How to Crop a Video in Adobe Premiere Pro

Co-authored by João Homem and Travis Boylls

Last Updated: November 17, 2020 Tested

VIDEO

This wikiHow teaches you how to crop unwanted areas out of a video using Adobe's Premiere Pro video editing application. You'll find the crop tool in the "Transform" area of the "Effects" menu.

Steps

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You can open Adobe Premiere Pro by double-clicking on the purple app icon with the letters "Pr.
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Open a project in Adobe Premiere Pro. Use the following steps to open a project in Adobe Premiere Pro.
- Click File in the menu bar at the top of the screen
- Click New... to start a new project or Open... to open an existing project.
- Select the file you want to open and click Open.
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Import the video clip you want to crop into your project. If the video you want to crop isn't already in the project, you will need to import it into Premiere. Use the following steps to import a video clip into your project:
- Click File
- Click Import.
- Select the video you want to import.
- Click Open.
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Click and drag the video you want to crop to your Timeline panel. Video clips that you import into Adobe Premiere Pro can be found in the Project panel under the "Libraries" tab. The Project panel is typically located in the lower-left corner of the screen. The Timeline panel is typically located just to the right of the Project panel.
- If you don't see the Project panel, the Timeline panel, or any other panel you need to access, click Window in the menu bar at the top and make sure the panel you need to access is checked.
This highlights the video clip in the timeline.^{[1]
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It's a tab at the top of the Project panel. This displays a list of effects categories.
It's the icon that resembles an arrowhead next to "Video Effects" in the list of effects. This displays a list of more categories for video effects.
It's the icon that resembles an arrowhead next to the "Transform" folder. This displays a list Transform video effects.
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Click on and drag the Crop effect onto the video clip on the Timeline. The crop effect is listed in the Transform effects. Doing so opens the Effects Controls tab in the upper-left window on the screen.
- Alternatively, you can type "Crop" in the search bar at the top of the Project panel and press Enter to locate the Crop effect.
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Adjust the borders of the clip. You can adjust the borders by clicking and dragging the number values next to "Left," "Right," "Top," and "Bottom" in the Effects Control panel. Increasing these number values will add a black border around the sides of the video clip in the Sequence Preview panel. Decreasing the values removes the border. You can click the percentage number and drag to adjust the percentage, or double-click it and type in your own percentage value.
- A percentage of 0% next to "Left," "Right," "Top," or "Bottom" means that the side is uncropped.
- Increasing the number value next to Edge Feather in the Effects Control panel will soften the cropped border around the video.
- Click the checkbox next to Zoom to enlarge the visible portion of the cropped video clip to fill the Sequence Preview panel.^{[2]
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  - Zooming in on lower resolution video clips may cause the video to appear pixilated or fuzzy.

Expert Q&A

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Question

Does cropping a video result in a loss of quality?

João Homem
Film & Media Industry Expert
João Homem is a Professional Colorist and Film & Media Industry Expert based in Vancouver, British Columbia. As the Co-Founder and Creative Director of Escuro Studios, a Canadian full-service production company, he oversees creative development and both pre- and post-production for diverse projects, including music videos, commercials, films, and TV series. He is also the CEO and founder of Cromatic Elements, an online asset store for filmmakers that supports emerging professionals by providing a platform to share high-quality tools, insights, and assets across multiple creative fields. Originally created to develop filmic assets for personal use, Cromatic has grown into a community-driven space where up-and-coming creatives can access resources designed by top industry professionals. João’s commitment to fostering a collaborative environment and offering accessible, authentic tools has positioned Cromatic as a valuable resource for filmmakers around the world.

João Homem

Film & Media Industry Expert

Expert Answer

Yes, cropping a video can result in quality loss. It's because when you crop, you're essentially cutting out a part of the frame and zooming in on the remaining portion. This reduces the overall resolution of your video because you're working with fewer pixels than the original video. If you crop your video into a smaller frame and then try to display the video at the same size as the original, the image can look pixelated or less sharp. To minimize quality loss, avoid cropping too much unless it's necessary for the visual impact. If you do need to crop, try to start with the highest resolution footage possible so that even after cropping, the resolution remains adequate for your project.

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Question

Is there a way to crop the actual output video without the black borders?

Community Answer

Yes. Under the Motion drop down, there is a Scale and Position option which you can use to scale the video clip up to fit the frame. Keep in mind though, you will likely lose some clarity if you keep it the same resolution.

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Question

Is there a way to specifically make it a square?

Community Answer

Yes. Setting equal percentage values under "effects," then "transform," then "crop" should do the thing.

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