Bring Back Video Capture

[cjfenner]

This morning when I opened Premiere Pro 24 for the first time, I was dismayed at not being able to find the Capture option in the File menu. Upon contacting customer support, I was told that feature had been retired, and I was directed to the following page:

https://helpx.adobe.com/in/premiere-pro/kb/retiring-tape-based-workflows.html#sa_src=web-messaging

Here's my problem. As a professional media archivist, I used the capture system frequently in the process of digitizing old video tapes (mostly VHS and U-Matic, sometimes DVCPro) for digital access and storage. The article above seems to think tape-based capture is only for transferring tape-to-tape, which is wrong. There are professional archivists and media professionals all over the country, or all over the world, whose job it is to preserve tape-based media via digitization. Adobe has now effectively abandoned an entire industry because it thinks people don't need this feature anymore. Adobe is wrong. As I write this, I have several dozen VHS tapes at my desk waiting to be digitized, and now I have to come up with another software solution because Adobe evidently does not care about customers like me who do this for a living. 

Dear Adobe, this was a poorly researched decision, potentially affecting a lot more of your customers than you realize. I am asking for the tape-to-digital capture feature to be restored to the software for video professionals like me who were using it faithfully.

Mod note: Title changed slightly.

[lauriej24226234]

Hi,

Regardless of them saying they're modernizing it makes no difference to me what they're saying. I need that feature. I refuse to run 3 versions of Adobe programs to do one task. If nothing else they should make a standalone app like they had years ago thats name escapes me Location or something. Then make a dynamic link to premiere pro. Not have a v23 to capture then v24 edit. Do they not understand plugins get confused when they're licensed to 1 program not 2 versions of it. Also, they obsoleted two workstations with the latest V24 program. It's looking for a set of AVX2 instructions on my cpu which I have, unfortunately it doesn't work with my Xeon CPU on one computer. It's looking for a specific word in the code. When I pointed out I had the correct cpu. I got a Homer Simpson logic response. Like, sorry. It doesn't work. No. Fix it.

[SpielbergRules24x7x365]

Thanks for that and will do!

[Kelver Leash]

I run a video transfer business and use the capture feature daily. Can we have this back please?  You are likely to lose a lot of subscribers otherwise. Thank you! 

[jefjaeger]

Not good enough.  I don't want to find an alternative.  The capture function should be restored.  There are Adobe customers who capture analog video professionally.  If Premiere Pro is going to be called a professional software, it needs to be able to capture video from anaolg sources.  Period.

[jjmixman]

Just adding my vote to this. What a bloody circus! Just wanting to transcribe some VHS tapes for a friend - knew that Premiere had a capture tool.... and then it's gone! The workflow then moved to using a Panasonic HDD/DVD recorder that  I bought in 2006. Recorded the VHS onto a DVD+RW via SCART and then ripped the DVD onto the PC. So glad I keep my old *hardware*. People can't remove useful functions from it on a whim.

[lauriej24226234]

Sorry my friends and colleagues I was away. Have they conceded there are still a great deal of people in the business that do tons of things that use tape? Or are we in the ignore section?

[TyleratTheCrossing]

This seems crazy to me.  Are there any other alternatives for capturing video on PC/Mac?

[drakedits]

I've seen this thread in the Trending column since last October. Commenting to keep it there, as the removing the Video Capture function from a professional editing program is an inexcusable misstep.

[SadieSee]

****I have voted for this at the top to keep it trending.

BRING CAPTURE BACK

As an Archivist with 8 media systems running tapes daily via firewire (MiniDV/Hi8/U-matic/VHS), and only just updating, I am in shock. 

I genuinly dont understand why they would remove this without talking to users first (or did I miss that?)

now to find money for other software...

[JonesVid]

Yes fully agree Capture should be re-instated. I bought a FireWire card for my latest pc build and used on some of my DV and HDV tapes. All ok on PPro 22 then discovered PPro 24 had it removed. What market research and justification was done to allow this.

Using old releases to solve a fundamental requirement like this is crazy.

Please bring it back now!.

[Mediapaja245965299d7b]

The Capture window has been removed from the latest Premiere. 
We need it in our work anyway because we digitize old videos. 
What can we do about it? is there somewhere to download the old version?

[Bassquake]

Count me in. Was super confused and dissapointed Capture option dusappeared from 2024 version. Please bring it back!

[Marco331926951auv]

same here.

[Shecky52]

I agree, I have hundreds of tapes that I only need to access if someone needs some historical info. I don't want to back them all up to disk if I dont have to. I have old tape decks and cameras that use firewire. I have had to add firewire cards to my new computers and keep an old Mac around if I need it. Please just add capture back even if you add it to Media Encoder. I installed an old version of Premiere but it also wanted me to install the older version of Media Encoder. 

[Shecky52]

I called and asked B & H if they knew of another option or device. They suggested an analog connection through a Canopus Capture device. They said they had recieved a lot of calls on this issue asking for alternatives and that was what they suggested. The AVDC-110 has digital and analog input/output but the issue is some software that will do the capture as well as Premiere did. 

[JonesVid]

I think the issue we all have is that Adobe should not have taken capture capabilities away in the first place.

If Adobe position Premiere Pro in the market as an editing suite for professionals (and enthusiasts) then we are going to need to capture footage on tape from a few years back. Not all is transcribed yet.

The suggestion to use 'old versions' from Adobe support is quite frankly not acceptable. We are always told to use the latest software version.

[bsam123]

Yes please bring back Capture!

[Kevin-Monahan]

@bsam123, @cjfenner, @JonesVid, @Shecky52, @Marco331926951auv, @lauriej24226234, @Bassquake, and other communtiy members on the thread:

Be sure that you have upvoted the feature request.

Thanks,
Kevin

[Mark35140858uzuz]

Agreed.

I am among the numerous cultural heritage institutions who rely on Premiere Pro to migrate unique and irreplaceable content from aging and at-risk tape media like VHS, U-matic, and other analog formats. This feature was why I recommended purchasing the Adobe Creative Cloud licenses for all of our lab workstations.

Sure the workaround is to install the older version, but for how long will that realistically be viable? How long before the cloud decides it wants to auto-update, or even worse, simply stop supporting the older version without notice?

Hear this, Adobe: your software is not just for filmmakers working with digital technologies. Do not make the same mistake that Apple did with Final Cut. There is an entire industry of cultural heritage digitization professionals that are responsible for the migration of historical content from outdated and decaying media to modern, flexible, stable, and non-proprietary formats.

[SpielbergRules24x7x365]

Perfectly well said. Hopefully Adobe will read these before they put more people out of business, as if things aren't hard enough out there for everyone. 

I, myself, like SO many other have tons of tapes to digitize. This was an EXTREMELY poor decision on the part of Adobe. 

[Mikolaj 1]

Is Adobe going to do something with video capturing on Macs with M chips? Or is it a lost cause? It's a huge disadvantage of Premiere right now.

[Ann Bens]

Video capture has been removed permanently.

https://community.adobe.com/t5/premiere-pro-ideas/bring-back-video-capture/idi-p/14185678

[Mikolaj 1]

Oh well, so Adobe did a justice in its own twisted way 😄

[SCOTT_L]

If Adobe won't bring it back to Premiere, which is a huge mistake if they don't IMHO,  they should make a stand-alone module for capturing.  Most every real editing program has capture or a module for it.  Even video capture cards usually offer something to capture from tape!

[gregoryden]

Hi,

Like most others on this page, I also make my income digitising old family video tapes. It was bad enough when Adobe cut out Encore, but fortunately I still have CS6 on my computer to burn discs, which I still get asked for quite frequently. 

Keep the Capture in Premiere Pro.