Add Media choices for the Premiere Elements* project are many, and there can be more than one way to access an Add Media choice. A comprehensive overview of the situation can be found in the Adobe document titled "Adobe Premiere Elements Help/Add Media". The current blog post will focus on a review of Premiere Elements 14/14.1 Add Media/Files and Folders choice which works for the media from internal or external hard drive. Choice of Add Media/Files and Folders/ for access to DVD and removable media (USB Flash Drive) is blocked by a use Video Importer or Image Importer choice instead message.
ISSUE
Forum help can be found with different suggestions for where to find and the best or preferred way to add media from files and folders on the internal and external hard drive.
REVIEW
EXPERT WORKSPACE
Classical Way
Click on Add Media (toward top left of workspace) OR Add Media Panel in starting monitor view (See Figure 1)
in order to get the drop down menu which includes
Files and Folders which is clicked on to open to Add Media Dialog
And, in Add Media Dialog that opens, browse to/select/Open selected source media
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| Figure 1. Premiere Elements 14/14.1 Classical Way Add Media/Choices. Expert Workspace View. |
Alternative Ways To Get To The Add Media Dialog To Add Source Media From Hard Drive
- File Menu/Add Media from/ and, drop down list which includes Files and Folders which is clicked on to open the Add Media Dialog.
- Right click empty space in opened Project Assets to get that drop down list which includes Files and Folders which is clicked on to open the Add Media Dialog.
- Double click empty space in opened Project Assets to open directly to the Add Media Dialog.
The Drag and Drop method for adding source media from the internal and external hard drive into the project is also possible. The Drag and Drop is not associated with a Add Media Dialog as seen in the above ways. With the Windows cascaded, dragging and dropping the file from the hard drive into the Timeline track results is a quick flash on and off pop up labelled Add Media before the file appears in the Timeline track at the position determined by the position of Timeline Indicator. If the file is dragged into the monitor instead of the Timeline, a drop down menu appears with choices of what is to be done with the file when it gets to the Timeline at the position determined by the position of the Timeline Indicator. The choices are
- Insert after the Scene
- Split and Insert
- Place on Top
- Picture in Picture**
- Place on Top and Apply Videomerge
- Replace Clip
QUICK WORKSPACE
Classical Way
The CLASSICAL WAY described for Expert workspace is the same in the Quick workspace.
Alternative Ways To Get To The Add Media Dialog To Add Source Media From Hard Drive
- File Menu/Add Media from/ and, drop down list which includes Files and Folders which is clicked on to open the Add Media Dialog......Same Quick and Expert workspaces.
- Quick workspace does not have Project Assets feature, so ways using Project Assets are not applicable to Quick workspace.
- If a Filmstrip empty "Drop Files Here" space is double clicked, Add Media (toward top left of workspace) opens to give the drop down menu which includes Files and Folders which is clicked on to open to Add Media Dialog. And, in Add Media Dialog that opens, browse to/select/Open selected source media
Drag and drop opportunities for adding source media from the internal and external hard drive into the project's Quick workspace are essentially the same as they are in the project's Expert workspace.
COMMENTARY
My preference is for the Expert workspace, Classical Method...Add Media (toward top left of Expert workspace)/Files and Folders from drop down list/Project Assets choice for adding media from the internal or external hard drive into the project Timeline. Compartmentalizing Add Media choices at that location provides for a smoother workflow for me.
For those Expert workspace users who are focused on minimum number of clicks to get to the Add Media dialog for obtaining project media from the internal or external hard drive, the Project Assets way (double click of empty space in Project Assets) to open to Add Media dialog) would appear to offer the fastest route. But, doing the actual click count did not show a significant advantage. This matter is not a consideration in the Quick workspace since Project Assets is an Expert workspace only feature.
Best advice...check out the information, and then go with what works best for you.
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* Study done with Premiere Elements 14/14.1 on Windows 7 Professional SP1 64 bit (confirmed on Windows 10 Home 64 bit). Principles apply also to Premiere Elements 11, 12/12.1, and 13/13.1.
** Offers another route to Picture in Picture (PiPs) besides fx Effects/Video/Presets/PiPs or just scaling the Video 2 image which is above the Video 1 image. The Picture in Picture option from the Drop and Drag Method gives a default Scale = 40% Picture in Picture. Since fx Effects/Video/Presets/PiPs offers editable presets with default 25 and 40% scaled stationary and motion PiPs, good idea to check them out first. See HERE and HERE and HERE.
ATR
