FLASH CS3
User Guide
317
If you export video files in other standard formats, Adobe Flash can encode your videos within Flash applications,
using the latest compression technologies to deliver the greatest quality possible at small file sizes.
Moving content between Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe Flash
After you start and edit a video in Adobe Premiere Pro, you can add sequence markers to the timeline that serve as
cue points in a Flash application. Then, you can export the movie directly into the Adobe Flash Video format (FLV).
You can choose from several Adobe Media Encoder presets that balance file size against audio and video quality to
achieve the bit rate needed for any target audience or device. If you export the movie with an alpha channel, the
movie can be easily used as a layer in a Flash project.
You can then import this movie into Adobe Flash for use in an interactive website or mobile application. Flash will
read sequence markers as cue points you can use to trigger events in the Flash composition. In Flash, you can also
customize the interface that surrounds your video.
Alternatively, because Flash can be used to create animations, you can start a movie as a Flash project, export it as a
QuickTime file, then import the QuickTime file into Adobe Premiere Pro for editing. In Adobe Premiere Pro, for
example, you could add titles or mix the animation with other video sources.
Tips for creating Adobe Flash Video
Follow these guidelines to deliver the best possible Flash video:
Work with video in the native format of your project until your final output
If you convert a precompressed digital video format into another format such as FLV, the previous encoder can
introduce video noise. The first compressor already applied its encoding algorithm to the video, reducing its quality,
frame size, and rate. That compression may have also introduced digital artifacts or noise. This additional noise
affects the final encoding process, and a higher data rate may be required to encode a good-quality file.
Strive for simplicity
Avoid elaborate transitions—they don’t compress well and can make your final compressed video look “chunky”
during the change. Hard cuts (as opposed to dissolves) are usually best. Eye-catching video sequences—for instance
showing an object zooming from behind the first track, doing a “page peel,” or wrapping around a ball and then
flying off the screen—don’t compress well and should be used sparingly.
Know your audience data rate
When you deliver video over the Internet, produce files at lower data rates. Users with fast Internet connections can
view the files with little or no delay for loading, but dial-up users must wait for files to download. Make the clips short
to keep the download times within acceptable limits for dial-up users.
Select the proper frame rate
Frame rate indicates frames per second (fps). If you have a higher data rate clip, a lower frame rate can improve
playback through limited bandwidth. For example, if you are compressing a clip with little motion, cutting the frame
rate in half probably saves you only 20% of the data rate. However, if you are compressing high-motion video,
reducing the frame rate has a much greater effect on the data rate.