Video Editing · Session 1
Introduction to Adobe Premiere Pro
A tour of the Premiere Pro 2026 workspace, setting up a new project correctly, and importing footage into organised bins.
Start here: the shortcut list
Premiere Pro has hundreds of keyboard shortcuts, and you are not expected to memorise them. You are expected to know where the list is.
Press Ctrl + Alt + K — on a Mac, Cmd + Option + K — to open Keyboard Shortcuts. You get a picture of the keyboard with every assigned key highlighted, a search box, and the ability to reassign anything to a key you prefer. The same window is under Edit > Keyboard Shortcuts.
Do this in the first five minutes of the lesson. Every time you meet a new tool this semester, look it up there and see what key it already sits on — it is faster than asking, and it is how professional editors get quick.
First look: the Home screen
This is what opens when you launch Premiere Pro 2026 — before any project exists. Nothing here is editing yet; it is the front door.
New Project and Open Project are not the same thing, and
mixing them up is the most common first-day mistake. New Project makes a new
.prproj file. Open Project reopens one you already made. If you make a new project
every lesson instead of reopening last week's, you will have ten half-finished projects and no
finished one.
Workspaces: one program, many layouts
Before we name a single panel, understand this: the arrangement of panels you see is a choice, not the program. Adobe ships a long list of ready-made arrangements, each one built for a different job.
A few worth knowing by name:
- Starter — the simplified default. This is what we use today.
- Editing — the classic layout: Source and Program side by side. Our main workspace from Session 2.
- Vertical — a 9:16 portrait frame, for TikTok and Reels.
- Color — puts Lumetri Color and the scopes centre stage (Sessions 8 and 9).
- Effects — the Effects browser and Effect Controls front and centre (Sessions 6, 7, 10).
- Audio — the mixer and Essential Sound (Session 13).
- Captions and Graphics — text and subtitles (Session 4).
- Learning — adds Adobe's own built-in tutorials panel.
- All Panels — every panel at once. Overwhelming, but useful when you are hunting for one you cannot find.
Switching workspace changes nothing about your edit. It only moves furniture. Try Color and Audio at the end of the lesson and notice what appears and disappears.
The workspace, panel by panel
Here is the Starter workspace with a project open and nothing imported yet. Work through each region — this is the vocabulary for the rest of the semester.
The Starter workspace, panel by panel
Click a panel on the screenshot — or a name in the row underneath — to zoom into it.
Pick a panel above. Every panel here does one job — the whole of editing is moving material from one of these into another.
The workflow bar
- Premiere 2026 splits the whole job into three stages, and these three words at the top are how you move between them.
- Import — bring footage in. Edit — the workspace you see here, where you actually cut. Export — turn the finished timeline into a video file.
- The house icon on the left takes you back to the Home screen without closing the project.
Workspace switcher (STARTER)
- The word here is the name of the layout you are currently using — this screenshot is in Starter.
- Click the small panel icon beside it to open the list of every workspace, or use Window > Workspaces.
- Same program, same project, different arrangement of panels. Changing it never changes your edit.
Panel 1 — Project panel
- Everything you import lives here. If a clip is not in this panel, you cannot put it on the timeline.
- The big Import media button in the middle is the fastest way in on an empty project.
- You organise this panel with bins — bins are folders. A bin holds clips; a sequence is a separate thing: it is the edit itself, the arrangement of clips on the timeline.
- The row of small icons along the bottom switches how the panel is drawn (List, Icon, Freeform) and creates new bins and new items.
Panel 2 — Program Monitor
- This shows your timeline — the edit as it currently stands. Press Space and this is what plays.
- The controls underneath are play, pause, step one frame back, step one frame forward, and jump to the start or the end.
- The Source Monitor is the other half of this pair: it shows one single clip before you add it. In the Starter layout it is not on screen yet — double-click a clip in the Project panel and it opens as its own tab here. In the Editing and Vertical layouts it is already sitting there waiting.
- Rule of thumb: Source = one clip. Program = the whole edit.
Panel 3 — Properties
- A 2026 panel. Select a clip in the timeline and its settings — scale, position, speed, the effects on it — appear here.
- With nothing selected it says "Select a clip in the timeline to view properties". That is normal on a fresh project.
- In older layouts this job belonged to Effect Controls. We will use both from Session 4 onwards.
Panel 4 — Timeline
- Where the editing actually happens. Time runs left to right.
- Video tracks stack upwards: V1, V2, V3. Whatever is on V2 covers what is on V1. Audio tracks stack downwards: A1, A2, A3 — these all play together, mixed.
- On an empty project it says "Drop media here to create a sequence" — dropping a clip here makes a sequence that matches that clip automatically.
- Zoom in and out with the scroll wheel, or the + and − keys. \ fits the whole sequence into the window.
Panel 5 — Tools
- The narrow strip of icons down the left of the timeline. Each one has a single-key shortcut.
- Selection (V) — the arrow. Click, drag, move clips. You will be on this tool 90% of the time.
- Razor (C) — cuts a clip in two where you click. We start using it in Session 2.
- Hand (H) slides the timeline view along; Zoom (Z) magnifies it; Type (T) adds text, which is Session 4.
- If you suddenly cannot drag a clip, you are almost certainly on the wrong tool. Press V.
Panel 6 — Audio Meters
- The thin bar graph on the far right, marked 0, −6, −12 down to −54 dB.
- It shows how loud the audio is as it plays. Green and yellow are fine. If the bars hit the top and turn red, the sound is clipping — it will be distorted in the exported file.
- Aim to keep speech peaking around −6 dB. We tune this properly in Session 13.
Starter workspace, empty project. Click anywhere in the image to zoom back out.
When you mess the layout up
You will. Panels get dragged into each other, something ends up as a tiny sliver, and suddenly nothing is where it was. There is no need to restart the program.
Reset to Saved Layout restores the workspace. If you have arranged something you actually like, Save as New Workspace… keeps it under your own name, and it appears at the top of that list from then on.
Words you need today
- Workspace
- A saved arrangement of panels.
- Panel
- One window inside Premiere — Project, Timeline, Tools, and so on.
- Project (.prproj)
- Your working file. It holds the edit, not the video — it only points at the footage on disk.
- Sequence
- One edit: the clips arranged on a timeline. One project can hold several.
- Bin
- A folder inside the Project panel.
- Media Browser
- A file browser inside Premiere, for finding footage without leaving the program.
- Frame rate (fps)
- Frames shown per second — 24, 25, 30, 60. Your sequence should match your footage.
- Resolution
- The frame size in pixels. 1080p = 1920×1080. 4K = 3840×2160.
- Scratch disk
- Where Premiere parks previews, auto-saves and cache files.
- Source Monitor
- Preview of one single clip.
- Program Monitor
- Preview of the timeline — the edit.
- Export
- Turning the finished sequence into a real video file.
Interface, Project Setup & Media Import
Your task: Set up a new Premiere Pro project with the correct sequence settings, import the sample footage, organise it into bins, and export a test file.
Step 1 — Create a new project
- Launch Premiere Pro 2026 — choose New Project, not Open Project
- Name the project:
YourName_Session1_Practice - Set the Location to a dedicated class folder — not the bare Desktop
- Leave Template as None
- Click Create
About "Skip import mode"
- Ticked — you land straight in the editing workspace, and import afterwards. This is what we do in class.
- Unticked — Premiere opens its Import screen first and asks you to pick footage before the project exists.
Step 2 — Sequence settings
- Go to File > New > Sequence (Ctrl + N)
- Choose a preset that matches the sample footage — AVCHD > 1080p > AVCHD 1080p25
- Frame rate must match the footage, or you'll get black frames or choppy playback
- Resolution: 1920×1080 (Full HD) is the standard for this course
The shortcut: drag a clip onto an empty timeline and Premiere builds a sequence that matches that clip exactly. That is the safest option when you are unsure what your footage is.
Step 3 — Scratch disk and auto-save
- Edit > Preferences > Scratch Disks — set to the same class folder (this is where Premiere saves previews and auto-saves)
- Edit > Preferences > Auto Save — set to every 5 minutes
Common mistakes to avoid: saving the project on the Desktop with no folder structure, a wrong frame rate in the sequence, and not setting the scratch disk (slows the computer down).
Step 4 — Import media
Three ways in. Learn all three; use the third.
- Method A — File > Import > navigate to the folder
- Method B — Media Browser panel > locate footage > right-click > Import
- Method C — Ctrl + I (Mac: Cmd + I). Straight to the file picker, no menus. This is the one I use.
Import at least 5 clips from the sample footage below.
Step 5 — Organise into bins
- Right-click in an empty part of the Project Panel > New Bin
- Create three bins:
Footage,Audio,Graphics - Drag all imported clips into the correct bin
Five clips feel like nothing. The final advertisement project in Session 12 will have fifty. Build the habit now, while it costs you thirty seconds.
Step 6 — Try the three Project panel views
Bottom-left of the Project panel are three small icons. They change how the same clips are drawn — not what is in the bin.
Step 7 — Preview clips in the Source Monitor
- Double-click any clip in the Project Panel to open it in the Source Monitor
- Play, pause, and scrub through the clip
- Check clip properties: right-click > Properties (note the frame rate and resolution)
Step 8 — Drag one clip onto the timeline
- Drag a clip from the Project Panel to the V1 track on the timeline
- Press Space to play it in the Program Monitor
- Zoom in and out on the timeline using the scroll wheel or the + / − keys
- Watch the audio meters on the right while it plays
Step 9 — Export: format and preset
Last ten minutes. Click Export in the workflow bar at the top (Ctrl + M). You do not need a finished edit to practise this.
Format — what kind of file comes out
| Format | What it is | When you'd pick it |
|---|---|---|
| H.264 | The standard compressed video file — comes out as .mp4. Small, plays on everything. | Always, in this class. Homework, YouTube, phones. |
| AAC Audio | Audio only, compressed. | Pulling just the sound out of an edit. |
| AIFF | Audio only, uncompressed. Large. | Handing audio to someone to mix. |
| Animated GIF / GIF | A short looping image. No sound at all. | A 3-second reaction loop. Never a whole video. |
| AVI | An old Windows video container. | Rarely. Only if a teacher or machine demands it. |
| AVI (Uncompressed) | Every pixel stored raw. Enormous — gigabytes per minute. | Almost never. |
| Apple ProRes | High-quality "mezzanine" format used in film and TV. | Passing an edit to another editor without losing quality. |
| DNxHR / DNxHD | Avid's equivalent of ProRes. | Same reason, different studio. |
| DPX | Film-scan frames — one file per frame. | Visual effects pipelines. |
| BMP | A single uncompressed still image. | Grabbing one frame. PNG is usually better. |
| AS-10 / AS-11 | Broadcast delivery specifications used by TV stations. | Delivering to a broadcaster. |
Short version: H.264 for anything anyone is going to watch. Everything else in that list is a specialist answer to a problem you do not have yet.
Preset — the quality settings inside that format
- Match Source – Adaptive High Bitrate — keeps your sequence's resolution and frame rate and picks a good quality for you. Use this.
- Medium / Low Bitrate — same size picture, more compression. Smaller file, visibly worse. Use only if a file is too big to upload.
- High Quality 2160p 4K / 1080p HD / 720p HD / 480p SD Wide — force a specific frame size regardless of the sequence.
- Presets you save yourself show up under Recent at the top.
Read the Output column before you press Export
Bottom right of the Export screen, Premiere tells you exactly what it is about to make —
codec, resolution, frame rate, bitrate and estimated file size. In the screenshot above that
reads H.264 | 1920x1080 | 25 fps | Target 7.20 Mbps | 25 MB. Compare it against
the Source column on its left. If the numbers surprise you, fix the preset
before you wait for a render.
Set File Name and Location deliberately too — exporting to Downloads is how work gets lost.
Before you leave
Check all five. Call me over if any one of them is a no.
- Project named
YourName_Session1_Practiceand saved in the class folder - Auto-save set to 5 minutes
- At least 5 clips imported, sitting in the
Footagebin - One clip on V1, playing in the Program Monitor when you press Space
- You can name all six panels without looking at the screen
Homework
- Find and watch one YouTube video about the Premiere Pro 2026 interface — any language
- Write down 3 things you learned that were not covered in class today
- Bring it to the next lesson: we share these in the first 5 minutes of Session 2
Finished early in class? Import your clips onto the timeline in alphabetical order by clip name, then open the Color and Audio workspaces and write down what changed.
Next session: we stop dragging whole clips around and start cutting with precision — Mark-In and Mark-Out.
Footage used in this session
Raw clips from the Japan Vlog trip — used as the sample footage for the import exercise.
Download All FootageKeyboard shortcuts
Every shortcut in the program is listed in one place — open Edit > Keyboard Shortcuts to see the whole map, and to change any of them.
- Ctrl + Alt + K
- Open Keyboard Shortcuts — the full, searchable list of every shortcut (Mac: Cmd + Option + K)
- Ctrl + I
- Import media — the fastest of the three import methods
- Ctrl + N
- New sequence
- Ctrl + S
- Save the project — do this constantly
- V
- Selection tool
- C
- Razor tool (used from Session 2 onward)
- H / Z / T
- Hand tool / Zoom tool / Type tool
- Space
- Play/pause in the Program Monitor
- + / −
- Zoom in / out on the timeline
- \
- Fit the whole sequence into the timeline window
- Ctrl + M
- Export the finished sequence
Mac users: swap Ctrl for Cmd.