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Watch the tutorial
Step 1: Add the Transform effect
Select your clip, open the Effects panel (Window > Effects) and search for Transform. Drag the Transform effect from Video Effects > Distort onto the clip. Why not just use the built-in Motion controls? The Transform effect has a Shutter Angle setting, which you will need for motion blur later.
Faster with BetterFX: skip the Effects panel. Press your BetterFX shortcut, type the first letters of Transform and press Enter to apply it to the selected clip. Get BetterFX
Step 2: Keyframe Scale and Position
Open Effect Controls and move the playhead to the point where you want the zoom to begin. Click the stopwatch next to both Position and Scale in the Transform effect to create the first keyframes. Then move the playhead forward to where the zoom should finish and change the Scale and Position values. Increase Scale to push in, and adjust Position so the part of the picture you want to focus on stays in the middle of the frame.
Step 3: Add more zooms if you like
Want several zooms in a row? Move forward again, create new keyframes for Scale and Position and change the values once more. The video does this a couple of times, each time zooming deeper into the car. Press the spacebar to play it back and check how it looks. At this stage the motion works, but it will feel quite mechanical.
Step 4: Add motion blur with the shutter angle
Scroll down in the Transform effect and uncheck Use Composition's Shutter Angle. Then set Shutter Angle to 360. Fast movement now gets a natural motion blur, and the zoom looks far more like it was shot with a real camera.
Step 5: Ease the keyframes in and out
Linear keyframes start and stop abruptly. To smooth them, click the first keyframe, then drag a selection box around all the Position and Scale keyframes. Right-click one of them, go to Temporal Interpolation and choose Ease In. Then right-click again, go to Temporal Interpolation and choose Ease Out. The zoom now eases into each move and settles at the end of it. Our guide to easing keyframes in Premiere Pro goes into more detail.
Smoother with EaseFlow: select the keyframes and apply a real easing curve in one click instead of dragging Bezier handles. See EaseFlow
Step 6: Fine-tune the speed graph
For a more polished result, open the speed graph. Click the small arrow next to Position and Scale to reveal their graphs. Each graph shows how fast the value changes over time, and the shape of the peaks is what you feel as acceleration and slowdown.
The idea is to make the Position graph and the Scale graph move together, so the zoom and the camera move arrive and finish at the same moment. Drag the handles of the graph sideways only, and use the playhead as a guide to line up the Position handles with the Scale handles. Never drag a handle up or down, because that changes the animation. If you do, press Ctrl + Z to undo it. It helps to zoom out of the graph a little while you work.
Tips
- Keep zooms short. A smooth zoom is usually only a second or two. Longer pushes can feel slow unless you are going for a dramatic look.
- Scale up, then position. When you zoom in on a detail, change Scale first and then correct Position so the subject stays framed.
- Use high-resolution footage. Zooming in enlarges the picture, so 4K footage in a 1080p sequence stays sharper than a 1080p clip scaled to 200 percent.
FAQ
How do you zoom in smoothly in Premiere Pro?
Keyframe Scale and Position in the Transform effect, then set the keyframes to Ease In and Ease Out through Temporal Interpolation. Add a 360 shutter angle for motion blur.
Why does my zoom look jerky?
Keyframes are linear by default, so the movement starts and stops suddenly. Ease the keyframes and add motion blur and it will feel much smoother.
Why use the Transform effect instead of the Motion controls?
The Transform effect includes a Shutter Angle setting, which gives you real motion blur on your zoom. The built-in Motion controls do not have it.
Want a ready-made zoom look? Try the Zoom Out YouTube Animation template.
