allow a combination of great quality footage and cropping to pin point the action. A compact camera that didn’t rely on the use of a view finder would allow me to achieve a perfectly framed shot and keep hold of the camera while filming in surf.

jvc_everio_hd40

Based on the above requirements I opted for the JVC GZ-HD40 with a JVC Everio Marine Case, WR-MG200. Visit back and I shall post some real life reviews using the equipment in extreme and marine sports situations, along with examples of footage I shoot.

JVC_Everio_Marine_Case

Contact me here at my blog with any questions regarding filming, watersports and editing.