How to Do Chroma Key on Adobe Premiere Pro

Co-authored by João Homem

Last Updated: November 28, 2022

Interested in learning how to do chroma key? This handy visual editing technique lets you overlap images and videos on top of each other. We've outlined everything you need to know, so you can master this effect in your own video editing projects.

1

Open Adobe Premiere Pro.

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Select New Project if you want to start from scratch. Or, open an existing project if you plan on adding chroma key to a composition you've already made.

2

Set up the background image/video.

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Just drag and drop it into the timeline. This can also just be Premiere's default background colour.

3

Prepare the clip/s that you want to key.

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For optimal effectiveness, they will always have a flat-colored background. This is commonly green, hence why the effect is also known as 'green screening.' Drop these clips onto the timeline above the background.

4

Resize and adjust the clip.

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Keep adjusting until you are satisfied with its size and position. If it will be a full-screen effect (like this clip of falling leaves), resize until it completely covers the screen.

5

Search up the effect.

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Make sure you are in the Effects tab (indicated at the top). There should be an 'effects' search bar on the right. Inside, type key. There will be many different effects, but Ultra Key is the most effective one.

6

Click and drag Ultra Key onto the clip you will be processing.

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On the left, the ultra key settings will appear in the effect menu.

7

Go to Key Color in the settings and click dropper.

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It will now transform your cursor into a color selector. Click on a green (or plain colour bg) part of the clip. You will notice that most of the green will disappear.

8

Play the clip.

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Check to see if you are satisfied with the key. If it looks messy or it doesn't look natural, you can tweak it with the settings. Some tweaks you can do include altering how aggressive color removal is and the saturation/hue of the clip. Play around until you are happy with it.

9

Trim all clips to the desired length.

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Once you are done, you can export the project or continue editing.

Community Q&A

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Question

Can you key out more than one color?

Silvertheprophecy

Community Answer

The base feature of Ultra key only lets you key out one colour. However, depending on what you want to do, a combination of blend modes and other effects may help achieve the same effect.

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Ultra key can be applied to both static images and videos.

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You can layer multiple images on top of each other and apply ultra key to all of them.

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For better quality video manipulation, ensure you consider the lighting and hue of the clips. If they don't match, it detracts from the realism of the key.

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