How to Print a Movie as Videotape With Premiere

Once you have printed your movie to videotape, you can play it on your VCR or make copies and distribute it. You will need a video card capable of outputting to the NTSC or PAL standard, appropriate cables, a videotape and a VCR. These instructions apply to Adobe Premiere 4.2.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• TV-VCR Connecting Cables
• VCR Tapes
• VCRs
• Video Cables
• Video Cards
• Adobe Premiere

1. Connect your VCR to the computer, following the instructions that came with your video capture card. A connection to a TV or other monitor isn't necessary for this task.

2. Place a videotape in the VCR. Don't turn the VCR on yet.

3. Open your movie in Adobe Premiere's Clip window.

4. Preview your movie by opening the File menu and choosing Export, then Print to Video without turning on your recording device. A dialog box appears.

5. Enter the time that you want to display color bars at the beginning of the movie. Zero is default.

6. Enter the length of time that you want to display a blank screen at the beginning and end.

7. Select Full Screen, 2X Playback or Continuous Loop if desired.

8. Click OK to preview your movie as it will appear on the VCR.

9. When you are satisfied, turn your VCR on. Make your appropriate recording settings, but keep the VCR on Pause until just before you click OK to print the movie.

10. Repeat the same steps you used to preview the movie, only this time your movie will be printing to tape.

11. View your videotape on a television or another monitor.

Tips & Warnings

• When connecting the cables, be sure that Video Out on the computer is connected to Video In on the VCR, and that Audio Out on the computer is connected to Audio In on the VCR.
• Select Activate Recording Deck only if you are recording to a controllable device. This requires special hardware in addition to a VCR.
• The video output standard is NTSC for North America and many Asian countries and PAL for Europe (except for France, which uses Secam). Unless your computer and your video card are capable of outputting to the standard used in your country, you will not be able to print your movie to videotape. (These video standards aren't compatible with each other. If you were a U.S. citizen and brought your VCR to Britain, for example, you would probably not be able to play a tape you rented there.)
• Zooming can cause pixelation and result in a blurry image.
• When making copies of video tapes, remember that each generation experiences a loss of resolution, so it is best to make a master copy and make all additional copies from the master. Your digital movie, however, will not deteroriate through generations nor will it wear out with use.