Monthly Archives: September 2014

New Features coming to Avid Media Composer and Adobe Cloud

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With IBC taking place in Amsterdam last weekend, users of Adobe Creative and Avid Anywhere were greeted with a slew of updates from their favorite programs. These updates include an interface overhaul, native support for many 4K formats, codec releases, and more. Although, currently, we are hearing more about the production side of things from IBC with new camera releases, I believe the next iteration of programs from Avid and Adobe will definitely make things more competitive for professionals in post. I want to highlight the updates coming for Avid Media Composer and Adobe Premiere in the coming months.

Avid Media Composer

Avid_AppAdrenaline

It was announced by Avid that they are bringing Resolution Independence to the next iteration of Media Composer. What that means for editors is that they will be able deal with 4K media faster and much more efficiently than before. Based on their new Resolution Independence architecture, editors will have the most complete and flexible end-to-end workflows when in post. Below is a list of new features coming to Media Composer that will definitely make it a viable option for 4K offline/online editing:

– AAX plugin support.

– Ability to mute individuals clips (similar to enabling and disabling clips in Premiere and FCPX).

– Disabling video tracks.

– Copying and dragging video segments.

– End of trim indicators.

– AMA media associated with projects.

– A new codec known as DNxHR (Digital Nonlinear Extensible High Resolution). It will support formats of 2K, 3K, 4K, and Ultra HD. There are five flavors of this codec which include DNxHR LB (low bandwith), DNxHR SQ (Standard Quality), DNxHR HQ (High Quality), DNxHR HQX (10 bit), and DNxHR 444.

– Proxy timeline which allows editors to change resolution more fluidly from your original media (and render your effects to proxy media) from full quality to either 1/2, 1/4, or 1/16.

– 4K Full screen playback support.

– Features to come include: background rendering, enabling Mac GPU acceleration, in addition to the existing Windows based GPU acceleration support. Seeing the list of features that are coming to Media Composer, Avid is showing that it is committed to maintaining their spot as the NLE of choice for high end post production. Looking at some of the features from the list, some of them have existed in FCP legacy and Premiere Pro for years. Some of these new features may be requests from switchers who felt that Avid needed to evolve to stay competitive with rival programs Premiere and Final Cut Pro X. I don’t know if that is for sure, but I know the features that are coming to Avid will alleviate the headaches that users may have endured over the years.

Adobe Premiere Pro CC 8.1

Premiere Pro CS6

Avid isn’t the only NLE that will see a massive update in features. Announced last week, Premiere (as well as other video/audio applications) will see a UI refresh, as well as a bundle of new features for high end workflows. Here is a list of features coming to Premiere Pro CC from the Adobe website:

– Search bins for allowing editors to build new bins automatically, based on metadata searches within a project, with results showing as aliases of the original project items.

search-bins

– Timeline search improvement which makes it simple to find and select clips within a sequence based on specific criteria, such as Clip Name or Marker comment.

– Multiple project workflows utilizing multiple Media Browser panels which can be open simultaneously, allowing fast browsing of other Premiere Pro and After Effects projects for easy access to their media and sequences.

Multiple-Project

– Source Monitor Timeline View allows editors to preview sequences from other projects, getting direct access to their components to quickly bring into the current active project. Editors collaborating over shared storage will find working with each other’s projects is now a great deal easier.

– Consolidate and transcode project for archiving purposes

Project-manager

– Render and replace clips and After Effects compositions when dynamic linking.

Render-replace

– GoPro Cineform codec as an intermediate codec between platforms.

– Support for many 4K and Ultra HD workflows.

– Improved masking and tracking with a free Bezier path tool.

Without trying to sound to biased, I’m someone who leans more on the Premiere Pro spectrum than the other NLEs, and I’m especially excited for these new feature updates. Within four months of this new release, the Adobe team has provided lightning fast updates which shows the community that they are committed to making the user experience the best it can possibly be. Features I’m really interested in are the improvements to the Mask and Tracking feature, and the Render and Replace option. Being able to apply masks using the Pen Tool is a dream come true. The Render and Replace option will allow users to bring AE comps into Premiere and render them into codec without having to go to the render queue. Also, I’m interested in trying the multi-project workflows so I can bring in other timelines from other projects in read only mode and take what I need. That will definitely provide a better user experience in the long run. Overall, we’ve seen that the people behind Avid and Adobe are bringing updates that embrace a future of high resolution and efficiency for the post production community. Each have added features that will make the user experience more bearable as we embrace the 4K reality and beyond.

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5 Tips/Tricks for Premiere Pro CC

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Premiere Pro CS6

Over the last few years, Premiere Pro has really stepped up its game as being a dependable NLE for professionals across the world. Its ability to make almost any codec native editable allows it to be more than a viable choice for editors to use. I’ve professionally relied on it to get many projects done over the years, and with each iteration that has been released, Premiere has shown that it can compete with the best of the NLEs. With the release of the Creative Cloud, we have been introduced to features that make the life of an editor much easier. I want to share a few tips/tricks that can help you in using this versatile NLE.

Using Drop Down Menus

The source, program, and title monitor each have a drop down menu above them indicating what item is currently in view. Every time you enter a new item into these monitors, it changes to that item. The cool thing about the source and title monitor is you can load multiple items into them and cycle through each individually by using the drop down menu. For example, if I want to look at multiple video clips and not have to load them into the Source monitor one by one, all you have to do is select a group of clips in the project browser and drag them into the source monitor. By using the drop down menu, you can go through multiple clips one by one. Aside from using the drop down menu in CC, you can map shortcuts to these commands below to cycle through clips using the keyboard. Personally, I’ve found this to be a timesaver for high volume footage edits.

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You can also load multiple titles in the Title Tool and cycle through different titles. You can also edit them one by one without having to double click them individually.

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You can also use the drop down menu for the Program monitor when you have multiple sequences open. I rarely use the drop down menus when cycling between sequences, but it’s always good to know multiple ways to move around your interface.

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Opening Multiple Sequences

Having to double click to open sequences in Premiere can be a pain in the ass, especially if I have to do it to multiple sequences. Luckily, there is a shortcut in Premiere Pro CC that allows you to open multiple sequences at once. If you map a keyboard shortcut for the command Open in Timeline, this will definitely be handy for opening multiple timelines. Select your group of timelines in the Project browser, hit your custom keyboard shortcut for Open in Timeline, and all of your sequences will open at the same time. I discovered this trick while working on commercial spots recently, and it has been a real timesaver. I strongly recommend you try it out yourself.

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Creating Custom Dimensions for Layers

Not too many people know this, but you can actually determine the dimensions of a Color Matte, Black Video, Adjustment Layer, or Transparent Video Layer before you commit to it. When you go to create one of these layers by selecting the create new item button, a dialog box shows up with dimensions of your current sequence. Let’s say, for example, that you wanted a red square and you didn’t want to go to the title tool to create it. If I create a Color Matte with dimensions of 500×500, I will get a red square Color Matte.

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Knowing this tip can reduce the time you may spend creating shapes in the Title Tool, or farming out to Photoshop if you are so inclined.

Change Duration of Multiple Transitions

One of the things I enjoy about the Creative Cloud version of Premiere, is that I can select multiple transitions and change their duration at the same time.

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As cool of a trick as this is, I hope future iterations will have the ability to map a shortcut to change transition duration as opposed to using the mouse all the time.

Importing Favorites Bins/Custom Presets onto other machines

This was a tip I learned recently from the Adobe forums. If you create custom presets and bins for favorites, it is saved in a file known as Effect Presets and Custom Items. This file updates each time you import a preset or custom bin into Premiere Pro. The best things about this file is that you can copy and import it into other systems with Premiere Pro installed. The instructions I’m giving are on a Mac, but you can find instructions for this file on PCs if you search the help pages. First, copy the file from the User>Documents>Adobe>Premiere Pro>version #>profile folder. With the file on a flash drive, open Premiere Pro CC (2013 or 2014 works) and go to the effects browser. Right click on the Effects tab and select import presets. Select the file on the flash drive and you will get the custom presets you created, as well as the favorites bins you created on your other machines.

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This trick is also useful when Premiere is being sluggish and you need to trash preferences. You won’t need to recreate everything all over again. These are just a few tips/tricks that Premiere Pro has to offer. There are many more available when you really get to know the program. In fact, the updates coming for the next release of Premiere Pro CC 2014 look more promising than any release I’ve seen in years. Try these tricks out yourself and discover ways to move faster in Premiere to get your work done.

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