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Add media

Last updated on Oct 1, 2024

Learn to add media in Premiere Elements 2025. You can add media from Elements Organizer, your computer's hard drive, digital cameras, phones or removable drives, etc.

Media files are essential for making movies in Adobe Premiere Elements. You can add various media types (audio, video, or images) from different places.

To know about the supported file types, see Supported file formats.

To know about supported devices, see Supported Devices | Adobe Premiere Elements.

You can add media to Adobe Premiere Elements using one of these methods:

Import recorded files (audio, video, or image).
Record narrations using a microphone (for more information, see Create narrations).

Add media using embedded Elements Organizer

Add media from the albums in Elements Organizer.

Do one of the following:
- Click Add Media, and select Elements Organizer.
- Choose File > Add Media From > Elements Organizer.
The embedded Elements Organizer is launched.
Tip:

In the Elements Organizer Add Media panel, you can find several other options, such as Hide Video, Hide Audio, and Hide Still Image. You can filter your search from the burger menu in the Elements Organizer Add Media panel from the options View Newest First, View Oldest First, and View by Import Batch. Also, on the search option at the top and page navigator next to the Add Files button at the bottom.
In the Elements Organizer workspace, locate the album containing your media.
Drag one or more media files to the Sceneline or Advanced view timeline.

You can also select the clips and select Add Files. It adds the clips to the timeline.
After your clips are added to the timeline, Select Done.

Add media using Files and Folders

Import videos, photos, and audio files from your computer’s hard drive or other storage devices (for example, external hard drive or pen drive).

Do one of the following:
- Click the Add Media panel and choose Files And Folders.
Add Media panel

Or Choose File > Add Media From > Files And Folders.
To import a media file, locate and select the file from the dialog box and click Open.

On Windows, select the folder from the dialog box and click Import Folder if you want to add an entire folder.

Note:

Alternately, you can drag files from your operating system's file explorer to the Sceneline or Advanced view timeline.

Photos from cameras or devices

This option opens the Photo Importer window and allows you to import photos from a camera, mobile phone, or removable hard drive. It also imports media from devices that store photo files in Flash memory or on a disk.

Connect your digital camera, mobile phone, or removable drive to your computer.

Note:

If your device requires any driver to work with your system, install it before you start importing media files. Check your device's manual for more information.
Select Add Media > Photos from cameras and devices on the left-side panel.
Choose the drive or device from the Source drop-down list. Thumbnails of all importable files appear in the dialog box.
To specify a location for the saved files, do one of the following:
- To save files to the default Adobe folder, leave the location as it appears in the dialog box.
- To specify a different location, click File Folder icon (Windows)/Choose (Mac OS) and choose a folder. Alternatively, click New Folder to create a folder and name it.
- You can change the Presets such as File Name, Folder Name-Number, Date-File Name, and Custom Name-Number from the Presets drop-down in the dialog box.
- To consistently rename the files in the folder, click the Presets drop-down. If you want to use a custom file name, select Custom Name-Number. The default is the File Name option. When the files are added to the folder and the Project Assets panel, the filenames are in increments of 0001. For example, if you enter summer, the filenames are changed to summer0001.jpg, summer0002.jpg, and so on.
Select files that you want to add to your timeline.

By default, all files are selected. A check mark below the file’s thumbnail indicates that the file is selected. Select the respective thumbnail to remove the check mark and exclude a file.

You can also select or deselect all files using the Check All or UnCheck All buttons. Click on the Get Media button to import, the Cancel button, or the cross icon at the top to cancel and close the dialog. The dialog also has options to Preview media, Add To Timeline, After Copying Delete Originals.

Note:

If you don’t want to use all the files you added, you can delete them from the Project Assets panel. Deleting a file from the panel doesn’t delete it from its original location.

Videos from cameras or devices

This option opens the Video Importer window and lets you import videos from camcorders, mobile phone, or hard drive. It also imports media from devices that store video files in Flash memory or on a disk.

Connect your digital camera, mobile phone, or removable drive to your computer.

Note:

If your device requires any driver to work with your system, install it before you start importing media files. Check your device's manual for more information.
Select Add Media > Videos from cameras and devices on the left-side panel.
Choose the drive or device from the Get Photos from drop-down list. Thumbnails of all importable files appear in the dialog box.
To specify a location for the saved files, do one of the following:
- To save files to the default Adobe folder, leave the location as it appears in the dialog box.
- To specify a different location, click File Folder icon (Windows)/Choose (Mac OS) and choose a folder. Alternatively, click New Folder to create a folder and name it.
- You can change the Presets such as File Name, Folder Name-Number, Date-File Name, and Custom Name-Number from the Presets drop-down in the dialog box.
- To consistently rename the files in the folder, click the Presets drop-down. If you want to use a custom file name, select Custom Name-Number. The default is the File Name option. When the files are added to the folder and the Project Assets panel, the filenames are in increments of 0001. For example, if you enter summer, the filenames are changed to summer0001.jpg, summer0002.jpg, and so on.
Select files that you want to add to your timeline.

By default, all files are selected. A check mark below the file’s thumbnail indicates that the file is selected. Select the respective thumbnail to remove the check mark and exclude a file.

You can also select or deselect all files using the Check All or UnCheck All buttons. Click on the Get Media button to import, the Cancel button, or the cross icon at the top to cancel and close the dialog. The dialog also has options to Preview media, Add To Timeline, After Copying Delete Originals.

Note:

If you don’t want to use all the files you added, you can delete them from the Project Assets panel. Deleting a file from the panel doesn’t delete it from its original location.

Import videos from a DVD camera or computer drive

Import video from devices that store video files in Flash memory or on a disk. Such devices include Flip and other compact video cameras, AVCHD, DVD, DSLR and other cameras, and mobile phones. When you import these files, they are copied to the hard drive location you specify. The files are also added to the Project Assets panel.

Note:

On Mac OS, Video Importer does not list external DVD drives. Use internal Superdrive in this case.

You can add clips directly to the Sceneline or Advanced view timeline without creating a project. When you add a clip to the timeline, Adobe Premiere Elements automatically changes your project settings to match the clip properties.

However, a message appears if you add a clip to an existing project whose preset does not match the clip’s preset. You can let Adobe Premiere Elements change the project’s settings to use the closest available preset.

Do one of the following:
- Place the DVD into your computer’s DVD drive.
- Connect your card reader such as SD card or memory stick to your computer.
- Connect the digital camera, mobile phone, or other device to your computer using the USB port.
Note:

If your device requires any driver to work with your system, install it before you start importing media files. Check your device's manual for more information.
Do one of the following:
- Click Add Media > DVD camera or computer drive.
- Choose File > Add Media from > DVD camera or computer drive.
Select the device from Source drop-down in the Video Importer dialog.

The importable files are displayed in the panel below the Source menu. The number of files, and the size of the content is displayed at the bottom of the panel containing the content.

Note:

Video Importer cannot import media from external hard drives. If you want to import media from an external hard drive, use the Files and folders option.
Do one of the following:
- To import all the content displayed in the panel, click Check All.
- To import selected clips, click UnCheck All, and select only those clips that you want to import.
Note:

To preview the contents of a clip, click the clip and click the Play button in the Preview panel.
To specify a location for the saved files, do one of the following:
- To save files to the default Adobe folder, leave the location as it appears in the dialog box.
- To specify a different location, click File Folder icon (Windows)/Choose (Mac OS) and choose a folder. Alternatively, click New Folder to create a folder and name it.
- You can change the Presets such as File Name, Folder Name-Number, Date-File Name, and Custom Name-Number from the Presets drop-down present in the dialog box.
- To consistently rename the files in the folder, click the Presets drop-down. If you want to use a custom file name, use the Presets drop-down menu. Select Custom Name-Number. The default is the File Name option. When the files are added to the folder and the Project Assets panel, the filenames are in increments of 0001. For example, if you enter summer, the filenames are changed to summer0001.jpg, summer0002.jpg, and so on.
Select files that you want to add to your timeline.

By default, all files are selected. A check mark below the file’s thumbnail indicates that the file is selected. Select the respective thumbnail to remove the check mark and exclude a file.

You can also select or deselect all files using the Check All or UnCheck All buttons. Click on the Get Media button to import, the Cancel button, or the cross icon at the top to cancel and close the dialog. The dialog also has options to Preview media, Add To Timeline, After Copying Delete Originals.

Select one of the following naming conventions for the downloaded files using the Presets menu:

Filename

Retains the filenames the camcorder assigns.

Folder Name-Number

If your folder name is Wedding Pics, the clips are assigned the names Wedding Pics-001, Wedding Pics-002, and so on.

Date-File Name

Adds a timestamp to the filename the camcorder assigns. The timestamp is the current date and time - the date and time on which the movies were transferred to your computer.

Note:

To rename files, delete them from the Project Assets panel in the Expert view, and reimport them.

Custom Name-Number

Enter a custom name in the Name field. For example, if you enter My Holiday in the field, the clips are named My Holiday-001, My Holiday-002, and so on.
Click Get Media. You can click Cancel in the Progress dialog box at any time to stop the process.

Import media using Media Browser

The Media Browser is a convenient tool for adding files directly to your project from various sources. It streamlines the process, whether you are working with local files on your machine or accessing files from cloud storage services.

With Media Browser, you can:

1. Add Files: To add files using the Media Browser, follow these steps:

Select the Add Media button from the extreme top left panel.
Select the Media Browser.
You’ll now be able to browse and choose files from different locations.

2. Supported Sources: The Media Browser supports the following sources:

Local Machine: Browse files stored on your computer.

Network Drives: Access files from network drives.

3. Cloud Services:

Google Drive
Dropbox
iCloud
OneDrive

Note:

You can use these services only when you have these services desktop app installed in your system.

4. Preview Files: Before finalizing your selection, use the File Preview. Scrub over the file to see the preview. This allows you to view the contents of the files you are about to add, ensuring you select the correct file.

Content applicable to previous versions of Adobe Premiere Elements

The media files are the building blocks of the movies you create in Adobe Premiere Elements. You can add different types of media files (audio, video, or images) to Adobe Premiere Elements from different sources.

To know about the supported file types, see Supported file formats.

To know about supported devices, see Supported devices | Adobe Premiere Elements.

You can add media to Adobe Premiere Elements using one of these methods:

Import recorded files (audio, video, or image)
Capture live from recording devices
Record narrations from a microphone (for more information, see Create narrations)

When you add media files in the Quick view, the files are added to the Quick view timeline. In the Expert mode, the files are added to the Project Assets panel. You can select and add the files to the timeline from the Project Assets panel.

Add media using embedded Elements Organizer

Add media from the albums in Elements Organizer to the Quick view or Expert view timeline.

Do one of the following:
- Click Add Media, and select Elements Organizer.
- Choose File > Add Media From > Elements Organizer.
The embedded Elements Organizer is launched.
In the Elements Organizer workspace, locate the album containing your media.
Drag one or more media files to the Quick view timeline or Expert view timeline.

You can also select the clips and click Add Files. It adds the clips to the timeline.
After your clips are added to the timeline, click Done.

Add media using Files and Folders

Import videos, photos, and audio files from your computer’s hard drive or other storage devices (for example, external hard drive or pen drive).

Do one of the following:
- Click the Add Media panel and choose Files And Folders.
Add Media panel
- Choose File > Add Media From > Files And Folders.
To import a media file, locate and select the file from the dialog box and click Open.

Select the folder from the dialog box and click Import Folder if you want to add an entire folder on both macOS and Windows.

Note:

Alternately, you can drag files from your operating system's file explorer to the Quick view or Expert view timeline.

Add numbered image files as a single clip

If you want to add a sequence of photos as a single clip, use the Add numbered image as a single clip option.

Note:

Make sure that each still‑image filename has the correct filename extension. All filenames in the sequence must contain an equal number of digits before the extension (for example, file000.bmp, file001.bmp, and so on).

Do one of the following:
- Click Add Media and choose Files And Folders.
- Choose File > Add Media From > Files And Folders.
Locate and select the first image in the sequence.
Do one of the following:
- On Windows, select the Numbered Still check box and click Open.
- On Mac OS, select the Numbered Still check box and click Import.
Adobe Premiere Elements interprets all numbered files as a single sequence.

Import photos from your digital camera, phones, or removable drive

Import photos from a camera, mobile phone, or through USB. This option opens the Adobe Photo Downloader window. It also imports media from devices that store video files in Flash memory, or on a disk.

Connect your digital camera, mobile phone, or removable drive to your computer.

Note:

If your device requires any driver to work with your system, install it before you start importing media files. Check your device's manual for more information.
In Adobe Premiere Elements, select Add Media > Photos from cameras or devices and click Advanced Dialog.

Adobe Premiere Elements ‑ Photo Downloader (Advanced Dialog view)
Choose the drive or device from the Get Photos from drop-down list. Thumbnails of all importable files appear in the dialog box.
To specify a location for the saved files, do one of the following:
- To save files to the default Adobe folder, leave the location as it appears in the dialog box.
- To specify a different location, click Browse (Windows)/Choose (Mac OS) and choose a folder. Alternatively, click New Folder to create a folder and name it.
- To create one or more subfolders for grouping files by criteria, click the drop-down next to the Create Subfolder field. Choose one of the options from the drop-down list for naming the subfolder.
- To rename the files in the folder consistently, click the drop-down next to the Rename Files field. Choose an option from the drop-down list for renaming the files. The filename defaults to the folder name you enter. When the files are added to the folder and the Project Assets panel, the filenames are in increments of 0001. For example, if you enter summer, the filenames are changed to summer0001.jpg, summer0002.jpg, and so on.
Select files that you want to add to your timeline.

By default, all files are selected. A check mark below the file’s thumbnail indicates that the file is selected. To remove the check mark and exclude a file, click the respective thumbnail.

You can also select or deselect all files by using the Check All button or the Uncheck All button.
(Optional) If you are using metadata, you can select Preserve Current Filename in XMP.
(Optional) Click the drop-down next to Apply Metadata, select a template, and fill in the Creator and Copyright fields.
Click Get Media.

You can click Cancel in the Progress dialog box at any time to stop the process.

If you want to set a default time duration for the imported image, see Set duration for imported still images.

Note:

If you don’t want to use all the files you added, you can delete them from the Project Assets panel. Deleting a file from the panel doesn’t delete it from its original location.

Import videos from Flip, AVCHD, cameras, phones, or removable drives

Note:

On Mac OS, Video Importer does not list external DVD drives. Use internal Superdrive in this case.

You can add clips directly to the Quick view or Expert view timeline without creating a project. When you add a clip to the timeline, Adobe Premiere Elements automatically changes your project settings to match the clip properties.

However, if you add a clip to an existing project whose preset does not match the clip’s preset, a message appears. You can let Adobe Premiere Elements change the project’s settings to use the closest available preset.

Do one of the following:
- Place the DVD into your computer’s DVD drive.
- Connect your card reader such as SD card or memory stick to your computer.
- Connect the digital camera, mobile phone, or other device to your computer using the USB port.
Note:

If your device requires any driver to work with your system, install it before you start importing media files. Check your device's manual for more information.
Do one of the following:
- Click Add Media > Videos from cameras and devices.
- Choose File > Add Media From > Videos from cameras and devices.
Video Importer dialog box
Select the device from Source drop-down in the Video Importer dialog.

The importable files are displayed in the panel below the Source menu. The number of files, and the size of the content is displayed at the bottom of the panel containing the content.

Note:

Video Importer cannot import media from external hard drives. If you want to import media from an external hard drive, use the Files and folders option.
Do one of the following:
- To import all the content displayed in the panel, click Check All.
- To import selected clips, click UnCheck All, and select only those clips that you want to import.
Note:

To preview the contents of a clip, click the clip and click the Play button in the Preview panel.
To specify a location for the saved files, do one of the following:
- To save files to the default Adobe folder, leave the location as it appears in the dialog box.
- To specify a different location, click and choose a folder. Alternatively, click New Folder to create and name a new folder.
Select one of the following naming conventions for the downloaded files using the Presets menu:

Filename

Retains the filenames the camcorder assigns.

Folder Name-Number

If your folder name is Wedding Pics, the clips are assigned the names Wedding Pics-001, Wedding Pics-002, and so on.

Date-File Name

Adds a timestamp to the filename the camcorder assigns. The timestamp is the current date and time - the date and time on which the movies were transferred to your computer.

Note:

To rename files, delete them from the Project Assets panel in the Expert view, and reimport them.

Custom Name-Number

Enter a custom name in the Name field. For example, if you enter My Holiday in the field, the clips are named My Holiday-001, My Holiday-002, and so on.
(Optional) If you want to delete the selected files from original location after import, select the option After Copying Delete Originals.
(Optional) If you do not want the imported clips added to the Quick view/Expert view timeline after import, deselect Add To Timeline. The imported clips are added only to the Project panel.
(Optional) If you want to create an InstantMovie using the selected clips, select Create InstantMovie.

For more information about InstantMovie, see Creating Instant Movies.
Click Get Media. You can click Cancel in the Progress dialog box at any time to stop the process.

Import videos from Flip, AVCHD, cameras, phones, or removable drives

Note:

On Mac OS, Video Importer does not list external DVD drives. Use internal Superdrive in this case.

Do one of the following:
- Place the DVD into your computer’s DVD drive.
- Connect your card reader such as SD card or memory stick to your computer.
- Connect the digital camera, mobile phone, or other device to your computer using the USB port.
Note:

If your device requires any driver to work with your system, install it before you start importing media files. Check your device's manual for more information.
Do one of the following:
- Click Add Media > Videos from cameras and devices.
- Choose File > Add Media From > Videos from cameras and devices.
Video Importer dialog box
Select the device from Source drop-down in the Video Importer dialog.

The importable files are displayed in the panel below the Source menu. The number of files, and the size of the content is displayed at the bottom of the panel containing the content.

Note:

Video Importer cannot import media from external hard drives. If you want to import media from an external hard drive, use the Files and folders option.
Do one of the following:
- To import all the content displayed in the panel, click Check All.
- To import selected clips, click UnCheck All, and select only those clips that you want to import.
Note:

To preview the contents of a clip, click the clip and click the Play button in the Preview panel.
To specify a location for the saved files, do one of the following:
- To save files to the default Adobe folder, leave the location as it appears in the dialog box.
- To specify a different location, click and choose a folder. Alternatively, click New Folder to create and name a new folder.
Select one of the following naming conventions for the downloaded files using the Presets menu:

Filename

Retains the filenames the camcorder assigns.

Folder Name-Number

If your folder name is Wedding Pics, the clips are assigned the names Wedding Pics-001, Wedding Pics-002, and so on.

Date-File Name

Adds a timestamp to the filename the camcorder assigns. The timestamp is the current date and time - the date and time on which the movies were transferred to your computer.

Note:

To rename files, delete them from the Project Assets panel in the Expert view, and reimport them.

Custom Name-Number

Enter a custom name in the Name field. For example, if you enter My Holiday in the field, the clips are named My Holiday-001, My Holiday-002, and so on.
(Optional) If you want to delete the selected files from original location after import, select the option After Copying Delete Originals.
(Optional) If you do not want the imported clips added to the Quick view/Expert view timeline after import, deselect Add To Timeline. The imported clips are added only to the Project panel.
(Optional) If you want to create an InstantMovie using the selected clips, select Create InstantMovie.

For more information about InstantMovie, see Creating Instant Movies.
Click Get Media. You can click Cancel in the Progress dialog box at any time to stop the process.

Note:

If you don’t want to use all the videos you added, you can delete them from the Project Assets panel. Deleting a video from the panel doesn’t delete it from its original location. This practice is recommended for large VOB files.

Videos with Variable Frame Rate footage

Videos captured from mobile devices may have variable frame rate (VFR), which results in issues such as unsynchronized video and audio during playback.

Premiere Elements 2019 detects VFR footage from a video clip’s properties. To see the properties of a clip, choose File > Get Properties for > Selection. Alternatively, right-click the clip in the Project Assets panel and select Properties.

Premiere Elements 2019 automatically synchronizes the audio with videos that have VFR footage.

Capture video from webcams and WDM devices

You can capture live video from webcams and WDM devices (Windows only) and copy the video clips to a specified location on your hard drive. This option opens the Capture window.

You can capture the clips directly to the timeline by selecting Capture to Timeline check box.

You can add these clips to Adobe Premiere Elements by following the procedure mentioned in Add media from file and folders.

Note:

For WDM devices, make sure that your device is connected with your system and working properly.

Do one of the following:
- For Windows, click Add Media > Webcam or WDM or select File > Add Media from > Webcam or WDM.
- For Mac OS, click Add Media > Webcam or select File > Add Media from > Webcam.
The capture screen appears.
In the Capturing Source menu, select the device from which you want to capture video clips. The video that the device captures is displayed in the panel below the Capturing Source menu.

Note:

You can extract frames using full motion from the integrated camera's webcam feed.
Click the Capture button.
Specify a name for the captured video.
To specify a location for the video, do one of the following:
- To save files to the default Adobe folder, leave the location as it appears in the dialog box.
- To specify a different location, click the button next to the Save to text box and choose a folder. Alternatively, click New Folder to create and name a new folder.
Click Add Media and select Files and folders.
You can also capture the clips directly to the timeline by selecting the Capture to Timeline check box.
Browse to the location where you saved the video files and add them to the Quick view/Expert view timeline.

Note:

You can also use your system's file explorer to locate the saved video files and drag them to Adobe Premiere Elements.

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New user?

Add media

Learn to add media in Premiere Elements 2025. You can add media from Elements Organizer, your computer's hard drive, digital cameras, phones or removable drives, etc.

Add media using embedded Elements Organizer

Add media using Files and Folders

Photos from cameras or devices

Videos from cameras or devices

Import videos from a DVD camera or computer drive

Import media using Media Browser

Content applicable to previous versions of Adobe Premiere Elements

Add media using embedded Elements Organizer

Add media using Files and Folders

Add numbered image files as a single clip

Import photos from your digital camera, phones, or removable drive

Import videos from Flip, AVCHD, cameras, phones, or removable drives

Import videos from Flip, AVCHD, cameras, phones, or removable drives

Videos with Variable Frame Rate footage

Capture video from webcams and WDM devices

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