Adobe is known for their creative software packages. However, their main products require a monthly or annual membership that can get pricey depending on what you are looking for. For a general user that just wants to modify some phone or camcorder videos to share with family and memories, make fun clips, you have Adobe Premiere Elements. A one time purchase that you can use on any of your compatible computers so long as you log into the same Adobe account.
Compared to Premiere, the Elements version is heavily stripped down, but simplified in easy to select options. It has predetermined quick edit mode, guided mode and an expert mode that lets you do your own fine tuning. For simple modifications like trimming and putting clips together, the quick mode is simply drag and drop. The guided mode gives several options that lead you step for step on how to apply the effects to your video. It is a lot easier than trying to find a video online and follow along with them. However, it requires you to perform the step exactly as it guides you and will not let you continue till that step is completed. So, for example, you may have attempted the effects on your own, but then forgot what happened after step 5. So, go back to the guide and you are required to do steps 1-4 again, applying it to your video, even if you didn’t want to do those steps, again.
I personally don’t like how it is opened either. After install, you select the Adobe Premiere Elements 2021 by the Windows shortcut or menu, but it opens a panel that offers Organizer, Photo Editor and Video Editor with additional highlights from their site. After you select Video Editor is when Premiere Elements will actually open.
There are a lot of effects and features that aren’t simplified through the guided videos, so like their other products, it will still take some learning to take full advantage of the product. However, even with the effects all listed out in neat little thumbnails, they are still limited in what you can modify in them. Most modifications are limited to slider bars for adjustment from the original applied effect. Some effects only apply to the video and don’t account for the audio, like any time shift. It just recommends removing audio instead of offering an option to time shift the audio or even to cut the audio from the time shift portion would be better than removing all of the audio. Some options just left me hanging the first time I attempted to use them with a never moving loading bar, but days later, maybe there was a background update, they work. Another thing is that you can’t edit any out-of-the-ordinary videos like 360 degree or 3D videos.
Overall, for a simple and fairly quick way to edit and add flair to your homemade videos, this is pretty decent. There are many features that can’t be explained in a review without experiencing it for yourself. So, luckily through Adobe, you can get a 30 day free trial and see what you are getting into before you purchase it. Then you can purchase the digital key through Best Buy using any perks you may already have and enjoy it for as long as you want.