Hello, once more! Last class I just completed another, shorter project involving editing in Adobe Premier Pro. Unlike the last two projects, I did not record any footage alongside my peers, instead using a collection of raw footage and editing it into my own interview video. Today, I will be going in-depth on the learning and editing processes that made this project possible, alongside a few challenges I had throughout!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The overall process of learning how to use Premier Pro was simple, as the class was provided with a set of 13 video tutorials that were and easily digestible, giving in-depth explanations on the software's most important features. Some of these tutorials included how to import media and how to make edits within the timeline, the central workspace in which clips of video and audio can be arranged and edited into the final product. During the introduction video, I mistakenly thought I had to follow what the video was showing, which already had media imported and work done in the timeline before the respective videos which explained these processes. Using skills from other software
After watching all the video tutorials, I was tasked to compile two of the interviews included in the raw footage provided (which was also used in the videos) into a 45 second clip. This process was mostly easy for me. For each interview I included, I would select their file from the project window, where all the files are imported, cut out some few second clips inside the source window, and move them into the timeline, where all the separate clips are stitched together. In between these clips there would be an apparent jump in the video. To hide these, I would include B-roll. B-roll is footage which supports the main footage (A-roll), which usually adds context to what is being said and doubles as a way to hide hard cuts in the A-roll. Playing both sets of footage with each other would lead to both associated audio also playing at once, which I figured out can be muted with an "M" icon in the timeline.
Despite my mostly sound experience with working on my video, one of my greater challenges came when transitioning from the first interview to the second. When it came time to adding the second interview, I planned to use a longer clip that serves as B-roll for the first interview and would play for about a second after it ended, serving as a bridge between both. That on its own was not hard to implement, but it sounded empty after the first interview ended and it was just the B-roll playing in silence, so I had to find a way to have the audio from the B-roll slowly fade in before the second interview began. There was no way to alternate between muting/unmuting in a single audio channel, so I moved the audio of the bridge footage into its own section. I still wanted the footage to be muted as it was playing during the first interview, and then I noticed two little square icons next to it within the timeline. Dragging the left icon to the right created the exact effect I wanted, allowing for the audio to slowly rise as the footage was playing.
Two of my biggest takeaways from this project is the use of B-roll and its importance in media, especially interviews, documentaries, and similar genres. Additionally, I feel like figuring out how to fade audio in and out within the timeline opens many opportunities to utilize this feature in different ways in potential future projects made/edited in Premier.
I think what I have learned in Premier Pro would be the most beneficial to me if I were to work on the movie opening as my project. This way, I will have already known how to work with some of the software's bigger features and would not have to spend my time learning how to do so nor figuring out how to find smaller features like I did to create the bridge between the two interviews in my video.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here is the final product of my video:
I feel like it turned out great, considering it was my first time working in Premier.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
That is all I have for now, thanks for reading!
