The most important aspect of that AVI is the CODEC. This ARTICLE will give you some background and also tell you how to gather the necessary info.

It is odd that and earlier version of PrE has no issues, but PrE 9 does. For working with CODEC's, those are installed on the system, and then the NLE program works with those. What this means is that if a particular CODEC is installed on the system correctly, and PrE can work with it, all versions should be able to work with it.

Good luck,

Hunt

Chris,

Welcome to the forum.

When you say "AVI," it is like saying "automobile." It could be a Lamborghini Gallardo, or a Citroën 2CV. Both are automobiles, though very, very different automobiles. To get a better handle on "AVI," take a look at this ARTICLE. In that article, you will get some tips on finding out the full specs. of the AVI files. If you post those specs., then someone can help you figure out how to handle them.

Good luck,

Hunt

Chris,

There are probably 2000 possible CODEC's, with all the variations and tweaks, that can be placed in an AVI wrapper. Recently, some camera mfgrs. have begun wrapping H.264 material, tweaked from the norm, inside of AVI's. Why? I have no clue, but those cause all sort of issues with NLE programs - yet it is being done. To a lesser degree, the same can be said for MOV, WMV and even MPEG/MP4 wrappers. Knowing the file's format is meaningless, especially with the above cited case of H.264 inside of an AVI.

The great free utilities, G-Spot, or MediaInfo, will tell you pretty much all that you need to know about the file(s).

Premiere Elements, and also PrPro, are designed to work well with myriad file types, and specs., but certainly not all. PrE handles some consumer file types, better than its "big brother," but PrPro handles many professional file types, that PrE cannot touch.

I have CyberLink's PowerDirector (older version), and Magix MovieEdit Pro (also older), as each handles some specific file types and specs., better than either my PrE, or PrPro. Along wil those, basically used as converters, I have a great conversion program, DigitalMedia Converter 2.7, and will often take "odd" material into it, to be batch converted to something that PrE, or PrPro loves, like DV-AVI Type II's, for SD material.

The world of Video is very involved, and one needs to grasp the concept of CODEC's very early on, as they are the building blocks of Video files (and Audio files too). Each quarter, there are probably a dozen new ones, or variations on older ones, utilized by camera mfgrs. For a bit of background on CODEC's, see this ARTICLE. [Could be linked from the earlier article?]

Good luck, and let us know what is inside that AVI wrapper. Someone will know how best to handle it.

Hunt

Not all codecs are usable by all video editors, Winter. Just because you have the codec doesn't mean you'll be able to edit the file. You'll likely need to convert it.

Which codec did the file use? Is it a standard def or high resolution video?

Many Nikons produce MJPEG CODEC files, wrapped in an AVI container. What did G-Spot say about the CODEC in your AVI file?

Because many Nikons use MJPEG, does not mean that yours does, so ATR's question is very important.

If it IS MJPEG, then this article will be useful: http://forums.adobe.com/message/4079377#4079377

While there are some great "generic" MJPEG CODEC's, like the Morgan and the MainConcept, it is often best (and sometimes necessary), to use the exact MJPEG CODEC from the camera's mfgr. To install that, there are three possibilities, but they depend on the exact camera:

There will be a separate CODEC installer on the utility disc (not as common, as it should be)

There will be a camera driver, that will install the CODEC (less often seen nowadays)

There will be an MJPEG CODEC (the exact one needed) installed along with the camera's editing, and/or cataloging utilities (most common nowadays)

Letting us know more about your CoolPix, and what G-Spot found for the CODEC in the AVI's will be important.

Good luck,

Hunt