Adobe Premiere Pro: Ultimate Tutorial Guide for Beginners (2024)

Choosing a video editing app is an all-important decision. What you’re really doing is picking your creative workspace. And when you’re new to an app, it can seem daunting to get started. Where do you begin? What should you choose?

Adobe Premiere Pro is one of the leading video editing apps in 2024. In this comprehensive tutorial guide, you’ll learn all about Premiere Pro. We’ll explore what it is, how it works, and why it stands out. Then, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know to start editing in Adobe Premiere. Let’s jump in.

What Is Adobe Premiere Pro?

Adobe Premiere Pro is a top video editor, filled with unique features. Premiere is part of Adobe’s broader Creative Cloud app suite. It’s used by video creators the world over. Whether you’re editing feature films or a fun YouTube Short, Premiere Pro has you covered. And whether you prefer macOS or Windows, full versions are available for both systems.

Premiere Pro’s features cover almost any video editing need. It’s a comprehensive and robust solution for any video production task. It includes a full suite of simple editing tools—think cropping, retouching, and more.

With editing tools like this, you’ll create expert-quality productions with relative ease.

But don’t think of it as just a basic tool. Premiere also has advanced correction and color features that you won’t find with any other tool. What’s more: in the near future, Adobe plans to bring generative AI (artificial intelligence) to Premiere Pro. Edits are becoming faster and smoother than ever before.

In short, if you’re looking for a powerful and flexible video editor, Adobe Premiere Pro is a leading option. It contains all the tools you need to edit everything that comes across your desk.

Why Use Adobe Premiere Pro?

Above, we explored what Adobe Premiere Pro is and some of what it can do. But why should you consider using it? How does Premiere Pro stand out in the growing crowd of video apps today?

The ability to edit quickly, yet professionally, helps Adobe Premiere Pro transform your videos.

Consider these advantages:

Creative Cloud integration. As mentioned, Premiere Pro is part of the Creative Cloud landscape from Adobe. This means that it integrates well with other apps. Namely, Creative Cloud includes After Effects, the leading option for motion graphics work. You can easily jump between apps for immeasurably powerful graphic editing.
A subscription-based model. Premiere Pro is sold via subscription. You can purchase it as a standalone app or in a package with all other Creative Cloud apps. There are both monthly and annual plans to choose from, with a free trial at the beginning. The subscription model helps you manage your costs. Plus, it allows for frequent updates that bring bug fixes and new features right to your desktop at no extra cost.

Premiere Pro is part of Adobe Creative Cloud, which includes all of these apps (and more!)

Studio-grade tools and controls. Premiere Pro includes countless tools used by expert editors. For example, you can easily work with multi-camera sequences. Plus, you can enjoy advanced object tracking, virtual reality-format editing, and more.
Hundreds of included graphics and effects. Spectacular visual effects come included with Premiere Pro. You won’t have to purchase pricey expansion packs to enjoy hundreds of cool options from the moment you install Premiere.
A full set of audio tools. As a video editor, you can never forget audio. Premiere Pro has a complete audio editing toolkit. You won’t need a separate app to get your audio sounding its best.

As you can see, Adobe Premiere Pro offers compelling benefits. Ready to learn how to start using Premiere? Read on as we dive into the first crucial steps.

How to Start Using Adobe Premiere Pro (Step by Step)

Now, let’s learn how to start using Adobe Premiere Pro. We’ll walk through the layout of the app and see how to import a video and make some quick edits. Of course, there’s so much more to learn, but these are the basics of getting started in Premiere Pro as a beginner user.

As we work, you’ll sometimes see a stock video clip in use. It’s beautiful aerial footage of a river from Envato Elements. Feel free to download it and follow along.

1. Install Adobe Premiere Pro

Step 1 is to install Adobe Premiere Pro. As I mentioned earlier, it’s available for both Windows and macOS. You can find it on Adobe’s Premiere Pro homepage.

You can download a free trial of Adobe Premiere Pro.

Remember: Adobe offers a seven-day free trial of Premiere Pro. It’s a fully functional install. This gives you plenty of time to see if Premiere is right for you, and you won’t have to spend a single dollar until you’re sure.

The download may take a few moments depending on how fast your internet connection is. The installation steps will vary somewhat depending on your chosen operating system. But in all cases, they work automatically with the Creative Cloud installer.

2. Create a New Project and Import Media

When you edit in Premiere Pro, you’ll work in what’s called a project. A project is the collection of media that you’re using for a given editing task. To start a new project, go ahead and launch Adobe Premiere Pro.

On the Home screen, you’ll find yourself on the launchpad for Premiere Pro creativity. It’s here that you’ll create new projects and revisit existing ones.

On the Home window, click New Project.

For this example, find the blue New Project button on the Home screen. Click it, and in the lower right corner of the next screen, click Create.

You’ll be taken to the Import menu in Premiere. Here, you can browse to the video and audio files that you want to edit. Click to select them, and then choose Import in the lower right corner.

Browse and select the media that you want to edit in Premiere Pro. Then, click Import.

Forget something? No worries—you can return to the Import tab anytime to get more media.

3. Get Familiar With Premiere Pro’s Essential Panels

Importing media into Premiere Pro creates a new sequence. Think of a sequence as a self-contained project timeline. It allows you to arrange your media, make edits, and export the finished product.

With media imported, you’ll find yourself on Premiere Pro’s Edit workspace. This is absolutely the heart and soul of the app itself. It’s here that you’ll launch panels to make edits of your own. Thus, it’s imperative to understand the basic layout.

This is the main Edit panel in Premiere Pro, where you can make and see changes to a video.

In the upper center, you’ll find the previewed video. This panel is called the Program Monitor. It shows you the specific frame of a video that you’re working with at any given moment. It’s here that any changes and edits you make will be previewed in real time.

Below the Program Monitor is the Timeline. It does as the name suggests. In the Timeline, you’ll control the timing, sequence, and stacking of individual tracks. It’s the control center for all of your media.

Think of the Tools as the editing options you’ll use most frequently.

Beside the Timeline on the left are Premiere’s Tools. Think of these as the most basic and important editing tools. You’ll see options like the Selection Tool for clicking on media. Below are the Razor Tool for cropping, the Type Tool for text, and more. You can hover over each button to see its function (and a handy keyboard shortcut!).

Finally, locate the toolbar in the upper right corner of Premiere. It’s here that you’ll find shortcuts for most major panels in Premiere Pro. Keep in mind: a panel is a focused set of features and tools.

The Panel Toolbar allows you to open focused editing features, grouped into categories called Panels. Here, you can see the Effects Panel open.

For example, you can use the Effects panel to add cool visual effects. The Color panel gives you advanced color controls. Captions and Graphics helps with subtitles and text overlays. Any panel that you open will launch as a sidebar menu on your Premiere workspace.

On the Window dropdown, you can see the panel options available to you in Premiere Pro. Click on one to launch it.

Don’t see a panel that you want? Accidentally closed one out? The Window dropdown at the very top of your screen is your best friend. Click it, and you’ll see the full list of available panels in Premiere Pro. Simply click on one to open it.

4. Make Amazing Edits

It’s apparent that Premiere Pro has a virtually limitless combination of edits and effects that you can add. In many cases, you’ll try many different ones before settling on your own preferences.

For this clip, let’s add a custom effect. With the Effects panel open on the right, you can open the folders to explore options. Or, if you’re searching for a specific edit, look for it using the handy Search box.

To apply an effect in Premiere Pro, drag and drop it onto your Timeline.

Here, let’s apply the Tint effect to the video. Find Tint in the Color Correction folder on the Effects panel. Then, drag and drop it over the video clip on your Timeline. The video is represented by the purple bar at the bottom of your screen.

Once you apply an effect, you can adjust its magnitude. This is done on the Effect Controls panel, found by going to Window > Effect Controls. At the bottom, you can control the amount of tint and watch a preview of the change in real time.

The Effect Controls panel lets you precisely control each edit that you make.

The Effect Controls panel updates to feature only the effects that you’ve chosen. It’s an easy way to precisely refine each and every video.

Again, there are far too many edits to showcase here. But your launching point will be the Effects and Effect Controls. Combined with the Tools, you’ll find Premiere’s full editing suite at your fingertips.

5. Export a Video to Share

Finished making edits? Now, it’s time to export your finished video! In the upper left corner of Premiere’s screen, click on the Export tab.

You’ll be taken to the Export settings. Here, you can give your video a name, you can choose where to store it on your computer, and you can choose from a vast array of file formats.

Make your selections, and then click Export in the lower right corner. That’s all it takes! In moments, you’ve learned how to start editing in Adobe Premiere Pro.

Learn More About Adobe Premiere Pro

Having learned the basics of Adobe Premiere Pro, you might want to expand your skills. The Envato Tuts+ library features many helpful tutorials on all things Premiere Pro.

Wondering where to start? Here are several tutorial guides to help you gain knowledge and edit with confidence:

Start Using Adobe Premiere Pro Today

In this tutorial, you learned how to get started with Adobe Premiere Pro. It’s a leading option for video editing, and it’s easy to start using. The key is learning your way around the app. Features are almost universally contained in category-based panels. Spend some time browsing in Premiere Pro to get a better feel for them.

Ready to create stunning video productions of your own? Premiere Pro is a compelling choice for 2024. Hopefully, this guide has eliminated your fears and inspired you to start editing. Don’t hesitate. Start today!

Post date May 24, 2024

This content originally appeared on Envato Tuts+ Tutorials and was authored by Andrew Childress

Choosing a video editing app is an all-important decision. What you’re really doing is picking your creative workspace. And when you're new to an app, it can seem daunting to get started. Where do you begin? What should you choose?