Adobe CS5 Production Premium Overview Review
As video editors, we have patiently waited (and waited and waited) for tools that are as quick as our clicks and keystrokes. But performance gains in past versions of Adobe's Creative Suite have been mostly incremental. After testing one of the very latest pre-release versions, we can say that CS5 is nothing less than revolutionary. Our wait is over.
Since there is so much to cover, for now, we'll give you a taste of what's new and improved in the suite as a whole giving more attention to Premiere Pro. In our next review, we'll provide a more detailed analysis of the programs we know you use the most, like Premiere Pro, After Effects and Sound Booth. For the flagship programs in the Production Premium suite, this is Adobe's definitive move to the 64-bit operating system platform. While the other programs in the CS5 suite remain 32-bit, Premiere Pro, After Effects, Photoshop Extended and Media Encoder are native 64-bit only. Adobe does include 32-bit CS4 versions of Premiere Pro and After Effects for those of you that can't wait to harness some of the other benefits of the new suite.
This upgrade may be the excuse you've been looking for to buy new hardware, so be sure to check the Tech Specs. Even if you have enough CPU horsepower, there is a good chance your system will need (or can now fully address) more RAM. Most significantly, you'll need one of just a handful of currently compatible nVidia graphics cards to unleash all of the newfound productivity of CS5. Our test machine, an 8-core 2.33GHz Xeon with 32GB of RAM, included an nVidia Quadro CX card (performance details in our next review).
With the introduction of some new products and more tightly integrated applications, CS5's workflow mirrors modern real world production more closely than ever. For example, one production workflow that uses all the Production Premium applications could start with a script in Story (optional) that is handed off to OnLocation in the form of metadata that gets broken into scenes that you capture directly to disc. These scenes, along with other media that you create in Sound Booth, Photoshop or Illustrator are arranged on a timeline in Premiere Pro. Dynamic link makes a no-render hand-off to After Effects that tosses it back to Premiere Pro then out to Encore for output to a physical or online DVD or to Media Encoder for encoding to a large selection of output formats. Bridge remains a touchstone for asset management while Flash Professional, Device Central or the new Flash Catalyst can further transform your final production into an engaging mobile device or online presentation. Given this emphasis on workflow, we'll approach this review in the order you might use the applications in a production pipeline.
Adobe takes an important step backward in the production process with the release of their new collaborative script writing solution, Story. It is part of the larger web-based collaboration center, CS Live, which includes Review (not yet fully functional), Acrobat.com, Browser Lab, Site Catalyst and Net Averages. These hosted services allow you to share your work with co-producers and clients for writing, editing, reviewing, testing, and analyzing your production throughout the various stages of its development and distribution. While you do get 12 months of free access by registering your copy of CS5, Story and other CS Live tools are an optional paid subscription service. Adobe did not have a listed price at the time of publication.
As a video producer-editor, you may at first find Story and Review most useful, but don't overlook the potential for the other offerings to help you refine and gain a wider audience for your productions. In this release, it appears Adobe zapped most of the bugs we noted in our earlier review although some key features, like A/V script formatting, are still not fully functional. Story appears nearly ready and continues to look like a promising new addition most attractive to producers already familiar with a formal production workflow. Only time will tell if the idea of an integrated subscription service will prove popular.
Metadata is quickly becoming as important as picture and sound and OnLocation takes it from second-cousin status to newlywed. The script comes in from Story as the base metadata set that is broken out into scene/shot information in OnLocation. You can use this as the basis for capturing your video direct to disc or, with a little bit of finessing, incorporate footage acquired by tapeless cameras into the shot breakout (more on this in our next review). When you are finished capturing and logging, your picture, sound and metadata then flow along the production pipeline into Premiere Pro.
The OnLocation interface remains similar but the key improvements are just a click away. Within the metadata panel, you now have OnLocation Project and Script information. OnLocation now incorporates the same media browser as Premiere Pro and the new Comment Markers and Turbo Comments, lets you immediately add notes about individual shots.
