When you scale layers in Photoshop that have layer styles applied to them, you’ll notice the layer styles do not scale with the layer. For example, let’s say a layer had a stroke of 15px. When the layer is scaled down using Free Transform, the stroke remains at 15px making it too thick for the smaller size.

In this tip, we’ll go over two methods for handling layer style scaling in Photoshop.

Scale Layer Styles in Photoshop

Scaling with Smart Objects

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1. Right-click the layer with the layer styles applied to it.

2. Select Convert to Smart Object from the dropdown.

3. That’s it. Now when you scale the layer with Free Transform, the layer styles won’t be affected.

To modify layer styles of a Smart Object, simply double-click the Layer Thumbnail for the layer you want to change. This will open the document of the Smart Object in a new tab. Once here, make any changes and they will update on the original document when saved.

Using Scale Effects

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1. Select the layer you want to scale the effects for in the Layers Panel.

2. Go to Layer > Layer Style > Scale Effects…

3. Adjust the percentage or drag the slider until you get the desired outcome. Make sure the Preview checkbox is checked. This will scale all values of the effects applied to that layer. Press OK when you’re happy with the results.

Tip: For a more precise scale of the layer styles, scale the layer down using the percentage values from Free Transform. Then, you can input that exact percentage in the Scale Effects dialog box.

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An effect you see used quite often on TV shows with a lot of action is a split screen side by side view of two camera angles. This effect can be done easily in Premiere Pro with the help of a few calculations and the Motion effects properties. 

In this tutorial, learn how to use motion properties to achieve a horizontal split screen in Premiere Pro. You’ll learn the technique for applying this to different resolutions from 4K and beyond.

Horizontal Split Screen in Premiere

4K Footage

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1. Place your two clips above each other on the timeline. So you should have one clip on Track 1 and your second clip on Track 2 for example.

2. Select your clip on the top track and open the Effect Controls for it.

3. Divide the Scale in half. So 100 / 2 = 50.0 for the Scale.

4. For the Position property, take the first value and DIVID that in half. 1920 / 2 = 960. Set the first value in the Position to 960 and the clip will move to the left.

5. Select the second clip on the bottom track and open the Effect Controls.

6. Divide the Scale in half. So 100 / 2 = 50.0 for the Scale again.

7. For the Position property, take the first value and ADD the value from the Position of the left clip. 1920 + 960 = 2880. Set the first value in the Position to 2880 and the clip will move to the right.

1080p Full HD Footage

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1. Place your two clips above each other on the timeline. So you should have one clip on Track 1 and your second clip on Track 2 for example.

2. Select your clip on the top track and open the Effect Controls for it.

3. Divide the Scale in half. So 100 / 2 = 50.0 for the Scale.

4. For the Position property, take the first value and DIVID that in half. 960 / 2 = 480. Set the first value in the Position to 960 and the clip will move to the left.

5. Select the second clip on the bottom track and open the Effect Controls.

6. Divide the Scale in half. So 100 / 2 = 50.0 for the Scale again.

7. For the Position property, take the first value and ADD the value from the Position of the left clip. 960 + 480 = 1440. Set the first value in the Position to 2880 and the clip will move to the right.

That’s all there is to it! This will work with any size footage as long as you  follow the same formula from above.

Removing the Black Bars

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1. Go to Sequence > Sequence Settings… in the menu.

2. Divide the Height (Vertical Value) in half. So 1080 / 2 = 540 for the second field of the video Frame Size.

3. Press OK and OK for the warning to reveal the results.

Please note: Though this will remove the black bars, not all devices will support this resolution.

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Missing the track motion button in Vegas Pro? By default, only the Mute and Solo buttons are enabled for each track. Here’s how to restore the visible button set on the track headers.

Step 1

Click the hamburger icon to the left of the track header area and click, “Edit Visible Button Set…“⠀

Step 2

Select the buttons you want to appear in all video track headers. I chose “Show All“. Press OK.

Step 3

Repeat the same process for Audio Tracks. Select the buttons you want to appear in all audio track headers. I chose “Show All“. Press OK.

That’s all there is to it! The visible buttons have been restored as they appeared in previous version of VEGAS Pro. Of course, you could just stick to navigating the hamburger menu for these buttons but I find it easier just pressing a button that’s already there.

Restore Vegas Pro 14 Window Layout

If you’re really missing the old layout, specifically from VEGAS Pro 14, you can change the window layout to “Vegas 14 Default” by navigating to View > Window Layouts > Vegas 14 Default or press the shortcut key Alt+D, V . This will also restore the Visible Button Set on Track Headers.

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Step 1

Right-click anywhere in the track header area and click, “Delete Tracks…”⠀

Step 2

Select “Delete Video Tracks” and “Delete Audio Tracks” to delete both or select each separately if you only want to delete one kind. Make sure to set the dropdown to “All Empty Tracks” and press OK.

That’s all there is to it! Now your timeline only contains the tracks with media in them.

Don’t miss tips like this and more by following @robsproductions on Instagram.

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Ever wonder how to get that phone call voice effect like we’ve all heard in TV shows and movies? This can be done in Premiere quite easily with the Highpass and Lowpass audio filters.

Step 1

Add both the Highpass and Lowpass filter effects to your audio clip. Both can be found in the Effects Panel.

Step 2

Set the Highpass Cutoff between 400.0Hz - 700.0Hz.

Step 3

Set the Lowpass Cutoff to 4000.0Hz.

Step 4

Adjust as necessary.⁣

That’s all there is to it! Now you can make it sound like they’re truly on the other line.

So what do these filters do exactly?

Highpass
The Highpass effect removes frequencies below the specified Cutoff frequency. Therefore, giving you a more high pitched tinny sound.

Lowpass
The Lowpass effect removes frequencies above the specified Cutoff frequency giving you a more muffled sound.

Don’t miss tips like this and more by following @robsproductions on Instagram.

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In this tutorial, learn how to fade out text while simultaneously changing its color in Premiere. This text effect is inspired by the Stranger Things title sequence shown in the video below.

In the title sequence, the text fades in red, and then turns white when revealed. It then fades out white and turns red just before it disappears.

1. Add bold text to your timeline. I used the following;

• Helvetica Black
• Size: 80
• All Caps
• Center Aligned
• Color: White

2. Make a copy of the text layer above the original. Hold “Alt” while moving clips to quickly duplicate them.

3. Apply a Cross Dissolve to both text layers and set the transition duration to 00:00:00:05. You can use the shortcut key “Ctrl + D / Cmd + D” to apply a default video transition to all selected clips. Then, hold “Shift” to select each transition and right-click > Set Transition Duration to apply the transition time to all at once.

4. Set the bottom text layer to color Red. Choose any color.

5. Offset the top, “white” text layer 2 frames at the beginning and end so that the red layer has a head start and final finish. When you play it through, you should see the red text appear briefly and then turn white at the beginning and turn red just before it completely fades out at the end.

Copy these text layers and repeat as necessary for your message.

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In this tip, learn how to sample colors outside of Photoshop with the Eyedropper tool.

Sample Colors Outside of Photoshop

1. Open the color picker to activate the Eyedropper tool or activate the Eyedropper tool from the Tools panel.

2. With the Eyedropper tool active, click inside Photoshop and drag outside the window to the color you want to sample. You will see the color update with the position of the Eyedropper.

3. Let go of the mouse button and your selected color will be chosen in Photoshop.

That’s it! Maybe this can help save you some time in the future.

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In this tip, learn how to split a single clip into multiple subclips from the project panel.

Create a subclip from the Project panel

You can create multiple subclips from a single media file. Handy if you have footage from a camera that was recording several events in a single take.

1. Double-click the original clip to open it in the Source Monitor.

2. Set the In and Out points for the subclip in the Source Monitor.

3. Click in the middle of the Source Monitor and drag the subclip down to the Project Panel. The subclip appears in the Project panel and can be treated like a normal clip in the timeline.

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This Instagram live inspired hearts animation overlay is perfect for adding Valentine’s Day themed flair to your Instagram stories. It’s so easy to use and works well with both images and videos. A neat way to impress your audience with these stylish pink hearts.

• Transparent Alpha Channel
• 1080X1920 (HD)
• Instagram Story Ready
• 30 Second Length
• Loopable

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Premiere Pro includes three audio crossfade transitions for fading audio. They are Constant Gain, Constant Power and Exponential Fade. Hear the differences between each in our Instagram post below.

From the Effects Panel

These audio transitions can be found in the Effects Panel under Audio Transitions > Crossfade.

Constant Gain: Changes audio at a constant rate in and out as it transitions between clips. This can sometimes sound abrupt.

Constant Power: (Default Transition) Creates a smooth, gradual transition. The audio is decreased slowly at first and then quickly towards the end of the transition for the first clip. Then, increases quickly at first and then slowly toward the end of the transition for the second clip. Similar to the dissolve transition.

Exponential Fade: Fades out the first clips over a smooth logarithmic curve while fading up the second clip. You will hear brief silence between the two audio clips.

Setting the Duration

The duration of the transition can be adjusted by clicking and dragging it to the desired length. The audio transition length will either increase or decrease the time it takes to fade the audio in or out.

You can also double-click the transition to set its precise length.

Keyboard Shortcut

Use the keyboard shortcut Shift + D to automatically add a Constant Power audio transition to the beginning and end of all selected clips. Audio clips that are placed right next to each other will result in a crossfade between the two.

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