Hi All---this might seem like an overly generic or vague question, but bear with me. I'm trying to find some kind of training or coaching for my editors that can help them become FASTER editors in Premiere Pro. They're all experienced editors and have a thorough understanding of all basic editing techniques...but...I want them to be faster.

This isn't a case of a manager with unrealistic expectations (or a manager who doesn't understand editing). I've edited plenty of video myself on NLE's...and also worked with some world-class editors who were VERY fast. So I know from experience that being fast isn't just a matter of editing all day, every day (which my editors do not do). It's also a matter of learning/devising strategies and tactics for knowing and using the fastest techniques.

I'm sure there are plenty of workflows and techniques in Premiere Pro that speed up the editing process---whether it's doing something with the mouse that's much faster with the keyboard...or organizing bins/folders a certain way...to the most efficient way to navigate long timelines and efficient use of markers, etc.

I've found that a lot of training for NLE's focuses on beginners and/or covering feature sets...whereas I'm looking for training that requires good basic knowledge of Premiere...and instead, focuses on doing everything FASTER.

Am I looking for something that doesn't exist? I'm hoping it does!

Thanks,
Scott

I only believe speed can be increased noticeably if your workflow and projects all are similar. If you watch the editors for daily broadcast TV, they can be fast because the format is always the same, so templates can be used - so if their work is always fixed time clips - say 30 secs, or a minute, then you can have the in graphic, the out graphic, repeatable audio tracks etc already in place and all you have ti do is drop in the new audio and video and trim. This appears faster, and probably is because any clever or complex elements will have already been done and rendered. Starting from scratch each time just increases the time, and even if you can get them to be physically faster, it still takes time to preview the clips, and then decide which ones to use.

I've found that a lot of training for NLE's focuses on beginners and/or covering feature sets...whereas I'm looking for training that requires good basic knowledge of Premiere...and instead, focuses on doing everything FASTER.

Am I looking for something that doesn't exist? I'm hoping it does!

I've been looking for something like this myself, for all the Adobe products. Haven't found anything like it yet. What makes this odd to me is that these kinds of classes abound for still photography using Photoshop. So why don't they exist for video and PPro?

probably because there's so many different styles / type of program formats.

as above, in my news days it was simply cut to cut with perhaps a lower third all compressed into anything between 20 to 60 sec.

my doco work can have many hours of material that requires logging, structure, etc.,

weddings are another ball game.

you get faster automatically, knowing your nle and program requirements, especially if they're repetitive....

I think it all depends on the project and its "redundancy", how often your editors create projects of that nature and its inherit level of creativity. Other things come into play, such as the shooting style and whether the operator used the "shoot to edit" mentality or whether they just grabbed everything. In my experience, the biggest aid in work flow is proper communication (assuming the editor and camera operator are not one in the same). I don't know what your average project consists of though.

Regarding speeding up the work flow in premiere, what I practice is what I thought most would assume are the basic rules of editing. Import your footage, as it's importing create a project, create a sequence with the proper settings for the camera (this use to be a BIG hinderance to me in my younger days, without it you'll be rendering after every edit). Now for a long project with multiple scenes, I'd next bring the footage into premiere and spend a moment to organize it into bins reflecting their appropriate scene. Create the cuts before making any adjustments or adding effects and this will again keep you from rendering. Final step is to add titles, effects, match audio levels if need-be and render once to see a final product at the desired frame rate. I'm not sure if you consider exporting a part of the video process, but if you do, ensure "use previews" is checked...it'll use the rendering you did in the timeline to help speed up the encoding process.

Like I said, I'm sure all of that is basic stuff, but I figure it's better to offer up what I know for the table.

Good luck!

I think the most obvious characteristic of fast editing is that it is keyboard driven rather than mouse driven.
So, you can learn the hot keys and use them until they become second nature, as well as develop a detailed knowledge of your NLE software and its capabilities.
But, as was mentioned above, unless you are doing the same "show" repeatedly, you are likely going to be spending a lot more time thinking creatively, making critical decisions, shaping and reviewing what you are doing, etc., than you will be actually trimming clips and normalizing track volumes.

I'll add a me too regarding using the keyboard. I have a ShuttlePro V2 but still find myself using the keyboard without thinking about it.

All good replies---thanks. And I agree that much of being fast depends on routine and editing the same types of productions repeatedly.

But the kind of advice you offered, Josh Rudy, is exactly what I'm talking about. You called it basic knowledge...but I don't think it is. For example, some of the things you suggested...

• set up your sequence WHILE importing footage (not after importing it)
• making sure sequence settings match your camera
• ensure "Use previews" is checked during encoding

...these are the kinds of important time-savers that many of my editors don't know---because (in my experience) these are the kinds of things that usually are NOT in the manual...and that editors discover through trial-and-error (or by surfing the web!).

I have no doubt that there are are countless other similar time-savers---and these are what I want my editors to learn.

I totally agree keyboard shortcuts can speed up certain operations---so those are important to learn.

In NLE's like Premiere, there is typically always more than one way to do any given operation---and I'd be willing to bet one of those multiple ways is the fastest (and that it's NOT always a case of personal preference/ability).

Scott

I think this video tutorial series might be helpful: After Effects & Premiere Pro Performance Workshop - Course (http://www.video2brain.com/en/courses/after-effects-premiere-pro-performance-workshop)

I think this video tutorial series might be helpful: After Effects & Premiere Pro Performance Workshop - Course (http://www.video2brain.com/en/courses/after-effects-premiere-pro-performance-workshop)

Interesting, but not what I'm looking for. I'm interested in learning good solid efficient workflows for the software -- not hardware tuning.

I'm looking for something like this except for the Production Premium suite and not just Photoshop.

Editing Faster You Way with Adobe Premiere Pro CS6 | Adobe at NAB 2012 | Adobe TV (http://tv.adobe.com/watch/adobe-at-nab-2012/editing-faster-you-way-with-adobe-premiere-pro-cs6/)

Discovering the Full Potential of CS6 Production*Premium | Creative Suite 6 Roadshow Videos-on-Demand | Adobe TV (http://tv.adobe.com/watch/creative-suite-6-roadshow-videos-on-demand/discovering-the-full-potential-of-cs6-productionpremium/)

Getting the Best out of Adobe Premiere Pro CS6 | Creative Suite 6 Roadshow Videos-on-Demand | Adobe TV (http://tv.adobe.com/watch/creative-suite-6-roadshow-videos-on-demand/getting-the-best-out-of-adobe-premiere-pro-cs6/)

You might benefit from these 3 videos.....I did

OK then.

There's this video tutorial series from Maxim Jago and video2brain: Adobe Premiere Pro CS6: Learn by Video - Course (http://www.video2brain.com/en/premiere-pro-learn-by-video)

Edit your way faster with Premiere Pro CS6 with Al Mooney: “Edit your way faster with Premiere Pro CS6″ with Al Mooney, seminar recording and notes Premiere Pro work area (http://blogs.adobe.com/premiereprotraining/2012/05/edit-your-way-faster-with-premiere-pro-cs6-with-al-mooney-seminar-recording-and-notes.html)

This is the best book for advanced techniques:
Amazon.com: Customer Reviews: An Editor's Guide to Adobe Premiere Pro (2nd Edition)

I do a lot of multi-cam editing in Premiere and really just got a lot faster from doing several of these multi-cam projects a month. I can now slap down 4 tracks of viodeo plus a separate audio track, sych 'em up and get going pretty quickly.

Aside from that I am continually learning how to work it with Audition, Encore, etc so I can send files back and forth, quickly and then output to Encore without first having to render, etc. If you don't have Premiere as part of the Production Premium package, get it.

Then you might want to look at training videos by classondemand.com. They have training videos for several versions:CS4, CS5.5, etc....personally I found them helpful in learning how to work faster by more fully utilizing the integration features of the suite: After Effects, Encore, etc. Found out about them at NAB in 2010. I found it very helpful, as well as the Adobe Classroom In A Book on Production Premium.

There is also an Adobe book out on Premiere Pro Studio Techniques that may ncover more advanced editing topics, though I don't own it (yet) so cannot comment on it more fully.

I am always trying to get my workflow a little faster, more efficient, as I own my company, and hate wasting a lot of time screwin' around trying to figure things out on my own.

I think I'm the king of redundancy! HaHa!

I'm in the first quarter of a project that will total two-hundred 4-5 minute videos. We have done the first fifty!
Speed was obtained by pre-building the open and close, and also setting up all the on-screen text that accompanies each program including the title. It took me about a day to do all the prep work, then two days of shooting, and two days to edit and export. Starting in to the next fifty in a week!
All the vids are shot on white BG which was the hardest part of the whole project. Getting pure white but maintaining good exposure on the actors was a trick! Saved a TON of time since no correction needed to be done in post.

I agree with everyone's thoughts that keyboard shortcuts are the secret to fast editing. Nice thing is they are totally customizable. I was using FCP7 until a month ago when I decided to switch. Mainly for this huge project. PP CS6 is a MUCH better program!
Speed is built with time spent hands-on.