Recently, I began editing with Premiere Pro CS6 instead of my familiar Final Cut Pro. While I am loving this new editing workflow (since I use After Effects and Speedgrade all the time), I am a little disappointed with a few limitations that Premiere faces that Final Cut is not limited to. I will say, however, that I do not know all of Premiere’s functions.
I’ll start out by saying I love the dynamic link with After Effects and all the rest of the Adobe programs in Premiere. I oftentimes incorporate motion graphics, custom titles, and visual effects in my videos, so this is essential to save time for me. Another thing I love about Premiere is the options and EASE of color correcting, and integration of color grading software. Final Cut does not offer RGB or Luma Curves, what I find most diverse for color correcting. Keyframing motion and other attributes is also simple in Premiere.
Final Cut Pro does have its advantages, though, that Premiere does not offer. Many times, I use long, still video shots to speed up into a time-lapse. Premiere Pro cannot exceed 1,000% speed on the original clip, so it is limited. I usually speed up clips for time-lapse to about 5,000%. UPDATE: there is a work-around for this issue. Premiere handles this fine! Another thing that is limited is that Premiere does not have widescreen matte presets as Final Cut does. You must create the black bars in photoshop and transfer it to premier. Premiere also does not offer a vignette effect; you must create it with a transparent video layer using a customized circle effect, instead of simply dropping a vignette on a clip like in Final Cut. Also, the timeline in Premiere is less structured than Final Cut’s. I use the Final Cut shortcut key layout in Premiere, and there are just some small things that aren’t there that Final Cut does (I’ve looked extensively for these functions).
Both editing workflows have their ups and downs, and I use both depending on what I need to do for a project. Both offer advanced functions that will please both the amateur and the professional. Use whichever one you like best! However, I would also advise you to know several editing software programs if you intend to land a job as an editor. You don’t always get to choose your software when you work for someone other than yourself!
