Working with Media
ProPresenter offers many versatile ways to work with media and send it to your screens. Media inside of ProPresenter is stored in Bins at the bottom (in the Media Bin) and right side (within the Audio Bin of Show Controls) of the program. You can also setup Video Inputs in the software to bring in live video elements from outside sources into the program. Cue Inspectors help to change individual Media actions and give them a completely different look to fit your presentations.
Media Cue Inspector
The Media Cue Inspector is an in-depth window that allows you to both preview your Media files before playing them back live and edit the Properties of these items. These Properties include how the Action will look, play and act when triggered in ProPresenter.
To open the Inspector, right click on a Media Action either in the Media Bin or on a Slide and choose Inspector. If you have multiple Media Actions selected at the same time, you can also open all of these at once in the Inspector.
Media Action List
Inside of the Inspector, the dropdown at the top is the Media Action List. This will list any Media Actions you had selected when you opened the Inspector window and allow you to select each one to work with. Click on a Media Action in the list to select it, open it in the Preview Pane and edit its Properties.
Preview Pane
When a Media Action is selected, the Preview Pane offers a place for you to customize the settings for your Media. Across the top it lists the name of the Media Action. By default this is the name of the file, however if you would like to change this then you can click on the nam in the Properties tab of the Inspector and enter a custom name.
The main preview area will show you a preview of your media. If the media is a video, you can use the scrubbing bar to jump the preview to a specific place in your media. Below the scrubbing bar are some Playback Controls to control the playback of the media. Use the Play/Pause button
Click the Step Backward/Forward buttons
To change the starting point of a video, move the playhead to the desired location and then click In to set the In Point. Similarly you can click on Out to set the Out Point. Click Reset In or Reset Out to reset the respective features.
Edit Pane
When you have a Media Action selected the Edit Pane on the right allows for fine-tuning your media by way of the Info, Properties, Effects, Transitions, Audio (if the file has audio on it), and Playback Marker tabs.
Info Tab
The Info Tab has information about the media that you have selected. Across the top it lists the Action’s Name (which you can click on to edit) as well as the File Path that ProPresenter is referencing this file from. Click on the magnifying glass
The Thumbnail feature will show you the currently used thumbnail for the media. If your media is a video and you want to change the thumbnail, use the scrub bar in the Preview Pane to select the desired location then click Set to Current Frame. The bottom of the Info Pane will provide information about the media itself, such as its Type, Duration, Format, Size, and Frame Rate (FPS), depending on the type of media that is selected.
Properties Tab
The Properties Tab of the Inspector allows you to adjust multiple properties of your Media Actions.
Click the drop-down menu next to Scale Behavior to adjust how the media will scale in your Target:
- Scale to Fit will make sure that all of your content shows within the bounds of a given Object and the media won’t be stretched; it will achieve this by adding black bars on the top/bottom or sides of the media as needed.
- Scale to Fill will keep your media not stretched and it won’t have any black around the sides or top/bottom; it will achieve this by cropping off the top/bottom or sides as needed.
- Stretch to Fill will fill the bounds of the Object with the media and it won’t crop any of the media out; it will achieve this by stretching the media as needed.
Change the Scale Alignment to control if the media will try to stay in the center of the Target or if it will tend towards one of the corners or sides of the Target. Scale Alignment is only available if you set the Scale Behavior to Scale to Fit or Scale to Fill. You can also enable Flip Horizontally and/or Flip Vertically to flip the media.
Enable Crop to scale the media yourself to a subset of the original image. For example, if you wanted to show only the top left of a piece of media but have it fill the screen, you would adjust these numbers to do so. Options for adjusting this are to enter numbers into the boxes as needed, use the arrow buttons next to the boxes, or use the black bounding boxes that surround the media itself in the Preview Pane.
The Playback Behavior will affect what happens at the end of the media; depending on which Playback Behavior you select there may be other options available to you.
- Stop plays the video file in it's entirety once and then moves on to the End Behavior
- Loop will continuously play the video file until you choose to clear the Media or trigger a different Media file
- Loop for Play Count adds an option where you set how many times you wish for the file to play. It will continue looping until it reaches the number of times entered in the Times to Loop box that appears and then move on to the selected End Behavior.
- Loop for Time allows you to set a certain amount of time that you want the Video to run for. Once it reaches the end of that time, it will move on to the End Behavior
When choosing an option that involves looping the video for Playback Behavior, a check box will appear for Soft Loop. Enabling this will allow the video file to dissolve back to the start of the video instead of a hard cut. This is especially helpful if you have a video that has action continuing through the last frame that has different content back at the beginning of the clip.
If you set Playback Behavior to Stop, Loop for Play Count, or Loop for Time, the option to set an End Behavior will appear in the window as well. Here you can choose one of five options for the video to follow once it finishes playback.
- Hold Last Frame -- this will freeze the video on it's last frame and stay there until the video is cleared or a new media action is triggered
- Black after Last Frame -- this will cut to Black at the end of the last frame of the video
- Clear after Last Frame -- this will clear the Media file after the playback of the last frame of the video. If you have a Video Input in place and triggered, it would clear the Video file out and show the Video Input on the Screen.
- Fade to Black -- this will dissolve to Black at the end of the last frame of the video
- Fade to Clear -- this will dissolve the Media file after the playback of the last frame of the video and clear the Action. If you have a Video Input in place and triggered, it would dissolve the Video file out and show the Video Input behind it on the Screen.
Re-Trigger Modifications allow media re-triggering to be meticulously defined in how they can be re-triggered. This setting includes the following options.
- Automatic (media re-trigger is dependent on configuration)
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- For Backgrounds set to Stop, it will re-trigger.
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- For Backgrounds set to Loop, it won’t re-trigger.
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- For Foregrounds, they will always re-trigger.
- Always (media is re-triggered regardless of configuration)
- Never (media is never re-triggered regardless of configuration)
For still images, you can set the Duration (that is, how long it will show on the Screen); videos will have their Duration pre-filled. You can set the Delay Time which is how long the media will wait before it plays. For video actions you can also set the Rate at which it will play (from 20% to 200%) speeding up or slowing down the video playback.
Transitions Tab
In the Transitions tab you can select a Transition for the individual Media Action. This Transition will trump the Master Transition which allows media to have custom transitions which are unique to just that media. More information on this can be found in the Transitions section.
Effects Tab
Effects allow you to modify the look of your Media files. Click the plus button to add an Effect to the media. Adjust an Effect’s properties by adjusting the options below that Effect (note that not all effects have properties that you can edit). To disable/enable an Effect click on the checkbox to the left of the Effect’s name. To change an Effect to a different Effect or to remove an Effect, click on the down arrow to the right of the Effect’s name.
The Effects Preset allows you to assign a predefined set of Effects to a Media Action. If you have previously saved an Effect Preset you can use this drop-down to apply it. If you have applied an Effect Preset and you make changes you can Save those changes or Save As a new Preset. If you have made changes, you'll see a small * to the right of your Effects Preset Name. Another option is to Unlink Preset which allows you to show that no Preset is set, but leave the Effects in place on the Media Action. You can also use this drop-down to Clear Effects from the media.
Audio Tab
The Audio Tab allows you to adjust the physical audio output properties for the Media item. This tab will only appear if your media file has an audio track on it.
Under Transition Behavior you can add a Ramp In and/or a Ramp Out. Check the boxes that you want to enable and adjust the slider to customize how long the fade will last.
Click the Channel Routing button to open a window where you can route audio channels to specific outputs. For more information on how Audio Routing works, you can look at that section.
The channel information at the bottom of the Audio tab give you more insight into each audio channel. For each channel you can Mute or Solo the channel and you can adjust the Volume of each specific channel. This area will also tell you which Outputs each channel is assigned to (which is set via the Audio Routing button above).
Playback Markers Tab
The Playback Markers tab allows you to add markers to a clip that will trigger assigned actions once the clip has reached the specific marker in the time elapsed in the video. More Information about Playback Markers can be found below in the Playback Markers section.
Audio Cue Inspector
The Audio Cue Inspector is an in-depth window that allows you to both preview your audio files before playing them back and edit the Properties of these items. These Properties include how the Action will look, play and act when triggered in ProPresenter.
To open the Inspector, right click on an Audio File either in the Audio Bin or on a Slide and choose Inspector. If you have multiple Media Actions selected at the same time, you can also open all of these at once in the Inspector.
Media Action List
Inside of the Inspector, the dropdown at the top is the Media Action List. This will list any Media Actions you had selected when you opened the Inspector window and allow you to select each one to work with. Click on a Media Action in the list to select it, open it in the Preview Pane and edit its Properties.
Preview Pane
When an Audio Action is selected the Preview Pane offers a place for you to customize the settings for your file. Across the top it lists the name of the Audio Action. By default this is the name of the file, however if you would like to change this then you can click on the name and enter your own name.
The main preview area will show you a sound wave representation of your audio file. You can use the scrubbing bar to jump the preview to a specific place in your media. Below the scrubbing bar are some Playback Controls to control the playback of the media. Use the Play/Pause button to pause or play the media, or use the Skip Backwards/Forwards buttons to skip backward or forward 15 seconds.
Click the Step Backward/Forward buttons to step frame-by-frame through your media. This can also be done by clicking the left or right arrow keys on your keyboard. Use the Go To button to skip directly to the set time back or forwards in the clip. You can also right-click (or click and hold) on the Go to buttons and choose how far from the beginning/end you want to jump to (90 seconds, 60 seconds, 30 seconds, 10 seconds).
To change the starting point of the file, move the playhead to the desired location and then click In to set the In Point. Similarly you can click on Out to set the Out Point. Click Reset In or Reset Out to reset the respective features.
Edit Pane
When you have an Audio file selected the Edit Pane on the right allows for fine-tuning your media by way of the Info, Properties, and Audio tabs.
Info Tab
The Info Tab has information about the media that you have selected. Across the top it lists the Action’s Name (which you can click on to edit) as well as the File Path that ProPresenter is referencing this file from. Click on the magnifying glass to open the location of the file in the Finder on Mac or in Windows Explorer on PC. If you want to change the file that ProPresenter is linking to or to point the program to a different copy of the same file, click on the gear icon to open a computer browser window where you can select a new file to reference.
The bottom of the Info Pane provides information about the media file itself such as its file type and original duration.
Properties Tab
The Properties Tab of the Inspector allows you to adjust different behaviors of your Audio Actions.
The Playback Behavior will affect what happens once the audio file completes its playback. You can choose one of three options.
- Stop -- This behavior will play the file back one time and end after one full playback
- Loop -- This behavior will continue playing and repeating the file until a new audio action is triggered or a Clear Audio action is triggered
- Next -- This behavior is only applicable for playback from the Audio Bin. This behavior allows the next audio action in the Bin to playback at the conclusion of the currently triggered action.
The Duration of the action will be pre-filled and will update if the In/Out settings are changed in the Preview Pane. You can set the Delay Time which is how long the media will wait before it plays after being triggered. You can also set the Play Rate at which it will play (from 20% to 200%) speeding up or slowing down the audio playback.
Audio Tab
The Audio Tab allows you to adjust the physical audio output properties for that item.
Under Transition Behavior you can add a Ramp In and/or a Ramp Out. Check the boxes that you want to enable and adjust the slider to customize how long the fade will last.
Click the Channel Routing button to open a window where you can route audio channels to specific outputs. For more information on how Audio Routing works, you can look at that section.
The boxes at the bottom of the Audio tab give you more insight into each audio channel. For each channel you can Mute or Solo the channel and you can adjust the Volume of each specific channel. This area will also tell you which Outputs each channel is assigned to (which is set via the Audio Routing button above).
Playback Markers Tab
The Playback Markers tab allows you to add markers to a clip that will trigger assigned actions once the clip has reached the specific marker in the time elapsed in the video. More Information about Playback Markers can be found below in the Playback Markers section.
Playback Markers
Starting in ProPresenter7.10, you can add Playback Markers to media files in the Inspector. This functionality will enable users to label certain points in a piece of media, jump to specific points, trigger Actions at specific points, and track the time remaining or elapsed from a certain Marker.
To add a Playback Marker, navigate to the media element's inspector. Once here, you can navigate to the Markers tab at the top, and you can view, add, and edit Playback Markers for a specific piece of media or audio. Choosing "Add Marker" will add a marker at whatever position the playhead is at in the preview area on the left. Each Marker row shows the Marker icon in its given or chosen color, the timecode of when the Marker is placed in a piece of media, the Marker’s name (if applicable), and the icons of any Actions applied to the Playback Marker (if applicable).
Using the context menu, you can rename, recolor, add/edit/remove Actions, cut, copy, paste, duplicate, and delete. You can also use the "Move to Playhead" option and this will change the selected Marker to whatever position the Playhead is currently at.
Adding Actions to Markers will allow you to trigger specific actions, when that time is reached. Actions can be added to Markers similarly to how they are added to Macros. You can right-click and use the contextual menu Add Action option, drag Actions from the Action Palette, drag Show Controls such as Props and Timers directly onto the Marker row, and you can even drag and drop media/audio from outside of ProPresenter onto the Marker row to create Media and Audio Actions. Dragging Actions into the blank space beneath the list of Markers or in the space between Markers will create a new Marker at the position of the playhead in the Playback area with the respective Action applied.
Once a video or an audio item has been triggered, its configured Playback Markers can be seen in the Transport Controls as smaller Marker icons in their respective colors. The Elapsed Time and Countdown to end times at either end of the Transport Controls scrub bar can be toggled to show the Time from Previous Marker and Time to Next Marker respectively. When toggled on, the time will also change to the color of the previous/next Marker. There is a new Marker icon shown in the Transport Controls for videos and audio. Clicking this icon will show the configured Markers with their respective colored icons, time codes, and names (if applicable). If you click on any of the Markers, the playhead will automatically jump to the timecode of the chosen Marker, and perform any actions assigned to the Marker (if applicable).
After adding Markers to your content, these can be viewed on your stage layouts as Countdown Objects. These can show the Time to Marker or the Marker Name. Playback Marker Data Links can be added by clicking the big "+" button to add Stage Layout Objects or from the Edit Menu on the Menu bar. You can also add a Text Object, then enable Linked Text and select Playback Marker.
Video Input
Video Input Configuration
Setting up your Video Inputs is done through the Input tab of ProPresenter Preferences. For more information on this, please see the Preferences page here.
Video Input Playlist
Once you have created and setup your Inputs, you can add them to the Video Input Playlist in the Media Bin. The Video Input Playlist can be accessed by clicking on the Video Input button
Add Video Inputs to the Video Input Playlist by clicking the + in the lower left and selecting your desired Input. If you have not created an Input, you will be directed to Video Input Configuration from the + menu which opens up the respective tab in ProPresenter Preferences.
Video Input Actions
Add the Video input Action onto a slide to automatically turn on or change the Video Input layer of ProPresenter when that slide is clicked. You can also drag a Video Input from the Video Input Playlist to a slide directly and it would trigger alongside the slide content when that slide is triggered.
Add the Video Input Action to a slide by opening the Action Palette and dragging the Video Input Action onto a slide; doing so will give you the option to choose which Video Input you would like to assign to that slide.
Audio Input
Audio Input Configuration
Setting up your Audio Inputs is done through the Input tab of ProPresenter Preferences. For more information on this, please see the Preferences page here.
Triggering Audio Inputs
At this time, you would either have an “always on” input or to trigger an Audio Input, it has to be linked to a Video Input in the Input tab of ProPresenter Preferences. For an input that is “always on,” you would select the On or Auto Off modes in the Audio pane of the Input tab of Preferences. If you link an Audio Input to a separate Video Input, the audio would playback once the Video Input is triggered. More about these options is explained in the Preferences section here.
Audio Input Actions
In much the same way as the Video Input action, you can add an Audio Input Action onto a slide to automatically alter an Audio Input’s mode or level when that slide is triggered. You can change what Mode the input is set to (Off, On, Auto Off, Auto On) and also set the level you wish the input to playback at.
Add the Audio Input Action to a slide by opening the Action Palette and dragging the Audio Input Action onto a slide; doing so will give you the option to choose which Audio Input you would like to make changes to on that slide.
