How Should I Organize My Project Files

[jmsweatt]

I'm embarking on a large project where I capture roughly 100 hours of footage from a bunch of old VHS, VHS-C, Hi8 and DVD home movies.

I've been told that, for performance reasons, its best to use one hard drive for OS and applications and then use another drive for data. Therefore, I plan to install a new super-fast drive in my system and save my project and media files to the new drive.

What's the best way to organize my project folders?

Thanks for your comments!

[ATR]

After reading the following link, you could might want to look further into Premiere Elements “Project Archiver” feature with is Archiver and Copy options as well how to direct your scratch files to the your non-C drive (Edit Menu/Preferences/Scratch Disks).
http://forums.adobe.com/thread/389720

The following link has another approach which may be too general for you, but check it out. After reading suggestions, you may want to incorporate a little of any into your own organization that works for you.
http://www.which.co.uk/advice/beginners-guide-to-video-editing/index.jsp

That is just a start.

The following are just some quick miscellaneous thoughts:

1. The media that you import and use in a Premiere Elements project .prel are linked to that project. That is, Premiere Elements recognizes the location of the source media where it was at import in a given project. So, if you close a project (.prel), save it, move your source Media to new location or delete them, reopen the project (.prel), then you will get a lot of reconnect messages as well as have to update the Organizer thumbnails. That is when the Project Archiver feature can come to the rescue. With its Archiver option, it saves the project (.prel) with the media that went into the Timeline. With its Copy option, it saves the project (.prel) with the media that went into the Timeline plus All the Media in the Media Panel (whether actually dragged to the Timeline or not).

2. Make sure that your drive letters are not changing on you for any reason. If that happens, that situation will present itself to Premiere Elements as moved or lost file(s), and the reconnect messages and issues follow.

That is just a quick start view. More details later, if necessary.

ATR


(I just noticed that you list Premiere Elements 7 and Photoshop Elements 4. That would constitute a non integrated pair...major lost perk, if you create a slideshow in Photoshop Elements 4 Slideshow Editor, output it to Premiere Elements 7 with the Photoshop Elements 4 Slideshow Editor "Send to Premiere Elements", once the slideshow gets to the Premiere Elements 7 Timeline, the "Break Apart Slideshow" option will be grayed out when you right click the video on the Timeline. This has implications if you want to do some serious editing of the Photoshop Elements 4 slideshow in Premiere Elements 7. More on that later in another thread, if necessary.)

[jmsweatt]

Thanks again, ATR.

The thread at http://forums.adobe.com/thread/389720 is excellent. I also read all the PE7 help file information on scratch disks last night and I think I understand how that should be done now.

Also:

1. The project archiver is going to be just what I need. To protect against hard drive failure, do you normally save your archives to a data DVD or external drive or what?

2. Will do. When I install and partition the new fast data drive I will make it a D drive and I don't think that Windows will not change it.

Thanks for the tip on PE7 and PSE7 integration. If I do any photoshop work at all, I will upgrade it. Up until now, my photo editing has been so minimal, the older version hasn't been a problem.

Thanks again!

[jmsweatt]

That should be: 2. ... I don't that Windows will change it. above.

Sorry to be confusing.

[ATR]

Jim,

When it comes to saving photos or video, I have often seen suggestions to have backups for the backups (as many backups as practical and possible).

ATR