How to Remove Green Screen in Premiere Pro: A Step-by-Step Guide
How to Remove Green Screen in Premiere Pro: A Step-by-Step Guide
Green screen (or chroma key) footage is an essential tool in the toolkit of any video editor. Whether you're trying to replace a background or create visual effects, knowing how to handle green screen footage in Premiere Pro is a must. In this guide, we'll walk through the full process of removing a green screen and refining the result for a clean, professional look.
Step 1: Add Your Green Screen Footage to the Timeline
Start by importing your green screen footage into Premiere Pro. Drag it into your sequence timeline. For this example, we’re working with a simple clip of a young man in front of a green background.
Step 2: Apply the Ultra Key Effect
Head over to the Effects panel and search for Ultra Key.
- Drag the Ultra Key effect onto your green screen clip in the timeline.
- Then go to the Effect Controls panel to adjust the effect.
Step 3: Key Out the Green Background
Within the Ultra Key effect settings:
- Use the Eyedropper tool next to the Key Color option to select the green screen in your video. Try to click on a darker area of the green background for best results.
- If the background doesn’t key out cleanly, try clicking on a slightly different shade of green.
Step 4: Clean Up the Key
Once the background is removed, there may still be green spill or rough edges:
- Change the Setting from Default to Aggressive to help remove more green spill.
- Tweak the following under Matte Generation:
- Transparency: Adjust until the background is fully removed without affecting your subject.
- Shadow and Tolerance: Fine-tune these to eliminate remaining background shadows and artifacts.
You may need to experiment with these values depending on how your footage was shot.
Step 5: Add a New Background
To verify your green screen removal worked:
- Create a new Color Matte or import a new background image or video.
- Place it under the green screen clip in your timeline.
Now you should see the subject composited over the new background.
Step 6: Refine with Masks (If Needed)
If the Ultra Key effect doesn’t remove everything perfectly:
- You can create a mask around your subject in the Effect Controls panel.
- This is helpful for removing leftover green edges or corners.
Step 7: Color Correct to Match Background
To make your final video look seamless:
- Use Color Correction options in Effect Controls.
- Adjust Saturation, Luminance, and Contrast to help the subject match the new background.
Pro Tip: Shoot with Good Lighting
For best results, always shoot green screen footage with even lighting. Avoid shadows and make sure the background is a consistent green tone.
This minimizes the amount of cleanup needed in post-production.
Final Thoughts
That’s it! You’ve successfully removed a green screen in Premiere Pro.
Remember: the key to great chroma keying is a combination of good lighting, solid keying techniques, and a little bit of patience when adjusting settings.
If you found this tutorial helpful, be sure to check out more editing guides on our blog — and if you’re a video editor looking to build a clean, verified portfolio, Videiro.com is a free platform where you can showcase your work and get verified by past clients.
Happy editing!