Working with Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD MTS video in Premiere

When you try to import Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD (MTS) files in your project using Premiere Pro, you could get an error message that says, "The file has an unsupported compression type." This error can be solved via transcoding the footage to a file type that is best suitable for Premiere, such as ProRes for Mac based Premiere, and DNxHD for Windows based Premiere.

"Over the last few months, I have collected a "ton" of .mts files copied from a Sony Alpha a7R to hard drive folders with the intention of editing in Premiere Pro some day. Unfortunately, today when I import them into PPro, I get an unsupported error. Is there a work-around to solve the issue?"

My workflow is to copy the original Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD media with all the original folder and files structure into folders within my project structure and import from there. Everything goes well. In your case, I would assume you only copied the loose .mts clips without keeping the folder structure. If that's the case, you will need to convert Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD (MTS) files first for a fluid workflow in Adobe Premiere Pro.

• Part 1: How to transcode Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD .mts files for use in Adobe Premiere on Mac?
• Part 2: How to transcode Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD .mts files for use in Adobe Premiere on Windows?

Video Converter (It is available for Mac and Windows, simply download the proper version depending on your computer's OS.)

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Part 1. How to transcode Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD .mts files for use in Adobe Premiere on Mac?

Step 1: Import Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD .mts files Start up Video Converter for Mac and click "Add File" to load Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD .mts files that you need to convert into this program. This converter supports batch conversion, so you can import a bundle of Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD .mts files into it to do conversion at a time.

Step 2: Click "Profile" to select output format. For Mac based Premiere, we would recommend choosing "Final Cut Pro" > "Apple ProRes 422 (*.mov)" as output format. The ProRes 422 codec will ensure a good balance between file size and file quality.

Tips: If necessary, you can click "Settings" button to modify video and audio parameters like encoder, resolution, frame rate, bitrate, aspect ratio, sample rate, and audio channels. You can also "Enable 3D Settings" to add 3D effect to your source media.

Step 3: Start file conversion. Click "Convert" to start transcoding Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD .mts files for Premiere on Mac. As soon as the conversion is complete, click "Open Folder" to get the generated files for editing in Premiere Pro on your Mac with optimum performance.

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Part 2. How to transcode Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD .mts files for use in Adobe Premiere on Windows?

Step 1: Import Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD .mts files. Start up Video Converter for Windows and click "Add File" to load Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD .mts files that you need to convert into this program. This converter supports batch conversion, so you can import a bundle of Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD .mts files into it to do conversion at a time.

Step 2: Click "Profile" to select output format. For Windows based Premiere, we would recommend choosing "Avid Media Composer" > "Avid DNxHD 1080p(*.mov)" as output format.

Tips: If necessary, you can click "Settings" button to modify video and audio parameters like encoder, resolution, frame rate, bitrate, aspect ratio, sample rate, and audio channels. You can also "Enable 3D Settings" to add 3D effect to your source media.

Step 3: Start file conversion. Click "Convert" to start transcoding Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD .mts media for Premiere on Windows. As soon as the conversion is complete, click "Open Folder" to get the generated files for editing in Premiere Pro on your Windows PC with optimum performance. That's all. Hope this post will help those who are having issues working with Sony Alpha a7R AVCHD .mts footage in Adobe Premiere Pro.