Editing GH4 4K footage in Premiere Pro


Came upon issues editing Panasonic GH4 4K footage in Premiere Pro? If so, you may wish to read this post. It demonstrats a workaround to transcode GH4 4K files for use in Premiere Pro with optimum performance.
issues editing Panasonic GH4 4K footage in Premiere Pro
Premiere freezing working with GH4 4K footage
“Hello, guys, I tried editing GH4 4K footage in Premiere Pro but Premiere ended up freezing several times. Not sure if it’s because I was using a slow external USB drive or the 4K file size, or something else. Can anyone suggest a smooth workflow? Thanks for any suggestions.”

If for whatever reason you are having problems working with GH4 4K footage in Premiere Pro, we would recommend transcoding them into a format that is best suitable for use in your NLE first. Read on to learn a quick guide on how to convert GH4 4K footage for Premiere Pro editing.

How to transcode GH4 4K files for use in Premiere Pro smoothly?

Here’s what you need
HD Video Converter
You can download a demo version (for both, PC and Mac) to have a try. They are not free but it is totally worth it.
issues editing Panasonic GH4 4K footage in Premiere Protranscode GH4 4K files for use in Premiere Pro

Follow these steps:
Step 1: Start up HD Video Converter as a professional GH4 4K Video Converter for Premiere Pro. When its main interface pops up, click ‘Add File’ to input your source media.
transcode GH4 4K files for use in Premiere Pro

Step 2: Select output format for your NLE
If you are running Premiere Pro on a Windows PC, you can from ‘Profile’ bar, select ‘Avid DNxHD (*.mov)’ as output format under ‘Avid Media Composer’ column.
Premiere freezing working with GH4 4K footage
Important: If you’ve loaded a number of video clips to do batch conversion, please do remember ticking off ‘Apply to All’ option before you start.

If you are using Premiere Pro on a Mac, you can select ‘Apple ProRes 422 (*.mov)’ as output format under ‘Final Cut Pro’ column.
problems working with GH4 4K footage in Premiere Pro

In addition to DNxHD and ProRes, you can also select ‘MOV (AVC) (*.mov)’ as output format under ‘Adobe Premiere/Sony Vegas’ option.
Premiere freezing working with GH4 4K footage

Step 3: Custom video and audio settings
If necessary, you can click ‘Settings’ button and go to ‘Profiles Settings’ panel to modify video and audio settings like video encoder, resolution, video bit rate, frame rate, aspect ratio, audio encoder, sample rate, audio bit rate, and audio channels. 3D settings are also available.

Step 4: Start GH4 4K files to Premiere Conversion
When ready, click ‘Convert’ to start format conversion. As soon as the conversion is complete, you can click ‘Open Folder’ button to get the exported files for use in Adobe Premiere Pro with optimum performance.

Related posts
How to work with GH4 4K MOV/MP4 in Sony Vegas Pro?
Workflow guide for Panasonic GH4 and Final Cut Pro (X)
How can I import Panasonic GH4 AVCHD/MOV/MP4 to iMovie?
Issues importing Panasonic GH3 72Mbps MOV to Vegas Pro