This content originally appeared on Envato Tuts+ Tutorials and was authored by Andrew Childress
Let me explain the benefits of Premiere Pro clip colors. Then, I’ll show you how to add them to your own projects in seconds. Let’s get started!
Why use clip colors in Adobe Premiere Pro?
It’s easy to use clip colors in Adobe Premiere. But what are the advantages? Why is it so useful to color-code clips?
In short, using custom clip colors helps you stay organized. When you edit videos in Adobe Premiere Pro, they’re all shown on your Timeline. If you’re only working with one or two clips, the default colors are usually okay. But imagine if you have dozens or hundreds of individual clips. How can you keep them all straight?
Clip colors are the answer. For example, interview clips could be orange. Landscape scenes could be in green. And action shots could be in blue. The choices are yours. But when you use clip colors, you can recognize exactly what each clip represents. It saves you precious time as you edit.
How to work with clip colors in Premiere Pro (step by step)
Now, let’s learn how to work with Premiere Pro clip colors. In the tutorial, you’ll see three stock video clips in use. Each one is sourced from the vast Envato Elements content library. If you’d like to follow along, download the clips here, here, and here.
Let’s dive in!
1. Choose a system of organization
Premiere Pro offers absolutely unlimited flexibility for clip colors. They are fully and completely customizable. When it comes time to choose colors, you can pick from a color wheel. Or, you can even add RGB or color hex data for a precise match! This is incredibly useful if you want to stick with your brand’s palette, for example.
But with this flexibility comes a degree of complexity. With unlimited options, how do you choose? I like to approach clip color organization with these ideas in mind:
- Consistency. Think about the categories of footage that you’re working with. Then, choose a small handful of color choices to group them together. Let’s face it: if you have thirty different color choices, you’ll probably be even more confused. And remember: these will vary from project to project. You can choose custom colors for everything you’re working on.
- Clarity. Avoid the trap of being too esoteric. Choosing red for interviews makes sense. But choosing five shades of red for five different interview subjects could just be confusing.
- Contrast. Contrasts are key. The whole goal here is to make different categories of footage instantly recognizable. Remember: clips on the Timeline may be tiny on your screen. By choosing colors that sharply contrast with one another, you’ll make things easier for your work - and your eyes.
With these ideas in mind, you can easily devise a color system that works for you. Working with a team? Have a quick huddle and align on a color convention. Otherwise, choose whatever colors you prefer!
2. Specify label colors in Premiere Pro
Clip colors can be set in advance. You’ll choose colors, label them, and then be able to apply them to any clip in your Timeline. Here’s how to do it.
With Premiere Pro open, find the main menu settings. These are in the upper left corner of your screen. Navigate to the button labeled Premiere Pro. Click it once. A dropdown menu will launch, with several options below. Near the top of it, hover your cursor over Settings.
The Settings submenu will appear. Just below halfway down, you’ll see Labels. Click Labels. The Premiere Pro Preferences will launch. On it, you’ll see sixteen colorful boxes. These are your Label settings in Premiere! To add your own custom colors, click on the first of the colorful boxes.
When you do, a color chooser menu like the one above will launch. As mentioned earlier, you can precisely refine any color imaginable. Here, for example, let’s choose a shade of bright orange. You’ll see it previewed on the left.
Found a color you like? Click OK, and it’s applied. Back on the Preferences > Label menu, you can then add a name for the color. This is as important as the color itself. Here, let’s label it “Birds.”
Now, you can repeat these same steps to add other custom colors. As you can see below, it’s easy to build out your own personal labeling palette. Finished? Click OK once again.
3. Customize clip colors on the timeline
Ready to add your custom colors to your Timeline? It’s almost effortless. Hover your cursor over any clip on the Timeline. Then, right-click. From the listed options, hover over Labels. Your custom colors will all be listed!
To apply one to a clip, simply click on the color of your choice. You’ll see it previewed, along with the text label that you added. When you click, watch as your video (or audio) clip changes colors. It’s really that simple. Apply custom colors throughout your Premiere Pro project to stay organized.
Learn more top tips and tricks for Adobe Premiere Pro
Above, you learned how to use clip colors in Adobe Premiere Pro. It’s but one of the countless amazing features that come standard in the app. Ready to learn more?
Here are top tutorials from Envato Tuts+. If you want to quickly upgrade your Premiere Pro skills, start here:
How to Quickly Adjust the Volume in Premiere Pro
How to Quickly Create Cool Flicker Effects in Premiere Pro
How to Add Captions to Video in Premiere Pro
How to Quickly Crop a Video in Premiere Pro
How to Quickly Rename Premiere Pro Projects & Sequences
Explore custom clip colors in Premiere Pro today!
In this tutorial, you learned how to use custom clip colors in Adobe Premiere Pro. It’s a quick, intuitive way to stay organized. By using the Labels menu in Premiere, you can choose your own color shades and categories. Then, you can apply them to any media in your Timeline with just a couple of clicks.
Don’t hesitate! Improve your organization today and start using Adobe Premiere Pro clip colors. You’ll never look back.
This content originally appeared on Envato Tuts+ Tutorials and was authored by Andrew Childress
Andrew Childress | Sciencx (2024-06-14T12:42:30+00:00) How to stay organized with clip colors in Premiere Pro. Retrieved from https://www.scien.cx/2024/06/14/how-to-stay-organized-with-clip-colors-in-premiere-pro/
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