Edit Images With AI Directly in Premiere Pro: Remove Backgrounds, Upscale, Resize, and More

Picture this. Pun intended. You’re mid-edit on a video project, and you need to clean up an image. Maybe it needs the background removed. Maybe it’s too low-res and needs upscaling.

Normally, that means breaking your flow: open Photoshop (or another app), make the edit, save it, import it back, and realign in the timeline.

It’s a momentum killer.

But what if you could just do it, right inside Premiere Pro?

That’s exactly what Cutback lets you do. With a few clicks, you can:

• Remove backgrounds

• Upscale low-quality images

• Resize photos for vertical or horizontal formats

All from inside the Cutback panel, without leaving Premiere Pro.

Why Edit Images Directly in Premiere Pro?

Because modern editing is fast-paced. You don’t always have time (or the software budget) to jump across apps.

Maybe you’re:

• A YouTube creator trying to get a thumbnail asset cleaned up

• A marketing team editing social clips with brand assets

• A podcaster adding visual cues and overlays

• A freelancer building content quickly under tight deadlines

Regardless of the case, every app switch adds friction, and Cutback removes it.

How to Edit Images With AI Tools in Premiere Pro

Let’s walk through how to edit images step-by-step using Cutback’s AI tools.

Step 1: Insert or Capture the Image

You have 3 options here:

Option 1: Drag and Drop

Just drop the image directly into your sequence or Cutback panel.

Option 2: Capture From Timeline

Use Cutback’s [Capture Image] button to grab a still frame from your video at any timestamp.

This is especially useful for creating thumbnails or visual placeholders.

Option 3: Search Stock Images

Need a photo but don’t have one ready?

Use the built-in Cutback Browser to search for copyright-free images from:

• Pexels

• Pixabay

• Unsplash

And add them directly to your timeline or panel.

Step 2: Use the AI Image Tools

Once your image is loaded into the Cutback panel, it’s time to edit.

Cutback offers three essential tools:

Remove Background

With one click, you can isolate the subject and remove the background, perfect for overlays, lower-thirds, or memes.

• Works best on clear subject-background separation.

• Similar to remove.bg or Canva background tools, but directly inside Premiere.

🎯 Great for:

• Creator thumbnails

• Branded content overlays

• Meme editing

Upscale

Low-resolution image? Don’t throw it out.

Use [Upscale] to increase image resolution using AI, preserving clarity while reducing noise.

🎯 Great for:

• Old logos

• Small stock images

• Screenshots from older videos

Resize

Need a square image to become vertical for Shorts? Or a landscape graphic to fit a Reel?

Use [Resize] to shift aspect ratio, portrait, landscape, or square, in a few clicks.

🎯 Great for:

• Converting logos and slides

• Creating vertical Reels/Shorts

• Fitting assets into social formats

Real-World Use Cases

Let’s say you’re editing a YouTube Short. You want to insert your logo, but the file is horizontal and too low-res.

Here’s what you’d normally do:

• Open Photoshop or Canva

• Resize and upscale

• Remove the background

• Export

• Re-import

• Adjust position and opacity in Premiere

Now, here’s what you do with Cutback:

• Drag the image into Premiere

• Use [Remove Background]

• Use [Resize]

• Use [Upscale]

• Done.

This workflow saves 10–15 minutes per asset, multiplied across multiple videos, that’s hours saved per week.

FAQ: AI Image Editing in Premiere Pro With Cutback

Why am I getting an error when I use Upscale?

Cutback’s Upscale feature is designed for low-res images. If your image is already large, it won’t work.

Try uploading a smaller version or using only parts of the image.

Why does Resize throw an error?

The image must be under 9,437,184 pixels total (width x height).

Try resizing manually before upload if needed.

Can I add animation after editing the image?

Yes! Once edited, you can go to the [Animate Object] menu and apply:

• Zoom in/out

• Bounce

• Fade

• Slide

All within the same plugin.

Does it support alpha (transparent) images?

Yes. Images with existing transparency will retain it, especially after using Remove Background.

Why This Matters For Modern Editors

There’s a reason tools like Canva, Figma, and CapCut are thriving, creators need speed, not complexity.

By integrating AI-powered image editing inside Premiere Pro, Cutback lets you:

• Stay in your editing flow

• Clean up assets fast

• Avoid janky third-party workflows

• Eliminate creative delays

Final Thoughts

Cutback’s AI image tools are deceptively simple, but incredibly powerful for creators on a deadline.

If you’re tired of toggling between Premiere, Photoshop, and Google Images just to clean up a single logo or frame grab, this is your sign to simplify your process.

No tabs. No exports. Just clean edits, in context, exactly where you need them.

For more in-depth knowledge about the ins and outs of video editing, check out our latest posts on the Cutback blog or our YouTube channel. You can also join Cutback’s Discord community of like-minded video editors.