The world of filmmaking is rapidly evolving due to the availability of cheap and easy-to-use digital software and digital video cameras. One of the fastest-growing and most popular advances in digital film technology is the creation of DSLR cameras with video functionality. These cameras are traditionally designed to shoot still photography but have been equipped by their manufacturers with high-definition, 1080p video modes that rival 6-figure film cameras used in Hollywood. At a price point of no more than $2,500 (and as low as $800), these cameras have quickly become a major force in student and independent filmmaking. As one of the leading DSLR Cinematographers, Philip Bloom, pointed out, DSLR’s have even found their way into Hollywood. This is great news for the education realm. This means that students now have an affordable solution for shooting professional-looking films. This also means that educators can now engage and teach their students in ways that were not available before. However, this also means that education institutions must adapt to this new phenomenon.


Adobe Premier VS. Final Cut Pro
Apple’s Final Cut Pro has become a standard piece of editing software for most film programs in high schools and colleges. However, with the influx of DSLR’s into the filmmaking world, many people are making the switch to Adobe Premier Pro CS5 due to its native functionality with DSLR cameras; something that Final Cut does not have. As DSLR cinematographer and filmmaker, Ryan Koo, points out, there are plenty of other reasons why Premier outperforms Final Cut Pro. Premier also makes use of Adobe After Effects, which allows you to apply motion graphics and visual effects that make your film look just as good as most Hollywood movies.

My Personal Experience
From my own personal experience, Adobe Premier Pro CS5 is much simpler to utilize with DSLR footage right from the get-go. I recently shot a short film on a Canon Rebel T2i DSLR camera and we edited it using Final Cut Pro as that was the only program my friend had. I had been asked by another friend of mine to record an interview for him and edit it. I agreed to do so but I, personally, did not have any video editing software. I decided to check out Adobe Premier Pro CS5. I could not use FCP since I was running a PC with Windows 7 64-bit. I was amazed to find that the program had native sequences for DSLR footage built into the program. This made capturing, editing, and exporting my footage extremely simple. I noticed while working with Premier that everything ran rather smoothly and rendering happened very quickly even when rendering full 1080p content with the h.264 codec.

Learning Premier
Being that I was unfamiliar with the program at first, I decided to look at Adobe’s tutorials that are built into the software. I couldn’t be more pleased. Adobe offered some of the most comprehensive, informative, and beneficial tutorials I’ve ever seen for any software ever. Every single thing you need to know about editing your film, applying effects, transitions, audio, etc. were all one click away. I was able to completely edit my friends’ interview with exceptional audio, color grading, and HD quality in a matter of two hours without having ever used Premier before. Personally, I had a much better experience using Adobe Premier than I’ve ever had using Final Cut Pro.

Here’s something I shot in about 2 hours and edited in about 1 hour using Adobe Premier.

Not the most spectacular thing but as anybody who has worked on film knows; 3 hours of work will not produce the next Avatar. Be sure to watch in 1080p!

Conclusion
Film educators and students have never before had so many options available to them at such a cheap price point. With Adobe Premier Pro CS5, teachers and students can fully utilize budget-friendly DSLR cameras as well as the versatility of PC hardware to achieve professional-looking films in the educational realm. Another big benefit is that Adobe Premier has long been considered an industry standard for video editing. What better way to prepare your students for a future in film?

This product is available to Students, Teachers & Non-Profits at Studica.com.
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Author: Mark Philipp