… for Adobe Premiere Pro CC

Tip #219: The Coolness of the J-K-L Keys

Larry Jordan – https://LarryJordan.com

Shortcuts that speed playback.

Most of us are total mouse junkies. But, there are things you can do with the keyboard that are hard to do with a mouse. One of these involves timeline playback.

Since probably the first Avid, we’ve been able to playback clips on the timeline using the J – K – L keys. The benefit to using these keys is that they are conveniently grouped to match the fingers of one hand.

Here are some shortcuts you may not know:

• J. Plays backward in real-time
• K. Stops playback (the same as pressing Spacebar)
• L. Plays forward in real time (the same as pressing Spacebar)

 

• Tap J multiple times. Each time you tap, speed increases by 1X, up to a maximum of 6X
• Tap L multiple times. Each time you tap, speed increases by 1X, up to a maximum of 6X

 

• Press K & J. Slow-motion backward
• Press K & L. Slow-motion forward

 

• Press Shift + J. Starts slow, then ramps to high-speed backward
• Press Shift + L. Starts slow, then ramps to high-speed forward