One approach to cinematic looks for the Premiere Elements 14/14.1 project is using fx Effects (Hollywood Looks) which was presented in the January 2016 blog "PE 14/14.1: Hollywood Look Effects". See HERE. Another approach to "cinematic look" is by way of the use a black band at the top and bottom of the view (widescreen letterboxing). Two of the possible ways to achieve this Premiere Elements cinematic "widescreen letterboxing" look for the project are to be described.
ISSUE
How to achieve this Premiere Elements cinematic "widescreen letterboxing" look for the project?
SOLUTION
Cinematic "widescreen letterboxing" looks were achieved by
- creating a black band at the top and bottom of the frame using Black Video and Scale property with Uniform Scale option disabled
- creating a Premiere Elements 1920 x 822 p29.97 project with a user 1920 x 822 p29.97 created project preset, followed by a 1920 x 822 p29.97 export.
HOW TO*
Black Video/Scaling
Step 1
Premiere Elements 14/14.1 project preset
NTSC
DSLR
1080p
DSLR 1080p30@29.97
Step 2
Expert Workspace
Import 1080p source media
Add Media
Files and Folders
Project Assets
and from Project Assets drag 1080p source media to Timeline Video Track 1.
Step 3
Project Assets
Panel Options
New Item
Black Video
- Select Black Video file which was automatically placed on Timeline at the position of the Timeline Indicator.
- Move the Black Video file so that it is on Video Track 2 directly above the source video on Video Track 1.
- Extend the duration of the Black Video file so that it matches the duration of the source video file.
- Select the Black Video file. Go to Applied Effects/Applied Effects Palette/Motion Panel expanded, and remove the check mark next to Uniform Scale so that the Scale width and height can be adjusted separately.
With the Black Video file selected on Video Track 2, click on the monitor to bring up the file's bounding box. Click on the bottom middle handle of the bounding box and drag upward to create a black band at the top of the frame.
Step 5
Duplicate the Black Video file on Video Track 2 ( Select Black Video, then Edit Menu/Copy, followed by Edit Menu/Paste at position of Timeline Indicator), and move the duplicate to Video Track 3 directly above the Black Video file on Video Track 2. Select the Black Video on Video Track 3 to bring up the bounding back for the black band at the top of the frame. Click/drag that Video Track 3 black band to the bottom of the frame. If source video re-positioning is necessary, select source on Video Track 1, click/drag image in monitor.
Tip. If problem with selecting content wanted, right click the monitor, select Select, and the click on the wanted file name in the pop up the appears.
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| Figure 1. Premiere Elements 14/14.1 Widescreen Letterboxing Using Black Video And Scaling With Uniform Scale Disabled. |
1920 x 822 p29.97 User Project Preset
Step 1
Create a 1920 x 822 p29.97 project preset as described HERE.
Step 2
In Expert workspace, manually set the project preset to the new 1920 x 822 p29.97 project preset using the following steps:
- Open the project to the Expert workspace, and go to File Menu/New Project and Change Settings.
- In Change Settings, set the project preset to the newly created 1920 x 822 p29.97 project preset. OK out of there.
- In the New Project dialog that opens, rename the project and make sure to have a check mark next to "Force Selected Project Setting on This Project". OK out of there.
- Back in the Expert workspace, import your source media using Add Media/Files and Folders/Project Assets, and from there drag the file to the Timeline.
Make sure that video fills the 1920 x 822 space in the Edit area monitor.
Step 4
For export of the 1920 x 822 p29.97 Timeline content, use
Export & Share
Devices
Custom and its Advanced Settings to obtain the 1920 x 822 p29.97 H.264.mp4 file
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* Work was done on Windows 7 Professional SP1 64 bit and confirmed with Windows 10 Home 64 bit. Principles apply to Premiere Elements versions other than just Premiere Elements 14/14.1.
ATR
