JKLIO

I've talked to many in the business who are up on the latest tricks and trends, and when it comes to NLE software most (if not all) tout the benefits and advantages of the biggest and best - meaning Avid, Final Cut, and to a lesser extent Media 100, Vegas, Edius, etc. But mention to them the names, "Windows Movie Maker," "Premiere Elements," etc., and they roll their eyes like you're asking them to trade their SUV in for a Radio Flyer wagon.

Nothing could be further from the truth - well, okay, the analogy is sound for WMM at least. But there are several products out there that provide near professional level results for a small investment. I recently realized this when I was asked to put together a promotional (and totally spec) video for a small non-profit organization in the Houston area.

When I say totally spec, I don't know how much more "free" this video could get. The head of the organization (who also happens to be my sister-in-law) shot the footage herself, with absolutely no idea of what to do with it. She asked me, and (not knowing any better) suggested I could try and cut something together using WMM. Silly me.

Now, don't get me wrong - there are lots of folks out there who swear by WMM, and there's even a forum for devotees to learn the latest tips, tricks, and links for downloading new effects and the like. I'm not denigrating the package at all. But I will say that it's woefully inadequate for anything approaching "real" non-linear editing. (Is that denigrating?)

I discovered this painful fact after struggling with what, ordinarily, would be simple editing tasks. Titles, transitions, voice-overs, etc. I quickly discovered WMM's limits and re-discovered my own unlimited frustration. I work with Final Cut Pro on a daily basis at work, and not having similar tools at home is, to say the least, aggravating.

Along comes Adobe to the rescue. I decided to see if Premiere Elements would be an option. (Premiere Pro was out of the question due to cost, and I'm not a student, so this was my only other legal course.) I downloaded the 30-day trial and quickly discovered that, despite how people may feel about it, this thing can really edit!

I didn't intend for this to be a review of the software, but I will say that among PREL's many attributes is - ready for this? - the JKLIO key sequence. Yes, you can shuttle forward and back with the J and L keys, pause with the K key, and set in and out points with the I and O keys. I'm already likin' this, because it's familiar. (It'll also work with HDV and AVCHD footage. Sweet.) So, after a modest $100 investment, I discovered I can move much faster because of PREL's similarity (on a small scale) to other NLE's, including Premiere Pro and FCP. As a result, and to make a long story short, I'm flyin' on this thing.

Which brings me to my overall point: For those of us in the industry, a certain complacency about our tools is an occupational hazard. We get used to using tools that are among the best in the industry - in fact, we tend to take them for granted. But for those of us who don't have the thousands of dollars to spend on those same tools for personal/freelance use, it's eye-opening and humbling to discover that there are tools out there that can accomplish a reasonably professional-looking result for far less cost. And you look like a hero, to boot.