Muffins Recipe Video: Adding Text Graphics in Premiere Pro
Master Professional Text Graphics in Video Production
Video Text Graphics Impact
Exercise Preview
Key Video Enhancement Elements
Fade Transitions
Video fades in from black at the beginning and fades out to black at the end for professional polish.
Dynamic Text Placement
Text location varies across clips with some shots featuring additional text that appears mid-shot for timing precision.
Recipe Integration
Each ingredient gets accompanying text graphics that appear as items are added to the batter.
To protect your carefully edited video sequence from accidental modifications, lock 
V1. This professional practice prevents costly mistakes during the graphics phase.
Notice in the Project panel that we've prepared a Titles sequence containing pre-built graphics elements. This hybrid approach—creating some titles from scratch while utilizing pre-made assets—reflects efficient production workflows where time management is crucial.
Click in the empty area to the left of V2 to activate that track. The blue targeting box confirms you've properly set V2 as your active graphics layer, with V1 serving as the video source.
Ensure the playhead is positioned at the Timeline's beginning (00:00:00).
Select the Type tool 
from the toolbar.
Click in the Program Monitor's center to create your text insertion point. Don't worry about precise positioning yet—we'll refine placement using the Effect Controls panel for pixel-perfect accuracy.
Type the title text exactly as shown, maintaining the three-line structure for optimal visual hierarchy:
7 Ingredient
BANANA
MUFFINS
Using the Type tool, select all three lines of text. This selection method ensures consistent formatting across the entire title block, maintaining professional typographic standards.
Within the Text section, under Source Text, select Proxima Nova Regular. This modern, highly legible font performs excellently across digital platforms and various screen sizes.
Click the Center align text button 
to establish balanced text alignment.
Set the base font size to 100 pixels. This provides an excellent starting point that we'll customize per line.
Under Appearance, confirm the Fill color is set to White, ensuring maximum contrast against the background imagery.
Enable Shadow to add crucial depth and readability to your text, especially important when overlaying graphics on complex backgrounds.
- Opacity
: 48% (provides subtle depth without overwhelming) - Angle
: 135° (creates natural lighting effect) - Distance
: 8.6 (optimal separation from background) - Blur
: 59 (creates soft, natural shadow edge)
Scroll down to locate the Transform section. These values reflect your initial click position and may need adjustment for perfect centering.
Click the Reset Parameter button 
to the right of Position. This centers the text block mathematically within the frame.
Now we'll create visual hierarchy by emphasizing the key words. Use the Type tool to select only BANANA MUFFINS (the bottom two lines).
Change the font for the selected text to Proxima Nova Bold, creating strong emphasis on the recipe's primary subject.
Increase the Font Size to 150 pixels, making these words the dominant visual elements.
Adjust the Leading 
to –45, which tightens the line spacing for a more cohesive, impactful title block.
Return to the Vector Motion section and set the overall Scale to 133, enlarging the entire title for better screen presence and readability across devices.
Fine-tune the Position to 960, 407, moving the title upward slightly to optimize composition within the frame.
In the Timeline, extend the text clip on V2 to match the duration of the corresponding title clip on V1, ensuring perfect synchronization.
Play back the complete title sequence to evaluate the results. The text should feel integrated but may appear somewhat static—we'll address this with motion graphics next.
Unlock 
V1 to access the background image for animation.
Select the first TitleBG shot on V1. We'll add subtle motion to create a more engaging, professional-feeling title sequence.
Position the playhead at the Timeline's beginning to establish our starting keyframe.
In the Effect Controls panel, click the stopwatch icons 
next to both Position and Scale to enable keyframe animation.
Advance the playhead to the shot's end, then step back one frame (to 4:03) to maintain visual reference while setting the final keyframe.
Increase the Scale to 115. This subtle push-in creates visual interest without compromising image quality. Note that pixel-based images like PNGs should rarely be scaled beyond 135-150% to maintain professional quality standards.
Adjust the Position to 960, 467, compensating for the scale change to maintain optimal framing. Always adjust scale first, then position—this workflow prevents unnecessary back-and-forth adjustments.
Play back the sequence to review the animation. This subtle movement transforms a static title into an engaging, cinematic introduction that holds viewer attention.
If you notice yellow or red render bars above the clips, optimize playback performance by selecting both text and image clips with the Selection tool 
and choosing Sequence > Render Selection.
Re-lock V1 to protect your completed animation work.
Always save current work before opening the backup project file. The Banana Muffins-Ready for Text.prproj file contains all previous exercise work and should be immediately saved with your name to avoid overwriting the template.
Adding Recipe Text Graphics
Now we'll create the instructional text overlays that transform your video into a comprehensive recipe tutorial. These graphics require careful positioning and timing to complement rather than compete with the visual content.
Enable the Safe Margins display by clicking the Safe Margins button
if it isn't already active. These guides are essential for text work, ensuring your graphics remain visible across all viewing platforms and devices.Position the playhead around 4:04 to view the butter preparation shot you'll be overlaying with ingredient information.
Select the Type tool
and click in the Program Monitor's center to establish your text insertion point.Create the ingredient label using this two-line format:
BUTTER
1/2 cupIn the Effect Controls panel, expand the Text section and navigate to Transform. Click the Reset Parameter button
next to Position to center the text as a starting point.Select the second line (1/2 cup) and set its font to Proxima Nova Regular to create visual distinction from the ingredient name.
Set the measurement line's Font Size to 100 pixels for optimal readability without overwhelming the ingredient name.
Ensure the first line (BUTTER) uses Proxima Nova Bold with a size of 150 pixels, establishing clear hierarchy between ingredient and measurement.
Select both lines and set the Leading
to –18, tightening the line spacing for a cohesive text block.Change the alignment to Right align text
, preparing for corner positioning that won't interfere with the cooking action.In the Vector Motion section, set the Scale to 90 to ensure the text doesn't dominate the frame while remaining clearly legible.
Position the text at 1823, 850, placing it strategically in the lower right corner. This positioning respects title-safe boundaries while staying clear of the primary cooking action. For social media distribution, this positioning is acceptable; broadcast television would require more conservative placement within the inner title-safe lines.
The white text may lack sufficient contrast against the ingredient background. In the Appearance section, confirm the Fill is set to White, then optimize the shadow for better visibility.
- Enhance the shadow settings for maximum legibility over complex backgrounds:
- Opacity : 67% (stronger shadow for better separation)
- Angle : 189° (adjusted for optimal contrast)
- Distance : 8.6
- Blur : 59
- Opacity
Extend the text clip in the Timeline to match the duration of the corresponding video clip on V1, ensuring the ingredient information displays for the entire butter preparation sequence.
Switch to the Selection tool
to prepare for clip manipulation.The sugar sequence requires more complex graphics with additional instructional text. Create an efficient duplicate by Option-dragging (Mac) or Alt-dragging (Windows) the butter text clip to the right, positioning it over the next shots.
Extend this duplicated clip to 12:06 to cover both the sugar addition and incorporation shots.
With the playhead positioned over the clip for real-time preview, use the Type tool
to modify the text:SUGAR
1 cupThe sugar sequence requires layered text elements. Move the sugar text clip to V3 to use as our primary working track while maintaining organization.
Create a duplicate by Option-dragging (Mac) or Alt-dragging (Windows) the sugar clip downward to V2. This copy will contain our secondary instructional text.
Hide
and lock track V3 to focus on the secondary text creation.Select the V2 clip and switch to the Type tool
for text editing.Modify the second line to read: (a little at a time) - this provides crucial technique instruction for proper sugar incorporation.
Delete SUGAR from the first line, including any extra spaces, leaving only the instructional text.
Reposition the text to align properly with the original layout. In Vector Motion, adjust the Position to approximately 1823, 950.7.
- Use this professional alignment technique: Unlock V3 and temporarily reveal it for reference.
Move the V2 text clip to V3, positioning it just before the main sugar text to enable visual comparison.
Restore visibility
to V3 and position the playhead over the instructional text clip.In the Effect Controls panel, click on the word Position under Vector Motion to enable direct manipulation mode. You'll see a blue selection box around the text in the Program Monitor.
Lock V2
to prevent accidental modifications.Press the tilde (~) key while hovering over the Program Monitor to enter full-screen mode for precise positioning work.
Set your Zoom Level to Fit for optimal workspace visibility.
Drag the text to align with the baseline of the "1 cup" text, accounting for descender letters. Position the bottom of the "e" in "time" to align with the bottom of the "p" in "cup" for professional typographic alignment.
Press tilde (~) again to exit full-screen mode and return to normal workspace.
Your final Position values should be approximately 1823, 955 - record these for consistency across similar elements.
Unlock V2 and move the instructional text clip back to its proper position below the main sugar text on V2.
Select the main sugar text on V3 and position the playhead over it for editing access.
Double-click the clip to open its Effect Controls panel.
Adjust the main text upward so the "p" in "cup" clears the instructional line below. Use Position values of 1823, 775 for optimal spacing.
Time the instructional text to appear mid-sequence for maximum instructional value. Drag the left edge of the V3 clip to begin at 10:06, aligning with the sugar incorporation phase.
Continue the ingredient sequence with eggs. Position the playhead at 12:06 for precise clip placement.
Option-drag (Mac) or Alt-drag (Windows) the original butter text clip to the right, snapping it to the playhead position.
With the playhead over the new clip, use the Type tool to change the text to:
EGGS
2 wholeSelect all text and change the Alignment to Left align text
to accommodate the new screen position.Reposition the text to the screen's left side, ensuring it doesn't interfere with the egg-cracking action while maintaining readability and safe margin compliance.
Text Safety Guidelines Setup
Essential for proper text positioning within broadcast standards
Keeps text visible on all display devices and platforms
Acceptable to extend to action safety boundaries for social media content
Text Positioning Strategy
| Feature | Broadcast TV | Social Media |
|---|---|---|
| Safety Area | Title Safety Required | Action Safety Acceptable |
| Right Margin | Conservative | Extended to 1823px |
| Font Size Range | 100-150px | 100-150px |
Key Takeaways