Adobe Premiere Pro CS5: Learn by Video [DVD-ROM]

I have been editing video on the computer all the way back to my days with an Amiga computer. I have used the Video Toaster, Sony's Vegas, Edius, and most recently Final Cut Pro 7 for my NLE. Until the release of Premiere Pro CS5 with the new Mercury Playback Engine, I had never done much more than casually edit a few short pieces in Premiere Pro. PP CS5 has changed all of that and recently i have been involved in a multi-camera edit of a concert and grew frustrated with trying to edit that project in FCP. I decided to give PP CS5 a chance and I needed a crash course in getting up to speed editing in PP CS5. I discovered this video tutorial course on Amazon and decided to give it a try. I have found the video tutorial to be absolutely excellent.

Preparing and delivering a solid, informative video tutorial series that works for both people unfamiliar with NLE editing tools as well as for those with expertise in other NLE systems is no small accomplishment, but that is exactly what video2brain and Maxim Jago and Jan Ozer have done. There are over 15 hours of high definition (720p) video tutorials in this series and not one second is wasted. The series begins with an excellent overview of PP and goes into some detail on how it works with the focus on what it can do. This is followed by a series of tutorials on setting up a PP project for editing and the basic procedures used in editing clips on the timeline. This material will be of great value to those unfamiliar with NLE of video on computers, and will be of equal value to those moving to PP from another NLE system. The remainder of the tutorial series covers virtually every aspect of editing in PP CS5 including what makes the new Mercury Playback Engine special, what is required to use the MPE, how to do multi-camera editing, use effects, create titles, work with audio and metadata, output video using Adobe's Media Encoder, etc. Of special note in the tutorials is a section on integrating PP with Photoshop and After Effects. Since the tight integration of Adobe's Production Premium package and PP is a strong positive feature of the program(s), it seems quite appropriate that the newcomer to PP be introduced in an organized fashion to the integration of PP with the other Adobe products.

The presentation of the two instructors is outstanding in that it is straightforward, beautifully organized while seemingly unscripted, and presented with a clear view to solving real world problems encountered in everyday editing. If you are looking for a tutorial that methodically goes through every button and menu option in the PP interface, thankfully this is not it. Instead, by organizing their material and approach with meticulous care, the instructors manage to cover virtually every control by illustrating its use in a real editing situation. To me this is the ultimate strength of this tutorial series and what sets it apart from many other video tutorials that i have purchased and used.

There are many convenience features in this tutorial package -- not the least of which is the full 720p presentation in sharp HD on my 30 in. monitor, the easy ability to switch in and out of full screen mode, to send the tutorial videos to my iPhone or iPad, the inclusion of lesson files and media on the DVD, etc. Each section also has a Quiz Yourself package of ten questions which is quite well done and provides an excellent means of testing what you have learned in that chapter. My only disappointment with the Quiz Yourself section is that when you miss a question there is no right answer supplied or even any indication of what was wrong in your supplied answer. You simply have to go back and take the test again after reviewing the material a second time.

In summary, Learn by Video: Adobe Premiere Pro CS5 in my opinion sets new standards for video training and is worth twice its cost! If you want to learn PP CS5 whether you are an experienced or inexperienced video editor, this is the tutorial series for you.

Tom

I started using Premiere Pro when CS5 came out - I already had a fair but far from expert working knowledge of Final Cut Pro - but I didn't really feel like I had mastered all of the tools. Sure, I knew the basic cutting tools, and could apply basic effects and such - but manipulating transitions and effects, introducing animation on the titles, integrating the various creative suite tools, all of that I was a bit shaky on. After working through these tutorials I'm not shaky anymore. It's already made a huge difference in how confident I feel editing with Premiere Pro, and how quickly I can work on projects. (One thing to note is that unlike with Final Cut Pro - where there are literally dozens of learning guides - there are very few guides for learning Premiere Pro. There is this one, that is probably best for visual learners - and there's the Premiere Pro CS5 Classroom in a Book. Both are from Adobe Press - and they offer both kinds of guides for most of the programs in the Adobe Creative Suite. I like both approaches - but the Learn by Video series may be a bit more convenient. The other alternative is to sign up for Lynda training - google it if you don't know it - and Chad Perkins has a set of tutorials that appears to cover much of the same material as this one, with a few additional bits. I really liked his After Effects books, so that might be another good way to go.)

I've worked through a few of the Adobe CS5 Learn by Video programs (for Flash and Illustrator and After Effects), and what I like about them is that they go through a lot of information very quickly. Each chapter is broken down into quick 5-10 minute modules. The nice thing about that is I can work through a few of them each day in my "down time" - time I might otherwise waste. Over the course of a few weeks I can get through the whole thing - and since I'm also working on a few editing projects at the same time I can put things into practice.

The focus here is on showing the range of tools available in Premiere Pro and in showing how best to integrate those tools with the tools available in other Adobe Creative Suite programs such as Photoshop, After Effects, Soundbooth and Encore. This isn't really the place to learn about more than the basics of how to edit for clarity (I like Grammar of the Edit) or how to fix problematic footage or apply various looks to it. This is the place to get up to speed with what Premiere Pro can do, and how to use it in conjunction with other Adobe programs.

One thing about this particular Learn by Video program is that while they include all of the files they use to demonstrate the various tools and skills required for Premiere Pro work, they don't really integrate building those skills into the lessons. With the Adobe Illustrator CS5: Learn by Video package there was a very nice balance between instruction and hands-on projects, where the authors directed the user to try things at various points and then come back to hear more. Here, by contrast, the project files exist, but there's nothing in the instruction to integrate the practical hands-on side with the introductions. What you get here more than a hands-on guide is a fairly thorough overview of all of the different processes and features of Premiere Pro. Then it's up to you to put it into practice. For me this actually worked quite well - since I already was familiar with the basics and already had been cutting, and had a few projects of my own to work on and apply the various lessons. This would be ideal for someone like me who's got a handle on the basic ideas of non-linear editing, but just wants to get familiar with what Premiere Pro has to offer. I think, though, that someone totally new to editing might benefit from a more hands-on introduction.

I was also a bit surprised by the choice of the authors to focus almost exclusively on selecting options through the menus. I can see that it did help to streamline the instruction - and it meant that there was less of a need for repetition. I do think it's important to show where to find each option in the various menus - but I also like tutorials that emphasize learning the keyboard shortcuts, and they didn't do much to help accelerate that process for me.

Still, each of the lessons were quite clear and to the point. I really liked the simplicity of the lessons on color correction and the use of scopes - that had been an area where I felt very little confidence, and after just a few pointers in a couple lessons I can see the difference in my work. The authors did a good job balancing the explanation of how the tools work with the illustration of those tools in action. I learned a lot from following along with them through each of the lessons, and I am happy that I picked this up and worked through it.

I use Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop all the time, but I have yet to get my head around Premier. This video and accompanying book did the trick! After working through all the tutorials I can now confidently use Premier Pro like a Pro. I am very pleased I bought this product :-)

Jacquie x