I've been trying to work on my 4K P4P videos on Adobe Premiere Elements and I don't know if I'm doing something wrong or it's just not capable of editing 4K.  When I drag something to the timeline it plays very jerky even after rendering.  It's very frustrating trying to get things done.  I've heard of proxies buy I can't find anything about them on Elements.  Have I purchased an inadequate piece of software?  I hate the idea of a subscription.  It's a money grabber as far as I'm concerned and I'm not comfortable with that.  And I'm being really, really nice in how I'm saying that.  So other suggestions of 4K editing software if Elements is not going to "cut it"?  Pun intended!

You need Premiere Pro and then create Proxies and you would be good to go. I edit 4k on my laptop all the time after creating proxies for all the footage I am going to use. You can delete it or save it with your full size files when done.

4k brings my laptop to a crawl. After creating proxies, I can scrub smoothly including with Audio, apply edits, transitions, effects, etc. I then export it out and it uses the original files.

Thank you.  Looks like I invested in the wrong software.  At least I won't keep trying to make this one work and end up getting more and more frustrated.  Off to the store I go!  Thanks again!

Yep. What we do is convert the 4k into a small mpg2 file. Edit to you hearts content (this is your proxy) then replace the mpg2 footage with your 4k in PPRO and then execute Export.

SunnySkies Posted at 2017-4-17 12:22
Yep. What we do is convert the 4k into a small mpg2 file. Edit to you hearts content (this is your proxy) then replace the mpg2 footage with your 4k in PPRO and then execute Export.

To clarify. Premiere Pro is excellent. Convert your 4k outside of PPRO...in PPRO edit your mpg (your proxy) to how  you want it...then replace mpg with 4k and export it. The footage is jittery using your original 4k because the file is way too big for a smooth playback..that's all.

The problem is, H.264/H.265 encoded 4K file format from Phantom 4 Pro is beyond the compatibility of Adobe Premiere Elements(including the latest version PE 15). Something else, Premiere Elements now can handle 4K files without much problem, but it is extremely hardware intensive. In most cases, editing 4K in Premiere Elements is very taxing on your computer. In order to work Phantom 4 Pro 4K footage in Adobe Premiere Elements smoothly, a better way is to transcode Phantom 4 Pro 4K to a more "edit" friendly codec and 1080p would be the best settings.

Young66 Posted at 2017-6-21 22:18
The problem is, H.264/H.265 encoded 4K file format from Phantom 4 Pro is beyond the compatibility of Adobe Premiere Elements(including the latest version PE 15). Something else, Premiere Elements now can handle 4K files without much problem, but it is extremely hardware intensive. In most cases, editing 4K in Premiere Elements is very taxing on your computer. In order to work Phantom 4 Pro 4K footage in Adobe Premiere Elements smoothly, a better way is to transcode Phantom 4 Pro 4K to a more "edit" friendly codec and 1080p would be the best settings.

I've been using Premiere Pro CS6 for several years with good luck, however, it doesn't offer the option of saving to 4k h.264/mp4 footage. I tried the newer Premiere Pro Elements, but wasn't happy with the interface. I was able to try out Cyberlink Power Director and have been using it for a couple of weeks. It was only 71$ and does what I want in a fairly friendly interface. Some of the terminology is different, but accomplishes the same thing, and it uses "shadow" files that are lower quality temp files automatically.

Update: I finally got around looking for how to export in 4k. Which I did, by changing settings manually.
Change Profile to "High".Change Level to "5.1".Adjust Frame Rate to "30" or less.Change Pixel Aspect Ratio to "Square Pixels" if necessary.Change Frame Width to "3840" and Frame Height to "2160".
(If Aspect Ratio Lock is on, the Frame Height may adjust automatically. You can uncheck the Lock and adjust each one manually if you need to.)

Rexster314 Posted at 2017-6-28 12:27
I've been using Premiere Pro CS6 for several years with good luck, however, it doesn't offer the option of saving to 4k h.264/mp4 footage. I tried the newer Premiere Pro Elements, but wasn't happy with the interface. I was able to try out Cyberlink Power Director and have been using it for a couple of weeks. It was only 71$ and does what I want in a fairly friendly interface. Some of the terminology is different, but accomplishes the same thing, and it uses "shadow" files that are lower quality temp files automatically.

Regularly export 4K h264 in PPro CS5.5 - there is a youtube somewhere showing basic video settings, essentially upping them to max, 25fps all good.

fans3b90d768 Posted at 2017-6-28 13:31
Regularly export 4K h264 in PPro CS5.5 - there is a youtube somewhere showing basic video settings, essentially upping them to max, 25fps all good.

Premiere Pro CS6 absolutely lets you Render / Output h.264 files. Mary, your problem sounds more like it's hardware NOT software.

Before you throw a lot of money at the wrong thing, it would be helpful to know what type of computer you are using, how much RAM you have, and are you working with external drives, or trying to do everything on your system drive. 4K is tremendously demanding on your Processor,  GPU, RAM depending on what part of the editing process your working on.

These are the basics one needs to know... then we can make some recommendations (many are free) that will help you.

Guys, thanks for clearing this up.  I bought Elements 15 thinking it would support 4K editing, based on Adobe's claim.  Adobe said NOTHING about needing an accelerator GPU to use 4K editing, otherwise your editing of 4K is crippled.  Adobe purposely LEFT OUT the ability to create proxy files in Elements 15  to be useful in NON GPU computers (lower cost computers), yet they market Elements to lower end users on the promise it will edit 4K.  This is pretty dishonest marketing from Adobe if you ask me.  I looked everywhere for a comparison chart of Elements 15 versus PremierePro CC, and couldn't find one anywhere that disclosed this hidden fact, you get NO PROXY support with Elements.  This forum is the only place that confirmed my suspicion.  Thank you.

Going with a free trial of Final Cut Pro X.  Tired of fighting with Adobe.

Seaduner Posted at 2017-7-21 21:21
Guys, thanks for clearing this up.  I bought Elements 15 thinking it would support 4K editing, based on Adobe's claim.  Adobe said NOTHING about needing an accelerator GPU to use 4K editing, otherwise your editing of 4K is crippled.  Adobe purposely LEFT OUT the ability to create proxy files in Elements 15  to be useful in NON GPU computers (lower cost computers), yet they market Elements to lower end users on the promise it will edit 4K.  This is pretty dishonest marketing from Adobe if you ask me.  I looked everywhere for a comparison chart of Elements 15 versus PremierePro CC, and couldn't find one anywhere that disclosed this hidden fact, you get NO PROXY support with Elements.  This forum is the only place that confirmed my suspicion.  Thank you.

I'm also looking for a 4K and Adobe Premiere Elements workflow.

No problems here using Premier Pro CC (2018) imports and exports 4k  P4Pro files to mp4 file just fine... But does prefer the iMac to the PC. Only because my Imac has more grunt than my PC

This conversation is very timely for me.  I too have been looking for video editing software for the P4P 4K that wont break the bank.  I am evaluating Elements for photos now and it does what I need.  I was thinking about Premiere for video but ....now i see the STOP sign.   The subscription BS is real turn-off for me too.  My main desktop computer is no slouch but its not a "gamer" system either (graphics-wise).  I am not in the mood to chase hardware requirements - no upgrades are planned.  I am a newbie at video editing and have a lot to learn.  I am not making Star Trek movies but I need to get something usable in the near future.  Still a bit confused as to where to turn.  (I do understand the proxy approach to edit the 4K files.)   Any savvy advise for a newbie greatly appreciated.  Thanks all

Anokadrone Posted at 2018-6-26 03:58
This conversation is very timely for me.  I too have been looking for video editing software for the P4P 4K that wont break the bank.  I am evaluating Elements for photos now and it does what I need.  I was thinking about Premiere for video but ....now i see the STOP sign.   The subscription BS is real turn-off for me too.  My main desktop computer is no slouch but its not a "gamer" system either (graphics-wise).  I am not in the mood to chase hardware requirements - no upgrades are planned.  I am a newbie at video editing and have a lot to learn.  I am not making Star Trek movies but I need to get something usable in the near future.  Still a bit confused as to where to turn.  (I do understand the proxy approach to edit the 4K files.)   Any savvy advise for a newbie greatly appreciated.  Thanks all

I bought Cyberlink PowerDirector for this task and it does the job. Got their ColourDirector thrown in free in a package deal. I have an older version of Premier Elements but that was not up to the job at all @4K. The most recent edition of PowerDirector has significant speed enhancements and real-time visualisation during editing is pretty good, and rendering is quicker too. Having a grunty GFX card (CUDA) is still a necessity I think, nothing that is purely CPU based is going to be fast enough. I was more familiar with the way Adobe Premier works so some things in PowerDirector are still a bit of a mystery so I'm not prepared to give it a full recommendation yet, but it looks promising. There are a lot of options for editing programs in this price bracket and you can't check them all out so all you can do is go by the reviews..

I have a later version of Davinci Resolve installed and its not real intuitive.  Not even sure if I should be looking at it or trying to learn it.   How would you rate the learning curve on PowerDirector?  Looks like they have a free eval period.

Try capturing some footage at 2K settings (1920x1080)..... then see if your computer can handle those files. This will tell you that it is your computer can't handle 4K files. 4K file are huge and most computers cannot handle them. I use Premiere Pro CC everyday with 4K files, but I had to purchase a new computer made for video editing (fast processor, super graphics card and tons of memory) I love 4K, but maybe 2K will work for you and your computer. Good Luck!  

zmon Posted at 2018-6-26 06:36
Try capturing some footage at 2K settings (1920x1080)..... then see if your computer can handle those files. This will tell you that it is your computer can't handle 4K files. 4K file are huge and most computers cannot handle them. I use Premiere Pro CC everyday with 4K files, but I had to purchase a new computer made for video editing (fast processor, super graphics card and tons of memory) I love 4K, but maybe 2K will work for you and your computer. Good Luck!

I have a Core i5 with 16 GB RAM and 1 GB GTX-460 card, 336 Cuda cores I believe.   Yes viewing 4K RAW is not happening.  But isnt that where the proxy files come into play (forgive my limited understanding)

ChrisLX200 Posted at 2018-6-26 04:30
I bought Cyberlink PowerDirector for this task and it does the job. Got their ColourDirector thrown in free in a package deal. I have an older version of Premier Elements but that was not up to the job at all @4K. The most recent edition of PowerDirector has significant speed enhancements and real-time visualisation during editing is pretty good, and rendering is quicker too. Having a grunty GFX card (CUDA) is still a necessity I think, nothing that is purely CPU based is going to be fast enough. I was more familiar with the way Adobe Premier works so some things in PowerDirector are still a bit of a mystery so I'm not prepared to give it a full recommendation yet, but it looks promising. There are a lot of options for editing programs in this price bracket and you can't check them all out so all you can do is go by the reviews..

I downloaded and installed the trial version of PowerDirector and was disappointed to find that you cannot do anything in 4K until you buy it.  So I went back to playing around in Davinci Resolve and determined that the GPU was getting maxed out during rendering.  It is a GTX-460 v2 with 1 GB.  Barely adequate for working in 1080P.   I like Resolve but its complex and has lot of cool features but I would need to upgrade to a GPU with at least 2 GB, preferably more.  (about a $300 upgrade but the software is free)  The PowerDirector path is  cheaper.....mmmmm.  decisions decisions.

Anokadrone Posted at 2018-6-27 04:35
I downloaded and installed the trial version of PowerDirector and was disappointed to find that you cannot do anything in 4K until you buy it.  So I went back to playing around in Davinci Resolve and determined that the GPU was getting maxed out during rendering.  It is a GTX-460 v2 with 1 GB.  Barely adequate for working in 1080P.   I like Resolve but its complex and has lot of cool features but I would need to upgrade to a GPU with at least 2 GB, preferably more.  (about a $300 upgrade but the software is free)  The PowerDirector path is  cheaper.....mmmmm.  decisions decisions.

I tried D Resolve too, but went back to Premiere Pro CC 2018.  I would never pay the Adobe subscription unless I was in business and needed PP CC2018, that's just me.  However, I am fortunate my son works for a company that pays for his CC Suite 2018 subscription, and he gave me one of his 3 install locations that come with subscription.   He only needed 2.  As for the proxy in PP CC 2018, it does help with the hardware deficiency's, but IMO you still need a good i7 PC, 32GB DRAM, 1TB SSD, GPU (such as GTX1080ti), and loads of HDD for storage of your data.  This kind of system will help with rendering and playback.  Some older GPU's work OK, but it's slow to render the proxy file from the original.  Then when you render the edited clips, it will take longer too.  I've also used Pinnacle Studio, and that's OK with 1080, but I've never tried it with 4K.  I don't think it supports proxy.  I tried Premier Elements to edit 4K with my new gaming machine with GTX1080ti, but since Elements doesn't support proxies, it was very painful to edit, although I did complete a 4K video with it.... but never again.  I would never recommend elements if you intend to edit 4K.  

If you've got 2 buddies that need PP CC 2018, maybe you can subscribe and split the $20/mo subscription 3 ways, for $7/mo.

Seaduner Posted at 2018-6-27 12:23
I tried D Resolve too, but went back to Premiere Pro CC 2018.  I would never pay the Adobe subscription unless I was in business and needed PP CC2018, that's just me.  However, I am fortunate my son works for a company that pays for his CC Suite 2018 subscription, and he gave me one of his 3 install locations that come with subscription.   He only needed 2.  As for the proxy in PP CC 2018, it does help with the hardware deficiency's, but IMO you still need a good i7 PC, 32GB DRAM, 1TB SSD, GPU (such as GTX1080ti), and loads of HDD for storage of your data.  This kind of system will help with rendering and playback.  Some older GPU's work OK, but it's slow to render the proxy file from the original.  Then when you render the edited clips, it will take longer too.  I've also used Pinnacle Studio, and that's OK with 1080, but I've never tried it with 4K.  I don't think it supports proxy.  I tried Premier Elements to edit 4K with my new gaming machine with GTX1080ti, but since Elements doesn't support proxies, it was very painful to edit, although I did complete a 4K video with it.... but never again.  I would never recommend elements if you intend to edit 4K.  

If you've got 2 buddies that need PP CC 2018, maybe you can subscribe and split the $20/mo subscription 3 ways, for $7/mo.

"he gave me one of his 3 install locations that come with subscription.   He only needed 2"
"If you've got 2 buddies that need PP CC 2018, maybe you can subscribe and split the $20/mo subscription 3 ways"

I think you might just nailed down why it is that expensive that no one want to pay for it but have no doubts taking the income from the development. at some extend it is nothing but a endless circle.
People has no doubt when buying expensive drones with a lot of accessories, expensive computers and accessories, no sharing that with anybody but when it comes to the software they need and like, no way would they pay ... I don't get it!

I don't mind paying for something that works for me and is usable.  But I don't agree with that subscription model for any software (or anything else for that matter) and don't buy any of it.  But back to PowerDirector for a minute.  The trial version is so lame that you cannot evaluate anything like 4K.  Not even 2K video from my 12mp phone camera.  That's a good way to win a customer!  

Anokadrone Posted at 2018-6-27 13:09
I don't mind paying for something that works for me and is usable.  But I don't agree with that subscription model for any software (or anything else for that matter) and don't buy any of it.  But back to PowerDirector for a minute.  The trial version is so lame that you cannot evaluate anything like 4K.  Not even 2K video from my 12mp phone camera.  That's a good way to win a customer!

That's exactly my feelings.  I can't justify subscription, because I don't use it every day.  If I did use it every day for work, then it's justified.  But for $250/yr, I will have to spend $750 over 3yrs!  I just can't justify that for my infrequent use of the app.  That would be about $20/video that I produce, and I don't think that's a good value.  If Premiere Elements supported proxies and 4K, I would be OK paying $100 for that program.  I could use it for 3yrs and upgrade later.  But Adobe isn't going to do that, apparently.  They actually have deceiving advertising, touting Elements supports 4K editing, but they don't tell you the computer will cost you $7500 for a computer powerful enough to support full 4K native editing.  Maybe in 2-3yrs you can buy a $3K computer that can support Elements 4K editing, with new 12 to 18 core i9 CPUs.  Today, Elements is only good for 1080, regardless what Adobe says, IMHO.

Seaduner Posted at 2018-6-27 13:46
That's exactly my feelings.  I can't justify subscription, because I don't use it every day.  If I did use it every day for work, then it's justified.  But for $250/yr, I will have to spend $750 over 3yrs!  I just can't justify that for my infrequent use of the app.  That would be about $20/video that I produce, and I don't think that's a good value.  If Premiere Elements supported proxies and 4K, I would be OK paying $100 for that program.  I could use it for 3yrs and upgrade later.  But Adobe isn't going to do that, apparently.  They actually have deceiving advertising, touting Elements supports 4K editing, but they don't tell you the computer will cost you $7500 for a computer powerful enough to support full 4K native editing.  Maybe in 2-3yrs you can buy a $3K computer that can support Elements 4K editing, with new 12 to 18 core i9 CPUs.  Today, Elements is only good for 1080, regardless what Adobe says, IMHO.

I decided to buy an upgraded video adapter and start learning Davinci Resolve.  By using the optimized media function, it becomes very manageable.  Rendering the media to optimize does put the hurt on the CPU but once its done you are good to go. Lots to learn