Adobe Premiere Elements 8 User Manual

Using

ADOBE

PREMIERE

ELEMENTS 8 EDITOR

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Last updated 8/12/2010

Chapter 1: Getting started with Adobe Premiere Elements

What to do first . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Using Help and getting support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Converting a catalog from a previous version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

About Backing up/Synchronizing files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Working in Elements Organizer and Adobe Premiere Elements Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Importing and organizing photos and video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Troubleshooting tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Chapter 2: Adobe Premiere Elements workspace

About the workspace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Panel overviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Chapter 3: Projects

Creating a new project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Creating an InstantMovie project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Viewing a project’s files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Viewing clip properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Project settings and presets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Undoing changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Saving and backing up projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Working with scratch disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

iii

Chapter 4: Capturing video

Getting ready to capture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Capture video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Capture stop-motion and time-lapse video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Chapter 5: Importing and adding media

Adding files to a project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Using files from Photoshop Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Creating specialty clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Working with offline files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Working with aspect ratios and field options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

5.1 audio import . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Chapter 6: Managing clips with the Organizer

View clips in Elements Organizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Finding files in Elements Organizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Tagging files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Grouping files in the Elements Organizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Creating albums . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Creating and editing smart albums . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Backup and synchronize albums and files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

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Contents

Chapter 7: Arranging clips in a movie

Arranging clips in the Sceneline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Creating a slide show . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Creating a picture-in-picture overlay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

Arranging clips in the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Grouping, linking, and disabling clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

Working with clip and timeline markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

Previewing movies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Chapter 8: Editing clips

Trimming clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Changing clip speed and duration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Freezing and holding frames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Working with source clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Chapter 9: Applying transitions

Transition basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

Applying transitions to clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

Create specialty transitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141

Adjusting transitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

Chapter 10: Applying effects

Effects basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146

Finding and organizing effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

Applying and removing effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

Working with effect presets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Changing effect properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Reposition, scale, or rotate clips with the Motion effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

Superimposing and transparency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160

Selecting colors for effects and mattes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Effects reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Chapter 11: Animating effects

Effect animation basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200

Adding, copying, and removing keyframes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202

Adjusting keyframes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205

Controlling change between keyframes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207

Animating a clip’s position . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210

Motion tracking effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212

Effects Mask . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215

Chapter 12: Creating titles

Creating and trimming titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

Editing and formatting text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223

Applying styles to text and graphics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

Adding shapes and images to titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228

Arranging objects in titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230

Adding color and shadows to titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233

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Contents

Designing titles for TV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236

Exporting and importing titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237

Chapter 13: Adding and mixing audio

Using soundtracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238

Create narrations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240

Mixing audio and adjusting volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242

Chapter 14: Creating disc menus

Types of discs and menu options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248

Working with menu markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249

Creating disc menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255

Previewing menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261

Chapter 15: Saving and sharing your movies

Sharing from the Tasks panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262

Using Quick Share . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263

Sharing to DVD or Blu-ray Disc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263

Sharing for PC playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267

Sharing to the web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273

Sharing to mobile phones and players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275

Sharing to videotape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276

Sharing to Video CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279

Common settings for Sharing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279

Supported file types for saving and exporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284

Compression and data-rate basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286

Archiving projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288

Chapter 16: Adobe Premiere Elements keyboard shortcuts

Using default shortcuts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290

Customizing shortcuts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290

Chapter 17: Troubleshooting

Resources and guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292

Capturing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293

Importing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294

Playing back and previewing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295

Creating a DVD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297

Chapter 18: Glossary

Digital imaging terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299

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Chapter 1: Getting started with

Adobe

Adobe® Premiere® Elements 8 software combines power and simplicity so you can easily make your videos look their best. You can share them in imaginative ways, and easily find and view all your photos and video clips.

Premiere Elements

What to do first

Check the system requirements

If you’re not sure that Adobe Premiere Elements can run on your computer, review the complete system requirements and recommendations for your Adobe® software. See the ReadMe file included on your software installation disc.

Install the software

1 Close any other Adobe applications open on your computer.

2 Insert the installation disc into your disc drive, and follow the onscreen instructions.

Note: You can specify the language and select the country while installing the application.

Should I uninstall my previous version of Adobe Premiere Elements? Although it is not necessary, we recommend that

you uninstall any previous version of Adobe Premiere Elements before installing the new version.

How do I uninstall a version of Adobe Premiere Elements? In the Windows® OS, click the Start menu, and then select

Control Panel. Double-click Add Or Remove Programs. Select the version of Adobe to uninstall, and then click Remove. Confirm the uninstallation when prompted.

Premiere Elements that you want

Register

After installing Adobe Premiere Elements, register your software to receive complimentary installation support, notifications of updates, and other services.

Note: If you postpone registration, you can register at any time by choosing Help > Registration.

ReadMe file

The installation disc contains the ReadMe file for your software. (This file is also copied to the application folder during product installation.) Open the file to read important information.

Sign up with your Adobe ID

Important: Adobe Premiere Elements free online benefits and Adobe Premiere Elements Plus are available in the United States only. Internet access required.

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Sign up with your Adobe ID to receive free online benefits, such as 2 GB of free storage, automatic online backup, automatic syncing of your photos and video clips on multiple computers, tutorials that appear when you need them, access to your photos and videos at Photoshop.com, and a personal URL for sharing your photo/video albums. For more information, see

How do I sign up? Click the link on the Welcome screen or in the menu bar to sign up with your Adobe ID. You can

sign up at any time on the Welcome screen. To display the Welcome screen, click the Welcome screen icon in the menu bar. If you don't have an Adobe ID, click the link on the Welcome screen or in the menu bar to create one.

www.adobe.com/go/learn_pre_membership_en.

New and enhanced features

Visit www.adobe.com/go/learn_pre_features_en to learn about new and enhanced features. Improving your videos and doing more with them is easier than ever.

Using Help and getting support

Learning Adobe Premiere Elements

The Adobe Premiere Elements Help and Support page on the web provide links to articles and video tutorials to help you get started with Adobe Premiere Elements. The Help and Support page also include top troubleshooting tips, advanced articles, and links to Help and forums. For more information, see

www.adobe.com/support/premiereelements/.

How do I ask a question? You can ask questions to and get advice from other Adobe Photoshop Elements and

Premiere Elements users at www.adobe.com/go/forums.

Adobe

Using Adobe Premiere Elements Help

Adobe Premiere Elements Help is available several ways. To access Help, select Help > Adobe Premiere Elements Help (or press the F1 key on your keyboard).

For the complete Help for Adobe Premiere Elements, see Elements Organizer and the Adobe Premiere Elements Editor Help.

Community Help Client The help client that is launched when you press F1. Alternatively, you can download the client,

and help for Premiere Elements from and using the Adobe Community Help client, see

http://blogs.adobe.com/preran/2010/06/adobe_community_help_client_ch.html.

Help on the web To view Help on the web, see www.adobe.com/go/learn_pre8_en.Your computer must be connected

to the Internet to access Help on the web.

Help PDF Click the Help PDF link at the top of each Help page. The saved Help PDF is the best way to access the most

comprehensive Help when you don’t have an Internet connection.

Links in the application Some Help links are within Adobe Premiere Elements. Clicking these links takes you to the

corresponding topic in either Help on the web or Help in the application.

How to search for troubleshooting topics You can view top issues and search for common problems and error

messages by going to Adobe Premiere Elements users at www.adobe.com/go/forums.

www.adobe.com/support/premiereelements. You can also ask questions of other

http://www.adobe.com/support/chc/. For more information on downloading

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Getting started with Adobe Premiere Elements

Forum You can access the Elements user community forum through the application. To access the forum page from

Elements Organizer, select Help > Forum > Premiere Elements. If your computer is connected to the Internet,

Premiere Elements launches the forum page. The forum is used to ask other Adobe Premiere Elements users

Adobe for suggestions on your designs and also to post useful tips and tricks that help other users.

Look for Adobe Premiere Elements updates If your computer is connected to the Internet, you’ll receive notifications

whenever Adobe

www.adobe.com/downloads/updates.

Premiere Elements is updated. You can also find out about the latest updates by going to

How do I get customer support?

You can get support by contacting Adobe directly or submitting a web case. Visit www.adobe.com/support/contact for contact information. Visit the Adobe Support website at www.adobe.com/go/support. Adobe Support has troubleshooting information, and also information about free and paid technical support options.

Converting a catalog from a previous version

When you open Elements Organizer, you could experience difficulties in opening a catalog you used in an earlier version of Adobe Premiere Elements. Convert the catalog to view the photos and video clips.

1 In Elements Organizer, select File > Catalog.

2 Click Convert in the Catalog Manager.

3 In the Convert Catalog window, select the catalog you want to convert.

Note: Catalogs saved to a folder in a location other than the default location do not appear in the Convert Catalog window automatically. Click Find More Catalogs, and then select the folder where your catalog is located. Catalogs located in that folder are added to the list of catalogs that can be converted.

4 Click Convert.

Show Previously Converted Catalogs

You can view the catalogs that have previously been converted or that were backed up by an earlier version. The Convert Catalog window does not display these catalogs by default. Select Show Previously Converted Catalogs to view a list of the previously converted catalogs.

Note: You cannot use the converted catalog with earlier versions. However, when the catalog is converted, it copies the data into a new catalog file, and the original catalog file remains unchanged. You can continue to use the original catalog in earlier versions.

About Backing up/Synchronizing files

Back up/Synchronize files

Note: Adobe Premiere Elements free online benefits and Adobe Premiere Elements Plus are available in the United States only. Internet access required.

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When you sign in with your Adobe ID, you can back up your albums and catalogs to Photoshop.com servers. Backing up and synchronizing your albums and catalogs are essential for protecting your photos and media files. For example, if you add keyword tags to media files on your computer, the corresponding photos on Photoshop.com are updated with the tags. The albums and catalogs must be marked for Backup/Synchronization.

Important: All images within a stack are automatically backed up/synchronized across all machines. However, you must manually re-create the stack on each machine.

The Backup/Synchronization wizard is automatically launched when the user activates Backup/Synchronization for the first time.

Backup/Synchronization confirmation window

1 Start Elements Organizer, and then sign in with your Adobe ID.

2 Choose an option from the Backup/Synchronization dialog box.

Yes - Turn It On For Me Enables you to set your entire catalog for Backup/Synchronization. All your videos and photos

securely get uploaded to your online account.

Yes - But Show Me The Advanced Settings Enables you to set advanced Backup/Synchronization settings in the

Preferences dialog box.

No - Leave It Off, I Don’t Want To Protect My Photos And Videos Your videos and photos don’t get backed up and

synchronized online.

3 Select the required option, and then follow the onscreen instructions to enable Backup/Synchronization.

View Backup/Synchronization activity status

❖ Do one of the following:

• Right-click the Elements Backup/Synchronization Agent icon in the system tray, and then select View

Backup/Synchronization Status.

• Double-click the Elements Backup/Synchronization Agent icon in the system tray.

• Click the Elements Backup/Synchronization Agent icon in the status bar of Elements Organizer, and then select

View Backup/Synchronization Status.

The Elements Backup/Synchronization Status dialog box is displayed. The dialog box displays the following information:

• The total number of assets that are being synchronized

• The overall progress of the synchronization activity

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Getting started with Adobe Premiere Elements

• The online storage capacity being used

• The asset that is being synchronized

The dialog box also allows you to pause and resume the Backup/Synchronization activity.

View Backup/Synchronization activity status

Start backup and synchronization activity manually

Backup/Synchronization is a scheduled activity. The synchronization agent checks for assets to synchronize at regular intervals. Between these periods of activity, the Elements Backup/Synchronization Agent is idle. To synchronize right away instead of waiting for the next scheduled synchronization, click Sync Now in the Backup/Synchronization Status dialog box. The Backup/Synchronization process starts, and any changes that you have made are synced to Photoshop.com immediately.

Working in Elements Organizer and Adobe

Elements Organizer is a part of both Adobe® Premiere® Elements 8 software and Adobe Photoshop Elements. You can use Elements Organizer to import, manage, and view your media files. For extensive editing, you can work with video files in the Adobe Premiere Elements Editor. You can manage your media files (both photos and videos) efficiently using the powerful capabilities of Elements Organizer. Elements Organizer enables efficient organization of media files. Tagging media files enables you to easily search for the required media files. On finding the required media files, you can use the powerful features of Adobe Premiere Elements to create and edit movies. You can navigate from Elements Organizer to Adobe Premiere Elements. When you create a video project in Adobe Premiere Elements, it is automatically saved to Elements Organizer.

• To edit video files, select the media files, and then select Fix > Edit Video.

• Video projects created in Adobe Premiere Elements can be opened from Elements Organizer.

1 In Elements Organizer, expand Albums to view a list of albums and the option Video Projects.

2 Expand Video Projects to view a list of video projects created in Adobe Premiere Elements.

3 Right-click a video project, and then select Open With Premiere Elements.

Premiere Elements Editor

Elements Organizer launches Adobe Premier Elements and opens the required project.

Importing and organizing photos and video

As you work in Adobe Premiere Elements, you start by importing photos into Elements Organizer, where you view, manage, and find all of your photos and video clips.

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Getting started with Adobe Premiere Elements

Use the Media Downloader to download files

1 Connect your camera or card reader to your computer. (See the documentation that came with your device, if

necessary.)

The Windows AutoPlay dialog box opens with a list of options for getting the media.

In the Windows AutoPlay dialog box, select Organize and Edit using Adobe Elements Organizer 8, and then click OK.

Adobe Premiere Elements launches (if it isn’t already running), and then the Media Downloader dialog box opens. If

Premiere Elements is already running, choose File > Get Media From, and then select one of the following to

Adobe open the Media Downloader:

• DVD (Camcorder Or Computer DVD Drive)

• AVCHD Or Other Hard Disk/ Memory Camcorder

• Digital Still Camera

• Mobile Phones And Players

3 In the Media Downloader dialog box under Source, choose from the Get Media From menu to specify where to

copy/import the media files from.

4 In the Import Settings area, set the following options:

Location Specifies the folder to which images are downloaded. To change the default folder location, click Browse, and

then specify a new location.

Create Subfolder(s) Creates a subfolder using the naming scheme chosen from the pop-up menu. If you choose

Custom Name, type a subfolder name in the box.

Rename Files Changes the filenames using the naming scheme selected from the pop-up menu. If you choose Custom

Name, type a base filename and a starting number for assigning sequentially numbered filenames to the photos.

Note: If the name you entered exists, the copied image filename is appended with “-1” or another appropriately numbered designator.

Preserve Current Filename In XMP Select this option to use the current filename as the filename stored in the metadata

of the photo.

Note: In Windows Vista®, if your camera is connected in PTP mode, you are sometimes unable to view camera raw or video files in the Media Downloader. To view camera raw or video files, connect your camera in USB Mass Storage mode, or remove the card from the camera. Use a card reader to connect it to your computer.

5 (Optional) To automatically download photos to Adobe Premiere Elements after a device is connected, select

Automatic Download. Automatic download options are set in the Camera Or Card Reader preferences.

6 (Optional) For more download options, click the Advanced Dialog button. For more information, see

www.adobe.com/go/learn_org_advanceddownload_en.

7 Click Get Media.

The media files are copied to your hard drive.

8 Click OK in the Files Successfully Copied dialog box.

Note: If Elements Organizer is launched while copying the media, click Yes in the Files Successfully Copied box.

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Getting started with Adobe Premiere Elements

Use video capture device

Capturing video involves recording audio and video directly to your computer from a DV or HDV camcorder, webcam, or other WDM (Windows Driver Model) device. Adobe Premiere Elements automatically detects the attached capture device and sets all capture settings accordingly.

Note: Before you capture digital video, create a project with a preset that matches the format (DV or HDV), television standard (NTSC or PAL), and frame aspect ratio (standard 4:3 or widescreen 16:9) that you’ll use to shoot your footage.

The Capture panel provides controls that let you remotely control your device, making it easy to play, capture, pause, and stop the video on your device. To open the Capture panel, click Organize in the Tasks panel. The Capture panel enables you to monitor the video and access all the capture commands. Adobe Premiere Elements automatically detects the attached capture device and sets the Capture panel settings accordingly.

1 Connect your video capture device to your computer. (See the documentation that came with your device, if

necessary.)

2 Turn on the camcorder and set it to playback mode, which may be labeled either VTR, VCR, or Play. You can also

keep it in recording mode.

Adobe® Premiere® Elements 8 launches (if it isn’t already running), and then the Capture panel opens. If

Premiere® Elements 8 is already running, choose File > Get Media From, and then select one of the following

Adobe® to open the Capture panel:

• DV Camcorder

• HDV Camcorder

• Webcam Or WDM Device

3 Specify the capture settings in the Capture panel, and then click Capture.

More Help topics

“Capture video” on page 44

Organizing your photos and video clips

Use Elements Organizer to manage your files. You can find photos, video files, audio clips, and Adobe PDF documents stored in different locations on your computer.

Adobe Premiere Elements automatically organizes media files by date as they download. Elements Organizer has a Timeline (choose Window > Timeline) and Date View for finding media files by date. It’s a good idea to put related photos into an album. Albums are great for sharing photos in projects, creations, and online albums, and they also make it easy to find related photos.

You can further sort and categorize photos by adding star ratings, by stacking photos, and by assigning keyword tags. For more information on using keyword tags, see

Do I have to use Elements Organizer? No. You can copy photos to your computer and use the Editor to fix your

photos. However, there are lots of great things you can do with your photos in Elements Organizer. Also, after collecting hundreds and thousands of photos on your computer, you’ll discover that finding and managing photos with Elements Organizer is much easier.

www.adobe.com/go/learn_org_photos_tag_en.

Create an album

1 In Elements Organizer, click the Create New Album Or Album Category button in the Albums panel, and then

choose New Album.

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Getting started with Adobe Premiere Elements

2 (Optional) From the Album Category menu, choose a category into which to place the album.

Albums Category menu

3 In the Album Name box, type a name for the album.

4 Drag photos into the Items area.

The album appears in the Albums panel under the album group you specified. For more information on creating an album, see

www.adobe.com/go/learn_org_albums_create_en.

Finding photos and video clips

You can find photos and video files by date, star rating, album, folder location, filename, media type, keyword tag, text, or other criteria. For more information, see

Here are a few of the features in Elements Organizer to find photos:

Timeline Click a month, or set a range to find photos and media files chronologically by date, import batch, or folder

location.

Find bar Drag a photo, keyword tag, project, or album onto the Find bar to find matching or similar photos and media

files.

Albums panel Select an album to view only the media files in it.

Keyword Tags panel Select a keyword tag to see only the files with that tag.

Textbox Type text in the Search box in Elements Organizer to find files with matching text. Click Elements Organizer

to launch Elements Organizer from Adobe Premiere Elements. Matches can include items such as filenames, metadata, keyword tags, captions, notes, album names, album groups, camera information, dates, folders, or formats.

www.adobe.com/go/learn_org_photos_find_en.

Elements Organizer has many tools and features for finding photos. A. Find bar B. Textbox C. Timeline D. Albums panel E. Keyword Tags panel

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Find the actual file of a media clip

1 In Elements Organizer, select the photo or media clip whose file you want to find.

2 Press Alt + Enter to open the Properties-General window.

3 Click the Reveal In Explorer icon .

Troubleshooting tips

Here are some things to consider when troubleshooting Adobe Premiere Elements. For more tips, visit

www.adobe.com/go/forums.

• Restart Adobe Premiere Elements, or restart your computer.

• Reset the Adobe Premiere Elements preferences. Start Adobe Premiere Elements, and select New Project. Hold

down the Ctrl + Alt + Shift keys immediately after selecting New Project.

• Turn off other programs, including anti-virus, firewall, and CD/DVD burning applications that run in the

background.

• Make sure that the computer operating system is up-to-date. Install the latest drivers for your video card, sound

card, printer, and other devices.

• Remove any recent additions to your computer. What was the last thing you changed on your computer before the

problem began? Did you install a new printer, font, or other software?

• If something in Adobe Premiere Elements doesn’t seem to work properly, check Adobe Premiere Elements Help.

• If a problem occurs when you open or edit a photo, check if the problem occurs with all photos, or if it occurs with

photos from different cameras or sources.

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Chapter 2: Adobe Premiere Elements workspace

The Adobe Premiere Elements workspace is optimized for organizing media, editing and sharing movies, and creating menus for DVDs and Blu-ray Discs. You can customize the workspace to suit your needs. Adobe combines everything you need to create a movie, including video, audio, effects, transitions, and titles, into a single file called a project file.

About the workspace

Welcome screen

When you start Adobe Premiere Elements, the Welcome screen opens by default. The Welcome screen has the following options:

Premiere Elements

Organize Enables you to launch Elements Organizer.

New Project Enables you to create a project.

Open Project Enables you to open an existing project.

Note: You can log in with your Adobe ID on the Welcome screen to access free online benefits, Photoshop Elements 8, and Adobe Premiere Elements 8 Plus features. Available in the United States only. Internet access required.

When you click the icon , the Adobe Premiere Elements dialog is displayed with the following options. Specifying the settings here determine the Adobe Premiere Elements Launch behavior. Select one of the options and click OK:

• Just Show The Welcome Screen

• Always Launch Elements Organizer Behind The Welcome Screen

• Always Launch Adobe Premiere Elements Editor Behind The Welcome Screen.

Disable tracking of information

The Welcome screen by default records and relays some usage information to Adobe to assist in the improvement of the Welcome screen experience. The Welcome screen usage data is anonymous and does not link the information to your personal data or your Adobe ID account information. Usage information from the Photoshop Elements Editor, Adobe Premiere Elements Editor, or Adobe in the Welcome screen:

1 In Windows XP, click start > Run (or in Windows Vista click the Start button, and select Run), and type regedit.exe

and click OK.

The Windows Registry Editor opens. Using the tree navigator on the left navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Adobe\Elements Organizer\8.0\Organizer.

Premiere Elements is not tracked. To disable the tracking of information

2 Right-click on the right panel, and select New > DWORD Value.

A new DWORD Value with the name New Value #1 is created.

3 Rename New Value #1 to DisableTracking.

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Adobe Premiere Elements workspace

4 Double-click DisableTracking.

The Edit DWORD Value dialog opens.

5 Enter 1 in the Value Data field, click OK, and close the Registry Editor.

Getting started with your Adobe ID

Create an Adobe ID

You can log in with your Adobe ID to access free online benefits, Photoshop Elements 8, and Adobe Premiere Elements 8 Plus features. Available in the United States only. Internet access required.

1 Start Adobe Premiere Elements.

2 In the Welcome screen, click Create New Adobe ID, and follow the instructions to create your Adobe ID.

3 Follow the instructions in the e-mail to activate your account.

The Welcome screen with the options to create an Adobe ID and Sign in with an Adobe ID

More Help topics

“Backup and synchronize albums and files” on page 83

Sign in with your Adobe ID

1 Make sure that your computer is connected to the Internet, and then start Adobe Premiere Elements.

2 Do either of the following:

• In the Welcome screen, enter your Adobe ID and password, and click Sign In.

• In the title bar, above the Tasks panel, click Sign In.

The Welcome screen changes and greets you with the message Welcome, [user name]. Adobe Premiere Elements remembers that you have an Adobe ID and automatically signs you in if your computer is connected to the Internet.

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Adobe Premiere Elements workspace

Signing in with your Adobe ID

View your videos on Photoshop.com

You can view your backed up videos on the Internet from any computer, even one that doesn’t have Adobe Premiere Elements installed.

1 Make sure that the computer is connected to the Internet, open a web browser, and go to the Photoshop.com

website at

www.photoshop.com.

The web browser must have cookies enabled.

2 On the Photoshop.com home page, click Sign In and enter your Adobe ID.

3 After your Photoshop.com page opens, click My Albums.

You can view and navigate through all the videos you’ve backed up to Photoshop.com.

Launch the Inspiration Browser

The Inspiration Browser lets you access and organize tutorials that contain ideas and creative ways to do more with your video projects.

❖ To launch the Inspiration Browser, do any of the following:

• In the Adobe Premiere Elements Welcome screen, sign in with your Adobe ID, and then click Tips and Tricks.

• In Adobe Premiere Elements, select Edit > Effects. Click the icon or words that appear in the lower-right area of the

application window, below the Timeline and Sceneline. A small dialog box opens with options. When you open the Inspiration Browser this way, different tutorials open for different workflows. For example, if you are adding transitions, the Inspiration Browser opens tutorials about using transitions.

If you’re not already signed in with your Adobe ID, a dialog box opens for you to sign in.

Workspace overview

The Adobe Premiere Elements workspace is optimized for the four major phases of a project: organizing footage (video, stills, and audio), editing a movie, creating menus for DVDs and Blu-ray Discs, and sharing movies. You can easily change from one task to the other by choosing different task-based buttons in the Tasks panel. As you change tasks, the workspace displays the appropriate panels and panel views. You can also customize the workspace to meet your specific needs by adding and arranging panels.

Drop zones are areas in the workspace onto which you can drop or move panels. As you drag a panel, underlying drop zones become outlined. The highlighted drop zone shows where the panel will be inserted into the workspace. Dragging a panel to a drop zone at any of the edges of a panel results in docking.

Note: To see the names of panels in the workspace, choose Window > Show Docking Headers.

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Adobe Premiere Elements workspace

Workspace for editing A. Monitor panel B. Tasks panel C. My Project panel (Sceneline view)

More Help topics

“Project view overview” on page 25

“Find an effect” on page 147

Customizing the workspace

The workspace in Adobe Premiere Elements is highly customizable. You can add panels, as well as resize, move, hide, and group them to suit your working style. Modifications you make to the workspace remain intact until you modify or restore it to its original configuration. As you customize your workspace, Adobe changes. When you save the project, the recent layout changes are also saved. The next time you open that project,

Premiere Elements restores the saved layout that you had used.

Adobe

Premiere Elements tracks the

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Display and hide docking headers

Each panel has a docking header containing its title, and sometimes, panel menu buttons. You drag the docking headers to drag panels to new locations. To save space on your screen, you can make the docking headers disappear; then, make them reappear when you need to use them. By default, docking headers are hidden.

❖ Do one of the following:

• To make docking headers appear, choose Window> Show Docking Headers.

• To make docking headers disappear, choose Window > Hide Docking Headers.

Note: To access any of the commands in the panel menu when docking headers are hidden, right-click in the panel.

Display and hide panels

• To display a panel or make it active, choose its name from the Window menu or click its docking header, if visible.

• To expand or collapse a docked panel, click the triangle on its docking header. Only docked panels that are vertically

aligned, sharing right and left borders, with another panel can be expanded or collapsed.

• To close a panel that is not docked, click the Close button at the right of its docking header.

Dock panels

Drop zones along the edges of a panel are for docking panels. Docking a panel places it adjacent to the target panel, resizing all other panels to accommodate the new panel.

Dragging panel (A) onto drop zone (B) to dock it (C)

❖ Hold down Ctrl and drag a panel by its docking header to a drop zone along one of the edges of a panel and drop it.

Open a panel in a floating window

You can open a panel in a floating window. You can add panels to the floating window or otherwise modify it, as you do in the application window. You can use floating windows to create a workspace like those in earlier versions of Adobe applications, or to make use of a secondary monitor.

❖ Drag the panel or group from its current location to an area where no drop zones appear.

The panel appears in a new floating window.

Resize a panel

When one panel is moved or resized, the other panels adjust automatically to accommodate the change.

❖ To resize a panel, drag its border.

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Adobe Premiere Elements workspace

Drag the divider between panels to resize them. A. Original panels with divider selected B. Resized panels

If you have more than one monitor connected to your system and your system supports a multiple- monitor desktop, you can drag panels to any monitor.

Open panel menus

Most panels include menus with commands that are specific to individual panels.

• If docking headers are hidden (default), right-click in the panel.

• If docking headers are displayed, click the panel menu button in the upper-right corner of the panel. (To see

docking headers and the panel menu button, choose Window > Show Docking Headers.)

A B

Panel menu A. Right-click panel to display panel menu B. Click panel menu button to display panel menu

Restore the default workspace

❖ Choose Window > Restore Workspace.

Adjust panel brightness

You can adjust the brightness of the background color in panels. For example, you may prefer to lower the brightness when working in a darkened room or when performing color corrections.

❖ Choose Edit > Preferences > User Interface, and drag the slider or click Default Brightness.

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Examine or remove an alert

Adobe Premiere Elements lists warnings, error messages, and other information you can use to identify and troubleshoot problems, particularly those associated with plug-ins and other components from third-party developers. An alert icon Events panel, and clearing the associated item from the Events panel removes the icon from the status bar.

1 Do either of the following:

• Double-click the alert icon in the status bar.

• Choose Window > Events.

2 Do any of the following:

• To learn more about an item in the list, select it and click Details.

• To clear the events list, click Clear All.

, , on the status bar notifies you of an error. Double-clicking the icon opens the

Panel overviews

Adobe Premiere Elements includes three main panels: Tasks panel, Monitor panel, and My Project panel (Timeline and Sceneline). For all your basic tasks, you use these three panels.

Tasks panel overview

The Tasks panel appears by default for all workspaces. It is the central location for adding and organizing media; finding, applying, and adjusting effects and transitions; creating DVD and Blu-ray Disc menus, and sharing your finished projects. It is organized into four main task workspaces: Organize, Edit, Disc Menus, and Share. Within each workspace are all the tools you need to accomplish tasks.

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Edit workspace displaying Effect Properties view

More Help topics

“Project view overview” on page 25

“Adding files to a project” on page 54

“View clips in Elements Organizer” on page 73

Organize workspace

The Organize workspace displays thumbnails of all the media (videos, still images, and audio) that you’ve imported into Adobe Photoshop® Elements®, or Adobe Premiere Elements. You can access and share all the files in the Organizer seamlessly between the applications.

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Organize workspace

From the Organize workspace in the Tasks panel, you can access the following:

Get Media Lets you add files from various sources including video cameras, webcams, digital still cameras, WDM

devices, mobile phones, and folders on your hard disk.

Media Displays the thumbnails of all media files.

Instant Movie Automatically and quickly steps you through the selection and editing portion of movie creation,

adding theme-based effects, titles, transitions, and audio. You can change settings as desired.

Organizer Launches the Elements Organizer window where you can import, view, find, organize, and manage media

files.

Project Displays the details of all media files.

More Help topics

“Auto-Analyzer” on page 77

Edit workspace

When you’re ready to arrange or edit your media, click Edit in the Tasks panel. The Edit workspace lets you add movie themes and templates to your movies, apply effects and transitions, and create and add titles. In addition, the Properties view appears within the Tasks panel when you choose Window > Properties, or when you edit effects or transitions.

From the Edit workspace, you can access the following:

Effects Shows effects and presets you can use in your movie. You can search for an effect by typing its name into

the Search field. To see only specific types of effects, choose an option from the first menu: Video Effects, Audio Effects, Presets, My Presets, or Favorites. You can also view specific categories by choosing a category, such as Adjust or Channel, from the second menu (Show All is the default). To edit an effect before applying it, select it, and click Edit Effects to open Properties view.

Transitions Shows transitions you can use in your movie. You can search for a transition by typing its name into

the Search field. To see only specific types of transitions, choose an option from the first menu: Video Transitions,

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Audio Transitions, or Favorites. You can also view specific categories by choosing a category, such as 3D Motion or Slide, from the second menu (Show All is the default). To edit a transition before applying it, select it, and click Edit Transitions to open Properties view.

Titles Shows pre-formatted titles you can use in your movie. To see only specific types of titles:

• Choose an option from the first menu such as Entertainment, General, and Happy Birthday.

• If you want to narrow the choices more, choose a specific theme, such as Blue Notes or Ladybug Picnic, from the

second menu.

Show All is the default option.

Themes Enables you to view Themes. Displays InstantMovie themes that instantly and dramatically enhance

your movies. Themes make it easy to create professional-looking movies. They automatically edit your clips and apply effects, transitions, overlays, title and closing-credit sequences, videos, sound effects, and more. You can apply all the options in a theme, or choose the options you want.

ClipArt Displays clip art that can be used in your video files.

Disc Menus workspace

When you’re ready to add menus to your movie for DVD or blu-ray disc, click Disc Menus in the Tasks panel. From this workspace, you can access your media and the menu templates.

Note: When you click Disc Menus in the Tasks panel, the Monitor panel switches to the Disc Layout view. Drag templates and media using Disc Layout view to personalize your menus.

From the Disc Menus workspace, you can preview and choose preformatted templates you can use for menus. To see only specific types of templates, choose an option from the first menu: Entertainment, General, Happy Birthday, and so on. If you want to narrow the choices, choose a specific theme.

Share workspace

When you’re ready to burn a disc, or save your movie for viewing online or on a mobile phone, PC, videotape, or other device, click Share in the Tasks panel. This workspace provides all the tools necessary to save your file for sharing with others.

Use Quick share to create and reuse preset sharing options, making sharing quick and easy. For example, if you frequently share projects by burning them to DVD, set up your optimal settings for burning a DVD, and save those settings as a Quick share. The next time you want to burn a project to DVD, use the Quick share preset you created instead of setting all the DVD options again.

Monitor panel overview

You use the Monitor panel when performing many tasks in Adobe Premiere Elements. For example, you can preview your files and movies, trim and split clips, apply effects, create titles, and position images and text by viewing safe zones, along with many other tasks.

The Monitor panel is available in every workspace. While you’re working with menus, the Monitor panel switches to the Disc Layout panel, which makes it easy to drag and drop images and layout menus. While you’re creating titles, the Monitor panel displays text tools so that you can easily create and edit text.

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Monitor panel

Timeline and Sceneline overview

The Timeline and Sceneline let you assemble your media into the desired order and edit clips. You use the Monitor panel to preview the clips you’ve arranged in either the Timeline or Sceneline.

The Sceneline allows you quickly to arrange your media, adding titles, transitions and effects. The Timeline helps you trim, layer, and synchronize your media. You can switch back and forth between these two panels at any time.

Note: If you choose to show panel headers (Window > Show Docking Headers), the name of this panel is My Project. The Timeline and Sceneline are different views of this panel.

Info panel overview

The Info panel (Window > Info) displays information about a selected item in the Project view of the Tasks panel or the Timeline or Sceneline. For clips, the Info panel displays information such as duration, in point, out point, and the location of the cursor. The information displayed may vary depending on factors such as the media type and the current panel. For example, the Info panel displays different sets of information for an empty space in the Timeline, a rectangle in the Title panel, and a clip in the Tasks panel.

In the Info panel, the Video entry indicates the frame rate, frame size, dimensions, and pixel aspect ratio; the Audio entry indicates the sample rate, bit depth, and channels.

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Chapter 3: Projects

Adobe Premiere Elements combines everything you need to create a movie, including video, audio, still images, effects, transitions, and titles, into a single file called a project file.

Creating a new project

About projects

Adobe Premiere Elements creates a project file for every new project you start. By default, a project preset is used for the television standard (NTSC or PAL) you selected when you installed the program.

A project file stores only title files and references to the source files that you capture or import, so project files remain fairly small. Because only references to the source files are stored, avoid moving, renaming, or deleting your source files so that Adobe

You can create a project on your own by adding, arranging, and editing your media, and then adding transitions, effects, and titles; or you can create an InstantMovie project. InstantMovies step you through the process of adding your media from the Organize workspace, choosing a theme for your movie, and customizing any of the theme options, such as title and credits text, and background audio. Adobe your footage in the Timeline, adds transitions, titles, and audio, and then lays it out on the Sceneline so you can preview it and save it in the format of your choice.

Premiere Elements can continue to locate them.

Premiere Elements then analyzes and arranges

More Help topics

“Workspace overview” on page 12

“Creating an InstantMovie project” on page 22

Start a new project

When you start a new project or an InstantMovie project, you can review the default preset and its settings by clicking the Change Settings button. Make sure that you are using a preset that uses the same specifications of your source media.

Important: Some settings, such as frame rate, size and aspect ratio, can’t be changed after a project is created—verify all project settings before starting a project. Using the wrong project settings can adversely affect performance as you work on your project.

By default, the folder for a saved project also stores rendered previews, conformed audio files, and captured audio and video. These files are very large, so save them to your largest, fastest hard drive. To store these files separately from projects, choose Edit

1 Do one of the following:

• From the Welcome screen, click New Project.

• If Adobe Premiere Elements is open, choose File > New > Project.

2 (Optional) To change the settings used, click Change Settings, select a different preset and click OK.

3 In the New Project dialog box, specify a name and location for the project, and click OK.

> Preferences > Scratch Disks.

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More Help topics

“About project settings and presets” on page 34

“Create or change project presets” on page 34

“About scratch disks” on page 39

Open a project

You can open only one project at a time. To ensure that Adobe Premiere Elements can open an existing project, make sure that both the project file (.prel) and the source files used in it are accessible on your computer.

❖ Do one of the following:

• From the Welcome screen, click Open Project, and then click the project name. (If the project isn’t listed, click

Open, select the project file, and click Open.)

• If Adobe Premiere Elements is open, choose File > Open Project or Open Recent Project; then select the project file,

and click Open.

• In Windows®, double-click the project file.

Note: Adobe Premiere Elements can open projects made in earlier versions of the program, but earlier versions of the program cannot open projects made in later versions. If you have two or more versions of Adobe installed, you may need to open a project from within the software, or by right-clicking the file and choosing the application, rather than by double-clicking the project file.

Premiere Elements

More Help topics

“Open a project saved by Auto Save” on page 39

Creating an InstantMovie project

About InstantMovie projects and themes

InstantMovies let you quickly create a professional-looking, edited movie, complete with titles, soundtrack, effects, and transitions by using a simple (and quick) step-by-step process. When you create an InstantMovie, Adobe Premiere Elements analyzes your clips (if they have not already been analyzed) and applies Smart Tags as necessary, edits the clips, and applies a theme of your choosing. You can personalize the theme by using your own title and ending credits, and supplying your own music or effects.

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Creating an InstantMovie

Movie themes create movies with a specific appearance. For example, the Wedding Doves theme adds an elegant introduction and conclusion, flying white doves overlay, and wedding background music. And the Comic Book theme creates a fun kids party video by adding stylish effects, such as Color Emboss, picture-in-picture overlays, and large artistic fonts in the title. Each theme uses a unique editing style for selecting, trimming, and sequencing clips.

The default duration for a theme is approximately 4 to 6 minutes. You can use InstantMovies on all of the clips in your movie, or on a subset, creating a montage or special feature at the beginning or end of a DVD.

You can choose from a variety of themes. You can apply all of the properties in a theme, or choose to add only a subset. Likewise, you can add a theme to an entire sequence in the Sceneline, or you can choose to add it to only a single clip.

Important: For access to a variety of fun new themes, sign up for a Plus membership to Photoshop.com. With a Plus membership, new themes are continually available from the Photoshop.com category of the Themes menu in the Tasks panel. Adobe Premiere Elements free online benefits and Adobe Premiere Elements Plus are available in the United States only. Internet access required.

More Help topics

“Auto-Analyzer” on page 77

“Sign up with your Adobe ID” on page 1

Create an InstantMovie

You can start an InstantMovie from the Organize workspace.

Create an InstantMovie from the Organize workspace

1 If Adobe Premiere Elements is open, click InstantMovie in the Organize workspace .

Adobe Premiere Elements opens in InstantMovie mode of the Organize workspace.

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2 Follow the prompts in the upper left of the Organize workspace. These prompts step you through the process of

creating an InstantMovie:

a Select the clips that you want to include in your movie. (If you already have clips in the Sceneline or Timeline,

you can now select additional clips if desired.) Click Next.

b Choose a theme for your movie. To preview a theme, move the mouse cursor over the theme’s thumbnail to see

a description, and click the Play button

c Specify properties for your theme. Click Apply.

to watch a preview. Click Next.

You can also create Instant movies from Elements Organizer.

Apply a theme to an existing project

If you’ve already created a project and want to use a theme on all or part of it, use the Themes button in the Edit view.

1 Do one of the following:

• To apply the theme to the entire project, leave all clips unselected.

• To apply the theme to only a portion of the project, select the clips you want to use with the theme.

2 In the Tasks panel, click Edit, and then click Themes.

The Themes view of the Tasks panel opens. To preview a theme, move the mouse cursor over the theme’s thumbnail and click the Play button

that appears.

3 Select a theme and click Next.

4 In the Theme properties view, specify properties as desired, and click Apply.

Theme properties

When you add a theme to your project, you can specify which properties of the theme you want to use and how you want to use them. You access theme properties after selecting a theme and clicking Next in the Tasks panel.

Default options change depending on the theme and how you accessed the theme. For example, when accessing themes through the InstantMovie button, the Auto-Analyzer option is selected by default; it is not selected when you add a theme using the Themes button.

You can specify any of the following theme properties.

Opening and Closing Titles Opening and closing titles can be multiple lines; however, for best results, keep the

opening title to one line.

InstantMovie Specifies whether you want to perform an auto edit, which automatically trims the clips and adds them

to the project based on their Smart Tags. And whether to analyze clips and apply Smart Tags to them.

Apply To Specifies whether to apply the theme to the entire project or to only the clips selected in the Sceneline or

Timeline. (This option is not available, if you created your InstantMovie by clicking InstantMovie from the Organize workspace.)

Music Specifies whether to use the theme music, your own music (click Browse to locate and open it), or no music.

You can select multiple music clips (you can select them here or from the Organize workspace as part of the original asset selection), and they are played in the order selected. Drag the slider between Music/Sound FX and My Clips to set the amount of soundtrack and audio effects used versus the sound from your clips. InstantMovie syncs with the beats of the music, so changing the song may significantly change the results. In addition, changing the song changes the duration of the movie to match the duration of the new song.

Speed And Intensity Enables you to control the speed of cuts and amount of effects. Click the triangle beside the Speed

And Intensity option and use the slider to adjust the speed of cuts and amount of effects.

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Duration Specifies the length of the finished movie. Match Music creates a movie to the length of the theme music.

Specify Duration lets you specify the exact length of time by dragging hours, minutes, and seconds. Use All Clips ensures all the selected clips are used and bases the length of time on their duration.

Note: If you specify a duration that is longer than the theme music, the music will loop. If the duration is shorter than the length of the theme music, the music ends with the last clip.

Sequence Specifies whether clips are placed in the Timeline according to the Time/Date stamp on the clip or

according to the theme’s editing rules.

Theme Content Specifies which aspects of the theme are included in the final movie. Select or deselect any of the

options. If some of your clips have effects already applied, you can choose to keep the applied effects, or remove them and apply the theme’s effects instead.

Render Preview Enables you to preview the instant movie. Click the triangle beside the Render Preview option and

select Yes to preview.

Edit an InstantMovie

When you create an InstantMovie, Adobe Premiere Elements combines all the clips into a single clip. You can break apart this combined clip if you want to edit or replace the individual clips. Once you break apart an InstantMovie clip, you can use the Replace Clip command to quickly replace one clip with another without having to trim and edit the new clip to fit, or change the effects or overlays applied to it.

InstantMovie syncs with the beats of the music, so changing a music clip may significantly change the final movie. In addition, changing the song changes the duration of the movie to match the duration of the new song.

Break apart an InstantMovie

❖ Right-click the InstantMovie clip in the Timeline or Sceneline and choose Break Apart InstantMovie.

Replace a clip in an InstantMovie

1 In either the Organize workspace or the Project view, select the clip you want to use.

2 In the Timeline, right-click the clip you want to replace and choose Replace Clip From > Media or Project.

If the incoming clip is longer in duration, it is trimmed from the end to match the existing duration of the outgoing clip.

If the incoming clip is shorter in duration, a warning message appears, giving you the choice to cancel the replace action or use black frames to fill the excess duration.

Viewing a project’s files

Project view overview

The Project view lets you preview source material for your projects. To access the Project view, select Window > Available Media, or Organize > Projects.

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CA B D

Project view

A. Show video B. Show audio C. Show still images D. New item E. Folders F. Clip thumbnail G. List view H. Icon view I. Move up a level J. New Folder K. Clear

More Help topics

“Customize List view properties” on page 32

“Trim in the Preview window” on page 123

Display and arrange media items

In Project view, you can display items in either List view or Icon view. List view lets you view more items simultaneously and sort items by properties such as media type and duration. Icon view displays thumbnails that enable you to visually organize project contents.

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Project view display options A. Icon view B. List view C. Drag scroll bar or panel border to see more column headings in List View.

• To change the view, click the List View button or the Icon View button at the bottom of the panel.

Alternatively, right-click in the Tasks panel, and choose View > List or View > Icon.

• To arrange items in Icon view, drag an item to any square. As you drag, a vertical bar indicates where the item is

going. If you drag an item to a folder, the item goes inside the folder.

• To sort items in List view, click the column heading by which you want to sort the items. (For example, click Media

Type to sort items by type.) If folders are expanded, items sort from the top level and down the Project view hierarchy. To reverse the sort order, click the column heading again.

• To see more of the column headings in List view, drag the right side of the Tasks panel to the right to resize it. Or

drag the scroll bar at the bottom of the panel to the right.

• To remove empty spaces between items in Icon view and arrange them within the width of the Project view, right-

click in the Tasks panel. Then choose Clean Up.

Change the display of thumbnails

❖ Right-click in the Project view, and choose any of the following:

Note: To access the Project view, select Organize > Projects.

• Thumbnails > [command] to hide or set the size of thumbnails.

• View > List to display the thumbnails in a list along with all the clip information.

• View > Icon to display the clips as icons on a grid. Using this view makes it easy to move the clips around and

change their order. (You can move the icons around, then select them all and drag to the Sceneline to replace the existing clips on the Sceneline.)

• View > Preview Area to hide or show the thumbnail viewer and clip information.

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Preview area and thumbnails in Project view A. Preview area B. Small clip thumbnail

Designate a clip frame as a poster frame

In the preview area of Project view, you can replace the default clip thumbnail (the first frame) by designating any clip frame as a poster frame. Specifying a new poster frame is helpful when the first frame doesn’t adequately represent the clip.

1 To access the Project view, select Organize > Projects.

Select the clip in Project view. If the preview area is hidden, right-click in Project view, and choose View > Preview Area.

3 In the preview area, click Play , or drag the play slider until the frame you want is displayed.

4 Click Poster Frame .

Organize clips in folders

The Project view can include folders, which you can use to organize project contents in much the same way as folders in Windows Explorer. Folders can contain media or other folders. Consider using folders to organize media types, such as DV captures, Adobe Photoshop Elements still images, and audio files.

❖ In the Project view, do any of the following:

Note: To access the Project view, select Organize > Projects.

• To add a folder, click the New Folder button at the bottom of Project view. If you click New Folder multiple

times in a row, each new folder is nested inside the previous new folder.

•

To move an item into a folder, drag the item to the Folder icon. You can move folders into other folders to nest them.

• To display the contents of a folder, double-click the folder. Or, in List view, click the triangle beside the Folder icon

to expand the folder.

• To navigate from nested folders to parent folders, click the Parent Folder button at the bottom of the Project

view. You can click and hold this button to see a list of all the folders above the one currently listed. You can also jump to a folder by highlighting it and releasing the mouse button.

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Organize clips with color labels

You can assign colored labels to clips to help organize and track clips. For example, you can use different colors to represent different people in the clips, or different types of clips (audio, still, video, and so on).

• To assign a color label to a clip, select the clip in Project view or the Timeline. Choose Edit > Label, and choose a

color.

Note: To access the Project view, select Organize > Projects.

• To select all clips that use the same label, select any clip that uses the label, and choose Edit > Label > Select Label

Group.

• To edit label names or colors, choose Edit > Preferences > Label Colors, and edit the names or click a color swatch

to change a color.

• To set default labels for a media type, choose Edit > Preferences > Label Defaults, and select a new label color for

the media type.

Note: Label defaults affect clips you add to the Project view after you change the defaults. The command doesn’t change label colors for clips already in the Tasks panel. To change label colors, choose Edit

> Preferences > Label Colors.

Play back a clip in Project view

1 To access the Project view, select Organize > Projects.

2 If the Preview Area is not visible, right-click in the Project view, and choose View > Preview Area.

3 Select a clip in Project view.

4 Press the Play button in the preview area. The Play button becomes a Stop button. (Playing the clip in the Tasks

panel doesn’t affect clips in the Monitor panel, Timeline, or Sceneline.)

Rename a source file in a project

• To rename a clip, select it, choose Clip > Rename, type the new name, and press Enter. (The change affects only

references used in the project; the name of the original source file in the Organize workspace and in Windows remains the same.)

• To rename an original source file, close Adobe Premiere Elements, and rename the file in Windows. The next time

you open the project, Adobe

You can also rename a selected clip by clicking its name once to select the text, typing the new name, and pressing Enter.

Premiere Elements asks you to locate the file.

Find an item in a project

1 Choose Edit > Find.

2 Specify options according to the contents of any column in List view.

3 Click Find.

To find an item on the hard drive, select the clip, choose File > Get Properties For, and note the path at the top of the Properties panel.

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Locate missing files for a project

Adobe Premiere Elements doesn’t store original source files in a project—it references the filename and location of each source file when you import it. If you later move, rename, or delete a source file in Windows, the Where Is The File dialog box opens when you next open the project.

In addition to source files, a project also references preview files. Preview files allow you to preview effects in real time without having to render them—a process that can take hours. Preview files can be re-created as often as necessary.

Note: After you create the final movie, you can delete source files if you do not plan to use them in a project again. If you may need to re-edit the movie in the future, archive the project with the Project Archiver before deleting source files.

❖ In the Where Is The File dialog box, choose one of the following options:

Display Only Exact Name Matches Displays only the files that match the name of the missing file when the project was

last closed. If you know that the filename has changed, deselect this option.

Select Replaces the missing file with the selected original or replacement file.

Find Starts the Windows XP Search feature.

Skip Previews Skips missing preview files so you aren’t asked to find them.

Skip Replaces the missing file with an offline file, a blank placeholder for related clips in the Project view of the Tasks

panel and the Timeline or Sceneline.

Skip All Replaces all missing clips with offline files without asking you for confirmation.

More Help topics

“About archived projects” on page 288

“Previewing movies” on page 108

“Troubleshooting” on page 292

Delete a clip

As Adobe Premiere Elements doesn’t store actual media files in the project, deleting a clip from a project removes all instances from a movie. However, Adobe desktop. To conserve disk space, delete the source file through Windows Explorer.

• To delete a media file from a project, select it in the Project view, and press the Delete key.

Note: To access the Project view, select Organize > Projects.

• To delete a media file from the Organize workspace, right-click it in the Organize workspace, and choose Delete.

You can also delete by selecting the file and pressing the Delete key. The file is deleted from the Elements Organizer, but it is not deleted from your hard disk.

• To delete a media file from both a project and your computer, select it in the Project view, and press Ctrl+Delete.

Then, click OK in the Delete dialog box.

To identify unused items in a project, note the Video Usage and Audio Usage columns in List view. To display these columns, scroll to the right.

Premiere Elements does not delete the clip’s source file from the Windows

More Help topics

“Managing clips with the Organizer” on page 73

“Creating specialty clips” on page 64

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“Working with offline files” on page 66

“Working with aspect ratios and field options” on page 67

Viewing clip properties

See an overview of basic clip properties

1 Choose Organize > Project, and either expand the panel or scroll horizontally to view its columns. (Sometimes

some columns are hidden.)

2 To view more details, right-click in Project view, and choose View > Preview Area and then select the clip.

Note: To access the Project view, select Organize > Project.

More Help topics

“Customize List view properties” on page 32

View comprehensive file information

Adobe Premiere Elements includes tools that you can use to evaluate a file in any supported format stored inside or outside a project. For example, you can determine whether a clip you exported has an appropriate data rate for Internet distribution. Properties for video files can include file size, number of video and audio tracks, duration, average frame rate, audio sample rate, video data rate, and compression settings, as well as information about dropped frames in captured clips.

Use the Get Properties feature to check for dropped frames in a clip you just captured. Use the Data Rate Analysis graphs to evaluate how well the output data rate matches the requirements of your delivery medium. The graphs chart the render keyframe rate, the difference between compression keyframes and differenced frames (frames that exist between keyframes), and data rate levels at each frame.

❖ Do one of the following:

• If the clip is in the Project view, right-click it and choose Properties.

• If the clip is in the Timeline, select it and choose File > Get Properties For > Selection.

• If the clip is not in the project, choose File > Get Properties For > File, locate and select the clip you want to analyze,

and then click Open.

The graphs include the following information:

Data Rate/Second Graph The line represents the average data rate.

Sample Size Graph The blue bars represent the sample size of each keyframed frame.

Differenced Frames Sample Size If displayed, the red bars represent the sample size of the differenced frames between

compression keyframes. You only see these bars if you are analyzing the properties of a clip that was compressed using a codec (compressor/decompressor) that supports differenced frames. Differenced frames store only data that has changed between any two keyframes. DV footage does not contain differenced frames.

Note: The properties for VOB and MPEG files won’t include the data rate or sample size graphs.

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Customize List view properties

You can customize the List view to display only the information you want to see. You can also rename columns, add columns of your own, rearrange columns, and change the width of columns.

More Help topics

“Rename a source file in a project” on page 29

“Project view overview” on page 25

“Check your project’s settings” on page 35

Specify which properties appear in List view

The Name property appears by default, and displays the clip name on disk. You cannot remove the Name property using the Edit Columns dialog box. You can change the name the clip uses inside the project.

1 To access the Project view, select Organize > Projects.

2 Right-click in the Project view, and choose Edit Columns.

3 Select any of the following properties you want to appear in Project view, and click OK:

Used Displays a checkmark if the clip is used in the project.

Label Color that helps identify and associate clips.

Media Type Media, such as Movie or Still Image.

Frame Rate The frame rate of the clip, such as 29.97 fps.

Media Start The timecode when capture started.

Media End The timecode when capture ended.

Media Duration Length of the captured media on disk, expressed in the Display Format specified in the General

section of the Project Settings dialog box.

Note: In Adobe Premiere Elements, all durations in any panel include the frames specified by the In point and Out point. For example, setting the In point and Out point to the same frame results in a duration of one frame.

Video In Point The timecode of the In point as set in the Monitor panel, Timeline, or Sceneline.

Video Out Point The timecode of the Out point as set in the Monitor panel, Timeline, or Sceneline.

Video Duration The duration of the clip as defined by the Video In point and Out point. Incorporating any

adjustments applied in Adobe

Audio In Point The timecode of the In point as set in the Monitor panel, Timeline, or Sceneline.

Audio Out Point The timecode of the Out point as set in the Monitor panel, Timeline, or Sceneline.

Audio Duration The duration of the clip as defined by the Audio In point and Out point. Incorporating any

adjustments applied in Adobe

Video Info The frame size and aspect ratio of the clip, and whether an alpha channel is present.

Premiere Elements, such as changing the clip speed.

Audio Info The audio specifications of the clip.

Video Usage The number of times the video component of a clip is used in the movie.

Audio Usage The number of times the audio component of a clip is used in the movie.

Tape Name The name of the tape the clip was captured from. (Enter this name, if desired.)

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Description A description of the clip. (Enter a description, if desired.)

Comment Text intended for identification and sorting purposes.

Log Note Text that was entered using the Log Note option when a clip was captured using the Capture panel.

Media File Path The location of the file.

Capture Settings Specifies whether a file was captured in the current project.

Status Specifies whether a clip is online or offline. If a clip is offline, this option also indicates why.

Offline Properties Indicates whether Adobe Premiere Elements has access to the source file. If the source file is not

available (offline), you can relink, re-create, or delete the item in the Project view.

Scene Text that was entered using the Capture panel’s Scene option when capturing video using

Premiere Elements.

Adobe

Shot/Take Text that was entered using the Capture panel’s Shot/Take option when capturing video using

Premiere Elements.

Adobe

Client Field for adding a client’s name or other details.

Good Indicates preferred clips.

Adjust columns in List view

Use the List view to quickly evaluate, locate, or organize clips based on specific properties.

1 To access the Project view, select Organize > Projects.

2 Click the List view button at the bottom of the Project view.

3 Do any of the following:

• To change the width of a column, position the pointer over a dividing line between column headings until the

Column Resize icon

• To rearrange columns, drag a column heading horizontally. (You cannot move the Name column.)

• To create a column, right-click and choose Edit Columns, click Add and select a column name (after which the new

column appears). Type a name and choose a type for the new column, and click text you enter. Boolean columns provide a check box.

• To display a column, right-click and choose Edit Columns, and then click the box next to the column name you

want to display.

• To rename a column, right-click and choose Edit Columns, select a column name, click Rename, and edit the name.

• To remove a column, right-click and choose Edit Columns, select a column name, and click Remove.

• To rearrange columns, right-click and choose Edit Columns, select a column name, and click Move Up, or Move

Down. You can also rearrange columns by dragging them horizontally in Project view.

Note: If you can’t locate or change a column attribute in the Edit Columns dialog box, Adobe Premiere Elements locks the attribute and cannot be changed. For example, you can change the names of columns you added, but not the names of columns built in Adobe

appears; then drag horizontally.

OK. Text columns can contain any

Premiere Elements.

View details about effect properties

1 Select a clip in the Timeline or Sceneline.

2 In the Tasks panel, click Edit, and then click the Effects button.

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3 In the Effects view, click Edit Effects at the bottom of the panel, expand the effect, and note the values.

Project settings and presets

About project settings and presets

Project settings determine the video and audio format of a project, such as whether your footage is DV, HDV, AVCHD, or from a hard disk or flash memory camcorder, or whether it is standard or widescreen video. It also specifies the frame rate, aspect ratio, audio sample rate, upper or lower field first, and bit depth for your project.

When you start a new project, Adobe Premiere Elements applies a project preset to it. A project preset is a collection of preconfigured project settings. In most cases, you can use the default project preset, which is set for 4:3 DV footage for the television standard you specified when you installed Adobe Standards Committee) is the television standard for the Americas, the Caribbean, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan; PAL (Phase Alternating Line) is the standard format for Europe, Russia, Africa, the Middle East, India, Australia, New Zealand, the South Pacific, China, and other parts of Asia.

You can’t change the project preset after starting a project, so verify the format of your source footage before selecting a project preset. Depending on your source footage, you may need to change the preset or create a new one. If your footage is widescreen, for example, you need to select a Widescreen preset before you start your project; if it’s HDV, choose one of the HDV presets. If the project preset does not match the source files, you may get unexpected or undesirable results.

Premiere Elements. NTSC (National Television

If you need to specify lower quality settings for output (such as streaming web video), don’t change your project settings—change your export settings instead.

Create or change project presets

The default project presets in Adobe Premiere Elements are appropriate for most types of source media, including video from DV camcorders, cameras, DVD discs, and mobile phones. If your source footage requires a custom project preset, you can create one. The procedure for creating a preset differs if you’re changing settings for an open project versus establishing settings for a new project. Presets you create can be applied to new projects, and if you want to back up or distribute preset files, you can find them in the Settings subfolder of the Adobe hard disk.

Select a project preset

By default, Adobe Premiere Elements uses a DV preset for the television standard you specify when you install the program. You will need to select a new preset to create new projects in a different format (such as HDV), television standard (such as PAL), or frame aspect ratio (such as widescreen).

The preset you select becomes the default, so it’s used for all new projects you create, until you select another preset. If you want to use a preset temporarily, be sure to change it when you’ve finished using it.

1 Start Adobe Premiere Elements.

2 In the Welcome screen, click New Project. (Or, choose File > New > Project.)

3 In the New Project dialog box, click Change Settings.

4 Select the preset that matches the format and standard of the footage you want to edit. For example, to edit most

HDV footage shot on 1080i camcorders in the American market, choose HDV 1080i 30 or HDV 1080i 25.

5 Click OK.

Premiere Elements folder on your

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6 Give the project a name and location, and click OK.

Change the settings of an open project

1 Choose Edit > Project Settings > General.

2 In the Project Settings dialog box, specify project settings for General, Capture, Video Rendering.

3 Click OK.

Check your project’s settings

Project presets consist of settings in three main categories: General, Capture, and Video Rendering. After you start a project, you can’t change most of the project settings, such as frame rate, size, and aspect ratio. However, you can review the settings to make sure that the media you want to add to the project is compatible.

❖ Open the project in Adobe Premiere Elements, and choose Edit > Project Settings > [category].

Note: Custom presets may be provided with third-party products, including PCs, capture cards, or hardware bundles. Refer to the third-party documentation for details.

More Help topics

“Understanding aspect ratios” on page 67

“Prepare a project for video capture” on page 44

“Capture video” on page 44

“Common settings for Sharing” on page 279

NTSC vs PAL presets

NTSC presets conform to the NTSC standard, where each video frame consists of 525 horizontal lines displayed at

29.97 frames per second. The Standard NTSC preset is for footage that has a 4:3 aspect ratio, and the Widescreen NTSC preset is for footage that has a 16:9 aspect ratio.

PAL presets conform to the PAL standard, where each video frame consists of 625 lines displayed at 25 frames per second.

General settings

General settings (Edit > Project Settings > General) control the fundamental characteristics of a project, including the editing mode used to process video, frame size, aspect ratios, count time (Display Format), and playback settings (Timebase). These settings should match the most common source media in your project (for example, if most of your footage is DV, use the DV Playback editing mode). Changing these settings arbitrarily may result in a loss of quality.

General settings include the following options.

Editing Mode Identifies the television standard and format chosen for the project. The following video preview

settings can’t be changed because they are determined by the editing mode: Timebase, Frame Size, Pixel Aspect Ratio, Fields, and Sample Rate.

Note: The Editing Mode setting should represent the specifications of the source media, not the final output settings. Specify output settings when you export a project.

Timebase Specifies the time divisions used to calculate the time position of each edit: 25 for PAL (European standard),

and 29.97 for NTSC (North American and Japanese standard).

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Playback Settings This button is available if you use a DV preset, a DV editing mode, or if you install a plug-in that

provides additional playback functions. For a DV editing mode, this option indicates where you want your previews to play back: on your DV camcorder (or other connected device) or on your desktop. For information on the playback settings available for third-party plug-ins, see the documentation provided by the manufacturer of the plug-in.

Frame Size Specifies the dimensions, in pixels, for frames when you play back projects. In most cases, the frame size

for your project should match the frame size of your source media. You can’t change the frame size to compensate for slow playback, but you can adjust the playback settings: Right-click in the Monitor panel and choose Playback Settings. You can also adjust the frame size of final output by changing the Export settings.

Pixel Aspect Ratio Sets the aspect ratio for individual pixels. This ratio is determined by the video format: PAL or

NTSC. If you use a pixel aspect ratio that is different from your video, the video may play back and render with distortion. For more information, see

Fields Specifies the field dominance, or the order in which the two interlaced fields of each frame are drawn.

Premiere Elements captures DV footage with fields, even if the footage was recorded as progressive scan.

Adobe

Display Format (video) Specifies the way time appears throughout the project. The time display options correspond to

“Understanding aspect ratios” on page 67.

standards for editing video and motion-picture film. For DV NTSC video, choose 30 fps Drop-Frame Timecode. For DV PAL video, choose 25 fps Timecode.

Title Safe Area Sets how much of the frame edge to mark as a safe zone for titles, so that titles aren’t cut off by TVs that

zoom the picture slightly to enlarge it (called overscanning). A rectangle with crosshairs marks the title-safe zone when you click the Safe Zones button in the Monitor panel. Titles are usually assumed to require a wider safe zone than action.

Action Safe Area Sets how much of the frame edge to mark as a safe zone for action so that action isn’t cut off by TVs

that zoom the picture slightly to enlarge it. A rectangle marks the action-safe zone when you click the Safe Zones button in the Monitor panel.

Sample Rate Identifies the audio sample rate defined by the project preset. In general, higher rates provide better

audio quality when you play back audio in projects, but they require more disk space and processing. Try to record audio at a high-quality sample rate, and capture audio at the rate at which it was recorded.

Display Format (audio) Specifies whether audio time display is measured by using audio samples or milliseconds. By

default, time is displayed in audio samples, but it can be displayed in milliseconds for sample-level precision when you are editing audio.

Capture settings

Capture settings (Edit > Project Settings > Capture) control how video and audio are transferred directly from a deck or DV camcorder. (Other Project Settings panels do not affect capturing.)

Video Rendering settings

Video Rendering settings control the picture quality, compression settings, and color depth that

Premiere Elements uses when you play back video from the Timeline or Sceneline.

Adobe

To access Video Rendering settings, choose Edit > Project Settings > Video Rendering. These settings include the following options:

Maximum Bit Depth Allows Adobe Premiere Elements to use up to 32-bit processing, even if the project uses a lower

bit depth. Selecting this option increases precision but decreases performance.

File Format Specifies the format of the preview video.

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Compressor Identifies the codec (compressor/decompressor) that Adobe Premiere Elements applies when

previewing movies. The codec is defined by the project preset; you cannot change it because it must conform to the DV standard.

Note: If you use a clip in your video program without applying effects or changing frame or time characteristics, Adobe Premiere Elements uses the clip’s original codec for playback. If you make changes that require recalculation of each frame, Adobe Premiere Elements applies the codec identified here.

Optimize Stills Select this option to use still images efficiently in projects. For example, if a still image has a duration

of 2 seconds in a project set to 30 fps, Adobe 1/30 second each. Deselect this option if projects exhibit playback problems when displaying still images.

Premiere Elements creates one 2-second frame instead of 60 frames at

Undoing changes

Undo changes incrementally

If you change your mind about an edit or effect, Adobe Premiere Elements provides several ways to undo your work. You can undo only those actions that alter video content; for example, you can undo an edit, but you cannot undo scrolling a panel.

• To undo or redo the most recent change, choose Edit > Undo. (You can sequentially undo a series of recent

changes.)

• To undo a change, and all successive changes that occurred since you last opened a project, delete it from the

History panel.

• To stop a change that Adobe Premiere Elements is processing (for example, when you see a progress bar), press Esc.

• To undo all changes made since you last saved the project, choose File > Revert.

To undo changes made before you last saved a project, try opening a previous version in the Premiere Auto-Save folder. Then choose File > Save As to store the project outside of the Premiere Auto-Save folder. The number of

changes you can undo depends on the Auto Save preference settings.

Undo any previous change

The History panel records the changes you make to a project. For example, each time you add a clip, insert a marker, or apply an effect, the History panel adds that action to the bottom of its list. The tool or command you used appears in the panel along with an identifying icon. You can use the panel to quickly undo several changes. When you select a change in the panel, the project returns to the state of the project at the time of that change. The more recent changes turn gray and disappear when you make your next change.

The History panel records changes only for the current session. Closing a project or choosing the Revert command clears the History panel. While the panel lists most changes, it does not list individual changes within some panels, nor does it list program-wide changes, such as Preferences settings.

• To display the History panel, choose Window > History.

• To select a change in the History panel, click it.

• To delete a selected change, click the Delete icon , and then click OK.

• To move around in the History panel, drag the slider or the scroll bar in the panel. Or, choose Step Forward or Step

Backward from the History panel menu.

• To clear all changes from the History panel, choose Clear History from the History panel menu, and then click OK.

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List of changes in History panel A. Selected change B. Later changes that will be replaced by next change C. History panel menu

Saving and backing up projects

Save a project

Saving a project saves your editing decisions, references to source files, and the most recent arrangement of panels. Protect your work by saving often.

• To save the currently open project, choose File > Save.

• To save a copy of a project and continue working in the new copy, choose File > Save As, specify a location and

filename, and click Save.

• To save a copy of a project and continue working in the original project, choose File > Save A Copy, specify a

location and filename, and click Save.

To specify where Adobe Premiere Elements stores project-related files, such as captured video and audio, and video and audio previews, set up a scratch disk.

More Help topics

“Set up a scratch disk” on page 40

Back up a project with Auto Save

To more easily revisit editing decisions or recover from a crash, enable the Auto Save option. This option automatically saves backup project files to the Adobe Premiere Elements Auto-Save folder at a specified time interval. For example, you can set Adobe the state of your project at each interval.

Automatic saving serves as an alternative to the Undo command, depending on how much the project changes between each save. Because project files are quite small compared to source video files, archiving many versions of a project consumes relatively little disk space.

1 Choose Edit > Preferences > Auto Save.

2 Do any of the following, and then click OK:

• Select Automatically Save Projects, and type the number of minutes after which Adobe Premiere Elements will save

the project.

Premiere Elements to save a backup copy every 15 minutes, producing a series of files that represent

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• Type a number for the Maximum Project Versions to specify how many versions of each project file you want to

save. For example, if you type 5, Adobe

Note: Each time you open a project, you must save it at least once before the Auto Save option takes effect.

Premiere Elements saves five versions of each project you open.

Open a project saved by Auto Save

1 Do either of the following:

• Start Adobe Premiere Elements, and click Open Project in the Welcome Screen.

• In Adobe Premiere Elements, choose File > Open Project.

2 In the project folder, open the file in the Adobe Premiere Elements Auto-Save folder. (If no files are available, the

Auto Save preference may be turned off.)

Note: The first time you start Adobe Premiere Elements after a crash, it returns a prompt asking if you want to open the last version of your project saved by Auto Save.

More Help topics

“Open a project” on page 22

Working with scratch disks

About scratch disks

When you edit a project, Adobe Premiere Elements uses disk space to store scratch files required by your project, such as captured video and audio, conformed audio, and preview files. Adobe Premiere Elements uses conformed audio files and preview files to optimize performance, allowing real-time editing, high processing quality, and efficient output. All scratch disk files are preserved across work sessions. If you delete conformed audio files,

Premiere Elements automatically recreates them. If you delete preview files, they will not be recreated

Adobe automatically.

By default, scratch files are stored where you save the project. The scratch disk space required increases as your movie becomes longer or more complex. If your system has access to multiple disks, you can use the Edit Scratch Disks command to specify which disks Adobe your scratch disks at the very beginning of a project, before capturing or editing.

Premiere Elements uses for these files. For best results, set up

Types of scratch disks

While performance can be enhanced by setting each scratch disk type to a different disk, you can also specify folders on the same disk. Select Edit

Captured Video Folder or disk for video files and stop-motion still image files that you capture using the Capture

panel.

Captured Audio Folder or disk for audio files that you capture using the Capture panel.

> Preferences > Scratch Disks to set the following scratch disk options.

> Preferences >

Video Previews Folder or disk for video preview files, which are created when you use the Timeline > Render Work

Area command, export to a movie file, or export to a DV device. If the previewed area includes effects, the effects are rendered at full quality in the preview file.

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Audio Previews Folder or disk for audio preview files, which are created when you use the Timeline > Render Work

Area command, use the Clip

> Audio Options > Render And Replace command, export to a movie file, or export to a

DV device. If the previewed area includes effects, the effects are rendered at full quality in the preview file.

Media Cache Folder or disk for audio peak files, audio conform files, video index files, and other files

Premiere Elements creates to improve performance when reading media files.

Adobe

DVD Encoding Folder or disk for encoded video and audio files that are generated when you create a DVD.

Note: Adobe Premiere Elements places preview files, encoded files, media cache files, and other types within subfolders of the folders you specify for these types. Each subfolder is named for the type of scratch files it contains.

Set up a scratch disk

You set up scratch disks in the Scratch Disks panel of the Preferences dialog box. Before changing scratch disk settings, you can verify the amount of free disk space on the selected volume by looking in the box to the right of the path. If the path is too long to read, position the pointer over the path name, and the full path appears in a tool tip.

1 Choose Edit > Preferences > Scratch Disks.

2 For each scratch disk type, specify a disk location for Adobe Premiere Elements to store the corresponding files.

Choose one of these options from the pop-up menu:

My Documents Stores scratch files in the My Documents folder.

Same As Project Stores scratch files in the same folder where the project is stored.

Custom Indicates that the current path isn’t in the pop-up menu. The current path isn’t changed until you click

Browse to specify any available disk location.

Maximizing scratch disk performance

• If your computer has only one hard disk, consider leaving all scratch disk options at their default settings.

• If it has more than one, choose large, secondary hard drives for scratch disks and not the main boot drive. In

Premiere Elements, it’s possible to place each type of scratch file onto its own disk (for example, one disk for

Adobe captured video and another for captured audio).

• Defragment scratch disks regularly by using the Disk Defragmenter tool in Windows or a third-party utility. To use

the Disk Defragmenter tool, choose Start more instructions, see the documentation provided with Windows or the third-party utility.

• Specify your fastest hard disks for capturing media and storing scratch files. You can use a slower disk for audio

preview files and the project file.

• Specify only disks attached to your computer. The throughput from a hard disk located on a network is usually too

slow. Avoid using removable media as scratch disks because Adobe scratch disk files. Scratch disk files are preserved for each project, even when you close the project.

Premiere Elements reuses these files when you reopen the project associated with them. If scratch disk files

Adobe are stored on removable media and the media is removed from the drive, the scratch disk won’t be available to

Premiere Elements.

Adobe

• Although you can divide a single disk into partitions and set up each partition as a virtual scratch disk, this doesn’t

improve performance because the single drive mechanism becomes a bottleneck. For best results, set up scratch disk volumes on actual separate drives.

> All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Defragmenter. For

Premiere Elements always requires access to

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Chapter 4: Capturing video

Capturing involves recording video and audio directly to a hard drive from a DV or HDV camcorder, webcam, or other WDM (Windows Driver Model) device. Adobe and sets all capture settings accordingly. The Capture panel provides controls that let you remotely control your device, making it easy to play, capture, pause, and stop the video on your device.

More Help topics

“Importing and adding media” on page 54

Getting ready to capture

What you need to capture video

Before you capture video, make sure that your system is set up appropriately for working with digital video by following these general guidelines:

Premiere Elements automatically detects the attached capture device

Important: For an up-to-date list of system requirements, as well as assistance with error messages, see the Support Knowledgebase at

DV or HDV camcorder, webcam, or WDM device Check your camcorder documentation if you are unsure whether it

is digital or analog.

Note: If you have an analog source (such as VHS recorder), you need to convert it to digital video first, and then import it to Adobe

Computer connections and cables To connect to your DV or HDV camcorder, your computer must have one of the

following:

• IEEE 1394 port and cable (also known as FireWire or i.LINK)

Premiere Elements.

EEE 1394 port and cable

www.adobe.com/support.

• USB 2.0 port with a USB Video Class 1.0 driver installed (also called USB 2.0)

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USB 2.0 port with a USB Video Class 1.0 driver installed

Whenever possible, use IEEE 1394. Not all camcorders work with USB. Many computers include onboard IEEE 1394 cards. If your computer does not include one, you can purchase and install one yourself.

Note: If you capture using the USB 2.0 port, and your camera appears as “offline,” your camera likely does not use the USB Video Class 1.0 driver. Capture using FireWire instead, or see the Support Knowledgebase on Adobe.com for more information.

Hard disk speed DV formatted data is transmitted at a speed of 3.6 MB per second. The data transfer rate (often

shortened to data rate) of your hard disk should meet or exceed this rate if it is to capture DV. To achieve this rate, your hard disk must be able to operate at 7200 rpm. Most hard disks manufactured in the last five years have this capability. To confirm the rate or rpm speed of your hard disk, see your computer or hard disk documentation.

Hard disk space Five minutes of DV-AVI video occupies about 1 GB of hard disk space. Allow enough space, not only

for the source footage you will capture, but also for the preview files and final rendered movie and DVD or Blu-ray folders, should you choose to make these. A minimum of 4.5 GB is recommended. Periodically defragment your hard disk. Writing to a fragmented disk can cause disruptions in your hard disk’s write speed, causing you to lose, or drop, frames as you capture. You can use the defragmentation utility included with Windows.

Note: Before capturing, make certain that you have enough hard disk space for the length of footage you will capture. Before capture, the Capture panel shows the amount of free disk space remaining. During capture, it shows the duration of footage that can be captured using the remaining free space.

External hard disks Capturing to an external hard disk is not recommended. If you must use an external hard disk,

make sure the cables can handle the drive’s data rates and rotational speeds, and use large capacity UDMA 133 IDE/SATA drives dedicated to video only.

Note: You can get video, audio, and still-image files from certain digital still-image cameras, mobile phones supporting Nokia PC Suite 6.0 and later, DVD camcorders, and other removable media using the Media Downloader feature. Not all video devices and file types are supported.

More Help topics

“Add files using the Media Downloader” on page 55

“Getting media into your project” on page 54

“Supported file types for import” on page 57

“Troubleshooting” on page 292

“Converting analog video to digital video” on page 49

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Connect your camcorder to your computer

From Adobe Premiere Elements, you can capture digital video, audio, or both from several types of devices using an IEEE 1394 (recommended) or USB 2.0 port. Most DV and HDV camcorders and tape decks (and most webcams) have these ports. The IEEE 1394 port on your camcorder may be marked DV IN/OUT, i.LINK, or IEEE 1394. The USB 2.0 port is marked by the USB icon

A B

Ports and plugs for capture of digital audio, video, and stills A. IEEE 1394 B. USB

1 Do one of the following, depending on the capture device you are using:

DV camcorder Connect your DV camcorder to your computer’s IEEE 1394 port using an IEEE 1394 cable. Some

camcorders may work with a USB 2.0 port using a USB cable; however, IEEE 1394 is recommended. If your camcorder has both an IEEE 1394 port and a USB port, use the IEEE 1394 port for video capture.

Note: Do not connect a camcorder to both the IEEE 1394 and USB 2.0 ports at the same time.

HDV camcorder Connect your HDV camcorder to your computer’s IEEE 1394 port using an IEEE 1394 cable. You

cannot capture HDV using USB ports.

Webcam or WDM device Connect your webcam or other WDM device to your computer’s USB port using a USB

cable. You can capture video or still images from webcams using USB 1.0 ports.

Analog device Connect your analog device to an AV DV converter or digital camcorder using analog jacks and plugs.

Connect the AV DV converter or digital camcorder to your computer’s IEEE 1394 port using an IEEE 1394 cable.

Note: If your computer does not have a built-in IEEE 1394 or USB 2.0 port, or if your camcorder does not include the appropriate cable, you can purchase one at a computer, camera, or consumer electronics store.

2 If required by your camera, use the power adapter to activate the IEEE 1394 port.

Note: Some camcorders may go into sleep or inactive mode if left in camera mode without being activated for a period of time, even if connected to a power adapter.

More Help topics

“Create a narration” on page 240

“Add files using the Media Downloader” on page 55

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Prepare a project for video capture

Before you capture digital video, you need to create a project with a preset that matches the format (DV or HDV), television standard (NTSC or PAL), and frame aspect ratio (standard 4:3 or widescreen 16:9) that you’ll use to shoot your footage.

1 Do one of the following:

• From the Welcome Screen, click New Project.

• Choose File > New > Project.

2 In the New Project dialog box, type a name for your project, and then click Change Settings.

3 Select a preset (expand the preset folders to see all presets), and then click OK.

Note: The Hard Disk, Flash Memory Camcorder presets use reverse field order. Make sure to choose these presets if your footage uses upper field first.

More Help topics

“Start a new project” on page 21

“Create or change project presets” on page 34

“About project settings and presets” on page 34

About timecode

When capturing video, it’s important to understand the basics about timecode. Timecode numbers represent the location of a frame in a video clip. Many camcorders record timecode as part of the video signal. The timecode format is based on the number of frames per second (fps) that the camcorder records and the number of frames per second that the video displays upon playback. Video has a standard frame rate that is either 29.97 fps for NTSC video (the North American and Japanese TV standard) or 25 fps for PAL video (the European TV standard). Timecode describes a frame’s location in the format of hours:minutes:seconds:frames. For example, 01:20:15:10 specifies that the displayed frame is located 1 hour, 20 minutes, 15 seconds, and 10 frames into the scene.

Capture video

Capture panel overview

Use the Capture panel to monitor the video and access all of the capture commands. Adobe Premiere Elements automatically detects the attached capture device and sets the Capture panel settings accordingly.

This panel includes a video preview area, recording controls, a disk-space indicator, and a timecode display. On the right side of the Capture panel, you can specify capture settings.

To open the Capture panel, click Organize in the Tasks panel, click Get Media , and select one of the following:

• DV Camcorder

• HDV Camcorder

• Webcam Or WDM Device

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Capture panel A. Status area B. Capture source menu C. Preview area D. Capture panel menu E. Capture settings

More Help topics

“Troubleshooting” on page 292

Capture footage using device control

Capturing footage with device control simply means using the controls (Play, Fast Forward, Rewind, Pause, Stop, Record, and so on) in the Capture panel to control your device, instead of using the controls on the device. Device control is a convenient way to locate and capture scenes.

C DA B E G HF I

Capture panel controls A. Previous Scene B. Next Scene C. Rewind D. Step Back E. Play F. Shuttle G. Stop H. Step Forward I. Fast Forward

You can use device control with DV and HDV camcorders and tape decks when you connect them using the IEEE 1394 port (recommended) or the USB port. If you connect using the USB port and do not get device control, use the IEEE 1394 port instead.

If your device does not use these ports, device control will not be available, and you must capture using the controls on the device itself.

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Capture video

If you are capturing only a portion of a tape, as opposed to capturing an entire tape, capture at least 3 seconds of additional footage (called handles) at both the beginning and end of the capture to ensure a margin of error during capture. Handles also allow for cleaner transitions and more flexibility when you trim your clips.

1 Connect the DV, HDV, or WDM camcorder, or webcam to your computer.

2 Turn on the camcorder and set it to playback mode, which may be labeled either VTR, VCR, or Play. You can also

keep it in recording mode.

3 Start Adobe Premiere Elements.

4 From the Welcome screen, select New Project or Open Project.

5 Click Organize > Get Media, and choose DV Camcorder, HDV Camcorder, or Webcam Or WDM Device.

Adobe Premiere Elements automatically detects your attached device and sets up the Capture panel and project settings accordingly. If you have more than one device attached, select the device from the Capturing Source menu.

6 (Optional) Select or set any of the following in the Capture panel:

Clip Name Specifies the name of the captured clip.

Save To Specifies the folder where the captured clips are saved.

Capture: Video Audio Specifies whether video, audio, or both are captured.

Capture To Timeline Automatically assembles all captured clips in the Timeline, in the order in which they are

captured, providing a quick way to prepare your movie for editing. Deselect this option if you plan to place clips in an order different from that of the original tape.

Split Scenes Splits clips into separate scenes based on timecode information or video-content information. When you

select this option, scenes are split automatically after capture is complete. Timecode detects scenes based on when the Record button was pressed during recording. Content detects scenes based on changes in content. You can detect scenes in HDV or WDM video after you’ve captured footage by using the Scene Detect By Content command.

Auto-Analyzer Analyzes the captured content using the specified categories and automatically applies appropriate

tags. When you select this option, Adobe Premiere Elements automatically analyzes and tags the clips immediately after capture. You must also select Split Scenes when you select Auto-Analyzer. You cannot perform Auto-Analyzer without also splitting scenes.

Capture Settings (Capture panel menu) These are set automatically based on the attached device, but you can change

them if necessary. These settings specify the format of your video source from the Capture Format menu: DV Capture, HDV Capture, or WDM Capture (use WDM for webcam capture).

7 Locate the scene you want to capture by doing either of the following:

• Drag the Current Position Timecode display, or click it and enter the timecode you want.

• Advance to the next or previous scenes by clicking Next Scene or Previous Scene .

Note: Activating any application window other than the Capture panel stops the capture. If you want the capture to continue without interruption, do not access any other panel.

8 Click Capture Video.

A preview of your video appears in the Capture panel. If for some reason, the video cannot display in the Capture panel, a default image with the message “Playing on video hardware” appears there, and you can view the playback on the device itself.

9 To stop the capture before the tape reaches its end, click Stop Capture.

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10 (Optional) Do one of the following:

• If you chose Scene Detect, use the Next Scene and Previous Scene buttons to move to the next scene you want to

capture.

• If you didn’t choose Scene Detect and you captured only a segment of your video, repeat this procedure to locate

and capture another segment of video.

11 When you finish capturing, close the Capture panel.

The captured clips appear in the Project view of the Tasks panel, as well as the Organize workspace.

To operate some Capture panel controls with the keyboard, see the shortcuts in the tool tip for each control button. (Hold your pointer over a button to see its tool tip.)

More Help topics

“Split scenes by timecode or content change” on page 49

“Auto-Analyzer” on page 77

Change device control settings

Device control settings are preset at optimized values. The device information is derived directly from your attached device (such as DV camcorder or webcam). However, if desired, you can specify a different type of device for capturing, or change the settings for your device. You can also change the preroll and timecode offset. When project device settings and camera settings don’t match, a message appears warning that results may not be optimized.

❖ Choose Edit > Preferences > Device Control, or choose Device Control from the Capture panel menu and set any

of the following:

Devices Specifies the type of device from which you’re capturing footage. If you’re using IEEE 1394 capture, select

DV/HDV Device Control. If you’re using USB 2.0 capture, choose USB Video Class 1.0 - Device Control.

Preroll Specifies the number of seconds you want Adobe Premiere Elements to roll the tape before the specified start

time so that the device can attain a constant speed. The tape plays for the specified amount of time before recording begins.

Timecode Offset Indicates the number of frames to adjust in the timecode embedded in the captured video so that it

corresponds with the same timecode number of the same frame on the source tape.

Options Lets you specify the following options for your device:

• Video Standard Specifies whether the device uses NTSC or PAL.

• Device Brand Specifies the exact brand for your device.

• Device Type Specifies device settings to use: Standard uses the normal settings for the device; Alternate uses the

settings for a comparable device if the actual device used is not listed; HDV uses settings specific for HDV devices.

• Timecode Format Lets you choose the type of timecode you want to use for capture. For best results, choose Auto

Detect. Drop Frame is best for NTSC content that will be broadcast on television.

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Capture footage without device control

If the device holding your source footage does not have an IEEE 1394 or USB 2.0 port, and if you do not use a serial device controller to control an analog device, you cannot use the controls in the Capture panel to capture the footage. Instead, you can operate the device manually for capture. You can also capture live video streams from camcorders in camera mode and from devices such as webcams.

1 Connect your device to your computer.

2 Click Organize > Get Media, and choose DV Camcorder, HDV Camcorder, or Webcam or WDM Device.

3 (Optional) Select or set any of the following in the Capture panel: