Specifications

23
A Digital Video Primer
Importing computer graphics
You can import or export many dierent types of video, audio, and image formats. Support for
input and output formats in Adobe digital video soware is extensive. If support for the format
you want is not built into Adobe Premiere Pro or Aer Eects, chances are a third-party plug-in
will provide it.
Capturing audio
Be sure your soware provides support for all the signicant audio formats. You should be able
to import separate digital audio clips from tracks in video les or from audio les stored on a
hard disk or other digital media such as a CD or DAT tape.
Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe Audition both provide excellent support for capturing audio.
For example, both applications can import and export the highest-quality 24-bit, 96 KHz audio
les, and support any ASIO-compliant audio card or device.
In Adobe Audition, you’ll nd support for 20 dierent input audio le formats, as well as support
for recording from all the standard input devices and cards you would expect. e Preferences
dialog box gives you all the controls you need to work with your favorite input and output audio
hardware. Record up to 32 dierent sources at once, and specify dierent output devices for dif-
ferent tracks or buses in your session. Also, Adobe Audition makes extracting audio from a CD,
CD ripping, as easy as working from any other source audio le.
SOME CAPTURE TIPS
Use a separate hard disk for capturing video—the
fastest one you’ve got. You can use Adobe Premiere
Scratch Disks preferences to select the disk to which
you want to record. Faster disk rotational speeds
allow for faster sustained throughput without drop-
ping frames. While 7200-rpm IEEE 1394 drives will get
the job done, 10,000 or 15,000 rpm Ultra 320 (U320)
SCSI or SATA hard drives are a better choice for profes-
sional production environments.
If your system barely meets the minimum require-
ments and you have problems capturing, defragment
the capture disk just prior to capture, so free space is
available in large contiguous blocks. A fragmented
hard disk can reduce the capture frame rate.
Place as few other demands on the system as pos-
sible, to gain the undivided attention of the CPU. If
other programs are running, like anti-virus programs,
virtual memory, network connections, or unnecessary
drivers or extensions, they may interrupt capture with
calls for processing time.
Capture audio at the highest quality settings your
computer can handle, even if those settings are
higher than those you’ll specify for nal export or
playback. Capturing at the highest quality provides
headroom or extra data that helps preserve quality
if you adjust audio gain (volume) or apply eects,
such as equalization. Make sure the audio level is set
correctly when you capture. You can adjust the levels
later in the editing program, but if audio in a clip is
too low, raising the level can emphasize noise or
introduce distortion. Also, if you are capturing digi-
tally, be sure to capture audio at the same sample rate
and bit depth as the as the source format, to avoid
resampling artifacts.
Find a list of plug-ins for Adobe Premiere Pro on
the Adobe website at www.adobe.com/products/
plugins/premiere/main.html and a list of plug-ins for
After Eects at www.adobe.com/products/plugins/
aftereects/main.html.
Tabs
Metadata, such as
source tape name,
clip name, and
description
Status area
Device controls
Preview panel
The Adobe Premiere Pro Capture panel lets you specify a target bin in the Project panel,
then capture clips directly to the bin. Also, you can keep an eye on available hard-disk
space, deck activities, and other data during capture.