Adobe Community : Popular Discussions - Premiere Elements FAQ

FAQ: Problem with AVI File - The Lowdown

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 29 May 2009 22:07:09 GMT

Why doesn’t my .AVI file Import, or play properly in Premiere? Hey, it’s an .AVI file. Why can’t Premiere work with it? It played fine in Windows Media Player (WMP), and VLC Player. Even QuickTime Player does a good job. What’s up with Premiere?

Sound familiar? You may even have asked some of the same questions. What’s the answer?

Well, it comes down to CODEC’s. Those are the mysterious little modules that allow one to either encode, or decode Audio and Video files. With but a very few, and some rather esoteric exceptions, these little guys are lurking around every Audio or Video file that you will ever see. Their handiwork is in there someplace, but we can’t really see it.

If you’ve ever used an Adobe program to Burn a DVD, you’ve used the MainConcept MPEG-2 CODEC, whether you realized it, or not. That is but one of many hundreds of CODEC’s. They are everywhere.

Now, I mentioned .AVI files, but various CODEC’s play a role in almost every AV file. They do a job, but can also wreck havoc, when one goes to play, or edit a file. To use one, it must be properly installed on the computer. Some come with your OS, but others have to be purchased, or downloaded, and then installed to function.

The file extensions that we see all of the time, things like .AVI, .MOV, .MPEG, .TOD, .MOD, etc. are but "wrappers." There can be so many different things inside those wrappers - read CODEC’s. Imagine that someone has taken many packages of sticks of chewing gum and removed the outside paper from each stick. All we have are the foil "wrappers." That is what those file extensions are. Now, we feel fairly certain that each one contains gum, but what flavor is in each? Is it Double-Mint? Is it Spearmint? Is it Juicy Fruit? That is what we’re faced with, when dealing with most AV files. We think that the file is an AV file and will probably contain either Audio, Video or, in many cases, both. Still, we do not know what flavor is inside the wrapper. We can "sniff" the wrapper, but still do not know for sure. That "sniffing" is what we do, when we look at the file extension. We see .AVI (or other), but that does not tell us much. Here is where a little freeware program, G-Spot comes in. First thing that it does is to survey your entire computer to determine which CODEC’s you have properly installed. Next, when you drag one of your AV files to it, it will give you almost every bit of information on that file. It works most thoroughly with .AVI’s but also will give info on .MPEG’s, .WMV’s and .MOV’s. The amount of info will differ by the file’s format. With .AVI’s it will not only tell you the "flavor" of the gum, but exactly how that gum was made. The most important bits of info will be the CODEC’s used in the creation of that file. If it’s an Audio only file, it’ll yield that info. If it’s a Video only file - same thing. If the file is muxed (multiplexed with both Audio and Video) it’ll tell you both CODEC’s used. Next it’ll tell you if you have the necessary CODEC’s installed properly on your system. If you do not, it will warn you, and also give you the official name of the necessary CODEC. Here, you’ll need to use that name to go out and find it. Google will be very helpful here. Remember, some CODEC’s will be free, and some will need to be purchased. Whichever you end up with, you’ll need to install them properly on your computer.

Next, G-Spot will allow you to Render your file, using the CODEC’s, if installed. This can be a multi-step process, especially with muxed files, as you will need to Render both the Audio and Video. If all completes successfully, G-Spot will offer to play the file in a small viewing window. This is one of the most invaluable tools that you can have. Another is MediaInfo, which is very similar to G-Spot. For a Mac, try MediaImspector (http://mediainspector.massanti.com/).Then, the use of the Properties function in WMP, or QT Player will also come in handy for gathering as much info on the file, as you can. All are useful, but I use G-Spot first and most often.

OK, we now know that the .AVI file is Beechnut Liquorice (DivX CODEC), not my favorite. What do we need to do for this file? First, we’ll need to probably download and install the DivX CODEC. With that, we can play the file in one of our players. Can we edit it? Maybe yes, and maybe no. Note: some players have their own set of CODEC’s and will play almost anything. This, however is not a guarantee that any other program can use those versions of the CODEC’s. As a matter of fact, it’s highly unlikely that any other program can use them.

If we can play it, why would there be a problem editing it? Well, there are major differences in being able to play the file and being able to edit that same file. Some NLE’s (Non Linear Editors) can handle some CODEC’s better than other NLE’s. It could just be a choice between different editing programs. Premiere cannot usually handle DivX, or its open source cousin, Xvid well, if at all. Most NLE’s can’t either. The majority are based on a DV-AVI Type II w/ PCM/WAV 48KHz 16-bit Audio workflow. That is what they handle best. Let’s call that file format Spearmint, my favorite flavor. It’s created with the MS DV CODEC, and works perfectly in Premiere, or most other NLE’s. We’re lucky, because there are programs available that can turn almost any flavor of AV file into Spearmint, er-r DV-AVI Type II. We just need to use one of those to do the conversion, prior to Importing the file into Premiere.

What about feeding Premiere with say Double-mint, and letting it convert internally to Spearmint? Some times Premiere can work with some CODEC’s for editing. Often times its internal conversion will be perfect. Still, there is a price to pay for this and it’s usually performance when editing. On a very powerful computer, one might not notice the necessary internal processing going on, but if the computer is less than state-of-the-art, editing is likely to be slow, and can also crash, or run out of resources. Doing the conversion outside of Premiere is always going to be better, as long as we convert to that DV-AVI Type II format.

Even if Premiere can Import some of these files with other CODEC’s inside, there are very often problems. Some common ones are OOS (Out Of Sync) issues, no Audio, no Video, horribly pixelated Video, partial display of Video or Video and Audio that halt, or stutter.

When you see a .AVI file, think of the foil wrapper on a stick of gum. We think that there’s gum inside, but we first need to find out the flavor.

Hunt

Message title was edited by: Brett N

What tools can I use to convert my video to DV-AVI?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 13:03:25 GMT

All video may look the same and sound the same, but it actually comes in many flavors, formats and compression systems (codecs). Premiere Elements is built around a DV-AVI workflow. (DV-AVIs are AVI files that use the DV codec.) This means that DV-AVIs flow easily through it and place the least strain on the program and, ultimately, your system. Not all AVIs use the DV codec, and many (such as video from still cameras) can cause real problems for Premiere Elements.

A good rule of thumb is that, whenever possible, you should use DV-AVIs as your video source.

More information on the why's and how's of converting video for Premiere Elements can be found in my article "Converting Video for Premiere Elements", free from Muvipix.com.

A number of free or low-cost programs will convert your files.

Premiere Elements - Premiere Elements, especially current versions, can often do an excellent job of converting. To use it, open a new project (Use the DVD/Hard Drive Camcorder project setting if you're converting MPEGs to DVD files), import your video and place it on the timeline. Then, with the timelline selected, go to File/Export/Movie. The resultant AVI should work perfectly in any Premiere Elements project.

If you don't get the quality you need or if the program simply can't handle the file format or codec, here are some other options:

MPEG Streamclip (free at http://www.squared5.com ) - A great tool for easily converting MPEGs and VOB files (DVD video files). To use it, open the file with MPEG Streamclip and then open the AVI/DivX Exporter window from File/Export to AVI.

    For Compression select the Apple DV/DVPRO_NTSC (or DV PAL, if appropriate) codec.
    For Field Order select Lower Field First.
    Change the default sound settings from MPEG Layer 3 to Uncompressed.

If you have widescreen footage click on the Options at the top right. Leave the Scan Mode as is but change the Aspect Ratio from 4:3 to 16:9.
If you would like to save these settings, click on the Presets button at the bottom left then click on the New button to name and save your settings. The next time you run MPEG Streamclip, you can go directly to the Presets button and Load your saved settings.

Click on “Make AVI” and choose a folder and filename for your DV-AVI file.

Super (free from http://www.erightsoft.com/SUPER.html ) can convert almost any video format to almost any other video format. It's newest version outputs both PAL and NTSC DV-AVIs.

To use Super, set the Output Container drop-down menu to DV -- and leave everything else at its default setting. (Although, if you are using PAL video, ensure that Video Scale Size is set to 720:576.) Drag the video you want to convert to the area just below the Output specs and click Encode.

Finding the download link on its messy web site is a bit tough though. But you can find it near the bottom of this page

http://www.erightsoft.com/S6Kg1.html

Windows MovieMaker - It’s right on your computer, and it handles a wide range of files. It’s particularly good for converting still camera video to a format Premiere Elements can work with.

To convert a video into a DV-AVI with MovieMaker, simply import it into MovieMaker and drag it to the MovieMaker timeline. Then:

From the Main Menu select File/Save Movie File
A dialog will open - Select ‘My Computer’ and press the Next button.

On the next screen you can name the new file and select/browse to a folder to put the file in (remember where you put it because you will need to browse to the file in Premiere Elements to import to you project). When you have named the file and selected the location press the Next button.

On the next screen, click the link that says Show More Choices. There will be three radio buttons to choose from. Select No. 3, Other Settings and, from the drop-down menu, select DV-AVI.

NOTE: Windows Live MovieMaker, the new, online version of MovieMaker included with Windows 7, will not output DV-AVIs. Fortunately, the "classic" Windows MovieMaker 2.6 is still available on the Microsoft site. You can find it here:

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=34

Quicktime Pro ($29 from Apple) - A great tool to own if you use a lot of MOVs (Quicktime) as source files. It not only converts MOVs to DV-AVIs but also includes some basic video editing functions.

VirtualDub (free from http://www.virtualdub.org ) – This terrific tool should be on everyone’s computer. Less a conversion tool than a video processor, it will make many AVIs (including Type 1 DV-AVIs) compatible with Premiere Elements as well as converting many other file types.
Converting is as easy as opening the file in VirtualDub and doing a Save As to create the new, freshly-processed file.

How can I get the best quality on YouTube?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 21:52:57 GMT

Premiere Elements offers Publish & Share functions for uploading directly to YouTube. However, because of occasional issues uploading directly to YouTube and similar sites, many people prefer to create the files as a separate process and upload them manually. (Others claim this actually gives you much better results.)

In versions 10, 11 and 12, the best outputs for YouTube and other online video sites can be found under Publish & Share (Share in version 10), Computer, AVCHD and selecting either YouTube Widescreen SD (standard definition) or YouTube Widescreen HD (high-def) from the preset menu.

For earlier versions of the program, John Cloudman offers this advice for outputting a high-quality hi-def video for YouTube:

Go to Share tab, Computer, QuickTime/MOV. Choose the DV preset and then click the Advanced button.

On the Settings window, do the following:

Video Tab
*Video Codec: H.264
*Quality: 100
*Frame Wdith: 1280
*Frame Height: 720
*Frame Rate: 29.97
*Field Type: Progressive
*Pixel Aspect Ratio: square
*Set Bitrate: checked
*Bitrate: 8000 kbps

Audio Tab
*Audio Code: AAC
*Output Channels: Stereo
*Frequency: 44kHz

That should generate a .mov file that Youtube will handle correctly. You can modulate that Bitrate to reduce the amount of data size, and you can modulate the Quality number to reduce the encoding time. I wouldn't go lower than 3000 kbps for a bitrate or below 50 on Quality. Hope this helps everyone!

Forum poster Felix G relays this method for outputting a high-quality standard definition file for YouTube.

1. From Premiere Elements, select the Share/Personal Computer option, then select the DV-AVI output option (either standard or widescreen).

2. Import this AVI file into Windows MovieMaker, place the file on MovieMaker's timeline and Publish (to your hard drive) a
WMV, dvd-quality (4:3 size) PAL 3,0 M.

3. Upload to the WMV to YouTube. You will need to wait (approx 10 min. per minute movietime) until the uploaded movie is re-encoded by YouTube and released and online in high quality.

FAQ: CODEC's, a Primer

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 01:43:59 GMT

CODEC. That term is used a lot, and is often misunderstood. What is it, and why should I care? Well, at the very basic level, a CODEC is a “device,” that is most often a two-way conversion to either encode, or decode a data stream. For a complete discussion on CODEC’s, please see this Wiki-pedia entry.

In video editing, we use these going both ways.

1.) They allow us to playback an AV file.

2.) They allow us to edit an AV file.

3.) They also allow us to encode, for delivery, an AV file.

They are often .dll (Dynamic Link Libraries), or similar, and are usually installed to our computer as both a file, and as a Registry entry, defining the link to that file, the usage of that file and perhaps linking it to another program on our computer, such as an NLE (Non Linear Editor).

Going back to 1.) and 2.), let’s look a bit more closely. Being able to do 1.) does not insure that we can do 2.). Playback of an AV file on our computer is very different than editing that same file. Having the necessary CODEC installed for 1.) does not mean that 2.) logically follows. Also, be aware that some software players contain their own CODEC’s, so playback might well work with that particular software player, yet not another. That is because the first player contains the necessary CODEC, but it is not installed on our system, so it is not available to other players.

Even if we install it, our particular NLE might not be able to work with it for editing. Part of this is often because the AV file is not in an editable form, but in a “delivery-only” form. It can also be an inability for that NLE to use the CODEC, even though properly installed. Some NLE’s are much more lenient regarding certain CODEC’s, especially those designed for delivery. A good example of one of these is the popular DivX CODEC (and it’s open source cousin, Xvid). Some NLE’s can work with this, so long as the proper DivX CODEC is installed on the system. Some NLE’s will almost always exhibit problems. These can be a lack of video display, a lack of audio playback, a lack of both or perhaps OOS (Out Of Sync) issues. This can be confusing, as one might get good results with one NLE, but nothing in another. That is due to differences in how the code for the NLE’s was written.

As mentioned, some CODEC’s are designed for delivery-only. Some can still be edited, but some cannot. It varies greatly, CODEC to CODEC.

Most CODEC’s provide some form of compression, allowing the resultant file sizes to be reduced. Some do more compression, than do others. This compression will usually result in some quality compromise, though not always. There are several “lossless” CODEC’s that just compress elements in the AV file that do not affect the quality of the audio, or the video. Some do compression that only affects these at a minimal level. The DV-AVI Type II, MS DV CODEC is an example of this. There is compression, and a tiny quality loss, but it can usually not be detected, even with a side-by-side comparison. Other CODEC’s, like the MPEG-2 DVD-Video CODEC do affect quality, but does a very efficient job of compression. This is the accepted compression CODEC for DVD-Video. It was determined to be a good compromise between file size and quality, and is written into the DVD-Specs. This is what is inside the .VOB files, that we see on every DVD-Video disc, tucked into the VIDEO_TS folder, that is always present. It is a delivery CODEC, because it does not contain each “frame” in the AV file completely defined. It uses GOP (Group of Pictures), where there are only a certain number of fully defined frames, and in between these will only be difference frames, that are linked back to the last fully defined frame (the I-Frame). If one does a cut between the I-Frames, there is no longer a reference to that previous I-Frame. That is why most NLE’s need to internally generate files (conversions) from the MPEG-2 material. In this generation/conversion, each full frame is defined - they all become I-Frames.

While some might treat CODEC’s like they would a vampire, if one wishes to understand digital video files, they need to educate themselves in the general concept of CODEC’s, and then learn the details on the CODEC’s used by their specific cameras. To not do this would be tantamount to deciding that they did not wish to learn about film ISO, before the digital days. One does not need to do a PhD program in CODEC’s, but learning the concept, the impact and the uses of these will help them get the best possible quality and also editing experience.

Good luck,

Hunt

Message title was edited by: Brett N

How can I convert my AVCHD footage to an easier high definition format to edit?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 13:31:01 GMT

AVCHD UpShift, from NewBlue, convert AVCHD (hi-def MP4) to more standard HD-mpeg (hi-def MPEG .m2t), a format that is both more universally editable and which demands significantly less system resources.

http://www.newbluefx.com/avchd-upshift.html

The product sells for $49.95.

Another solution that will convert your AVCHD to formats more easily edited on a PC with no loss quality.
http://www.shedworx.com/voltaichd

Note, of course, with any conversion, your output files will be much larger, so allow for that extra hard drive space.

It sells for $34.99.

More information on the why's and how's of converting video for Premiere Elements can be found in my article "Converting Video for Premiere Elements", free from Muvipix.com.

FAQ: Premiere Elements Hanging, or Crashing - Some Tips

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 18:41:30 GMT

There are many things that can be going on with one's system, and even a brand new system (possibly more likely with a new system?). Neale has assembled a checklist that one should explore first:

Work through these basics to see if it cures your problems.

Install all Windows Updates.
Install latest version of Apple QuickTime (v7.6.9 at time of writing). Even if you don't use QuickTime, PRE relies heavily on it.
Install most recent graphics and sound drivers from the manufacturer's web sites.
Install PRE9 v9.0.1 update, same for PrE 10, or later, or any patches for your version of PrE - check Adobe's site.
Delete BadDrivers.txt (in Windows 7 this is likely at C:\ProgramData\Adobe\Premiere Elements\9.0\BadDrivers.txt) Note: location will be slightly different for each version of PrE
Run Disk Cleanup.*
Run Defragmenter.
Reboot your PC.
Temporarily disable any anti-virus realtime scanning.
Check your HDD's free-space. PrE needs about 20 - 30GB, just to run, and when editing, needs about double that, for the working files. *

And give us some information about your clips and hardware:

Use the GSpot Codec Information Utility, or MediaInfo, to analyse the file and post screen image.
What project preset did you use?
Where did the clip come from?
How did you get it into PRE?
Post back here with the necessary information described here: Got a Problem? How to Get Started

There are several FAQ Entries, found in Premiere Elements FAQ's, on the right of the main forum page, and these address some of the issues covered above, plus also offer some tips on tuning up your system for NLE (Non Linear Editing) work. Be sure to read all of the FAQ Articles.

In the Tips & Tricks sub-forum, there are many articles related to program/computer hangs, crashes and even the dreaded BSOD (Blue Screen of Death). They are accessed via the link to Tips & Tricks, also to the right of the main forum page. Here are a few, that might offer some great tips, and things to explore:

Clean, Lean and Mean Editing Machine (with some Win7 Tune Up Tips via the contained links)

BSOD - A Serious Issue (with links to other articles, and also to the MS Web site, for The Case of the Unexplained)

Memory & Resouce Issues - Windows Virtual Memory

For issues with source files, see these articles:

Problem With An AVI File? - The Lowdown (Discusses other formats, which are also just "wrappers")

MP3 Files - Having Problems?

MJPEG - How to Handle it

CODEC's A Primer

Hope that these are helpful, and special thanks to Neale for his assembly of the checklist.

Hunt

* PrE, like most NLE (Non Linear Editing) programs, creates very large working files. These are necessary for it to do the work. Having 30 - 40 GB of defragmented, free space is necessary for the program to work properly. Note: with HDD's, once one gets to about 70% of capacity, the performance will go down. The closer to 100% capacity one gets, the lower the performance. Also, as 70+ % is reached, the mechanical wear on the HDD will increase. As one approaches 100% capacity, the likelihood of catastrophic failure of the HDD will increase greatly, as performance declines. Keeping the use of a HDD below about 70% is important for performance and for the health of the HDD.

Message title was edited by: Brett N

What is the best device for capturing analog video?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 12 May 2009 16:54:45 GMT

There’s a difference between a DV bridge and plain old capture device or capture card. Capture devices merely digitize your video input to any of number of video formats. DV bridges, on the other hand, are specifically designed to convert any video and audio input into DV-AVI files, the preferred video format for PC-based video editors. (Macs also prefer DV video, although they are saved as DV Quicktime files rather than AVIs. The video data content, however, is identical.)

DV bridges range from relatively inexpensive to high-end professional devices with time base correction and other video optimizers. The best value on the market in DV bridges and a Muvipix recommended “best buy” is the Grass Valley Canopus AVDC, a favorite of many videographers and available online for under $200. This great device can is a great value if you plan to edit a lot of video from non-DV sources.

Another great device is ADS Pyro AV Link, which is discontinued but can still be found for under $150 obnline. Like the Grass Valley Canopus device, the Pyro AV link will take any AV input (a camcorder, a DVD player, a VCR or virtually any other video source, including live video) and port it into your computer as a high-quality DV-AVI file.

Capturing video from a DV bridge is easy. Just plug your camcorder’s, DVD player’s or VCR’s AV cables (RCA jacks) into the DV bridge’s inputs and plug the bridge (connected by FireWire) into your computer. Windows will recognize the device just as it recognizes a miniDV camcorder connection.

The capture process itself is essentially the same as capture from a miniDV camcorder. The only difference is that, since there’s no direct connection between your video source device and the computer, you won’t be able to control the device with the Capture Monitor’s playback controls. But, once you’ve got the device cued up to the segment you want to capture, you just click the Capture button and you’re good to go!

By the way, these DV bridges can also be used with DVD camcorders and hard drive camcorders, so it’s a great way to make any non-miniDV video 100% Premiere Elements compatible.

An alternative to a DV bridge is a set-up called a pass-through, which essentially uses a miniDV camcorder as a DV bridge.

To do pass-through capture, attach your non-DV camcorder to your miniDV camcorder, via its AV cables, and then link the miniDV to your computer via FireWire. With the miniDV camcorder in play mode (but without a tape inside) the non-DV camcorder’s video then flows through the miniDV and into the computer, where it’s captured as DV-AVIs.

The biggest challenge to using this method is that fewer and fewer new miniDV camcorders support pass-through connection. And it’s very difficult to learn, from most spec sheets, which camcorders do. But, if your miniDV camcorder is pass-through capable, this is a simple and effective method of digitizing almost any analog video input.

How can I remove the watermark from projects created with the trial version of the program?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 15 May 2009 21:53:20 GMT

Once you've purchased the full version of Premiere Elements, you can remove the watermark from projects created with the trial version by deleting the rendered files.

To delete the rendered files, go to the Timeline menu and select Delete Render Files. The program will then recreate "clean" renders as needed.

How do I combine several short movies into one large project?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 20 Sep 2013 12:23:16 GMT

You’ll often find a longer project much easier to work with if you work on it in shorter pieces. Doing this can minimize system lugging and maximize program responsiveness as well as reduce the likelihood that you’ll run into problems when you try to output your finished movie.

Once each segment is finished and output, open a new project and combine the segments into a final mix.

In order to do with this minimal loss of quality and maximum performance, you’ll want to output each segment in its ideal video format – a format that the program is designed to work with natively and won’t have to re-render. Instructions for outputting each of these ideal video formats are found below.

The ideal source video format for a standard definition video project is the DV-AVI, although DV-MOVs will also work.

The ideal source video format for a high definition video project is either the 1920x1080 HDV MPEG or the 1920x1080 MTS AVCHD file.

For standard video

If you’d like to export your video project – or even a portion of your project – so that you can import it into a standard definition Premiere Elements video project on a Windows computer, use Publish & Share/Computer/AVI with the DV preset option. The file you output will have an .avi suffix

The Macintosh equivalent to the DV-AVI file is the DV-MOV. To output a DV-MOV file from your project, use Publish & Share/Computer/MOV with the DV preset. The file you output will have a .mov suffix.

For high-definition video

If you’d like to export your video project – or a portion of your project – from an HDV (tape-based high-definition) project for use in another HDV project, use Publish & Share/Computer/MPEG with the MPEG2 1920x1080i 30 preset (or 1920x1080i 25 for PAL).

If you’re working on an Full AVCHD project, output your video by clicking Publish & Share/Computer/AVCHD and using the M2T 1920x1080i preset (with the appropriate frame rate). For more information on outputting AVCHD video.

Both forms of high-definition video will output with the .m2t suffix.

(From The Muvipix.com Guide to Adobe Premiere Elements)

What should I do if my program's licensing suddenly stops working?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 03:38:14 GMT

If you suddenly find your program unable to launch or you get a 150:30 error, it's likely that the program's licensing has corrupted.

Adobe offers this third-party solution that usually fixes the problem.

http://www.adobe.com/support/contact/licensing_download_eula.html

How do I correct the problem with the display driver in Premiere Elements?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 13:11:49 GMT

First, ensure you do have the latest driver from the nVidia or ATI web site.

Then, in XP, go to C:/DOCUMENTS AND SETTINGS/ALL USERS/APPLICATION DATA/ADOBE/PREMIERE ELEMENTS/[version 0.00] and remove or rename the file BadDrivers.txt.

In Windows 7 or Windows 8, go to C:/PROGRAM DATA/ADOBE/PREMIERE ELEMENTS/[version 0.00] and remove or rename the file BadDrivers.txt. (You may need to first go to Start/Control Panel/Folder Options/View and, under Hidden Files and Folders, select the option to Show Hidden Files, Folders and Drives.)

When you next launch Premiere Elements, BadDrivers.txt will be recreated and you will no longer see the message.

Correcting Out Of Sync (OOS) Issues

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 22 May 2009 14:56:15 GMT

This is a short piece on how to correct OOS (Out Of Sync) issues that are constant, i.e. the Audio is not in sync with the Video (or still images) and it is constant - the degree of OOS does NOT drift over time, but is always the same.

While it is written for use in PrPro, it works in PE, as well.

Imagine that we have one Clip in our Video Track (VT) and one Clip in our Audio Track (AT). We realize that our Audio does not match up to our Video. Words do not match the lips in a Close Up (CU), or a drum beat occurs before, or after the stick/mallet hits the drum.

The first thing that I do, especially if the sound on the AT comes after the visual in the VT is to add about 02 sec. of Black Video (via the New icon at the bottom of the Project Panel>Black Video, and then trim it to 02 sec. in the Source Monitor) to the Head of the Video Clip. More on this later. Now, we find a good audible and visual key. If we shot a clapper/slate at the beginning of the scene, we’re home free. However, we seldom have a clapper/slate, so we need something else. Let’s use a CU of someone speaking for the visual, and the words that they speak for the audible keys. Look closely at the CU of the speaker in the VT. Find a word being formed, that we recognize. Place an Un-numbered Marker at that point. Also, compress the Work Area Bar (WAB) to cover a few dozen frames before and after that Marker. Watch closely and listen carefully to the footage under the WAB. Does the Audio come before the Video, or after it? If it comes before, then we know we’re going to slide the Audio-only to the right. The Black Video, that we added will not come into play. More often, the Audio is after the Video, and this is why we added that Black Video.

We have the Marker over our visual key, and the WAB set to the area around it. Turn OFF Snap (s key toggles it), as we want to be able to freely move the Audio without it interfering with our movements. Zoon in on the Timeline so that we can both see it clearly and to restrict our next movements to much smaller degrees. I also vertically expand the VT and AT to see both the Video and Waveform display well. Look at the Waveform display for the Audio and try to find that point where the word, or sound is displayed. Alt-click on the Audio Clip. This basically "un-links" it from the Video on a temporary basis. That is what we want. While still holding down the mouse key, slide the Audio to the left (or right depending on whether the Audio precedes, or follows the Video). Unfortunately, when we go to slide the Audio, the Waveform display greys out. I’ve made feature requests to have the display NOT change, as is would make this action so much easier. I try to Alt-click on the spot where the Waveform display indicates the sound. Slide to get that point under our Marker. Release the mouse button, and watch carefully and listen closely. Are the two now in sync? If not, are they really close? Have we now shifted the OOS from after, to before our sync point? Alt-click again and nudge the Audio in the appropriate direction. This can take a bit of time, but the Zoom-in on the Timeline gives us pretty fine movements. Continue to adjust, and then play/listen. Each time that we release the mouse button, the Audio re-links to the Video. Finally, we have re-established sync.

Now, hit the Home key, to get to the beginning of our Clip. If the Clip that we are working on is not the only Clip on the Timeline, hit the PageUp to go to the Head of our Clip. We will address the Black Video now. If our Audio preceded the Video, we just remove it. If our Audio followed the Video, we now will have some of the Audio beneath the Black Video. That is why we added it, to allow us to freely move the Audio to the left. Depending on what the Audio Clip contains in the space that it is beneath the Black Video, we might just be able to shorten the Audio Clip to the Tail of the Black Video - basically setting a new In Point for the Audio. If it is something important, then we have a little problem in that we have no Video to go with it. There are a couple of thing that we can consider. The first is leaving the Black Video in and adding a Dip-to-Black Transition. between it, and the beginning of our Video. This is in effect, a "J-Cut." We will hear the Audio, before we see any Video. The Audio is heard, and then the Video fades up from black. The use of both the J-Cut and the L-Cut (the opposite, where we see the Video, before we hear the Audio, is a very effective means to add some drama to the edit. If you have never explored either of these techniques, now is the time to do so. They slightly disarm your audience and lead to heightened expectations. Here, we’ll assume that we can just re-set the Audio’s In-Point and then can delete the Black Video.

Look closely at the Head of the Audio Clip. You will see a number with either a "+" (Plus sign), or a "–" (Minus sign). Make note of this number, as you will use it for all of your additional OOS Clips from the same source, i.e. with the exact same OOS issue. If it’s not perfect for any more Clips, it will be very, very close, saving you time, as you’ll use it as your "starting point," to establish sync.

Now, turn Snap back on (s key toggles it), or you’ll miss it with later editing. We’re done.

If your OOS issue does drift over time. You can use the method above to correct it, but we’ll likely have to cut the Clips into smaller pieces with the Razor/Scissors Tool. As you can see, we’ll then be working on short "snippets" of our original Clip. This can become tedious, but with patience and careful viewing and listening, one can correct all but the worst drifting sync problems. If you are working with drifting sync, you really do need to consider those J & L-Cuts, as you’ll likely need to use them.

Hunt

How can I best work with JVC Everio video files?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Mon, 04 May 2009 14:39:36 GMT

For a variety of reasons, MOD files from JVC Everio camcorders can be challenging for many video editors, including Premiere Elements, to work with.

Forum member MarkItVision offers his best solution for making the files easier to edit.

Using CyberLink Power Director Express - a program which comes bundled with the camcorder - capture the video and then place it on the timeline. Then go to File>Produce Movie and at "step 1" select "create a file"

Change the settings as shown to Type II and High Quality 48k. Change settings by clicking on the button two over from the one labeled CLVS and you can confirm the audio is PCM using the button to the right of it.

Follow the arrow "right" and give your file a name and location It will output the AVI as a DV-AVI Type II 48kHz PCM.

Import this file into a Premiere Elements project. The program should work easily with it.

To conform your video file for widescreen, drag it to the timeline, right-click on it and set it to "interpret footage as D1/DV PAL (or NTSC) Widescreen 16:9 (1.422)".

How can I work through a Burn DVD problem?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 13:06:35 GMT

In a perfect world, you could put together a project out of any media, click the Share tab and burn it to a disk. Unfortunately, for a variety of reasons – some related to Premiere Elements, most related to operating system drivers or program conflicts, this sometimes doesn’t go as smoothly as it should.
The simplest solution is to break the process down into its elements and then troubleshoot each element individually.

There are three main reasons for a problem burning a DVD or BluRay disc: challenging source video (including photos that are larger than the recommended 1000x750 pixels in size); interfacing issues with your disc burner (often the result of a program like Nero not sharing the burner with other programs); and lack of computer resources (namely lack of available scratch disk space on your hard drive). This workaround eliminates most Burn Disc problems. And those it doesn’t eliminate, it at least helps you isolate where the problem is occurring.

1. Burn to a folder rather than directly to a disc. Select this option from Share/Output/Disc. This eliminates the possibility that other disk burning software is interfering with communication with your computer’s burner. Once the disk files are created, you can use your computer’s burner software to burn the VIDEO_TS folder and its contents to a disk.

If this doesn’t work, it could be that your computer lacks the necessary resources, as discussed below.

2. Clear space on and defragment your hard drive. A one-hour video can require up to 50 gigabytes of free, defragmented space on your hard drive to render and process (depending on your source files). Even a “pure” AVI project can require 20-30 gigabytes of space.

Clear off your computer and regularly defragment it, per Maintain Your Computer, above, and you’ll reduce the likelihood of this being an issue – assuming you’ve got an adequately powered computer and an adequately large hard drive in the first place.

What's new in Premiere Elements 12?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 24 Sep 2013 12:09:58 GMT

Version 12 of Premiere Elements isn't the major overhaul of the interface that version 11 was, but it still includes a number of very nice new features. They include:

A new, intuitive Auto Smart Tone tool for easily adjusting your video's black, white and midtone levels.
Guided Edits, which walk you through the basics of video editing, one step at a time.
Four new FilmLook effects, so you now have 16 ways to change the entire mood of your video with a couple of quick clicks.
A new, improved Motion Tracking tool for adding graphics and text to your movies that follow a person or object around the video frame.
Adjustment Layers, which allow you to apply an effect to any or all of your movie in one swoop.
Scores, Adobe's tool for creating custom, royalty-free music tracks for your videos.
Greater integration of the entire Elements suite with the AdobeRevel.com cloud. Now your videos and photos can be available any time, and from any device loaded with the Revel app.
Improvements to the Elements Organizer, including more advanced tools for managing and searching your media files and new tools for loading photos and video directly to Adobe Revel, Vimeo, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.

For more information about the latest versions of Premiere Elements and Photoshop Elements as well as screen shots of the new tools, see the articles linked to on the left side of this page:

http://muvipix.com/pe12.php

Why isn't my DVD as clear and detailed as my original footage?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 12:24:07 GMT

If you're using the proper workflow and a good video source, the quality of the DVD will be virtually identical to the original video.

The exceptions are:

1) High-def video. DVDs are standard definition 720x480 video. That's less than one-sixth the resolution of high-def video. So no DVD is going to look as clear, as high-resolution or as detailed as 1920x1080 video. This will be particularly obvious if you're viewing your DVD full-screen on your computer. Your computer monitor is many times the resolution of a DVD (or a standard definition TV set). So a DVD at full-screen is virtually always going to look fuzzy. And, depending on the software you use to play it on your computer, it may show interlacing or combing. This is because TVs are interlaced and computer monitors are not.

2) Photos are also reduced to 720x480 pixels. So no DVD is going to look as clear, as high-resolution or as detailed as your original photos. In fact, if you shoot your photos on even a 5 megapixel camera, your DVD will be nearly one-fifteenth the resolution.

We've addressed many of these issues at length on this forum. This is the nature of DVDs and has nothing to do with the software.

The real trick is addressing the term "quality" -- which posters use pretty generically. When people say the "quality is not near the original" are they talking about resolution, color, focus, exposure and lighting? On this forum we've done side-by-side comparisons of original footage with the DVD results. When both are at the same resolution, the results are virtually identical. (VLC Player does probably the best job of de-interlacing DVD video for computer playback.)

When compared side by side, a 640x480 screen capture of your original footage or photo should look almost identical to a de-interlaced screen capture of your DVD image at 640x480.

FAQ: My files are missing from Elements Organizer, or How to reconnect your images?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 17 Aug 2012 17:01:31 GMT

What is Elements Organizer?

The Elements Organizer can be used to arrange, codify, systemize, group, and classify your media. When you import your images and video into the Orgnizer, you are adding information about your files to a catalog. Your files remain on your hard drive where they were, unless you are importing them from a camera, in which case the files are copied to your hard drive to a location of your choosing.

What is an Elements Organizer catalog?

The catalog is a database that stores information about the files you've imported into Elements Organizer. When importing a file, the first thing Organizer does is collect the file's name and location on the hard drive. If the file has any attached compatible metadata, such as keyword tags, these are imported as well. You can use multiple catalogs and yourr catalogs can be carried forward from version to version.

Why does Elements Organizer say my files are missing?

Since the catalog database only stores information about your file, and not the file itself, if any of that information is changed outside of Elements Organizer, the connection to the file is lost. There are three ways this can happen: the file name is changed, the file location is changed, or the file has been deleted. If you need to rename, move, or delete a file, you can do so within the Elements Organizer, and then the connection is not lost.

What is Reconnecting?

When a file has been renamed, moved, or deleted, the catalog database needs to be updated with that new information. The Reconnection process allows you to point out a file's new name, it's new location, or to delete the database entry on your file if the file no longer exists on your hard drive.

Where can I learn more?

Managing Files in Elements Organizer

Managing Catalogs in Elements Organizer

Reconnecting Media in Elements Organizer

How can I edit FRAPS video in Premiere Elements?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 15:36:48 GMT

Although FRAPS isn't the best source format for video in Premiere Elements, some folks at Elements Village have come up with a workflow that seems to work pretty well.

http://www.elementsvillage.com/forums/showthread.php?t=67036

Key elements are:

1) The FRAPS software must be installed on the same machine you're editing your video on

2) ffdshow should also be installed

3) It is best to down-sample your video in FRAPS to 1280x720 at 30 fps before you bring it into Premiere Elements

4) Output the video from FRAPS using the Huffyuv codec

5) Edit it in a Premiere Elements project set up for Flip Mino HD 30 (although, in a pinch, it may also work in a project set up for AVCHD Lite 1280x720p)

What should I do if my FireWire connection isn't recognized in Windows 7?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 16:47:17 GMT

Bill Hunt offers this solution:

Many users have experienced issues with FireWire devices not working with Win7-64. Often, those same devices worked with their previous OS, but not now. The cameras are not being recognized, or their other FW devices are just not being seen.

This appears to be related to the FW driver that Win7-64 installs by default, at least in most cases.

The "fix" is to go to Device Management, and locate the driver used for FireWire. One would replace that default driver with the one with the word "Legacy" in its name. Fairly simple to do, and it fixes FW issues for most users.

Click Windows Start orb; type "device manager" into the Search box and select Device Manager (or launch Device Manager anyway you like)
Swivel open the "IEEE 1394 Bus host controllers" item
Right-click on your listed 1394 controller; select "Update Driver Software"
Click the "Browse my computer for driver software" button, followed by the "Let me pick from a list" button
Select the option that has "(Legacy)" at the end of the name; click Next and let the driver be installed
Close out of dialogs and retry capture

How can I correct frame rate issues in Premiere Elements 9?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 13:23:33 GMT

This Adobe Knowledge Base article includes a replacment .dll that will correct a frame rate issue in version 9.

http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/887/cpsid_88760.html

Premiere Elements Basic Training

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 13:38:38 GMT

If you'd like an overview of the basics of Premiere Elements -- from creating a project through building a timeline, adding effects and titles and outputting your video -- I've created an 8-part tutorial series for Premiere Elements support site Muvipix.com.

It's a great way to introduce yourself to the interface, as well as to introduce you to our training materials and my Muvipix.com guide books for Premiere Elements and Photoshop Elements.

You can watch the series here. Hope you'll check them out!

What resolution should my photos be in Premiere Elements?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Tue, 12 May 2009 16:52:46 GMT

Photos make great source files for a Premiere Elements project, but you’ll find the highest quality results and the best performance from the program if the sizes of your photos are properly optimized before you bring them into your project. We urge you to make sure that any photo you use (especially if you use several in a slideshow) has been resized to no larger than 1000x750 pixels before you bring it into your Premiere Elements project to ensure the best quality and optimal program performance. (Photos taken directly from digital cameras can be 20 to 25 times that size!)

At first this may seem to go contrary to common wisdom. Traditionally, the higher the resolution of your photo, the better the quality of the output. But remember that Premiere Elements is a video editing program, and video is a relatively low resolution medium (essentially the equivalent of 640x480 pixels). And, to a point, reducing the resolution of a photo or graphic to be used in a video actually improves the quality of the video output. (1000x750 pixels seems to be that point)

The reason for this has to do with a process called downsampling, the system a video program uses to bring high-resolution photos down to video size. Premiere Elements does a fair job of this – but, as any pro knows, nothing that happens automatically will be as clean or as efficient as what you do manually. “Down-rezzing” is definitely one of these things.

There’s also a more pressing reason for downsampling your photos yourself. The process of “down-rezzing”, like the process of assimilating non-DV-AVI files into a video project, is a very intensive process. So intensive, in fact, that it’s the single biggest reason Premiere Elements fails, particularly during the disc burning process.

It takes a lot longer for the program to down-rez a 4000x3000 pixel photo than it does a 1000x750 pixel photo. Many, many times longer. And would you rather wait an hour or two for the program to transcode your DVD or 10 hours for a process that might end up with the program choking and dying anyway?

Photoshop Elements, by the way, has a very nice batch resizing feature that can resize a whole folder full of photos in just a few clicks. You’ll find it under the program’s File drop-menu, listed as Process Multiple Files.

For high-definition video, you can increase the size of the photos to 2000x1500 -- although you should be aware that this will require much more processing time and computer power than standard definition video.

What are the system requirements for version 7?

forums_noreply@adobe.com — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 13:53:24 GMT

The system requirements for version 7 are essentially the same as for previous versions of this software, with a few exceptions:

Vista typically requires more RAM (We recommend a 2 gig minimum)
HDV editing and, especially, AVCHD editing requires more horesepower overall than standard DV editing

Here are Adobe's suggested minimums. As a general rule, it's best to take the minimum requirements offered by the manufacturer and double them.

Intel Pentium 4 or Celeron® 1.7GHz (or compatible) processor; Pentium 4 3.0 GHz processor required for HD or Blu-ray
Microsoft Windows XP with Service Pack 2 or Windows Vista
For Windows XP: 512MB of RAM (1GB required for HD or Blu-ray)
For Windows Vista: 1GB of RAM (2GB required for HD or Blu-ray)
4.5GB of available hard-disk space for product installation (significant additional space is required for project files, video and scratch disk space)
Color monitor with 16-bit color video card
1,024x768 monitor resolution at 96dpi or less
Microsoft DirectX 9 or 10 compatible sound and display driver
DVD-ROM drive (compatible DVD burner required to burn DVDs; compatible Blu-ray burner required to burn Blu-ray Discs)
DV/i.LINK/FireWire/IEEE 1394 interface to connect a Digital 8 or DV camcorder, or a USB2 interface to connect a DV-via-USB-compatible DV camcorder (other video devices supported via the Media Downloader)

Import/export of some formats including DVD, Blu-ray, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, H.264, and Dolby Digital Stereo may require activation via an Internet connection. Activation is fast, easy, and free. Import/export of 3GP, 3GP2, and MPEG-4 requires QuickTime software.

Our recommended minimums for Windows XP:
Pentium 4 running at 3+ ghz or Athlon64 3200
2 gigabytes of RAM for XP
64 mb video card, ideally nVidia or ATI technology
100 gigabyte hard drive (This allows plenty of room for captured footage and scratch disk space)
An ASIO (Audio Stream Input/Output) supported sound card
DVD burner (DVD-R, DVD+R or DVD+/-R standalone player compatibility is now virtually the same for all formats) or BluRay burner
19 monitor set to 1280x1024 display
IEEE-1394/FireWire/iLink, cable and MiniDV or Digital8 camcorder or digitizing device (e.g., the ADS Pyro AV Link) capable of capturing DV-AVI files

For Windows Vista (running at least SP1), we recommennd these additional minimums:
3-4 gigabytes of RAM
A dual-core processor running at at least 2 ghz

Even better (or our recommended for Hi-Def Video editing)
Core Duo 2.0 ghz or Athlon64 Dual Core 4200
4 gigabytes of RAM
128 mb video card, ideally nVidia or ATI technology
Second hard drive, dedicated to video files, 500 gigabytes are larger
DVD burner (Dual-layer models can burn 4.7 or 8.5 gig disks) or BluRay burner
22" widescreen monitor or dual 19 monitors
IEEE-1394/FireWire/iLink, cable and MiniDV or HDV camcorder or DV bridge capture device (e.g., the ADS Pyro AV Link) capable of capturing DV-AVI files

For AVCHD editing, we recommend a quad core processor and 4 gigabytes of RAM.