Revised December 20, 2010 What’s new in version 10.0 Video • Stereoscopic 3D editing. For more information, see Stereoscopic 3D Editing on page 143. • Improved support for closed captions: • You can now preview captions using overlays in the Video Preview window and Trimmer window. • Added support for import, rendering, and print to tape of Line 21 CEA608 closed captions.
Workflow • You can now group tracks in the track list. For more information, see Grouping tracks on page 170. • New multicamera editing features: • Preview the full frame on an external monitor. • Choose takes for time selections. • Expand a multicamera track to multiple tracks. For more information, see Working with Multicamera Video on page 137. • Improved usability of the Trimmer and Video Preview windows with the addition of transport controls.
Welcome After Vegas® Pro software is installed and you start it for the first time, the registration wizard appears. This wizard offers easy steps that allow you to register the software online with Sony Creative Software Inc. Alternatively, you can register online at https:// www.sonycreativesoftware.com/reg/software at any time. Registration assistance Registration assistance is available online at http://www.sonycreativesoftware.com/reg/faq or by fax at (608) 250-1745.
Legal notices ACID, ACIDized, ACIDplanet.com, ACIDplanet, the ACIDplanet logo, ACID XMC, Artist Integrated, the Artist Integrated logo, Beatmapper, Cinescore, CD Architect, DVD Architect, Jam Trax, Perfect Clarity Audio, Photo Go, Sound Forge, Super Duper Music Looper, Transparent Technology, Vegas, Vision Series, and Visual Creation Studio are the trademarks or registered trademarks of Sony Creative Software Inc. in the United States and other countries.
Gracenote CD and music-related data from Gracenote, Inc., copyright © 2000-2008 Gracenote. Gracenote Software, copyright 2000-2008 Gracenote. This product and service may practice one or more of the following U.S. Patents: #5,987,525; #6,061,680; #6,154,773, #6,161,132, #6,230,192, #6,230,207, #6,240,459, #6,330,593, and other patents issued or pending. Services supplied and/or device manufactured under license for following Open Globe, Inc. United States Patent 6,304,523.
Tagged Image File Format (TIFF) Adobe Tagged Image™ File Format is a registered trademark of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and other countries. All rights reserved. Targa file format The Targa™ file format is a trademark of Pinnacle Systems, Inc. Thomson Fraunhofer MP3 MPEG Layer-3 audio coding technology licensed from Fraunhofer IIS and Thomson.
Table of Contents Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 Welcome. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 System requirements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Technical support . .
Capturing video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 Capturing from an SDI card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 Capture Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Using the Device Explorer . . .
Opening a reference library. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Using the Sound Series Loops & Samples reference library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Searching for media files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Searching using a keyword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editing events (continued) Inserting empty events and time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 Trimming events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99 Splitting events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Working with takes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123 Adding takes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123 Selecting takes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Synchronizing stereoscopic 3D events on the timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147 Aligning left- and right-eye views and adjusting depth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 Rendering a stereoscopic 3D project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150 Working with XDCAM Video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Track automation envelopes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .179 Using audio bus tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .179 Adding envelopes to an audio bus track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .179 Adding effects to audio bus tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting event switches (continued) Loop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199 Invert phase (audio only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200 Normalize (audio only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Automating busses and assignable effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .218 Viewing bus tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .218 Adding track envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .218 Modifying track envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using FX send (assignable effects) channel strips (continued) Muting or soloing an assignable effects chain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247 Adjusting assignable effects panning or volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247 Using input busses with hardware-based effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Monitoring audio levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .268 Using record input monitoring. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .269 Working with 5.1 Surround. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271 What is 5.1 surround?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Working in DV format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297 Selecting source media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297 Setting project properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297 Selecting templates . . . . . . . . . . .
Using generated media (continued) Editing a generated media event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .328 Duplicating a generated media event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .328 Compositing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sample uses for keyframe animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360 Animating event panning and cropping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360 Animating video effects plug-ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361 Animating generated text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Saving, Rendering, and Printing Projects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385 Saving a project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .385 Renaming or creating a copy of a project (using Save As) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .385 Autosaving a project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Importing CD Architect files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412 Creating audio CD layout projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412 Adding media as CD tracks to a new project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413 Marking tracks in an existing project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Working with project properties (continued) Summary tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .435 Audio CD tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .435 Using the toolbar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using a Frontier TranzPort. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 479 Viewing the control mappings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 479 Adjusting track or bus volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 479 Adjusting track or bus panning . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Troubleshooting DV hardware issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .494 Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 495 Keyboard Shortcuts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 509 Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
20 | TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1 Introduction Welcome Vegas® Pro software is an innovative and advanced multitrack media-editing system. Vegas Pro software was designed to create an efficient audio/video production environment without sacrificing the quality and processing power that you expect from Sony Creative Software Inc. Whether it’s the standard and familiar Microsoft® Windows® navigation commands or the clean and uncluttered interface, you’ll find Vegas Pro software to be a tool that will be mastered in minutes.
Getting help You can access two varieties of help within Vegas Pro: • Online help • Interactive tutorials Online help To access online help, choose Contents and Index from the Help menu or press F1. The online help window has four tabs that you can use to find the information that you need. Toolbar Tabs Information pane Tab Contents Description Provides a list of available help topics. Click a closed book then click on a topic page to open the pages, and .
Overview Vegas Pro software is designed to be an easy-to-use program with many tools that provide power and flexibility when creating and working with multimedia files. Many operations, menu items, and shortcut keys are consistent with other popular Microsoft Windows software applications. The following sections provide a graphical tour of the Vegas Pro workspace. Main window This is the window that appears when the software is opened.
Toolbar The toolbar allows you to quickly access the most commonly used functions and features. From the Options menu, choose Customize Toolbar to specify which buttons are displayed.
Command bar The command bar displays when you add a command to your project. Commands add metadata to media files to create effects such as closed captioning. For more information, see Adding project markers and regions on page 112. CD layout bar The CD layout bar displays tracks and indices in an audio CD layout project for disc-at-once (DAO) CD burning. For more information, see Creating audio CD layout projects on page 414.
Transport bar controls The transport bar contains the playback and cursor positioning buttons frequently used while working on and previewing your project.
Window docking area and floating window docks By default, the window docking area is located in the upper half of the Vegas Pro workspace. This area allows you to keep frequently used windows available but out of the way while you are working with a project. Windows can be docked next to each other, subdividing the docking area, or they can be docked in a stack in the window docking area or in a separate floating docking window. When stacked, each window has a tab at the bottom with its name on it.
Explorer window - Alt+1 The Explorer window is similar to the Microsoft Windows Explorer. Use the Explorer window to select media files to drag to the project timeline or add to the Project Media window. You can also use the Explorer to perform common file management tasks such as creating folders, renaming files and folders, and deleting files and folders. Use the Start Preview ( ) and Auto Preview ( ) buttons to preview files before adding them to the project.
Mixer window - Alt+3 The Mixer window gives you access to your project’s audio properties, bus assignments, output levels, and plug-in chains. For more information, see Using the Mixer window on page 213. Video Preview window - Alt+4 This window displays a project’s video during project editing and playback. For more information, see Previewing and Analyzing Video on page 371. Video appears during project playback or as the cursor is moved during editing. Right-click to change Video Preview settings.
Project Media window - Alt+5 The Project Media window helps you organize the media files you’re using in a project. The information about these files is displayed in a highly flexible database that can be instantly sorted. You can also use the Project Media window to apply effects and plug-ins to media files and set the specific properties of these files. For more information, see Using the Project Media window on page 44.
Video FX window - Alt+8 The Video FX window contains the video effects available. The thumbnails display animated examples of each plug-in preset. You can drag plug-ins from this window to an event, track, or to the Video Preview window (video output effects). For more information, see Using video effects on page 323. Media Generators window - Alt+9 The Media Generators window contains the different media generators provided.
Video Scopes window - Ctrl+Alt+2 This window allows you to monitor your broadcast video for image problems. Use the scopes to analyze the your video and adjust accordingly with the Brightness and Contrast, Broadcast Colors, Color Corrector, Color Corrector (Secondary), and Levels plug-ins before rendering. For more information, see Monitoring video with scopes on page 377. Surround Panner window - Ctrl+Alt+3 This window allows you to control panning in a 5.1 surround project.
Media Manager window - Ctrl+Alt+4 This window displays the Media Manager™, which you can use to search for, manage, and tag your media files. For more information, see Using the Media Manager on page 73. XDCAM Explorer window - Ctrl+Alt+5 This window displays the XDCAM Explorer window, which you can use to locate, import, and export XDCAM clips. For more information, see Working with XDCAM Video on page 155.
Mixing Console window - Ctrl+Alt+6 This window displays the Mixing Console, which provides an integrated view of all tracks and busses in your project using the appearance of a traditional hardware-based mixer. For more information, see Using the Mixing Console on page 221.
Saving and recalling window layouts - Ctrl+Alt+D or Alt+D A window layout stores the sizes and positions of all windows and floating window docks in the Vegas Pro workspace. You can store up to ten window layouts so you can quickly recall customized layouts for specific editing tasks. For more information, see Saving and recalling window layouts on page 439. Cursor indications The cursor changes depending on which functions are available.
Audio signal flow Record Monitor Audio Media Input Bus Bit-Depth Conversion Hardware Input Input Monitor On or Auto: Recording Into an Event Time Stretch/Pitch Shift Channel Conversion Resampling Insert FX Event FX Pre-Fader Send Bus Pan Event Gain/ASR Processing (Normalize, Event Invert, Track Invert, Event ASR) Bus Volume Input Monitor On or Auto: Recording Into an Event Master + Off Track FX Track Volume & Mute Pre Post Post Pre Assignable FX Bus Track Pan Track Pan Track Pan Link to
Video signal flow Track signal flow Composited track signal flow INTRODUCTION | 37
38 | CHAPTER 1
Chapter 2 Getting Started Vegas® Pro software is a new way of creating multimedia productions. Whether you are an experienced multimedia author or a budding novice, the powerful features and capabilities of Vegas Pro software are organized to increase your creativity and productivity. The following chapter summarizes the software’s basic functions and operations.
2. Enter your project settings on the various tabs. For more information, see Working with project properties on page 436. • The Video tab allows you to select the video format and other video parameters. • The Audio tab allows you to set up the basic audio settings. • The Ruler tab allows you to choose the way the ruler is delineated (beats, seconds, etc.). • The Summary tab allows you to enter any relevant information and reminders about your project.
Working with rotated projects The use of rotated displays—monitors that display vertical media—has become increasingly popular: you can see them in kiosks, presentations, and even on the nightly news. If you have a project that you’d like to display in a rotated format, Vegas Pro makes it easy. 1. Create a new project. For more information, see Starting a new project on page 39. 2.
7. Render your project to any supported rendering format. For more information, see Rendering a project on page 389. In the Render As dialog, select the Use project output rotation setting check box if you want to use the Output rotation setting from the Project Properties dialog for your rendered file. When the check box is cleared, the media is rotated according to its Media Properties setting, but the project itself is unrotated—you can use this setting to proof your project on an unrotated display.
Getting media files You can add media from a variety of sources to your project. You can add audio and video files, record audio into a track, capture video from a video camera, or extract music from your own CD. You can also create media such as text overlays, backgrounds, and credit rolls from within the software. For more information, see Using generated media on page 329. Vegas Pro software supports a wide range of media file types.
Using the Project Media window Media files, both video and audio, tend to be the largest files on your hard drive. It is therefore not always easy to move them around and impractical to store multiple copies of these files. You can add media files to the Project Media window to organize them before any editing begins. Once you begin working on a project, all files you add to the timeline are automatically included in the Project Media list.
Replacing media in the Project Media window You can replace a file in the Project Media window with a different file. When changing the media file that an event contains, every occurrence of the event on the timeline is updated with the new media file contents. 1. Right-click a file in the Project Media window. 2. Choose Replace from the shortcut menu. 3. In the Replace Media File dialog, browse for and select the file that you want to replace the current file. 4. Click Open.
3. From the Action drop-down list, choose the method you want to use for extracting the CD audio: • Read by track Use this option to choose the tracks you want to extract from the CD. • Read entire disc Use this option to automatically extract all tracks on the disc. The entire CD is extracted into one new file in the Project Media window. • Read by range Use this option to extract audio from a specified range of time. 4.
Creating bins Right-click the parent bin where you want to create a new bin and choose Create New Bin from the shortcut menu. Adding media to a bin 1. Browse your existing bins to find the media file you want to move. The All Media Folder contains all media files in your project. 2. Drag a file from the right-hand pane to a bin. Searching media bins 1. Right-click in the Project Media window and choose Search Media Bins from the shortcut menu. The Search Media Bins dialog is displayed. 2.
4. Check for interlacing: a. In the Project Properties dialog, choose a NTSC DV 24p template from the Template drop-down list. b. Choose the Best (Full) setting in the Video Preview window to show full frames. c. Step though the clip and look for interlace lines in moving objects or backgrounds. d. If you see interlace lines, repeat from step 3 and choose a different offset value. e. When no interlace lines appear, the offset is set correctly.
• Muted audio tracks are not included in the AAF file. • When you import an AAF file, the track- and clip-based gain envelopes are combined and imported as track envelopes. • Audio and video effects are ignored. • All video transitions are exported as AAF Video Dissolve transitions. • All audio crossfades are exported as AAF Mono Audio Dissolve transitions. • Time-stretched video is exported using the AAF “Video Speed Control” effect.
1. From the File menu, choose Import, and then choose AAF from the submenu. The Import dialog is displayed. 2. Choose the folder where the project you want to open is stored: Choose a drive and folder from the Look in drop-down list. —or— Choose a folder from the Recent drop-down list to quickly select a folder from which you have previously opened files. 3. Select a file in the browse window or type a name in the File name box. 4. Click Open. The AAF file is imported into the current project.
4. From the Arrange drop-down list, choose a setting to indicate how you want to arrange audio events on the timeline: Setting Description Add across tracks A separate track is created for each .bwf file you import. Add across time All selected .bwf files are added to a single track. Note: Audio from multichannel .bwf files is always added across tracks, regardless of the Arrange setting. For example, if you import a four-channel .bwf file, the audio will be added to four adjacent tracks.
5. Click the OK button to start importing video. After importing is complete, the video from the disc is added to the Project Media window. Each chapter is imported as a separate file. You can then add the imported video to your project just like any other media file. Working with AVCHD video You can edit files recorded with AVCHD camcorders just like any other supported media type on the timeline. This section will guide you through the process of using AVCHD video in your Vegas Pro project. Note: 5.
Dragging multiple media files to the timeline 1. Select multiple media files in the Explorer or Project Media window. Select a range of adjacent media files by pressing Shift and clicking the first and last files in the range or select files that are not adjacent by pressing Ctrl and clicking individual files. 2. Right-click and drag the files to the timeline. 3. When you release the mouse, a shortcut menu appears. Select a placement option from the menu.
Inserting layered PSD files You can add layered PSD files to the Vegas Pro timeline, so each layer of the file is created as an event on its own track. These events are just like other events in Vegas Pro software. For example, you could use track motion to move layers individually, use parent tracks to group and move layers together, use track effects to animate just one layer of the graphic, or you could replace a layer with a video. Notes: • Photoshop layer styles and layer masks are not supported.
Editing a referenced project 1. Perform one of the following actions: • Right-click a media file in the Explorer window. • Right-click a media file in the Project Media window. • Right-click an event on the timeline. 2. From the shortcut menu, choose Edit Source Project. An ACID, Vegas Pro, or Sound Forge window will open with the source project.
3. Click OK. The specified video capture application starts. 4. Capture your video. • For more information on capturing DV clips with the Video Capture application, see the Vegas Pro online help. To access help, choose Contents and Index from the Help menu. • For more information on capturing HDV clips, see Capturing HDV clips on page 301. • For more information on capturing clips from a tape deck via an SDI (Serial Digital Interface) card, see Capturing from an SDI card on page 56.
5. Click the Stop button ( ) or press Esc to end the capture procedure. Your clip is saved to the folder specified in the Capture folder box and is also added to the Project Media list, from which you can add it to the timeline. If you’ve configured your capture device to capture multiple channels of audio, the audio will be added across tracks when you add the clip to the timeline. You can open the clips in the Trimmer window to choose which channels you want to use.
Tips: • Click the Save Clip Log button ( at a later time. • Click the Open Clip Log button ( ) to save the current clip log as an XML file if you want to save your clip log for capture or recapture ) and browse to a saved clip log to load a previously saved clip log. Capture Preferences You can use the Capture Preferences window to set options for capturing video from an SDI or HDV device. 1. From the File menu, choose Capture Video, or click the Capture Video button ( ) in the Project Media window.
Item Description MPEG video quality When capturing to compressed formats, you can drag the slider to adjust performance. When you drag the slider to the left, you can increase performance by decreasing video quality. When you drag the slider to the right, higher-quality video is captured, and more processing power is required. Note: Quality settings affect various types of material differently.
Device tab (for Blackmagic Design DeckLink HD Extreme, Intensity Pro, or HD Extreme 3D SDI cards) Item Description Device type Choose Blackmagic Design DeckLink. Device Choose your device. Video Choose a setting from the drop-down list to specify the desired video format. Audio Choose a setting from the drop-down list to specify the desired number of channels for capturing SDI-embedded audio. Important: Multichannel audio capture is available only if supported by your camera or deck.
Using the Device Explorer The Device Explorer allows you to browse and import clips from AVCHD, XDCAM EX, NXCAM, and RED ONE devices; CompactFlash based memory recording units such as the HVR-MRC1; and hard-disk-based recording units such as the HVR-DR60. 1. From the View menu, choose Device Explorer to display the Device Explorer window. 2. Connect your camera to a USB 2.0 port on your computer. The camera is displayed on the left side of the Device Explorer window.
Importing clips 1. Select your camera on the left side of the Device Explorer window. The camera’s clips are displayed on the right side of the window, and clips that have not yet been imported are indicated with a new clip icon ( 2. Click the Import button ( ). ) to import clips to the Project Media window: • If clips are selected in the Device Explorer window, only the selected clips are imported (you can hold Ctrl while clicking to select multiple clips).
The original media file. An event trimmed from the original media file. The event as it appears in the Vegas Pro timeline. Audio events are created from audio files on your computer (for example, .wav and .mp3) or can be a part of a video file (for example, .avi). You can change many characteristics of an audio event, such as speed, volume, and equalization. Audio events can be mixed with other audio events.
Moving events by small increments To move an event more precisely, click the event and press 4 or 6 on the numeric keypad to nudge it by small increments. The amount of movement caused by each nudge is determined by how far the timeline is zoomed in or out. You can also click the event and press 1 or 3 on the numeric keypad to nudge the event by frames. Moving grouped events Groups allow you to move multiple events within their tracks as a single unit.
Working with tracks A project consists of multiple audio and video tracks. The timeline is the view in which all events appear. The track list provides information about the track and contains controls that affect all events in the track. Using the timeline Numerous options are provided for viewing and navigating in the timeline. Scrolling and zooming There are several ways to scroll and zoom in the timeline.
Changing track height You can change the height of individual tracks by dragging their borders in the track list. In the example below, the main video track is fairly large to show the details of the scene while the two tracks above it, which are overlays, have been resized to a shorter height. For more information, see Changing track height on page 172. Using the track list This section describes the different controls in the track header of each track.
Audio track header Button or Control Name Description Track number and color Track numbers and colors help organize a multitrack project. For more information, see Managing tracks on page 169. Minimize track height Minimizes track height. For more information, see Changing track height on page 172. Maximize track height Maximizes track height. For more information, see Changing track height on page 172. Track name (scribble strip) Allows you name a track.
Nesting projects With Vegas Pro software, you can simplify and organize complex projects by adding multiple projects to the timeline of a single Vegas Pro project. Using project nesting, you can: • Create a single element that can be used in multiple locations or projects. If you update the project, it is updated everywhere. • Create a complex composited element that can be used as a single media event in multiple locations or projects.
Playing back and previewing You can play back your project in two ways: directly from the timeline from within the software or by mixing the entire project to a preview file. Playing your project The transport bar allows you to play back your entire project or portions of your project based on a time selection or the current cursor position. For more information, see Transport bar controls on page 26.
Playback reference The following table describes all the transport bar buttons and their keyboard equivalents. You can use these playback functions at any time while working in your project. Note: The use of many multimedia keyboards is also supported for controlling playback.
Scrubbing with the scrub control slider The scrub control slider can be dragged back and forth. The farther from the center that the slider is dragged, the faster the playback, both forward and in reverse. Below the slider is a small yellow marker that can be used to set the normal rate playback speed. This is the speed at which the project plays when you click the Play button on the transport bar.
When mixing is completed, the associated media player opens and begins playback. Prerendering video previews Playing a project using the transport controls can instantly show how a project is progressing, but it does not actually render your project in its final form. The preview you see in the Video Preview window might be different from your final project in a number of ways: frame size, frame rate, and quality.
Chapter 3 Using the Media Manager This chapter covers the management and tagging of your media files in Vegas® Pro software using the Media Manager™ feature. Creating a new media library You can create multiple media libraries as necessary to organize your media. Each media library is maintained by the Media Manager software as a separate database that stores information about the media contained within it.
Adding media files to a library Before you can search or organize your media files, you’ll need to add them to a media library. If you have the Sound Series Loops & Samples™ reference library loaded when you search your computer for media, media from existing Sony Loops and Samples or Loops for ACID™ collections will inherit tags and custom properties from the reference library.
10. Click the Close button when you’re finished. A tag is automatically added to the Tag tree when you search. The tag name will include the date and time of the search, and all files that were added or updated in the library are marked with this tag. Removing media files from a library You can remove a reference to a media file from a library without affecting the media file itself. 1.
Applying a tag to a media file You tag media by dragging a tag from the tag tree to a media file in the Search Results pane (or by dragging a media file to a tag) when the Apply Tag Mode button ( ) is selected. Notes: • If you want to see which tags are associated with a file as you’re adding or removing tags, use the Properties pane in the Search Results pane (or drag the Tags column in the Search Results pane to the left so you can see the Name and Tags columns at the same time).
Removing a tag from a media file You remove tags from media by dragging a tag from the tag list to a media file in the Search Results pane (or by dragging a media file to a tag) when the Remove Tag Mode button ( ) is selected. Tip: If you want to see which tags are associated with a file as you're adding or removing tags, use the Properties pane in the Search Results pane (or drag the Tags column in the Search Results pane to the left so you can see the Name and Tags columns at the same time). 1.
Viewing or creating palettes The palette view provides another way of working with tags that can be useful for more focused searching. You can use a palette to concentrate on a portion of the current tag tree. In the palette view, tags are displayed as a grid of buttons instead of the standard hierarchical tag tree. 1. Click the Change Tags View button ( ) to toggle the display of the tag tree and palette view. 2. Click the down arrow next to the button to choose a saved palette or create a new palette.
Saving tags and properties to media files Saving tags and properties to files makes all your tagging work portable: if tags are saved to files, those tags will be preserved in the files and can be added to the library by selecting the Add tags and custom properties from files check box in the Add Files to Media Library dialog. Saving tags to files affects only the current media library and libraries that you create after saving the tags.
5. Save the tags to your media files: a. Delete the Scan [date / time] tags from the tag tree. b. If you’ve searched the collection, click Clear to remove all search criteria and ensure all media files are displayed in the Search Results pane. c. Select all files in the Search Results pane. d. Click the Save Tags and Properties to Files button ( ). Tip: You can also right-click a selected file and choose Save Tags and Properties to Files from the shortcut menu. 6. Distribute your media files.
Using the Sound Series Loops & Samples reference library If you have the Sound Series Loops & Samples reference library loaded when you search your computer for media, media from existing Sony Loops and Samples or Loops for ACID collections will inherit tags and custom properties from the reference library. The Sound Series Loops & Samples reference library is not installed by default, but you can install it from the Vegas Pro application disc or download it from the Sony Creative Software Inc.
3. You can refine the search results using any of the following methods: • Select tag check boxes. • Use the Advanced search controls. For more information, see Using advanced search options on page 83. • Choose Match Any from the Match Any/Match All drop-down list to display all media that matches any of your keyword, tag, or advanced search criteria.
Using advanced search options If your media library contains many files and you’re searching for a very specific media file, the Advanced section of the Search pane can help you zero in on exactly the file you want. If you want to perform an advanced search to refine the results of a previous search, start by creating a quick search or tag-based search and then perform the following steps.
Previewing media You can use the transport controls in the Media Manager window to preview media files. 1. Select files in the Search Results pane to choose the files you want to preview: • To select a single file, click the file. • To select multiple consecutive files, click the first file, hold the Shift key, and then click the last item. • To select multiple files that are not consecutive, hold the Ctrl key and click each file. 2.
Adding media to your project After you’ve added media to your library, tagged it, and searched for specific files or related media, you’ve probably found just the right piece of media for your current project. You can add media to your project from the Search Results pane by performing any of the following actions: • Dragging a file from the Search Results pane to the project timeline. The file is added wherever you drop it.
Customizing the Media Manager window Much of what you see in the Media Manager window can be customized to suit your preferences. Resizing columns You can resize the columns in the Search Results pane by dragging the splitter between columns to the desired size. To resize a column automatically, double-click a splitter. Moving columns To move a column in the Search Results pane to a different location, drag the column header to the desired location. A red indicator shows where the column will be dropped.
Showing thumbnails If you’re working with videos or still-images, the thumbnail view helps you see the files that match your search criteria. To switch to thumbnail view, click the down arrow next to the Change Search Results View button ( ) and choose Thumbnail. You can drag the slider at the bottom of the Search Results pane to adjust the size of the thumbnails. When you select a file, the thumbnail is magnified.
Setting Media Manager options Use the Media Manager Options dialog to set options for working with the Media Manager tool. To display the Media Manager Options dialog, click the Media Library Actions button ( ) and choose Options from the menu. General tab Preference Description Reference library Choose the library you want to load when you click the Switch to Reference Library button ( ) in the upper right corner of the Search Results pane.
Thumbnails tab Thumbnail (*.sftb) files are used to represent image and video files in the Media Manager. Use the Thumbnails tab to edit settings for saving and using thumbnails. Preference Description Thumbnail Caching Choose a setting from the drop-down list to indicate how you want to store thumbnails for image and video files. • Store thumbnails in common folder Choose this setting if you want to store all thumbnails in a single folder.
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Chapter 4 Basic Editing Techniques Vegas® Pro projects are multitrack compilations of events that occur over time. The events in your project are references (pointers) to source media files. Vegas Pro software is a nondestructive editor, so editing events in your project does not alter the source media files in any way. Getting around When editing and playing back the project, the cursor identifies where you are along the project’s timeline.
Selecting multiple events You can select multiple events in your project using several methods. Tips: • Once you have selected multiple events, you can group them together. For more information, see Grouping events on page 210. • You can select multiple video events, multiple audio events, or a combination of both video and audio events. However, you can only use commands and operations that apply to both types of events for selections composed of both audio and video events.
Selecting a block of events 1. Click the Selection Edit Tool button ( ). 2. Position the cursor in a corner of the area that you want to select. 3. Click and hold the left mouse button. 4. Drag the cursor to the opposite corner of the area you want to select. A rectangle is drawn on the workspace. All events within this rectangle are selected. Hold the left mouse button and right-click to toggle through the three types of selection boxes: free, vertical, or horizontal.
Dragging to select a time range 1. Position the mouse pointer above the ruler (on the marker bar). The mouse pointer changes to a left/right arrow cursor ( 2. Drag to select a region. All events, or portions of events within the region are highlighted. 3. Drag the yellow handles on either end of the time selection to increase or decrease your time range selection. Tip: You can move the entire selection range by dragging the time selection bar. Selecting a time range during playback 1.
Selecting events and a time range Selecting a time range does not automatically select events. Excluding locked events, all items within the time range play back and are affected by Edit menu commands. However, you can select specific events to edit, and then select a time range. 1. Select the events you wish to edit. For more information, see Selecting multiple events on page 92. 2. Place the mouse pointer above the ruler (on the marker bar). The mouse pointer changes to a left/right arrow cursor ( ).
Editing events Copying events You can copy events, or portions of events, to the clipboard and paste them into your project. You can copy a single event or multiple events. Copying preserves the original event information, edits, and other modifications. Tip: When the Cut, copy, and delete grouped events check box on the Editing tab of the Preferences dialog is selected, cutting, copying, or deleting an event will affect all events in the same group.
Cutting events Cutting events removes them from their respective tracks, but places the cut information (events and time) on the clipboard. Once on the clipboard, you can paste the information into your project. Tips: • When the Cut, copy, and delete grouped events check box on the Editing tab of the Preferences dialog is selected, cutting, copying, or deleting an event will affect all events in the same group.
Cutting a time selection and events Events and portions of selected events within the time selection are reproduced and placed on the clipboard. Time information is also placed on the clipboard. When cutting a combination of time selection and event selection, post-edit ripple mode affects the position of material on all tracks or the tracks of selected events after the cut.
Using paste repeat Use paste repeat to specify how many times clipboard events are pasted at the cursor position on the selected track and to specify the space between pasted events. 1. Copy a selection to the clipboard. 2. From the Edit menu, choose Paste Repeat. The Paste Repeat dialog is displayed. 3. Specify the number of times to paste the clipboard contents and the space between successive copies. 4. Click OK.
Punching-in and crossfading events You can insert events into the middle of (on top of ) existing events without altering the timing of the project. When the inserted event ends, the original event continues playing as if it had never stopped. You can choose the duration of crossfades for punched-in audio events. 1. From the Options menu, choose Preferences. The Preferences dialog is displayed. 2. Click the Editing tab. 3. Select Quick fade length of audio events. Specify a duration for each transition.
Trimming events This section describes simple ways to trim events. Tip: You can apply a ripple edit after trimming an event. For more information, see Applying post-edit ripples on page 107. Trimming an event During the trimming process for a video event, both the last thumbnail image on the event and the Video Preview window show the last frame in the event, allowing you to edit events very accurately. 1. Move the cursor over the edge of the event. The cursor changes when properly positioned ( ). 2.
Trimming a time selection Trimming events removes all media outside the time selection. The removed information is not placed on the clipboard. Trimming is different from cutting in that the events within the time selection are preserved. 1. Select a time range. For more information, see Selecting a time range on page 93. 2. Press Ctrl+T or, from the Edit menu, choose Trim. The material outside the time selection (across all tracks) is removed from the project.
4. Use the 1, 3, 4, and 6 keys on the numeric keypad to trim the current event edge: • Press 1 to trim one video frame left, or press 3 to trim one video frame right (or hold Ctrl+Shift+Alt while rolling the mouse wheel). • Press 4 to trim one pixel left, or press 6 to trim one pixel right (or hold Ctrl+ Shift while rolling the mouse wheel). Depending on the current zoom level, the trim duration will vary. Note: Pressing 5 on the numeric keypad exits edge-trimming mode.
Splitting selected events Only the selected events are split at the cursor’s position. Events before splitting Events after splitting Splitting a time selection Unless locked, all events within the time selection are split at the starting and ending points of the time range, meaning that two splits are made. The split occurs across all tracks.
Splitting and trimming events Hold Ctrl+Alt+Shift and click an event to split the event. Hold Ctrl+Alt+Shift and drag an event to split it at the point you click and trim the event in the direction you drag. The cursor changes to the split-trim cursor ( ). Tip: Holding the Shift key temporarily overrides snapping if it is enabled. Release the Shift key while dragging to snap the event to available snap points.
The original media file. The event on the timeline with original frames. Slipping the event two frames to the right. Slip-trimming the event two frames to the right. Sliding the event two frames to the right. Detecting and repairing audio and video synchronization problems When audio and video events are not aligned, Vegas Pro software will highlight the events in the timeline so you can see synchronization problems at a glance.
Deleting events Deleting an event removes it from its track. Multiple events can be deleted and time selections can be used to modify the process. Ripple editing also applies to delete actions. Deleting operates exactly like a cutting operation, but the removed information is not placed on the clipboard. For more information, see Cutting events on page 97. 1. Select the events to be deleted. 2. Press Delete.
2. From the Edit menu, choose Post-Edit Ripple, and choose a command from the submenu: • Affected Tracks ripples only the tracks where you performed the edit. • Affected Tracks, Bus Tracks, Markers, and Regions ripples the tracks where you performed the edit and ripples any keyframes or envelopes on those tracks. This command also ripples any markers, regions, CD layout markers, and command markers in the project.
Crossfading events You are allowed to crossfade between two events on the same track. For audio events, crossfading fades out one audio event’s volume while another event’s volume fades in. For video events, crossfading creates a transition between two events, one fading out while the other fades in. Lines appear indicating how and when the event’s volume or transparency is being affected.
Changing crossfade curves You can change the crossfade curves that are used to fade in and out between two events. Right-click a crossfade to choose a different crossfade curve. 1. Right-click anywhere in the crossfade region to display a shortcut menu. 2. From the shortcut menu, choose Fade Type, and choose the desired fade type from the submenu.
Undoing a series of edits You can undo a series of edits by using the drop-down list on the Undo button. 1. Click the arrow to the right of the Undo button ( ). 2. From the drop-down list, choose the edit that you want to undo. Items above it (subsequent edits) are selected automatically. Your project is restored to the state prior to those edits. Use the mouse to select a series of edits. When you undo an edit or a series of edits, they are added to the redo history.
Adding project markers and regions Several types of project markers are provided that identify parts of your project, serve as cues, and provide additional functionality: • Markers are points that you mark along the project’s timeline. They are typically used to mark locations in the project for later reference or to mark timing cues. • Regions are ranges of time that you mark along the timeline. Regions identify ranges of time for your reference and can function as permanent time selections.
Naming (or renaming) a marker 1. Place the mouse pointer on the marker you want to name or rename. The pointer changes to a hand icon ( ). 2. Right-click to display a shortcut menu. 3. From the shortcut menu, choose Rename. A text box opens next to the marker. 4. Type the marker name. 5. Press Enter to set the marker’s name. You can also double-click an existing name or double-click the space just to the right of a marker to rename it.
Inserting regions 1. Make a time selection. For more information, see Selecting a time range on page 93. 2. From the Insert menu, choose Region, or press R. 3. Type a name for the region and press Enter. If you do not want to name the region, simply press Enter. Region tags are displayed at the beginning and end points of the time selection. Region start Region end Right-click the marker bar Marker bar Moving regions Drag a region tags to reposition it.
Navigating to regions You can move the cursor to the start or end of a region by clicking either region marker. You can press Ctrl+Right Arrow or Ctrl+Left Arrow to move the cursor to the next or previous region markers. Right-click a region marker to display a shortcut menu that allows you to navigate to the beginning (Go to Start) or the end (Go to End) of a region. Deleting regions 1. Place the mouse pointer on the region marker’s starting or ending point. The pointer changes to a hand icon ( ). 2.
Defining streaming media commands In a streaming media file, command markers can be used to display headlines, show captions, link to Web sites, or any other function you define. Several command types are included that you can add to a streaming media file. Some command types are exclusive to either the Windows Media or the RealMedia player. Command Player type URL Windows Media Indicates when an instruction is sent to the user’s Internet browser to change the and RealMedia content being displayed.
Defining Scott Studios data commands For .wav files using Scott Studios data, command markers can be used to define information about the file. Command Description SCOTT EOM Calculates when the next queued clip starts playing in a Scott Studios system. For more information, refer to your Scott Studios documentation. SCOTT Cue In Set the beginning of a file in a Scott Studios System without performing destructive editing. For more information, refer to your Scott Studios documentation.
• Specify the timing of the command in the Position box. Otherwise, command markers are automatically set to the current cursor position. 4. Click OK. The new command marker appears on the command bar. Editing command properties Double-click any command marker to open the Command Properties dialog and edit its contents. You can also right-click a command marker and choose Edit from the shortcut menu.
Using an external audio editing program Vegas Pro software is a nondestructive editing environment, which means that the original source files remain unchanged by any editing done in the software. Destructive (constructive) edits that modify the actual source media file can be done in a separate application such as Sound Forge® software from Sony Creative Software Inc. By setting up a separate audio editor, you can quickly access the program from Vegas Pro software via the Tools menu or by pressing Ctrl+E.
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Chapter 5 Advanced Editing Techniques This chapter builds on the techniques that were introduced in the last chapter. Ripple editing, pitch shifting, and takes are just three of the more advanced editing topics that are covered in this chapter. Snapping events Vegas® Pro software is preset to snap events into place as you drag them. Snap indicator Events can snap to another event’s edges, to the cursor position, a marker or region, the grid, or to a time selection.
Snapping to the grid When snapping is enabled, you can also choose to have elements in the timeline snap to the vertical grid lines in the timeline. From the Options menu, choose Snap to Grid (or press Ctrl+F8) to toggle snapping to grid lines. Tip: To change the spacing of the grid, choose Grid Spacing from the Options menu and choose a setting from the submenu. Snapping to markers When snapping is enabled, you can also choose to have elements in the timeline snap to markers in the timeline.
Using the event snap offset Each event in your project has a snap offset flag that can be moved along the length of the event. The flag is the white triangle that is located in the lower-left corner of each event. This flag allows you to designate where snapping occurs. This is useful if you need to align the snap with a beat in the event instead of the edge. Snap offset flag 1. Place the mouse pointer on the snap offset triangle. The pointer changes to a hand icon ( ). 2.
Editing in the Event Properties dialog 1. Right-click the event and choose Properties from the shortcut menu. 2. On the Audio Event tab, choose a setting from the Method drop-down list to specify how you want to pitch-shift the event, or choose None if you want to preserve the event pitch. 3. If you selected Classic from the Method drop-down list, indicate the new event length and amount of pitch shifting you want to apply: a. Type the desired event length in the New length box. b.
Time compressing/stretching video Time stretching video allows you to fill a given duration with a set amount of actual video, sometimes called fit-to-fill. For example, if you have a five-second video event and you want this event to fill an eight-second slot, press Ctrl and drag the edge of the event to eight seconds. The resulting video is in slow motion, but the contents (footage) remain the same.
Selecting takes When you add an event with multiple takes, a single event is inserted into a track. The length of the event is set according to the last clip that was selected. This last clip is set as the active take. 1. Right-click an event with multiple takes. 2. From the shortcut menu, choose Take, and choose Next Take or Previous Take from the submenu. Alternately, choose the name of the take from the list at the bottom of the submenu.
Working with take names Displaying take names on events Take names can be displayed on the events in the timeline. From the View menu, choose the Active Take Information option. Without take name With take name Changing take names Changing the name of a take does not affect the source media file in any way. Typically, you might want to change an event’s name after recording multiple takes into a track or event. For more information, see Working with multiple recorded takes on page 270. 1.
Using the Trimmer window The Trimmer allows you to work with and edit one media file at a time. The entire file is opened into the Trimmer, in contrast to events on the timeline that might only contain a portion of the actual source file. The main function of the Trimmer window is to allow you to trim a media file and place portions of it on a track. You can also add regions and markers to a file, preview the media file, or open it in an external audio editing program.
Tip: Click and hold the Previous Frame and Next Frame buttons to move the cursor multiple frames. You can open any number of files in the Trimmer at the same time, selecting the one you currently want to work on from the Trimmer history drop-down list. Tips: • If you open a multichannel audio file in the Trimmer, you can choose which channels you want to display in the Trimmer window. Right-click the waveform display, choose Channels from the shortcut menu, and then choose a command from the submenu.
Choosing multichannel/multistream options When you’re working with multichannel or multistream audio in the Trimmer, you can choose whether you want to add multichannel/multistream audio to the timeline when creating events.
Adding selections at the cursor (three-point editing) 1. Open a media file in the Trimmer. 2. Make a time selection in the Trimmer. 3. Select the track in the timeline where the selection will be added. Tip: You can also select two points in the timeline and a single point in the Trimmer to perform three-point editing. In this mode, ripple editing is not applied. For more information, see Applying post-edit ripples on page 107. 4.
To clear the list, click the Clear Trimmer History button ( ). All files in the drop-down list are removed. To remove a single file from the list, click the Remove Current Media from Trimmer History button ( from the drop-down list and the Trimmer window is blank. ). The media file is removed Adding and saving regions and markers to a media file The Trimmer allows you to add markers and regions to a media file in the same way that you add them to your project.
Media markers in Trimmer Media markers in event Tips: • From the View menu, choose Event Media Markers, and then choose Show Marker Labels from the submenu to toggle the display of marker labels in events. • When media markers are displayed, you can use them as snap points for positioning the cursor and for edge-trimming if Snap to Markers is selected on the Options menu.
Selecting a subclip in its parent media 1. Right-click a subclip in the Project Media window and choose Open in Trimmer from the shortcut menu. 2. Right-click the media file in the Trimmer window and choose Select Parent Media from the shortcut menu. The subclip’s original media file is opened in the Trimmer, and the portion of the media that represents the subclip is selected.
Viewing the Edit Details window To view the Edit Details window, choose Edit Details from the View menu or press Alt+4. The Show drop-down list allows you to view categorized project information. You can edit most entries by double-clicking them or by right-clicking them to display a shortcut menu. Right-click an entry to display a shortcut menu, or double-click an entry to edit it. Use the scroll bar to view other columns in the window.
Column Description Edit function File Path Displays the path of the event’s media file. Enter a new media file reference path for the event to use. Tape Name Displays the name of the source media tape name. Change the tape name here or in the properties dialog for the media file. For more information, see Modifying media file properties on page 307. Select Displays whether the event is selected in the project. Toggle the event’s selection by clicking the check box.
Chapter 6 Working with Multicamera Video Vegas® Pro makes it easy to work with video from multiple cameras right from the timeline. You can capture and edit video for a single scene from multiple cameras or for a single scene shot multiple times from one camera. Multicamera work is generally completed in the following steps: 1. Shooting video 2. Capturing video from cameras 3. Synchronizing video 4. Creating multicamera events 5.
Synchronizing multicamera video clips In order to effectively edit multicamera footage within Vegas Pro, you must have your video clips synchronized. The best place to do this is the timeline, using the same Vegas Pro editing tools as you would for any video project. 1. Start a new project or open an existing project to which you want to add the multicamera video. For more information, see Starting a new project on page 39. 2. From the Options menu, choose Quantize to Frames if it is not already selected.
Creating multicamera events Vegas Pro uses takes for multicamera editing. While the multicamera editing feature can be used with any multitake video event, Vegas Pro makes it easy to build multitake events for multicamera editing. For more information on the takes feature in Vegas Pro, see Working with takes on page 125. 1. When Vegas Pro creates multitake events from your camera tracks, the take order will match the track order.
Notes: • Vegas Pro software can preview many takes at once in multicamera mode, but your computer performance will limit the playback frame rate. • If you have multiple video tracks and/or overlapping video events, the topmost multitake event is displayed in the Video Preview window. Single-take events, such as title overlays, are ignored. When there are multiple video tracks, the topmost event is the one on the topmost track.
Recutting sections You can change the take used for an entire time selection. When possible, events using the same take are merged. If a take is not available for part of the time selection, those events are unchanged. Expanding a multicamera track to multiple tracks Vegas Pro software can expand a multicamera track to multiple component tracks. 1. Select a multicamera track in the track list. 2. From the Tools menu, choose Multicamera, and choose Expand to Multiple Tracks from the submenu. 3.
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Chapter 7 Stereoscopic 3D Editing You can use Vegas® Pro to edit stereoscopic 3D (S3D) projects without any add-ons or additional tools. Editing a stereoscopic 3D project is just like editing a standard Vegas Pro project and requires minimal adjustment to your workflow: 1. Start a new project and set your project properties to choose a stereoscopic 3D mode. For more information, see Creating projects on page 39 and Setting up your stereoscopic 3D project on page 143. 2.
Setting Description Top/bottom (half) Choose this setting when your project will contain left- and right-eye views stacked in a single frame. Left- and right-eye views are displayed as half of the available vertical resolution. In this example, the left-eye image is tinted blue, and the right-eye image is tinted red: Top/bottom (full) Choose this setting when your project will contain left- and right-eye views stacked in a single frame.
Setting Description Left only Choose the Left only or Right only setting for editing on a 2D monitor or if you’re creating separate projects for the left- and right-eye outputs. Right only In this example, the left-eye image is tinted blue, and the right-eye image is tinted red: Blend Choose this setting to blend the left- and right-eye images. This setting is useful when adjusting events. Difference Choose this setting when performing vertical adjustments to minimize vertical disparity. 3.
Setting up stereoscopic 3D previews The Video tab in the Preferences dialog allows you to configure a 3D display for previewing your project. Setting up the Video Preview window The Video tab in the Preferences dialog allows you to override the project settings for previewing your stereoscopic 3D project in the Video Preview window. 1.
Setting up an external monitor The Preview Device tab in the Preferences dialog allows you to override the project settings for previewing your stereoscopic 3D project on an external monitor. 1. From the Options menu, choose Preferences and then click the Preview Device tab. 2. From the Device drop-down list, choose the device where your monitor is connected. The Details box displays information about the device.
Setting Description Side by side (full) Choose this setting when your project will contain left- and right-eye views in a single frame. Left- and right-eye views are displayed using the full horizontal resolution. Top/bottom (half) Choose this setting when your project will contain left- and right-eye views stacked in a single frame. Left- and right-eye views are displayed as half of the available vertical resolution.
Synchronizing stereoscopic 3D events on the timeline When shooting stereoscopic 3D using a pair of cameras, it is important to record a synchronizing event. Some users clap or snap their fingers in front of the cameras; others use a flash from a still camera, a pet-training clicker, or a professional slate. Tips: • If you’re working with multistream 3D files or files that contain both images in each frame, you don’t need to align events.
• Synchronizing a video event: Note: These steps require snapping to be enabled, so if you have not already done so, turn snapping on by clicking the Enable Snapping button ( ). For more information, see Snapping events on page 121. a. Solo the video track. b. Position the cursor at the synchronization point and drag the event’s snap offset so it snaps to the cursor. For more information, see Using the event snap offset on page 123. c. Repeat steps a and b for each clip. d.
3. Verify alignment: a. Drag the Level slider on the top track to set its opacity to 50 percent. b. Find a portion of the video with good movement and verify the motion is the same in both clips and that one clip does not lead the other. If the cameras were not genlocked together (shooting at the same cadence), you may find that one clip is up to half a frame ahead of the other. Unless your scene has lots of fast motion, this is acceptable. 4.
Item Description Crop When the Automatic Crop check box is cleared, you can drag this slider to adjust image cropping. Tips: • 3D depth adjustment is a complex process and is out of the scope of this document. For more information, please review a reference such as 3D Movie Making: Stereoscopic Digital Cinema from Script to Screen by Bernard Mendiburu. • When you’re working with a stereoscopic 3D project, a separate check box is displayed in the Video FX window for the left- and right eye video: .
Setting Description Use project settings Uses the setting from the Video tab in the Project Properties dialog. Side by side (half) Choose this setting when your project will contain left- and right-eye views in a single frame. Left- and right-eye views are displayed as half of the available horizontal resolution.
8. Select the Swap Left/Right check box if you need to switch the left- and right-eye pictures. This setting is useful if you’re using a line-alternate display that displays the right eye on top, if you’re using magenta/green anaglyphic glasses, or to create cross-eye free-view 3D. 9. Drag the Crosstalk cancellation slider if you experience image bleed-through. For example, if you see right-eye images in your left eye, you can adjust the Crosstalk cancellation slider to compensate.
Chapter 8 Working with XDCAM Video Vegas® Pro software provides all the tools you need to edit proxy and full-resolution HD and SD XDCAM MXF files natively, with no transcoding required. Vegas Pro supports all HD and SD XDCAM compression types, all frame rates, all aspect ratios, multichannel audio, and essence marks. All proxy and full-resolution XDCAM source file types can be mixed in a single timeline, edited, and transferred back to XDCAM via i.LINK, network FTP, or SDI.
5. Render your project for your destination format. You can also render to XDCAM EX format by choosing XDCAM EX (*.MP4) from the Save as type drop-down list in the Render As dialog. Note: The following notes apply when rendering XDCAM EX format files: • Only embedded XML metadata is included with rendered files. Embedded XML metadata supports markers and regions; title, author, and description summary information; recording date/time; and timecode in/out.
XDCAM and XDCAM HD workflow You can use MXF files just like any other supported media type. The following sections provide a workflow for efficient editing. Note: The XDCAM deck is not available for external monitor or print to tape via iLink® while in file-access mode. Click the Safely Remove Hardware icon ( ) in the Windows system tray and choose your XDCAM device from the menu to disconnect the device.
Setting up an XDCAM device Use the following procedure if you need to set up an XDCAM deck or camera for transferring clips, replacing proxy files with fullresolution clips, or exporting video to an XDCAM device. XDCAM deck XDCAM camera iLink® ports for transfer Note: The XDCAM deck is not available for external monitor or print to tape via iLink® while in file-access mode.
Tip: The XDCAM deck is not available for external monitor or print to tape via iLink® while in file-access mode. Using FTP transfers allows you to export to a remote device and or use the device’s i.LINK connection in AV/C mode for external monitor previewing. 3. Click OK. Note: For information about using your camera or deck, refer to its documentation.
Item Name Description Auto Preview Automatically preview media files when you click them in the XDCAM Explorer window. Views Click the down arrow and choose a command from the menu to change the way clips are displayed in the XDCAM Explorer. All Essence Marks Displays a separate thumbnail for each essence marker in a clip. Shot Marks 1 & 2 Displays a separate thumbnail for each shot marker in a clip. Clips Displays a single thumbnail for each clip.
Importing XDCAM discs You can use the XDCAM Explorer window to import full- or proxy-resolution clips from XDCAM discs to your computer for editing. Tips: • If you delete XDCAM clips from your computer, those clips will appear offline in your projects. You can reimport the clips by rightclicking the clips in the Project Media window and choosing Recapture from the shortcut menu. • The XDCAM deck is not available for external monitor or print to tape via iLink® while in file-access mode.
4. In the Clip Resolutions box, select check boxes to indicate which clips you want to import: Tip: Proxy files are much smaller than the full-resolution versions. If you're working on a system with limited disk space or processing power, you can edit the smaller proxy files on the timeline and replace the proxies with full-resolution files before rendering. Proxy editing is ideal for storyboarding or rough-cut editing.
Editing XDCAM clips on the timeline Creating and editing a project You can use MXF files just like any other supported media type on the timeline. Depending on your workflow, you might want to use proxy or full-resolution files on the timeline. Tip: Proxy files are much smaller than the full-resolution versions. If you're working on a system with limited disk space or processing power, you can edit the smaller proxy files on the timeline and replace the proxies with full-resolution files before rendering.
5. If you’re working with proxy-resolution clips, replace them with full-resolution clips before rendering your project or exporting it to an XDCAM disc: a. Click the Conform XDCAM Media in Current Project button ( ) in the XDCAM Explorer window. b. If the full-resolution clips are not available on your computer, the Conform XDCAM Media in Current Project dialog is displayed. c. Insert the specified disc.
2. Now click the bus button ( ) on each track to assign the channels to busses. We’ll assign channels one and two to Bus A, channels three and four to Bus B, and channels five and six to Bus C. Alternatively, you could create one bus per channel. We’ll use this channel mapping when you render your video or export it to an XDCAM camera or deck. For more information, see Exporting video to an XDCAM disc on page 166.
3. Insert the specified disc. If the events on the timeline have been trimmed, you can select the Trim clips to used regions when possible check box to import only the portions of the media files required for the events. This option is not available when connecting to an XDCAM deck or camera via file access mode (i.Link). If you need to choose a different XDCAM device or transfer method, click the Device button. For more information, see Setting up an XDCAM device on page 158. 4.
4. Choose render settings: a. Select the Render format radio button. b. In the File path box, type the path to the file you want to render, or click the Browse button to browse to the folder you want to use and then type a file name. This path is used to render an MXF file to your hard drive before transferring to your XDCAM device. You can delete the file after the transfer is complete. c. Select the Enable multichannel mapping check box if you want to map render multiple channels of audio.
Exporting a rendered file Use this procedure when you have a rendered MXF file that you want to save to an XDCAM disc. Important: If you are exporting a rendered file to an XDCAM disc, the file must precisely conform to the target disc format, or the export will fail. 1. From the Tools menu, choose Export Video to XDCAM Disc (or click the Export Video to XDCAM Disc button ( ) in the XDCAM Explorer window). The Export Video to XDCAM Disc dialog is displayed. 2.
Chapter 9 Working with Tracks Tracks contain the media events on the timeline of a project. There are two types of tracks in a Vegas® Pro project: video and audio. Each type of track has its own features and controls. While tracks can be organized and mixed in any order, track hierarchy can be important in determining the final output for video. Because tracks are containers for events, effects that are applied to a track apply to every event in that track.
2. Type the new track name. 3. Press Enter to save the track’s name. Organizing tracks Vegas Pro software is flexible in how tracks can be organized. You can arrange, group, and resize tracks to fit your particular needs. Reordering tracks When you create tracks, they are arranged in the order that they were added. It is a simple process to reorder tracks to fit your needs. You can reorder one or more tracks at a time. Note: Track hierarchy can be critical in video compositing.
Adding tracks to existing track groups Drag one or more tracks into a track group to add the selected tracks to the group. Removing tracks from groups Drag one or more tracks out of a track group to remove the selected tracks from the group. You can also right-click one or more selected tracks in a group, choose Track Group, and then choose Ungroup Selected Tracks to remove tracks from a group. Clearing track groups 1. Click the track group header to select all tracks in the group. 2.
Changing track height You can control track height by dragging the bottom edge of a track in the track list. You can also change track height by clicking the buttons on the track list. Action Button Resulting Track Height Minimize Track Height Restore Track Height Maximize Track Height You can also use several different keyboard shortcuts to change all track heights at once: • Press Ctrl+Shift+Down Arrow or Ctrl+Shift+Up Arrow to change the height of all tracks in your project at once.
Using the track list Each track in your project has its own controls, faders, and sliders that are contained in the track list on the left side of the track. You can work with these controls to affect the events on the track. The controls in the track list can function as trim controls or automation controls for track volume, panning, assignable effects send, and bus send levels. Adjusting the trim control affects the level of the entire track.
Adjusting track panning trim levels 1. Deselect the Automation Settings button ( ). 2. Drag the Pan slider to control the position of the track in the stereo field. Dragging to the left will place the track in the left speaker more than the right, and dragging to the right will place the track in the right speaker. You can hold Ctrl while dragging the slider to adjust the setting in finer increments, or double-click the slider to return it to 0.
Item Description Balance (0 dB Center) In a stereo project, this mode can help you adjust the relative signal levels of the channels in stereo source material. As you pan from the center to either side, the opposite channel begins at the specified center value (0 dB -3 dB, or -6 dB), and decays to -infinity. The signal in the side you are panning toward progresses from the specified center value (0 dB, -3 dB, or -6 dB) to 0 dB.
Item Description Film This mode allows you to pan between pairs of adjacent speakers in 5.1 surround projects using a constant power model. This mode is optimized for theater-style speaker placement. In stereo projects, Film mode functions identically to Constant Power. As you drag the pan point to the center speaker, the sound becomes diffused through the front and rear speakers. When the track is panned fully to the center speaker, there is no output from the front and rear speakers.
4. Drag the slider to adjust the level of the track sent to the assignable effects chain. Note: Assignable effect sends are post-volume by default. To change to pre-volume, click the Pre/Post Volume Send button ( ). Assigning audio tracks to busses If your project contains multiple busses, you can assign a track to a specific bus. 1. Click the Bus button ( ) in the track list to display a drop-down list of available busses. This button appears only if the project contains multiple busses.
Adjusting the composite level (video only) The Level slider in the track header determines the opacity of the video track. The slider can function as a trim control that adjusts the overall opacity of the track, or it can adjust track composite level automation settings. For more information, see Adjusting the composite level automation settings on page 190. The trim level is added to the composite level automation settings so your envelope is preserved, but with a boost or cut applied.
Muting a track The Mute button ( ) in the track list temporarily suspends playback of the track so that you can focus on another track. When a track is muted, it appears grayed out on the timeline. You can mute more than one track at a time. The Mute button can mute a track or change its mute automation state. For more information, see Mute automation (audio and video) on page 185.
Soloing a track The Solo button ( ) in the track list isolates a track’s events for playback. This allows you to focus on a track’s contents without the distraction of other tracks. You can solo more than one track at a time. To solo a track, click the Solo button on that track. To solo several tracks, select the tracks and click the Solo button on any of the selected tracks. Click the Solo button again to restore the track(s) for playback.
Setting default track properties You can use the settings of a selected track to determine the default settings for all new tracks in your project. Properties that can be set appear in the Set Default Track Properties dialog. 1. Set up a track in your project with the properties to use as default settings for new tracks. 2. Right-click the track number and choose Set Default Track Properties. The Set Default Track Properties dialog appears. 3. Select the check boxes that you want to set as defaults. 4.
Resizing audio bus tracks You can drag the horizontal splitter between the track list and bus tracks to increase or decrease the space allocated to bus tracks. Perform any of the following actions to resize individual bus tracks: • Drag a bus track’s bottom border to set its height. • Click the Minimize button ( ) to minimize a track vertically. ) to zoom in vertically so a bus track fills the lower portion of the timeline.
Rendering to a new track Rendering or mixing multiple tracks to a single track can be a good method of decreasing the complexity of a project and speeding up future renders. The original tracks and their events are unaffected when you render (mix) to a single track. Typically, you would use this feature when you are finished refining a few tracks and want to combine them. When you render multiple tracks, any envelope or track effects that you have applied are rendered into the new track.
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Chapter 10 Using Automation Automation allows you to control audio and video levels, panning, and effect parameter automation over time. You can create fades, apply stereo panning, and vary effect parameters throughout your project. Automation is represented on the Vegas® Pro timeline as an envelope or set of keyframes.
Adding or removing mute automation 1. Select a track. 2. From the Insert menu, choose Audio Envelopes or Video Envelopes, or right-click in the track list and choose Insert/Remove Envelope from the shortcut menu. 3. From the submenu, choose Mute. A check mark is displayed next to the command, and an envelope is added to the timeline. 4.
Adjusting volume or pan automation settings 1. If you want to change volume or pan settings by recording automation, select the Automation Settings button ( fader/slider handle is displayed with an automation icon ( ). The ) in automation mode. 2. Drag the Vol fader to control how loud a track is in the mix or drag the Pan slider to control the position of the track in the stereo field.
If you adjust the fader during playback, the behavior varies depending on the selected automation recording mode. For more information, see Automation recording modes on page 197. Tips: • FX sends are post-volume by default. To change to pre-volume, right-click the FX fader and choose Pre Volume from the shortcut menu. • If you want to apply track panning (including pan position and panning mode) to FX sends, right-click the FX fader and choose Link to Main Track Pan from the shortcut menu.
If you adjust the fader during playback, the behavior varies depending on the selected automation recording mode. For more information, see Automation recording modes on page 197. Tips: • Bus sends are pre-volume by default. To change to post-volume, right-click the bus fader and choose Post Volume from the shortcut menu. • If you want to apply track panning (including pan position and panning mode) to bus sends, right-click the bus fader and choose Link to Main Track Pan from the shortcut menu.
Adjusting effect automation settings You can adjust automated effect parameters by editing the envelopes in the timeline or by recording automation with the controls in the Audio Plug-In Window. If you’ve enabled the Bypass parameter for a plug-in, you can click the Bypass button in the plug-in’s banner to toggle the Bypass envelope at the cursor position.
Adding fade-to-color envelopes The fade color is chosen by moving the envelope towards the top or bottom of the track. You can add points to automate the fade. 1. Select a video track. 2. From the Insert menu, choose Video Envelopes, or right-click in the track list and choose Insert/Remove Envelope from the shortcut menu. 3. Choose Track Fade to Color from the submenu or shortcut menu. If the track already contains a fade-to-color envelope, it will be removed.
Adding a video supersampling envelope Video supersampling can improve the appearance of computer-generated animation by calculating intermediate frames between the project’s frame rate, allowing you to create smoother motion blurring or motion from sources such as track motion, event pan/ crop, transitions, or keyframable effects. Note: The effect of video supersampling is less apparent with video that contains fast motion, and supersampling cannot improve the appearance of existing video. 1.
Adding envelope points Once you add an envelope to a track, you can add points to it. These points are used to edit the envelope line in order to automate the control. 1. Place the mouse pointer on the envelope’s line. The pointer changes to a hand icon ( ). 2. Right-click and choose Add Point from the shortcut menu or double-click to add an envelope point. A square point appears on the envelope line. Tip: You can use ripple editing to automatically move envelope points as you edit in the timeline.
Moving envelope points Once you have added envelope points, you can raise and lower them to different levels along the timeline, or you can adjust the envelope’s location along the timeline by dragging it right or left. You can move one point at a time, even during playback and check the results in real time. If snapping is enabled, the envelope point snaps to time divisions as you drag. Hold Shift while dragging to override snapping.
Choose a setting from the Alignment drop-down list to indicate where the fade should be applied: Setting Description Outside Fades are applied before and after the time selection. Centered Fades are centered on the beginning and end of the time selection. Inside Fades are applied to the beginning and end of the time selection. Hiding track envelopes After you have set your envelopes on the tracks, you can hide them from the timeline. Hiding track envelopes does not affect playback.
Cutting, copying, and pasting envelope points 1. Select the Envelope Edit Tool button ( ). 2. Select the envelope points you want to cut or copy: a. Create a time selection that contains the envelope points you want to cut or copy. b. Click the envelope you want to cut or copy. Tip: If the envelope isn’t displayed, you can right-click the track, choose Show Envelopes from the shortcut menu, and then choose an envelope from the submenu. 3. From the Edit menu, choose Cut or Copy. 4.
Locking envelopes to events Track envelopes extend for the length of a track and are independent of the events on the track. This means that the envelope remains in place when you move the events in the track. However, track envelopes can be set to move with the underlying events, thus preserving the timing of envelope points in relation to events.
3. Click the down arrow next to the Automation Settings button and choose Automation Write (Touch) or Automation Write (Latch) from the menu. Automation Recording Mode Track Icon Description Automation Write (Touch) Envelope points or keyframes are created only while a control is being adjusted. When you stop adjusting the control, automation recording stops and the existing envelope points/keyframes are unaffected.
3. Select the parameter you want to edit: • For a track envelope, select the Envelope Edit tool ( ) and click the envelope point you want to edit. You can right-click a point and choose Properties from the shortcut menu to display an effect’s property page. • For a keyframe, click the Expand/Collapse Track Keyframes button ( ) to expand track keyframe rows, and then doubleclick a keyframe to open its property page. For more information, see Using video effects on page 323. 4.
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Chapter 11 Working with Events Events are windows into media files in a project and are the most basic unit of editing in Vegas® Pro software. Media files that are inserted into the timeline are automatically contained within an event. Trimming and editing an event does not affect the source media file in any way. Setting event switches Event switches are important functions that are used to determine the basic behavior of events. You can set switches for a single event or multiple events at the same time.
For video events, turning off the Loop switch makes the last frame repeat for the duration of the event beyond its original length, creating a freeze frame effect (as in the middle example below). The Loop switch is enabled for the event in the last example below. The original three frame clip. Looping is off. The elongated event repeats (freezes) the final frame. Looping is on. The entire event repeats.
3. Click Re-calculate to normalize the event again. Tip: You can set the maximum decibel level used to calculate the event during normalization. For more information, see Audio tab on page 452. Maintain aspect ratio (video only) Video and image files of various sizes and formats can be included in a single project. The project itself can have a different frame size aspect ratio from the source media files. This is not a problem, but you must specify how these differences are handled.
Adjusting audio channels Vegas Pro software allows you to perform audio channel conversion nondestructively. You can mix channels, convert to mono, swap channels in a stereo file, or choose the channel that you want to use in a multichannel file. 1. Select an event and choose Channels from the Edit menu (or right-click an event and choose Channels from the shortcut menu). A submenu is displayed. 2. Choose a command from the submenu to specify how to treat the channels in your file.
Stabilizing video clips From the Tools menu, choose Video, and then choose Stabilize Media to analyze and remove camera shake from the selected video events. 1. Select the event you want to stabilize. You can also select clips in the Project Media window. 2. From the Tools menu, choose Video, and then choose Stabilize Media (or right-click an event and choose Stabilize Media from the shortcut menu). The Stabilize Media dialog is displayed. 3.
4. Click Apply. The video is analyzed, and a subclip is added to the Project Media window for the stabilized media. If the event has been trimmed, you can choose to stabilize the full-length clip or the trimmed portion of the clip. Tip: To remove stabilization, right-click an event (or a clip in the Project Media window) and choose Stabilize Media from the shortcut menu. In the Stabilize Media dialog, click the Remove button. Using audio event envelopes (ASR) You can apply envelopes to individual events.
Setting an event’s fade in and out The event handles allow you to change an audio event’s fade in and out volume. You can also change the type of curve that the event uses to control the volume’s fade in or out. 1. Place the mouse pointer on a handle (upper corners of the event). The pointer changes to the envelope cursor ( ). 2. Click the corner of the event and drag to create a fade. To remove a fade, drag the end of the fade curve back to the edge of the event.
Using video event envelopes Video envelopes allow you to control an event’s opacity or velocity over time. Envelopes appear as lines on an event. With a velocity envelope, you have the added control of being able to create and edit envelope points. Note: Event envelopes only affect an event. Track envelopes affect the entire track. For more information, see Composite level automation (video only) on page 190.
Changing an event’s fade curve You can set the shape of the fade curve (fast, linear, slow, sharp, or smooth) that an event uses to increase or decrease the opacity over time. To access the different fade curves, right-click anywhere in the event’s fade-in or -out region and choose Fade Type from the shortcut menu. Tip: If you use the same fade curve frequently, you can set it as a default for all new video event envelopes. For more information, see Editing tab on page 456.
Removing a velocity envelope To remove a velocity envelope and all of its settings, right-click the event, choose Insert/Remove Velocity Envelope, and then choose Velocity from the submenu. Grouping events You are allowed to group events together within tracks or across separate tracks. Once you create a group, you can move all the events in the group within their tracks as a unit and apply event-specific edits at the same time.
Clearing a group You can ungroup all events by clearing the entire group. Clearing a group does not remove events from your project. 1. Right-click one of the members of the group. 2. From the shortcut menu, choose Group, and choose Clear from the submenu. Selecting all members of a group While grouped events move together within their tracks, selecting one member of a group does not automatically select every member of that group. 1. Right-click one of the members of the group. 2.
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Chapter 12 Using the Mixer The Mixer window is where you control the project’s busses and assignable effects chains. Using the Mixer window The Mixer is a dockable window where you can control audio busses and assignable effects chains within your project and adjust the outgoing signal’s volume and routing. Viewing the Mixer window The Mixer window appears in the window docking area by default when you first start Vegas® Pro software.
Button Description The Insert Bus button adds a bus to your project. You can route tracks or assignable effects chains to the bus. For more information, see Assigning audio tracks to busses on page 218. Using the Mixer Preview fader The Preview fader allows you to adjust the volume and monitor output levels of media files when you preview them from the Explorer or Project Media windows, or play them back from the Trimmer window. The Preview fader also controls the metronome volume.
Using busses A bus is a master control for the audio-signal mix of one or more tracks. You can assign tracks to play back on a specific bus. However, to assign a track to a bus, you must have more than one bus in your project. Each project has a Master bus as a default, but you can add up to 25 additional busses to the Mixer window. A bus is the last stage in the signal’s flow through Vegas Pro software. For more information, see Audio signal flow on page 36.
Adding busses to a project You can add up to 25 busses at any time during the development of your project. Adding a bus Click the Insert Bus button ( ) on the Mixer window. Adding multiple busses 1. Click the Project Audio Properties button ( ) on the Mixer window. The Project Properties window is displayed with the Audio tab selected. 2. In the Number of stereo busses box, enter the desired number of busses (up to 25) to appear in the Mixer window. Enter the number of busses. 3.
Routing busses to hardware You can assign busses to use specific hardware for output. When you installed the software, it automatically detected the hardware available for output on your computer. For more information, see Audio tab on page 452. 1. From the Options menu, choose Preferences and click the Audio Device tab. 2. From the Audio device type drop-down list, choose Windows Classic Wave Driver or an ASIO™ driver.
Adjusting a bus for clipping If the volume level is set too high, it can cause clipping. The clipping displays in red at the top of the meter with the clipping value displayed in decibels (dB). Adjust the fader and click the red clipping value to reset the meter. Continue to adjust the fader and reset the meter until you eliminate the clipping. You can set the meter to remember and display the highest and lowest levels by right-clicking and selecting Hold Peaks and Hold Valleys.
Using assignable effects chains Assignable effects allow you to send various levels of multiple tracks to a single audio effect chain. Like busses, these controls reside in the Mixer window and support plug-in chains. In addition, you can route assignable effects outputs to project busses. Click the Insert Assignable FX button ( ) in the Mixer window to add an assignable effects chain to your project. For more information, see Adding Audio Effects on page 255.
Tip: To use the output fader to control the wet/dry mix of the assignable effects chain, set each plug-in to 100% wet. Use the output (effects return) fader to balance the dry track signal with the wet plug-in signal. You can work with assignable effects controls in much the same way you work with busses. Use the same methods described earlier in this chapter for adjusting volume, adjusting for clipping, muting, soloing, and renaming. For more information, see Working with busses on page 217.
Chapter 13 Using the Mixing Console The Mixing Console provides an integrated view of all tracks and busses in your Vegas® Pro project using the appearance of a traditional hardware-based mixer. You can use the Mixing Console to mix your project in much the same way you work with a hardware-based mixer. Understanding the Mixing Console window From the View menu, choose Mixing Console to toggle the display of the Mixing Console window.
The Mixing Console toolbar The Mixing Console toolbar is displayed at the top of the Mixing Console window and allows you to quickly configure the window’s display; downmix audio; dim the output; or add tracks, assignable effects, or busses.
Item Description Insert Assignable FX Creates an assignable FX chain that you can route to one or more tracks in your project. To delete an assignable FX chain, right-click the assignable FX channel strip and choose Delete from the shortcut menu. For more information, see Using FX send (assignable effects) channel strips on page 246. Insert Bus Adds a bus to your project. The Audio tab in the Project Properties dialog is updated to reflect the new number of busses.
You can use the buttons in this pane to show or hide components in the Mixing Console. Item Description Show All Click to show channel strips for all tracks, busses, and assignable effects chains. Audio Tracks Click to show or hide channel strips for audio tracks. Audio Busses Click to show or hide channel strips for audio busses. Input Busses Click to show or hide channel strips for input busses. Assignable FX Click to show or hide channel strips for assignable effects chains.
Insert FX Control Region Sends Control Region I/O Control Region VU/PPM Control Region Peak Meters Control Region Faders Control Region Channel Label Item Description Insert FX Control Region The Insert FX control region displays the insert effects chain for a track or bus. Sends Control Region The Sends control region displays controls for routing tracks to busses or assignable effects chains. For assignable effects chains, the Sends control region also displays an input fader and meter.
Item Description Faders Control Region The Faders control region allows you to control a channel’s gain. • Audio track channels display controls for the track automation mode, arm for record, input monitor mode, mute, solo, pan, track gain, and phase. • Bus channels display controls for the bus automation mode, mute, solo, pan, bus gain, and pre/post fader effects processing.
Adding track, assignable FX, and bus channels In its default configuration, the Mixing Console displays a channel for each track, bus, and assignable effects chain in your project. You can use the buttons on the Mixing Console Toolbar to add tracks, assignable effects chains, or busses to your project: Item Description Insert Audio Track Adds an audio track to your project. For more information, see Using audio track channel strips on page 227.
Each effect is displayed as a button. You can hover over the button to see a ToolTip that displays the full plug-in and preset name. Tip: When the Insert FX control region isn’t visible, you can click the Track FX button ( ) in the Faders control region to display the Audio Plug-In window for the track’s effects chain. Adding a plug-in Click the Add New Insert FX button ( chain.
Change a track’s input or output device When the I/O control region is visible, each track displays controls you can use to set the track’s input device (for recording) and output device. To show or hide the I/O control region, click the I/O button in the View pane. To choose the recording input for the track, click the Input button and choose a port from the menu. To route a track to a bus, click the Output button and choose a bus from the menu.
Item Description Hold Peaks When selected, the highest peak levels are represented by a thin line on the meter. Hold Valleys When selected, the lowest peak levels are represented by a thin line on the meter. Vintage Mode When Vintage Mode is selected, the VU meters use a different calculation method to simulate the response of analog VU meters. Monitoring track levels with peak meters When the Meters control region is visible, each track displays meters you can use to monitor track levels.
Muting or soloing a track When the Faders control region is visible, each track displays Mute ( ) and Solo ( ) buttons. To show or hide the Faders control region, click the Faders button in the View pane. Muting a track When the Automation Settings button ( ) is not selected, you can click the Mute button ( ) to prevent a track from being played in the mix. Click the Mute button on additional tracks to add them to the mute group. To unmute a track, click the Mute button again.
Arming a track for recording or toggle input monitoring When the Faders control region is visible, each track displays an Arm for Record button ( ( ) you can use to turn record input monitoring on or off. ) and an Input Monitor Mode button To show or hide the Faders control region, click the Faders button in the View pane. Arming tracks for recording Select the Arm for Record buttons ( ) on the tracks where you want to record. Arming a track enables it for recording.
Adjusting panning When the Automation Settings button ( ) is not selected, you can drag the Pan slider to control the position of the track in the stereo field: dragging to the left will place the track in the left speaker more than the right, and dragging to the right will place the track in the right speaker. You can hold Ctrl while dragging the slider to adjust the setting in finer increments, or double-click the slider to return it to 0.
Using bus channel strips A separate channel strip is displayed for each bus in your project. To show or hide channel strips for busses, click the Busses button in the View pane. Renaming a bus To rename a bus, double-click the label at the bottom of the channel strip and type a new name in the box (or press F2 to rename the selected bus). The channel strip in the Mixing Console is updated when you press Enter.
• To replace the current plug-in, right-click the effect’s button, and then choose a new plug-in from the menu. Plug-ins are organized in submenus by type (EQ, Dynamics, Reverbs, etc.). Adjusting bus send levels When the Sends control region is visible, each bus displays controls you can use to route the bus to assignable effects chains or to busses that are routed to hardware outputs. To show or hide the Sends control region, click the Sends button in the View pane.
Monitoring bus levels with VU/PPM meters When the VU/PPM Meters control region is visible, you can display volume unit (VU) and peak program (PPM) meters to help you determine the perceived loudness of your audio signal (peak program meters provide faster response times to volume increases than VU meters). To show or hide the VU/PPM Meters control region, click the VU Meters button in the View pane.
Monitoring bus levels with peak meters When the Meters control region is visible, each bus displays meters you can use to monitor output levels. To show or hide the Meters control region, click the Meters button in the View pane. Note: If the Meters control region is not visible, peak meters are displayed in the Faders control region. Right-click the meter and choose a setting from the shortcut menu (or hover over the meter and roll your mouse wheel) to change the resolution and display options.
Adjusting bus panning or volume When the Faders control region is visible, each bus displays a Pan slider and a Volume fader. Tip: The Pan slider is displayed only when a bus is routed to the master bus or an auxiliary bus. It is not available when the bus is routed directly to a hardware output. To show or hide the Faders control region, click the Faders button in the View pane.
Changing pre/post routing The Pre/Post-Fader Send button in the Sends control region and the Pre/Post Fader Insert FX button ( region work together to determine the signal flow for your busses. ) in the Faders control The Pre/Post Fader Insert FX button allows you to indicate whether the insert FX chain is affected by the channel’s gain fader. When set to Post Fader Insert FX ( ), the FX chain is affected by the channel’s gain.
Using input bus channel strips You can use input busses to input, process, record, and mix external audio sources with your Vegas Pro project. Following are some examples of how you can use input busses in your projects: • Use an input bus as a recording input, allowing you to apply effects and record a wet signal. • Use an input bus as a mixer input for an external device, such as a synthesizer. • Use an input bus as a return for hardware-based effects.
Configuring input bus channel strips Renaming an input bus To rename an input bus, double-click the label at the bottom of the channel strip and type a new name in the box (or press F2 to rename the selected bus). The channel strip in the Mixing Console is updated when you press Enter. Adding or editing input bus (insert) effects When the Insert FX control region is visible, each input bus displays its effects chain at the top of the channel strip.
• Choose Remove to remove a plug-in from the effects chain. • Choose Presets, and then choose a setting from the submenu to load a new preset. The current preset is indicated by a check mark. • To replace the current plug-in, right-click the effect’s button, and then choose a new plug-in from the menu. Plug-ins are organized in submenus by type (EQ, Dynamics, Reverbs, etc.).
Monitoring input bus levels with VU/PPM meters When the VU/PPM Meters control region is visible, you can display volume unit (VU) and peak program (PPM) meters to help you determine the perceived loudness of your audio signal (peak program meters provide faster response times to volume increases than VU meters). To show or hide the VU/PPM Meters control region, click the VU Meters button in the View pane.
Monitoring input bus levels with peak meters When the Meters control region is visible, each input bus displays meters you can use to monitor output levels. To show or hide the Meters control region, click the Meters button in the View pane. Note: If the Meters control region is not visible, peak meters are displayed in the Faders control region.
Adjusting input bus volume or panning When the Faders control region is visible, each input bus displays a Pan slider and a Volume fader. Note: The Pan slider is displayed only when an input bus is routed to the master bus or an auxiliary bus. It is not available when the input bus is routed directly to a hardware output. To show or hide the Faders control region, click the Faders button in the View pane.
Using FX send (assignable effects) channel strips A separate channel strip is displayed for each FX send (assignable effects chain) in your project. To show or hide channel strips for assignable effects, click the FX Sends button in the View pane. Renaming an assignable effect chain To rename an assignable effects chain, double-click the label at the bottom of the channel strip and type a new name in the box (or press F2 to rename the selected assignable effects chain).
Adjusting assignable effects input levels When the Sends control region is visible, each assignable effects chain displays controls you can use to adjust and monitor the input volume of the effects chain. To show or hide the Sends control region, click the Sends button in the View pane. Changing an effects chain’s output device When the I/O control region is visible, each assignable effects chain displays controls you can use to set the chain’s output device.
Item Description UK PPM The UK peak program meter (also known as a BBC meter) is a Type II meter and is displayed with a scale of 1 to 7, which corresponds to a range of -12 to 12 dBu: EBU PPM UK Marks dBu 7 12 6 8 5 4 4 0 3 4 2 8 1 -12 The EBU peak program meter is a Type II meter and is displayed with a scale of -12 to +12, which corresponds to -12 dBu to 12 dBu. 0 on the EBU PPM equals 0 dBu.
Muting or soloing an assignable effects chain When the Faders control region is visible, each assignable effects chain displays Mute ( ) and Solo ( ) buttons. To show or hide the Faders control region, click the Faders button in the View pane. Muting an assignable effects chain When the Automation Settings button ( ) is not selected, you can click the Mute button ( ) to prevent an assignable effects chain bus from being played in the mix.
) is selected, the Pan slider handle is displayed with an automation handle ( When the Automation Settings button ( can use it to edit pan automation on the bus track. ), and you Note: The trim level is added to the pan automation settings so your panning envelope is preserved, but with an offset applied. For example, setting the trim control to 9% left has the same effect as moving every envelope point 9% to the left. Adjusting volume When the Automation Settings button ( the bus.
This input bus provides a signal path from your effects processor’s output to your project. 6. Send your track to the effects processor: Click the bus button on the track header and choose the bus you created in step 2. The bus button on the track header lets you send the track’s audio to your effects processor. 7. Click Play ( ). When you play your project, the track is sent to your auxiliary bus, into the effects processor, out of the effects processor into the input bus, and out to the master bus.
When you speak into the cue microphone, its output is sent to the recording booth without being mixed into your project output. Creating a Cue (Headphone) Mix with the Mixing Console When you’re recording, you’ll often need to create separate monitor mixes: the performer in the recording booth may need a slightly different mix than you’re listening to in the control room. The flexibility of the Mixing Console makes it easy to create custom cue mixes.
6. Now we need to route our headphone bus to one of our sound card’s outputs. a. In the Mixing Console, click the Output button in the I/O control region on the cue mix bus. A menu is displayed that lists all of our sound card’s outputs. Tip: To show or hide the I/O control region, click the I/O button in the View pane. b. Choose the output where you want to send the headphone mix. c. Connect the performer’s headphones to the selected output. 7. Now we need to create our headphone mix. a.
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Chapter 14 Adding Audio Effects You can use audio effects, or plug-ins, to improve the quality of the audio in a production or to create special artistic effects. Vegas® Pro software supports a variety of DirectX® and VST plug-in effects from both Sony Creative Software Inc. and third-party vendors. Using audio effects There are four ways to use audio plug-ins: event effects, track effects, bus effects, and assignable effects.
After the plug-in chain is created, the audio is processed by each plug-in in order. The plug-ins are cumulative so, in some cases, you may want to rearrange their order to achieve the desired effect. Notes: • To add effects quickly, you can drag plug-ins and plug-in packages from the Plug-In Manager window to an audio or video track header. • If you’re working with a 5.
2. Click the Plug-In Chain button ( ) on the window. The Plug-In Chooser dialog appears. Plug-ins already in the chain appear at the top of the dialog. Plug-ins already contained in the chain 3. Select a plug-in and click Add. 4. Repeat step three to add as many plug-ins as you need to create the desired effect. 5. Click OK to close the Plug-in Chooser dialog. The plug-in chain appears just below the title bar in the Audio Plug-In window.
Saving customized plug-in presets Each plug-in has a number of presets that you can use to set the behavior of the plug-in. However, you can also adjust the controls for the plug-in manually to create custom settings. You can then save the effect settings as a new preset. 1. Click the Event FX, Track FX, Bus FX or Assignable FX button ( ). The Audio Plug-In window appears. 2. In the plug-in chain at the top of the window, click the plug-in you want to customize. 3. Adjust the settings for the effect. 4.
Arranging the plug-in order from the Plug-In Chooser dialog 1. Click the Event FX, Track FX, Bus FX, or Assignable FX button ( ). The appropriate Audio Plug-In window appears. 2. Click the Plug-In Chain button ( ). The Plug-In Chooser dialog appears with the plug-in chain displayed at the top. 3. Drag a plug-in to a new location in the chain, or select a plug-in and click either the Move Plug-In Left ( Right ( ) or Move Plug-In ) button. 4. Click OK to close the Plug-In Chooser dialog.
Plug-in chain packages that you have created and saved 1. Click the Event FX, Track FX, Bus FX or Assignable FX button ( ). The Audio Plug-In window appears. 2. Click the Plug-In Chain button ( ). The Plug-In Chooser dialog appears with the plug-in chain displayed at the top. 3. Click Save As. The Save Plug-in Package dialog appears. 4. Type a name for the package. 5. Click OK or press Enter to save the package.
Organizing your plug-ins Within the Plug-In Chooser dialog, you can create folders to organize the plug-ins. This can help you organize large numbers of plug-ins on your system. You can create folders and then drag plug-ins to the folders. Automating effects parameters Automation allows you to control audio and video levels, panning, and effect parameter automation over time. You can create fades, apply stereo panning, and add effects that come and go as you please.
Bypassing all audio effects From the Options menu, choose Bypass All Audio FX to omit all audio effects (track, bus, and assignable effects) during playback. Bypassing effects allows you to quickly compare your project with and without effects and conserve processing power to avoid playback problems. When effects are bypassed, you can choose whether bypassed effects remain open.
Chapter 15 Recording Audio Vegas® Pro software can record audio into multiple mono or stereo audio tracks while simultaneously playing back existing audio and video tracks. You are limited only by the performance of your computer system and audio hardware. Audio is recorded to a media file on your computer and into an event on the timeline. You can record into an empty track, a time selection, an event, or a combination of time and event selection.
Setup with digital multitrack This setup includes a digital multitrack recorder with an optional MIDI synchronization component. Usually you would have a mixer, a microphone, etc. connected to these components. Your particular setup will vary depending on your equipment. Refer to your components’ documentation for specific setup configurations. Digital out Digital card Digital in MIDI card Sync. out The dashed line indicates an option if you are synching Vegas Pro software to tape via a MIDI timecode.
Arming the track for recording Whether recording into an existing track, an empty track, a selected event, or a time selection, you must prepare a track for recording. You can arm multiple tracks prior to recording. Click the Arm for Record button ( ) in the track header. After a track is armed, a record meter appears in the track header. Depending on your hardware, a record gain fader may also appear. Track is ready for recording using the Sound Mapper. Arm the track first.
6. A small dialog opens displaying the name and location of the file or files that were just created. Click Done to return to the main workspace. Item Description Delete button Removes the selected file. Rename button Changes the name of the selected file. Delete All button Removes all files listed in the dialog. Done button Closes the dialog and returns you to the timeline.
3. Click the Arm for Record button ( ) on the event’s track. When recording into multiple selected events, arm their respective tracks at this time. 4. Click the Record button ( ) on the transport bar to begin recording. 5. Click the Record button ( ) again or the Stop button ( ) on the transport bar to stop recording. Recording into an event with a time selection Recording into a time selection allows for a pre- and post- roll during recording.
6. Begin generating MTC from your MIDI device. The top of the time display now reads MTC Input Locked, the time updates from the MIDI device, and recording automatically begins. Typically, there is a short delay between when you begin generating MTC and synchronization. Recording using an input bus When you use an input bus to record audio, you can include input bus effects with the recorded signal. For example, imagine that you need to record an electric guitar with an amplifier-modeling plug-in.
3. Set your track to record from your input bus: a. Click the Record Input button, choose Input Busses from the menu, and choose your input bus. b. Click the Record Input button and choose Input Monitor Mode: On or Input Monitor Mode: Auto so you can hear your input signal during recording. • When Auto ( ) is selected, you will hear the input monitor signal when playback is stopped and during recording.
Working with multiple recorded takes Clicking the Loop Playback button ( ) on the transport bar enables you to continually create takes during recording. Takes are different versions of a recorded event that you can quickly switch between to choose the best one. Each take within an event references a different source media file. During recording with loop playback enabled, the time selection continually repeats and starts recording a new take until you stop recording.
Using record input monitoring If you’re using an ASIO audio device and you want to hear your recording signal with real-time track effects, you can turn on input monitoring. To turn on input monitoring, click the Record Device Selector button ( or ) and choose Input Monitor from the menu, and then choose Auto or On from the submenu. During recording, your signal will be played back with the current track effects chain, but a dry (unprocessed) signal is recorded.
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Chapter 16 Working with 5.1 Surround Vegas® Pro software allows you to create 5.1-channel mixes to prepare audio for DVD-Video or 5.1-channel music projects. What is 5.1 surround? 5.1 surround is a standard format consisting of three speakers across the front and two speakers in the rear. The “.1” is a sixth channel called low-frequency effects (LFE) that enhances the bass levels in the mix. 5.1 surround includes five main channels... Left Left Surround Center Right ...
There are several ways to set up your system, depending on the sound card and speaker setup you are using. 5.1-compatible sound card Six powered speakers Six passive speakers with a six-channel amplifier Connect powered speakers to your sound card’s outputs as indicated by your sound card’s documentation. Connect your sound card’s front, rear, and center/ subwoofer outputs to the appropriate inputs on a six-channel amplifier/home theater receiver.
Track list in 5.1 surround mode Surround panner Track routed to LFE Track routed to Bus Mixer in 5.1 surround mode Front L/R Rear L/R Center LFE Surround panners Routing to hardware in the mixer You must route the surround audio to the correct output in the mixer. 1. From the Options menu, choose Preferences. 2. Click the Audio Device tab. 3. From the Audio device type drop-down list, choose an audio device type other than Microsoft Sound Mapper (such as Windows Classic Wave Driver). 4.
Assigning audio to the LFE channel Once the project is in 5.1 surround mode, you must decide whether a track will provide the “5” (surround panning) or the “1” (LFE channel) in 5.1 surround. Initially, all tracks in a surround project are set to provide surround panning, but you can assign a track to the LFE channel instead. You can assign an individual track to the LFE channel or you can route the track to a mixer control (bus or assignable effect chain) and assign the mixer control to the LFE channel.
Adjusting assignable effects send or bus send levels You can adjust send levels for busses or assignable effects chains using the multipurpose fader in the track header. Click the fader label and choose an assignable effects chain or bus from the menu. The fader in the track header can function as a trim control that adjusts the overall send level of the track, or it can adjust send level automation settings. Deselect the Automation Settings button ( ) on the track header if you want to adjust trim levels.
Panning audio You can pan audio in a 5.1 surround project in two ways: • Pan tracks individually using the Surround Panner window. • Route tracks to mixer controls (busses, assignable effect chains) and pan the mixer controls using the Surround Panner window. Panning tracks 1. Deselect the Automation Settings button ( ) on the track you want to pan. 2. Double-click the surround panner on the track you wish to pan. The Surround Panner window appears.
4. Double-click the surround panner on the mixer control to display the Surround Panner window. Double-click to display the Surround Panner window. 5. Adjust the panning settings. For more information, see Using the Surround Panner window on page 279. 6. Close the Surround Panner window. Tip: You can also use the surround panner on the mixer control to pan your track.
2. Drag the pan point to position the sound within the sound field. For more information, see Moving the pan point on page 280. 3. Click the center speaker icon to include the center channel and drag the Center fader to apply a gain to the center channel. Applying a gain to the center channel may make dialogue more present in the mix. Note: When automating panning using keyframes, you cannot automate the gain applied using the Center fader. For more information, see Automating panning on page 282.
Item Description Balance (0 dB Center) In a stereo project, this mode can help you adjust the relative signal levels of the channels in stereo source material. As you pan from the center to either side, the opposite channel begins at the specified center value (0 dB -3 dB, or -6 dB), and decays to -infinity. The signal in the side you are panning toward progresses from the specified center value (0 dB, -3 dB, or -6 dB) to 0 dB.
Item Description Film This mode allows you to pan between pairs of adjacent speakers in 5.1 surround projects using a constant power model. This mode is optimized for theater-style speaker placement. In stereo projects, Film mode functions identically to Constant Power. As you drag the pan point to the center speaker, the sound becomes diffused through the front and rear speakers. When the track is panned fully to the center speaker, there is no output from the front and rear speakers.
Adding panning keyframes With panning keyframes turned on, you can add keyframes at any location along the track or bus track. 1. Position the cursor where you want to begin panning the track. 2. Select the Automation Settings button ( ) on the track you want to pan. 3. Double-click the surround panner to display the Surround Panner window. 4. Adjust the panning settings. For more information, see Using the Surround Panner window on page 279. Note: You cannot automate muting/including channels. 5.
Working with keyframes After you add keyframes, you can work with them in much the same way as envelope points. For more information, see Composite level automation (video only) on page 190. Moving keyframes Drag a keyframe to a new position below its track. Duplicating keyframes Hold Ctrl and drag a keyframe to a new position below its track. Editing keyframes 1. Double-click a keyframe to open the Surround Panner window. 2. Adjust the panning settings as desired and close the window.
2. Drag the Smoothness slider to adjust the smoothness of the spatial interpolation path leading up to this keyframe. Three keyframes with smoothness=100... ...and the same three keyframes with smoothness=0. Locking keyframes to events If you want keyframes to move with an event when it is moved along the timeline, choose Lock Envelopes to Events from the Options menu. Hiding keyframes 1. Select the track for which you want to hide keyframes. 2.
5. From the Template drop-down list, choose the multiple mono template, or choose an appropriate 5.1-channel template if the selected file type supports it. Tips: • When you render a 5.1 surround project to AIFF (.aif), Perfect Clarity Audio (.pca), Wave64 (.w64), or Wave (.wav) formats, you can save each of the surround master busses to a separate file by choosing the multiple mono setting from the Template drop-down list. For example, if you’d typed My Film.
Creating a DVD or Blu-ray Disc with DVD Architect Pro software If you have DVD Architect™ Pro software, you can create menu-based projects, music compilations, picture slide shows, or a singlemovie DVD that will play back automatically in your DVD or Blu-ray Disc™ player. DVD Architect Pro software includes support for many file types and can convert your media to the formats required as needed.
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Chapter 17 Using Advanced Video Features While simple to learn, Vegas® Pro software is a powerful application with many advanced features. This chapter covers some of the advanced video features of this powerful tool. Cropping video With the Event/Pan Crop window, you can resize media in a video event or selectively crop media without resizing.
Open the Event Pan/Crop window by clicking the Event Pan/Crop button ( ) on the event. Presets Rotation area Smoothness Selection area Keyframe controller Handles Show Properties Lock Aspect Ratio Normal Edit Tool Size About Center Zoom Edit Tool Move Freely or Move in X or Y only Enable Snapping Note: If any controls shown in the figure above are not visible, enlarge the Event Pan/Crop window by dragging the lower right corner until all controls are revealed.
Cropping Cropping is the process of removing the outside edges from an image or video, thereby re-framing the subject. In the following example, the Event Pan/Crop window on the left has been used to create a selection area around the subject, removing extraneous information from the outside of the video. This creates a zoom effect that is similar to zooming in with a camcorder. The Video Preview window on the right displays the event after cropping. Crop area Preview output 1.
Rotating You can also rotate the selection area in the Event Pan/Crop window. If you rotate the entire frame, the background behind the video shows through. Position, size, and rotation can all be animated with keyframes. For more information, see Using keyframe animation on page 356. 1. Click the Event Pan/Crop button ( ) on the event. 2. Resize and move the selection area as desired. 3. Move the mouse outside the selection area until it becomes a rotate icon ( ). Drag to rotate the selection area.
Working with still images You can use still images for a number of purposes including slide shows, overlay graphics, and titles. You can insert still images into projects just like any other media files. The default length for a still image event when it is first added to a track is five seconds (this is an adjustable preference), but this duration can be modified by dragging the edges to create a still image event of any length.
To enable this feature, select the Automatically crop still images added to the timeline check box on the Editing tab in the Preferences dialog. For more information, see Editing tab on page 456. You can use the Event Pan/Crop window to adjust the cropping after you have added a still image to the timeline and the software has automatically cropped the image. For more information, see Cropping on page 291. Capturing a timeline snapshot You can create still images of a single frame of your project.
Creating text and titles Most video projects include titles and credits. There are several ways to add text to your project: you can use the included plug-ins for static text and scrolling credits, or you can use an external image-editing program to create images with text on them. Adding text and titles with the ProType Titler With the ProType Titler, you can create static text, animated text effects with splined paths, per-character animation, and advanced curves.
7. Click the Compositing Mode button ( ) to set the title track to Source Alpha (default). Notes: • If your title is saved as a TGA image, the alpha channel may not be detected automatically. Use the Media Properties dialog and choose a new setting from the Alpha channel drop-down list. For more information, see Modifying media file properties on page 307. • If your image does not have an alpha channel, you can use the Chroma Keyer to filter the image and key out the background.
Resampling video Resampling allows Vegas Pro software to interpolate frames in an event when the frame rate of a media file is lower than the project’s frame rate. With resampling, the intervening frames are interpolated from the source frames, much like a crossfade between the original frames.
Resampling at either the event or project level perform the same function. There are few cases where resampling may be particularly important: • When the frame rate of the source media for an event is slower than the project’s frame rate. For example, when you are using a source media file that has a 10 fps rate in a 29.97 fps rate project, resampling is recommended. • When changing the speed of a video event. For example, when slowing a clip to 30% using a velocity envelope, resampling is recommended.
Working in DV format Vegas Pro software is optimized for DV editing. If your project is destined for tape or television, the DV format is an excellent choice. The DV codec installed with Vegas Pro provides video with excellent image quality, even over multiple generations, and provides audio that is better than CD-quality. If you start with well-shot DV footage and stay within the DV format throughout the editing process, you can output broadcast-quality video programs.
Eliminating out-of-range colors The DV format allows color values to exceed broadcast NTSC and PAL color level standards. If you have a scene whose colors are too hot, or if you want to be sure that your video stays within legal broadcast levels, apply the Broadcast Colors effect to specific events or the entire project. Be aware that applying the Broadcast Colors effect results in recompression of the video.
Working in HDV format HDV cameras record high-definition video to standard DV tapes using a highly compressed variation of the MPEG-2 format. Because of this compression, you can capture HDV clips at data rates that are no higher than DV capture. You can use HDV files just like any other supported media type on the timeline. Capturing HDV clips If you have an HDV camera, you can use Vegas Pro software to capture your clips as MPEG-2 transport streams.
If you’re performing frame rate or frame size conversion, ensure the Video rendering quality is set to Best on the Project tab of the Custom Template dialog. Destination Proxy Format HDCAM over HD-SDI Render an .avi file that uses the Sony YUV codec. The frame rate and frame size should match your HDCAM master. Digital Betacam or XDCAM over SD-SDI Render an .avi file that uses the Sony YUV codec. The frame rate and frame size should match your master. 24p DVD Render an .
Working with RED ONE camera files RED ONE™ cameras record 4K footage as REDCODE™ RAW (.r3d) files that you can add directly to the Vegas Pro timeline and edit like any other supported media type. 1. Use the Device Explorer to browse and import clips from your RED ONE camera’s memory card or hard drive to your local hard drive. For more information, see Using the Device Explorer on page 61. 2. Set your project properties to match the format of your final output.
Modifying R3D decode properties You can modify the decode properties of your RED ONE camera files in the R3D Decode Properties window. These settings are applied nondestructively to the raw .r3d file as metadata. Note: The decode properties are stored in a .SfDecProp file that is saved using the same base name as the clip. Do not edit the contents of this file. To access this window for one or more .
Modifying project video properties You can access project video properties by clicking the File menu and choosing Properties or by clicking the Project Video Properties button ( ) on the Video Preview window. Many of these settings are identical to the settings found on the Project tab of the Custom Template dialog. Final render properties set up in the Custom Template dialog override the following Project Properties settings. For more information, see Working with project properties on page 436.
Item Description Pixel format Choose a setting from the drop-down list to indicate whether you want to perform video processing (compositing, scaling, previewing, rendering, and most video plugins) using 8-bit or 32-bit, floating-point arithmetic. • 8-bit Performs video processing using 8-bit arithmetic and in the video (studio RGB, or 16-235) color space. • 32-bit floating point (video levels) Performs video processing using 32-bit arithmetic and in the video color space.
Item Description Adjust source media to better Select this check box if you want Vegas Pro to scale images or adjust interlacing to match project or render allow media files to work better with your project. settings This setting will correct for the following types of inconsistencies: • DV media will be cropped for 320x240 Internet renders to prevent letterboxing. • DV widescreen media will be cropped in HD projects. • HD media will be cropped in DV widescreen projects.
Editing properties for an audio file The following settings are available for audio files. Tip: You can also view the properties for the media file associated with an event. Right-click the event, choose Properties from the shortcut menu, and click the Media tab. Item Description File name Displays the current media file name and location. Tape name This can be used to display the name of the tape from which you recorded the audio.
Item Description Alpha channel Choose a setting from the drop-down list to change the alpha channel information for the file. If the alpha channel in an image is not detected, choose the correct type of alpha channel from this drop-down list. If you’re unsure, try the Premultiplied setting first. • Undefined: Video provides no alpha channel information. This setting ignores any alpha channel information in the file.
Setting timecode media properties These properties appear in the Timecode section of the Media tab: • The Use timecode in file radio button is the default setting, where the media file’s timecode is used. • The Use custom timecode radio button allows you to set the media file’s timecode manually. • If you have selected the Use Custom timecode radio button, a drop-down list contains the available timecode formats. SMPTE Drop (29.97 fps, Video) for example, is the timecode format for NTSC DV.
Chapter 18 Closed Captioning Vegas® Pro software supports adding closed captions to video files and rendering those files as XDCAM HD and XDCAM HD422 MXF files. You can also add captions to video files and render as Windows Media Video for use in Windows Media Player. Adding closed captioning to video files Closed captions help make your video productions accessible to a wider audience.
Rendering captions in MXF files You can export captions in rendered media and in standalone .scc files. • When you render to XDCAM HD/XDCAM HD422 MXF formats, captioning markers are embedded in the media file. An .scc file is also created using the base name of the rendered media file. • When you render to a format that does not support embedded captioning markers, an .scc file is created using the base name of the rendered media file.
Importing closed captions from a closed captioning file If your media does not contain embedded captioning markers, you can import markers from an external file. The following file types are supported: • Scenarist Closed Caption (.scc) Tip: If an .scc file matches the media file name, the captions will be read automatically when you load a file. For example, if your video file is wildflowers.avi, naming your captioning file wildflowers.avi.scc will allow Vegas Pro to read the captions automatically.
Adding or editing closed caption markers on the timeline You can edit closed caption markers on the timeline to adjust caption start times, delete caption markers, edit their contents, or add new markers. • To add a new marker, click to position the cursor on the timeline and then choose Command from the Insert menu (or press C). Tip: To create a pop-on caption quickly, type your caption text in the Comment box in the Command Properties dialog. Caption markup is added automatically.
Captioning markup reference and examples Pop-On Caption A pop-on caption is displayed on the screen as a single element and is cleared or replaced with a new caption. Pop-on captions are most often used for prerecorded captioning. {RCL}{ENM}{R14In00Wh}{TabOff1}First Row{R15In00Wh}{TabOff1}Second Row{EDM}{EOC} Tip: If you type captioning text in the Comment box of the Command Properties dialog and do not specify captioning markup, a pop-on caption is created.
Caption Markup Description {RyyBl} Row yy [00 to 15], Blue Text {RyyBlU} Row yy [00 to 15], Blue Underlined {RyyCy} Row yy [00 to 15], Cyan Text {RyyCyU} Row yy [00 to 15], Cyan Underlined {RyyRd} Row yy [00 to 15], Red Text {RyyRdU} Row yy [00 to 15], Red Underlined {RyyYl} Row yy [00 to 15], Yellow Text {RyyYlU} Row yy [00 to 15], Yellow Underlined {RyyMa} Row yy [00 to 15], Magenta Text {RyyMaU} Row yy [00 to 15], Magenta Underlined {RyyWhI} Row yy [00 to 15], White Italics {RyyWh
Caption Markup Description Usage Notes {StdCharSet} Standard Character Set {DSzCharSet} Double Size Character Set You can use the character set commands to switch between character sets in your captions. For example, if you needed to display Korean characters in an English-captioned program, you could use {KORCharSet} to display Korean characters and then use {StdCharSet} to switch back to English captions.
Displaying closed captions in the Video Preview or Trimmer window You can preview your captions by using overlays in the Video Preview window. Tip: Overlay settings from the Video Preview window are also applied to the video monitor in the Trimmer window. 1. Click the down arrow next to the Overlays button ( ) and choose a setting from the menu to turn on the caption type that you want to preview. 2. Play your project.
Editing multiple captions with the Edit Details window The Edit Details window allows you to see all of your project’s captions at once for quick editing. You can even edit multiple captions at once. For example, if you wanted to change your 608CC1 (primary language) captions to 608CC3 (secondary language), perform the following steps. 1. From the View menu, choose Edit Details to display the Edit Details window if it isn’t already visible. 2.
Adding captions to Windows Media Video (WMV) files Captions makes your final video accessible to a wider audience. You can use text commands to add captions line-by-line to a Windows Media® Video (WMV) file, or for longer projects, you can add captioning from a script. Adding captions line-by-line 1. Position the cursor where you want the caption text to appear. 2. From the Insert menu, choose Command. The Command Properties dialog appears. 3. From the Command drop-down list, choose Text. 4.
5. In the fourth column, enter a label to identify your captions. An entry such as Line 001 can help you sort the captions once you paste them into your Vegas Pro project. Note: The final caption is displayed in the Microsoft® Windows Media® Player until the end of the video. To clear the final caption sooner, add a final command with no text (as shown above). Copying and pasting captions into Vegas Pro software 1. Select the cells in the spreadsheet and copy them. 2.
6. Render your file in Windows Media Video format. For more information, see Rendering a project on page 389. Displaying captions You can use one of two methods for displaying the captions when the video is played: • Instruct your audience to turn on captions: In Windows Media Player 8: from the View menu, choose Now Playing Tools, and then choose Captions from the submenu. In Windows Media Player 9 and 10: from the Play menu, choose Captions and Subtitles, and then choose On if Available from the submenu.
Chapter 19 Using Video Effects, Compositing, and Masks Video plug-ins in Vegas® Pro software include effects and generators. Effects cover a broad range of electronic modifications that can be used to improve substandard video or artistically enhance a production. Generators can be used to create custom video events such as credit rolls or gradient overlays. A variety of options are provided in compositing video and using masks. Compositing involves mixing visual elements together into a final output.
Adding a video effects plug-in You can apply video effects to video events, tracks, source media files (via the Project Media window), or to an entire video project. You can add a plug-in by selecting it in the Plug-In Chooser dialog, or you can drag-and-drop the plug-in from the Video FX or PlugIns windows. Notes: • Not all video plug-ins are capable of multithreaded rendering.
Adding a plug-in from the Video FX or Plug-In Manager window 1. If the Video FX or Plug-In Manager window is not currently visible, choose either Video FX or Plug-In Manager from the View menu to view the appropriate window. 2. Drag a plug-in from the window to one of the following locations: • File in the Project Media window • Event • Track list or empty section of a track • Video Preview window (video output effects) 3.
Working with video effects plug-in chains You can apply plug-ins in chains of two or more for even greater flexibility. A plug-in chain is a sequence of all of the plug-ins to be applied to a media file, event, track, or project. The same plug-in can be added to a chain more than once. Use the same steps to add additional plug-ins to a chain as you use to add a single plug-in. For more information, see Adding a video effects plug-in on page 324.
In the following illustration, you can see how the order of plug-ins is important. The goal of the above example is to use video effects plug-ins to create a very high-contrast mask out of a video clip of fire. In the image on the left, a Brightness and Contrast plug-in is applied first and then a Black and White plug-in. In the image on the right, the Black and White plug-in was applied first, removing the color, and then the Brightness and Contrast plug-in was applied.
Modifying a video effects plug-in Video effects plug-ins are highly customizable. You can select from a variety of presets or adjust the settings for custom effects. You can also save custom settings to be used again as a new preset. 1. Click the Video FX button ( ) on the event, track, Project Media window file, or Video Preview window that has the plug-in applied to it. The Video FX window appears. 2. Select a preset from the Preset drop-down list or adjust the parameters as needed.
Using generated media Generated media plug-ins are a special class of plug-in that creates virtual media files contained in events on the timeline. These virtual files are stored in the Project Media window, where their properties can be viewed and modified. Generated media provide an easy way to add text, backgrounds, or test patterns to your project. You can view the generators by choosing Media Generators from the View menu to display the Media Generators window.
Adding a generated media event 1. Position the cursor where you want to create the event. 2. Select the media generator you want to use: • From the View menu, choose Media Generators to display the Media Generators window. Select a generator in the left pane. The thumbnail images in the right pane represent each of the existing presets for the selected generator. Hover your mouse pointer over a preset to see an animated example, and drag the preset you want to use to the timeline.
Compositing Compositing is the process of mixing visual elements together into a final output. In Vegas Pro software, this means mixing tracks together vertically. Masks, generated text, and chroma keying all involve compositing. Understanding how compositing works is important to understanding these and many other video track mixing techniques.
In the second example, track two is the child track of track one (the parent track), and the compositing mode of track one is set to Mask. This parent/child relationship was set up by clicking the Make Compositing Child button ( ) in the track list for track two. This makes the text in track one act as a mask over track two, allowing the fire to show through the mask (that is, the text). The region outside of the text is still transparent, but there is nothing below these tracks, so it appears black.
The sample below uses a generated text event that is partially transparent. For more information, see Using generated media on page 329. Set compositing mode for overlay track Overlay track Background track The following table shows how these two sample tracks are blended using each of the compositing modes. Compositing mode Sample Description Add Adds the overlay color values to the background. Subtract Subtracts the overlay color values from the background.
Compositing mode Sample Description Overlay Heightens contrast by using Multiply mode on darker colors and Screen mode on lighter colors. Hard Light Adds overlay colors as if the overlay were lit by a bright, focused spotlight. Dodge Brightens the background based on the overlay color values. Burn Darkens the background based on the overlay color values. Darken Compares the overlay and background pixel by pixel and selects the darker color value for each pixel.
Using a 2-to-1 transform plug-in to customize compositing Click the Parent Composite Mode ( ) or Composite Mode button and choose Custom from the menu to use plug-ins to control how the parent track modifies the tracks in its composite group. The included Displacement Map, Height Map, and Bump Map plug-ins can create interesting lens, mirror, water, fire, and other lightbending effects.
Single-track 3D motion 1. Click the Track Motion button ( ) on the track that contains the overlay that you want to animate. The Track Motion window is displayed. 2. From the Compositing Mode drop-down list, choose 3D Source Alpha. 3. Choose a setting from the Layout drop-down list to choose the workspace display that you want to use. The Layout setting allows you to see your track from various points of view. 4.
Composited group 3D motion 1. Click the Make Compositing Child button ( ) on the tracks you want to group to create a compositing group. For more information, see Understanding the parent/child track relationship on page 331. 2. Click the Parent Composite Mode button ( ) on the parent track and choose 3D Source Alpha. 3. Click the Parent Motion button ( ) on the parent track. The Track Motion window is displayed. Parent Motion Parent track motion affects the parent track and all child tracks.
7. The 3D track motion occurs instantly, and the results are updated in the Video Preview window. 8. Use the keyframe controller at the bottom of the Track Motion window to establish distinct track motion settings throughout the duration of the track. During playback, immediate frames are interpolated to create smooth motion. Expand the Keyframe interpolation heading on the left side of the window and drag the Smoothness slider to adjust the interpolation.
Icon Command Description Scale About Center Select this button if you want the selection box to retain its center point when you resize the box by dragging its edges. When the button is not selected, the opposite side of the selection box will remain anchored when you drag the edges to resize it. Prevent Scaling (X) Select this button if you want to lock the horizontal dimension of the selection box.
In the next example, clicking the Make Compositing Parent button ( ) on track 3 again forces the track below (at the same compositing level) to be rendered in 3D and composited as a 2D image. However, in this case, the 3D rotation that was applied as parent motion on track 1 is not applied to tracks 3 and 4. In the next example, all tracks are compositing parents.
Creating masks Masks are used to create overlays, limit the effects of a filter, and to create transparent titles. In their simplest form, masks work by making a particular color in an image or video transparent. More complex effects can be created with gradients (smoothly blending transparent areas together) and by altering the sensitivity of the mask. Creating image masks You can use media generated by Vegas Pro software to create simple masks. You can also create masks from just about any image file.
Creating video masks You can also use video files to create masks, although the process can be more complicated than using an image as a mask. The key to any mask is contrast. You can increase the difference between the light and dark areas of a video file using video effects plug-ins. 1. Insert the video that you want to use as a mask into a video track. 2. Drag a Black and White plug-in from the Video FX window to the event to remove the color.
Bézier masks You can use the Event Pan/Crop dialog to create masks using Bézier curves. Use the controls in the Path heading on the left side of the Event Pan/Crop dialog to create masks using Bézier curves. Each event can contain multiple Bézier masks. When you use a single setting for the duration of an event, you are masking the contents of the event. You can add keyframes to change the shape, size, or position of the mask to create an animated effect. Mask Tracks Output Creating a Bézier mask 1.
Icon Tool Description Anchor Creation Use to create control points. Click to create an anchor point. Drag before releasing the mouse button to modify the tangents of the new point. Click the first or last point of an open path to close the path. The tool is displayed as a releasing the mouse button to move the entire path. Click between two anchor points to create a new point. The tool is displayed as a . Drag before . If all paths are closed, click to create a new path.
Fine-tuning masks Depending on the source material, creating a clean mask can be a tricky exercise. There are a few tools and tricks you can use to fine tune a mask. • Solo the track Click the Solo button ( on the mask. • Toggle effects Turn individual plug-ins on and off to isolate effects in a plug-in chain. Keep in mind that the order of the plugins in the chain is important in determining the final composited output.
Using the Mask Generator The Mask Generator is a plug-in that controls the transparency of events to be used as masks when you use events that are not grayscale. Apply the plug-in to an event (or a track) in the same way as any other plug-in: just drag-and-drop. The Mask Generator plug-in can be found in the Video FX window (from the View menu, choose Video FX). How the Mask Generator works The following illustration demonstrates some of the effects of the Mask Generator.
Chroma keying Chroma keying or bluescreening is a special case of overlay transparency. A color key is a specific color or a range of similar colors in an image that are made transparent, allowing a background video to show through. The idea is to take a video subject and film it against a solid, uniform background color. It is critical that the color be smooth and uniformly lit with no shadows, and that the color chosen for the background not be used in the subject.
8. Click the Split Screen View button ( ) on the Video Preview window to restore the video effects. The Video Preview window shows the result of the Chroma Keyer plug-in. When a subject is filmed against a solid colored background in a studio, you can key out the background color using the Mask Generator or the Chroma Keyer plug-in. You can select a wider range of colors using the Chroma Keyer plug-in, making it the perfect tool for less-than-perfect blue screens.
Chapter 20 Adding Video Transitions and Motion Want something other than a cut or crossfade between video events? Vegas® Pro software provides a wide variety of transitions you can add to your project. This chapter also covers track motion and keyframe animation, which allows you to automate video effects, media generators, cropping, panning, and more. Understanding basic transitions Transitions occur between two video events.
Using transition effects Transition effects are more complex than a simple cut or crossfade. You can replace a crossfade with a transition and then customize the transition to meet your needs. Tip: Select the Event Fade Lengths option on the View menu to display fade lengths between selected and nonselected events in the timeline. You can use this display as a quick indicator of a transition’s length. Adding a transition 1. Insert a video event onto the timeline. 2.
Adding a transition to all selected events If you tend to use the same transitions often, you can save yourself some time by adding a transition to all selected events at once. 1. Select the events where you want to add the transition. 2. From the View menu, choose Transitions to display the Transitions window. 3. Select a transition from the list on the left side of the window. The thumbnail images on the right side of the window represent each of the existing presets for the selected transition.
Adding a transition progress envelope Normally, a transition progresses from 0 to 100% in a linear fashion over the length of the transition. A transition progress envelope gives you complete control over a transition: you can hold, reverse, and repeat individual transitions. 1. Right-click a transition. 2. From the shortcut menu, choose Insert/Remove Envelope, and then choose Transition Progress from the submenu. An envelope is added to your transition. 3.
Converting a cut to a transition The transition between two events that are adjacent to each other on the same track is instantaneous and is called a cut. However, if the first event is trimmed back from the end and the second event is trimmed back from the beginning (in other words, both have enough media to overlap), you can transform the cut into a transition effect using this extra media. 1. Right-click the line between two adjacent events at the cut position. 2.
Previewing a transition The easiest way to preview a transition is to set the loop region to the duration of the transition and then loop the playback. This allows you to adjust the transition while it is playing and make changes in real time. 1. Double-click the transition. This automatically creates a time selection equal to the length of the transition. 2. Click the Loop Playback button ( ) to turn loop playback on. The selection area bar is dark blue when loop playback is turned on. 3.
Saving custom settings as a preset After you modify a transition, you can save your settings as a preset for use at a later time. You can apply presets by choosing them from the Preset drop-down list. 1. Modify the settings in the window to create your desired transition effect. For help on the different controls in the window, click the Plug-In Help button ( ) to access online help. 2. Click the name in the Preset drop-down list. The current text is highlighted. 3. Enter a name for the new preset. 4.
Using keyframe animation Keyframe animation is a technique that computer artists use to quickly make complex animated sequences. Instead of drawing every frame of a title scrolling in from top to bottom by hand, an animator simply has to set a starting and ending position for the animation and let the computer interpolate the intermediate frames. The animation pictured on the right has three keyframes: a starting, middle, and ending keyframe. More complex animations use more keyframes.
Understanding the keyframe controller The keyframe controller appears at the bottom of the Video FX window (used for transitions, effects, and generated media), the Track Motion window, and the Event Pan/Crop window. Cursor position Keyframes Each effect in a video effects chain can have its own keyframes. Some video effects have parameters that have their own keyframes. Track Motion keyframes Sync Cursor Sync the keyframe cursor with the timeline cursor. Last Keyframe Go to the last keyframe.
Deleting keyframes 1. Select a keyframe in the keyframe controller. 2. Click the Delete Keyframe button ( ). Navigating in the keyframe controller Use the keyframe navigation buttons (First, Previous, Next, and Last) to quickly jump to a keyframe. Alternately, press Ctrl+Left Arrow or Ctrl+Right Arrow to move to the previous or next keyframe. Modifying keyframes After you create your keyframes, you can move them, copy and paste them, and change the interpolation curves between them.
For video effects, the line between keyframes indicates which interpolation curve is being used. For event pan/crop and track motion keyframes, the color of the keyframe indicates which interpolation curve is being used. Linear (gray) Fast (green) Slow (gold) Smooth (lilac) Sharp (pink) Hold (red) In the Curves view of the video effects keyframe controller, you can manually adjust a keyframe’s spline curves. Click the Lanes and Curves buttons to toggle between the Lanes and Curves views.
Changing the relative spacing of keyframes You can change the relative positions of the keyframes as a group. This can be useful if you need to change the overall length of an animated sequence or if you need to copy a set of keyframes to another event that has a different duration than the original. 1. Click on the first keyframe, hold the Shift key, and click on the last keyframe in the sequence to select all of the keyframes. 2. Hold Alt and drag the first or last keyframe to scale the keyframes.
Viewing and moving track keyframes Once you have added keyframes to one of these track-level effects, the track keyframes appear at the bottom of the track on the timeline. Click the Expand Track Keyframes button ( ) to view the keyframes. You can drag a keyframe on the track in the same way you would in the keyframe controller. To move several keyframes at once, use the Envelope Edit tool ( ) to select and drag multiple keyframes. With track keyframes collapsed, keyframes are minimized.
Sample uses for keyframe animation The following section provides several examples of how keyframe animation can be used with features such as event panning and cropping, video effects plug-ins, and generated text events. Animating event panning and cropping You can combine event panning and cropping tools with keyframe animation to create several special effects. For more information, see Cropping video on page 289.
Using pan-and-scan Another way to use keyframe animation in the Event Pan/Crop window is panning, or pan-and-scan. Pan-and-scan is a technique commonly used when film is converted for television. Movie screens and film are usually wider (~2.35:1) than television (~1.33:1).
The results of gradually transitioning into an effect using keyframe animation. Animating generated text You can add a generated text event to a project by dragging a text generator from the Media Generator window. For more information, see Using generated media on page 329. You can then animate the text by adding keyframes. Not all attributes of generated text media can be animated using keyframes, however. You cannot, for example, morph one text message into a different one.
Adding track motion The Track Motion window (accessible by clicking the Track Motion button ( ) on any video track) is used to move a video track across a background. This background can be a solid color, another video event, or an image. Picture-in-picture effects and scrolling title sequences are two simple cases where this tool is important. The gray area in the center of the window (covered by the blue/gray rectangle) represents the actual screen or area that is visible in the movie.
5. Use the keyframe controller at the bottom of the Track Motion window to establish distinct track motion settings throughout the duration of the track. During playback, immediate frames are interpolated to create smooth motion. Expand the Keyframe interpolation heading on the left side of the window and drag the Smoothness slider to adjust the interpolation. For more information, see Using keyframe animation on page 356.
Icon Command Scale About Center Description Select this button if you want the selection box to retain its center point when you resize the box by dragging its edges. When the button is not selected, the opposite side of the selection box will remain anchored when you drag the edges to resize it. Prevent Scaling (X) Select this button if you want to lock the horizontal dimension of the selection box. Prevent Scaling (Y) Select this button if you want to lock the vertical dimension of the selection box.
2D Shadow This creates a simple drop shadow that appears under the entire window or only under the opaque (nontransparent) parts of the overlay. You can control the size and offset of the shadow as well as the shadow color. A shadow is especially effective under a picture-in-picture window or to emphasize text and titles. Use the Eyedropper tool to select a specific color from anywhere on the screen. The shadow effect creates a drop shadow under an object, window, or title.
2D Glow Glow is a bright haze surrounding an overlay. In general, light colors are used for glow effects, but you can emphasize bright text on complex backgrounds by using a very small black glow, with little or no feathering, and 100% intensity. 1. Select the 2D Glow row in the keyframe controller. When the 2D Glow row is selected, glow controls are displayed in the Track Motion dialog.
The illustration below shows some of the relevant parts of this procedure. Note the shadow cast by the overlay video. This is added by selecting the 2D Shadow check box on the keyframe controller. The Video Preview window displays the results. Tip: While overlay picture-in-picture windows are often completely opaque, you can fade them in and out using opacity envelopes. For more information, see Using opacity envelopes on page 208.
Chapter 21 Previewing and Analyzing Video As you work in Vegas® Pro software, you can preview your video by using the Video Preview window or by connecting to an external monitor. You can optimize previews by adjusting preview quality, prerendering video, or building a dynamic RAM preview. The Video Preview window also provides features such as safe area overlays, grid overlays, and isolated color channel displays to further enhance your productivity.
Button Description Copy Snapshot to Clipboard Copies the current frame to the clipboard. Save Snapshot to File Saves the current frame as an image file. You can change the size of the image using the Preview Quality button. Choose Auto or Full to capture the frame at its full resolution, or choose Half or Quarter to capture a smaller image. You can change the size of the image using the Preview Quality button.
The Auto setting will adjust the frame size to fit the Video Preview window size. The Full setting processes frames at the project frame size. The Half setting processes frames at half the project frame size. The Quarter setting processes frames at one-quarter of the project’s frame size. For example, if you have an NTSC (720x480) project, Half creates a 360x240 preview; Quarter creates a 180x120 preview.
When prerendering is complete, bars appear at the top of the timeline indicating the sections that have been prerendered. Prerendered sections As a default, these preview files are saved when a project is closed. To delete these files when you close the project, from the Options menu, choose Preferences and, on the General tab, clear the Save active previews on project close check box.
Previewing affected and unprocessed video 1. Click the down arrow next to the Split Screen View button ( 2. Select the Split Screen View button ( ) and choose FX Bypassed from the menu. ). The cursor is displayed as a . 3. Choose a preset selection or drag in the Video Preview section to create a selection. This selection will display the unprocessed video. In the following example, the Add Noise plug-in was applied to the event, and the selection displays the original video.
Identifying safe areas The Video Preview window displays the entire video frame data. However, most television monitors do not display all of this data. Previewing the video on a television monitor is the only way to verify what frame information will display. You should also note that individual television monitors vary in what they display. While there is no substitute for previewing on a television, safe areas are a good method of estimating the extent of the masking. 1.
Monitoring video with scopes From the View menu, choose Video Scopes to toggle the display of the Video Scopes window. Broadcast video uses a narrower range of color than the RGB you see on your computer. When you broadcast a project that contains out-of-range colors, you can introduce image problems or even noise into the audio stream.
4. The vectorscope monitor displays the chrominance of the video signal: Frame Vectorscope display of frame 5. Hover over a portion of the monitor to display the chroma value at the pointer position: Chroma value Displaying luminance using the waveform monitor The waveform monitor in the Video Scopes window allows you to monitor the luminance (brightness or Y component) of your video signal. The monitor plots luminance on the vertical axis and the width of the current frame on the horizontal axis.
4. The waveform monitor displays the luminance of the video signal: Frame Waveform display of frame 5. Hover over a portion of the monitor to display the luma value at the pointer position: Luma value Displaying color levels and contrast using the histogram monitor The histogram monitor in the Video Scopes window allows you to monitor color levels and contrast of your video.
6. Use plug-ins such as Brightness and Contrast, Broadcast Colors, and Levels to adjust the color. For more information, see Using video effects on page 323. Frame Histogram display of frame Graph Mean and standard deviation hues Displaying RGB components with RGB parade monitor The RGB parade monitor in the Video Scopes window displays waveforms for the red, green, and blue components of your video signal.
Adjusting video scope settings Click the Settings button ( ) in the Video Scopes window to set your display options. These options adjust the display of data in the Video Scopes window and have no effect on your data. 7.5 IRE setup If your video hardware will add a 7.5 IRE setup, you can configure the Video Scopes window so the display will be consistent with an external scope connected to a device that adds 7.5 IRE setup. NTSC video in the United States adds 7.5 IRE setup to convert black to 7.5 IRE.
Previewing in a player You can create a full-quality preview that automatically plays in the appropriate media player. You can preview the entire project or select a portion. 1. To preview a portion of the project, create a selection containing the portion you want to preview. 2. From the Tools menu, choose Preview in Player. The Preview in Player dialog appears. 3. Select the type of preview file to create. Select a template or click Custom to configure any compression options. 4.
Previewing video on a secondary Windows display If your Windows desktop is extended across multiple displays, you can use one of those displays to preview the timeline with no A/ V synchronization drift—perfect for ADR and foley work. Important: If you intend to deliver your project in an interlaced format, previewing on a computer monitor is not a substitute for previewing on an interlaced broadcast monitor.
Setting up an external monitor The diagram below shows the preferred setup for sending video from the timeline to an external television monitor. Computer 1394 card Video to camcorder Camcorder or Media converter Analog to television Television monitor Audio to speakers Sound card Speakers The video is converted to DV format and is sent through the IEEE-1394 card to the DV device (camcorder or DV-to-analog media converter). The DV device sends analog output to the television monitor.
Viewing on an external monitor via SDI You can send video directly from the timeline to a video monitor connected to a supported SDI card. Important: Blackmagic Design DeckLink HD Extreme/Intensity Pro/HD Extreme 3D and AJA Io Express, XENA 2K, LH, LHe, LHi, LS, and LSe cards are supported. For the latest information about supported hardware, please see our Web site at http://www.sonycreativesoftware.com/vegaspro/ io#sdi. Notes: • Vegas Pro software allows you to use one external video device at a time.
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Chapter 22 Saving, Rendering, and Printing Projects Vegas® Pro software allows you to save and render projects into many different multimedia formats. When you render your Vegas Pro project, the project itself is not altered, but rather can be rendered in any number of different formats. This chapter explains saving a project and using the Save As and Render As functions. In addition, you will find reference information for the rendering options available.
5. Select the Copy media with project check box if you want to create copies of each of the project’s media files in the same location as the project file. This allows you to collect all of a project’s assets in a single location. 6. Click the Save button. 7. If you selected the Copy media with project check box, a dialog is displayed to allow you to specify how you want to copy media files: • Select the Copy source media radio button to copy the entire source media files to your project folder.
Rendering a project Rendering refers to the process of converting a project into a single new multimedia file and formatting it for the desired playback method: media player, Internet streaming media, CD-ROM, video tape, etc. The project file is not overwritten, deleted, or altered during the rendering process. You can return to the original project to make edits or adjustments and render it again later.
1. From the File menu, choose Render As. The Render As dialog is displayed. 2. Select the drive and folder from the Save in drop-down list, or use the browse window to locate the folder where you want to save your file. 3. Type a name in the File name box, or select a file in the browse window to replace an existing file. 4. Choose a file type from the In the Save as type drop-down list. 5. If you’re rendering to .wav, .w64, .avi, or .
7. Select the Save project as path reference in rendered media check box to save the path to your Vegas Pro project in the rendered file. Saving the project path allows you to easily return to the source project if you use your rendered file in another project. The check box will be unavailable if you haven’t saved your project or if you’re rendering using a third-party file-format plug-in. For more information, see Project references in rendered media files on page 54.
Rendering still-image sequences 1. If you want to render only a portion of your project, create a time selection and/or solo the tracks you want to include in the still-image sequence. 2. From the File menu, choose Render As. The Render As dialog appears. 3. In the File name box, type the base file name you want to use for rendered images. Files will be numbered automatically using this file name. 4. Choose Image Sequence from the Save as Type drop-down list. 5.
1. Create your project. 2. In the Mixer window, add a bus for each channel (or channel pair) you want to include in your rendered file. For example, if you wanted to create a six-channel .wav file, you could set up your mixer with three or six busses. If you use three busses, the left and right channels of each bus will be saved to a separate channel. If you use six busses, you can save the mono downmix from each bus as a separate channel. Note: If you’re working with a 5.
13. Select the Stretch video to fill output frame size (do not letterbox) check box when you are rendering to an output format with a slightly different aspect ratio than your project settings. This will prevent black bars from appearing on the top and bottom or the sides of the output. 14. If the selected file type supports it, you can select the Save project markers in media file check box to include markers, regions, and command markers in the rendered media file. 15. Click the Save button.
Using default MPEG templates Template Use for Description MPEG-1 Templates VCD NTSC VCD PAL Use this template to create an NTSC Video CD-compliant MPEG-1 file. Audio is a 224 kbps, 44.1 kHz MPEG-1 layer 2 stream. NTSC is used in the United States, North and Central America, parts of South America, and Japan. Video is 29.97 fps with a frame size of 352x240 pixels. Use this template to create a PAL Video CD-compliant MPEG-1 file. PAL is used in Europe and much of Asia. Audio is a 224 kbps, 44.
Template Use for Description HDV 1080-50i Use this template to create HDV MPEG-2 transport streams (.m2t). Audio is a 384 Kbps, 48 kHz, MPEG layer 2 stream. Use this template to create HDV MPEG-2 transport streams (.m2t). Audio is a 384 Kbps, 48 kHz, MPEG layer 2 stream. Blu-print 1080 24p Use this template to create high-definition MPEG-2 files for authoring Blu-ray™ discs using Blu-print™ software. No audio.
Rendering projects for use in DVD Architect Pro If you have DVD Architect™ Pro software, you can avoid unnecessary transcoding or recompression by using Vegas Pro to render your media files in the appropriate formats prior adding them to your DVD Architect Pro project. Note: The Sony Creative Software Inc. AC-3 and MainConcept MPEG-2 encoders provide templates that will produce files that do not require recompression (unless the file size is too large to fit on a DVD). AC-3 audio (.
PAL MPEG video (.m2p, .mp2, .mpg, .mpeg, .mpv) If you’re using the MainConcept MPEG-2 encoder in Vegas Pro software, use the DVD Architect PAL video stream or DVD Architect PAL Widescreen video stream template to render your video stream. You’ll need to render your audio stream separately according to the parameters listed in the AC-3 audio or PCM audio headings above. If you’re rendering with a different application, the following settings will produce a compliant PAL MPEG-2 video stream.
AC-3 audio (.ac3) Sample Rate Bit Rate 48,000 Hz 192 Kbps (64 Kbps to 640 Kbps Stereo is supported) Channels 48,000 Hz 192 Kbps (64 Kbps to 640 Kbps 5.1 surround is supported) PCM audio (.wav or .w64) Sample Rate Bit Depth Channels Compression 48,000 Hz 16 or 24 bit Stereo Uncompressed 96,000 Hz 16 or 24 bit Stereo Uncompressed AVC video If you’re using Vegas Pro software, you can use the AVCHD rendering templates to render a compliant video file including 5.1 surround AC-3 audio.
MPEG-2 video If you’re using Vegas Pro software, you can use the Blu-ray rendering templates to render your video stream. You’ll need to render your audio stream separately according to the parameters listed in the AC-3 audio or PCM audio headings above. Template Name Frame Size Frame Rate (fps) Aspect Ratio Maximum Group Maximum Bit Rate of Pictures Blu-ray 1920x1080-24p, 25 Mbps video stream 1920x1080 23.
Customizing the rendering process Every media file format has different variables and controls. You can use a template to automatically configure a particular format for a particular destination. You can also choose to create custom settings for your render by clicking Custom. Once you have customized the settings, you can create your own template so that you can reuse the custom settings at a later time.
Saving custom settings as a template You can save customized rendering settings for future use. One of the most important reasons to save a new template is to save the specific compression codec used to create the final media file, since this is not predetermined by the project properties. 1. Modify the parameters in the Custom Template dialog. Note: When determining bit rates, 1K=1024. 2. In the Template drop-down list, enter a name for the new template. Note: Built-in templates cannot be edited. 3.
Rendering in real time Real-time rendering is a playback mode that renders your project to .wav format. Real-time rendering allows you to include the output from an external input source such as an effects processor with your project. For more information, see Using input busses with hardware-based effects on page 250. Notes: • When you start real-time rendering, any track that is armed for recording will be unarmed. You cannot arm a track for recording or start recording in real-time rendering mode.
6. Choose a setting from the Template drop-down list to specify the settings that will be used to save your file. You can choose to encode with QVGA, QVGA widescreen, PSP™ full-screen, or standard-definition NTSC frame aspect. • Both QVGA settings create 320x240 video, but the widescreen templates use anamorphic widescreen encoding, which is properly decoded on the PSP™ system. • The PSP™ full-screen templates create 480x270 video to match the PSP™ screen resolution.
3. Use the Device Setup dialog to configure your camera or deck: a. From the Device type drop-down list, choose OHCI-Compliant IEEE 1394/DV. b. From the Video drop-down list, choose the setting that matches your destination format. Important: You’ll need to choose a rendering template that inserts pulldown fields to create a standard DV file if your project properties are set to 24p or if you selected the Allow pulldown removal when opening 24p DV check box on the General tab of the Preferences dialog.
5. Use the Leader and Trailer dialog to set up the data that will be printed before and after your project: a. Select the Add test pattern leader check box if you want to print a test pattern before your video. b. From the Test pattern style drop-down list, choose a test pattern type and video format. c. Type a value in the Duration box to determine the length of the test pattern. d.
Printing to a tape deck connected to an SDI card 1. If you want to print only a portion of your project, create a time selection that includes the section of your project. 2. From the Tools menu, choose Print Video to Tape. The Device Setup dialog is displayed. 3. Use the Device Setup dialog to configure your camera or deck: a. From the Device type drop-down list, choose AJA Video Device or Blackmagic Design DeckLink. b.
4. Use the Render Settings dialog to choose the format you want to use to print your video to tape. a. Select the Enable multichannel mapping check box if you want to render a file with multiple audio channels. For more information about rendering multichannel audio and setting up multichannel mapping, see Rendering multichannel audio files on page 392. b.
6. Use the Device Control dialog to indicate whether Vegas Pro software will have control of your deck: Setting Description Manual Select this radio button if the application is unable to obtain device control of your deck. You will need to cue the tape and press the Record button on your deck before recording. Crash Recording Select this radio button if the application can perform basic device control of your deck. You will need to cue the tape to the location where you want to begin printing.
6. Choose render settings: a. Select the Render format radio button. b. In the File path box, type the path to the file you want to render, or click the Browse button to browse to the folder you want to use and then type a file name. c. From the Template drop-down list, choose the setting that matches your destination format. This list will include only formats that are supported by the selected device. Information about the selected rendering template is displayed in the Description box. d.
8. Use the Device Control dialog to indicate whether Vegas Pro software will have control of your HDV recorder and how you want to print to tape: • Select Manual if your HDV device is not OHCI-compliant or if the application is unable to obtain device control of your HDV recorder. You will need to cue the tape and press the Record button on your HDV recorder before recording.
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Chapter 23 Burning Discs You created your project in Vegas® Pro software, and now you are ready to write the project to a CD, DVD, or Blu-ray Disc. With the CD-burning capabilities of Vegas Pro software, you can place and arrange audio files to produce professional audio CDs. You can burn CDs for multiple- or single-track projects and build audio CD layouts automatically or manually.
Setting up to burn audio CDs You can set the project properties and adjust preferences to better accommodate writing audio CDs. The ruler and time display are set up for you automatically. Viewing the ruler and time display The ruler and time display are automatically changed to audio CD time for you when you mark CD tracks in a project.
Adding media as CD tracks to a new project You have a collection of completed audio files that you want to write to a CD. An audio CD layout project can quickly be assembled from sound files in the Project Media window. You can add the tracks one at a time, or use the Project Media window to sort them into track order and add them all at once. 1. Create a new project. 2. Add all the media to be included in the project to the Project Media window.
Adding pauses Each audio CD track in your project should have a two-second pause following it. This default setting is based on the Red Book specification for audio CDs. The exception to this standard is a continuous recording, such as a live concert CD. For a continuous recording, you can omit the pauses after tracks for continuous playback. For more information, see Red Book specification on page 505. Note: The Red Book specification also requires a two-second pause at the beginning of an audio CD.
Marking indices You can create an index marker in much the same way as you create track markers. 1. Position the cursor where you want the index mark to appear. 2. From the Insert menu, choose Audio CD Track Index. The new index marker appears on the CD layout bar. Working with tracks and indices Once you have marked your tracks and indices, you can edit, move, rename, or delete them as needed.
Editing markers using the Edit Details window The Edit Details window provides a way to adjust the settings for a track or index. 1. From the View menu, choose Edit Details. The Edit Details window displays. 2. From the Show drop-down list, choose Audio CD Track List. The track settings display. 3. Double-click a setting to edit it: • In the Position column, adjust the track starting position or index position. • In the End column, adjust the track ending position.
Burning audio CDs You can burn either single tracks (track-at-once) or the entire disc (disc-at-once). Burning single tracks (track-at-once) You can burn your Vegas Pro project as a single track (track-at-once). Once you have burned all your tracks to the CD, you must close the disc before it can be played. Burning a track-at-once CD 1. From the Tools menu, choose Burn Disc, and choose Track-at-Once Audio CD from the submenu.
Burning a disc (disc-at-once) 1. From the Tools menu, choose Burn Disc, and choose Disc-at-Once Audio CD from the submenu. The Burn Disc-at-Once Audio CD dialog appears. 2. From the Drive drop-down list, use the CD drive that you want to use to burn your CD. 3. From the Speed drop-down list, choose the speed at which you want to burn. Max will use your drive’s fastest possible speed; decrease the setting to prevent the possibility of buffer underruns. 4.
Burning video CDs Video CDs can be played in many home DVD players and on computers with a CD-ROM drive and VCD player software. 1. From the Tools menu, choose Burn Disc and choose Video CD from the submenu. The Burn Video CD dialog appears. 2. From the Burn drive drop-down list, use the CD drive that you want to use to burn your Video CD. 3. From the Burn speed drop-down list, choose the speed at which you want to burn.
8. Choose the movie file you want to use: • If you want to render the current project, select the Render format radio button. a. Edit the contents of the File path box to specify the name and location of your rendered file. b. Choose a template from the Template drop-down list to specify the parameters that should be used for rendering your file, or click the Custom button to create a new template. c. Select the Render loop region only check box if you want to use only a portion of your project.
3. From the Burn speed drop-down list, choose the speed at which you want to burn. Max will use your drive’s fastest possible speed; decrease the setting to prevent the possibility of buffer underruns. 4. Select the Buffer underrun protection check box if your CD recorder supports buffer underrun protection. Buffer underrun protection allows a CD recorder to stop and resume burning.
Creating a Blu-ray Disc You can render your project and burn it to a Blu-ray Disc. The rendered project can be played in a Blu-ray player or on any computer with a Blu-ray drive. Vegas Pro software burns Blu-ray BDMV format to BD-R and BD-RE, and DVD recordable media. Important: Not all Blu-ray players can read DVD media. The PlayStation®3 treats DVD media with Blu-ray content as a data disc.
f. Select the Use project output rotation setting check box if you’re rendering a rotated project and want to use the Output rotation setting from the Project Properties dialog for your rendered file. When the check box is cleared, the media is rotated according to its Media Properties setting, but the project itself is unrotated—you can use this setting to proof your project on an unrotated display. For more information, see Working with rotated projects on page 41. g.
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Chapter 24 Using Scripting Using the scripting features, Vegas® Pro software becomes an even more powerful and flexible tool. You can use scripting to streamline repetitive tasks, integrate with external applications, and implement customized features. To use scripting, you’ll need to install the Microsoft® .NET Framework. This component is available from the Microsoft Windows® Update site. (Choose Windows Update from the Start menu.
Adding scripts to the Scripting menu When you start the program, Vegas Pro software looks at the Script Menu folder in the Vegas Pro program folder to determine which scripts appear in the Scripting submenu. This folder is C:\Program Files\Sony\Vegas Pro 10.0\Script Menu by default. 1. Add or delete scripts in the Script Menu folder to change the contents of the submenu. Tip: To prevent duplication of script files, you can use shortcuts in the Script Menu folder. 2.
The default script applies the Sony Timecode plug-in to all video media in your project using the SMPTE Drop (29.97 fps) preset. If you wanted to apply the Broadcast Colors plug-in’s Extremely Conservative - 7.5 Setup preset to all audio media, you could edit the script as follows (changes appear in red): // This is the full name of the effect plug-in you want to add. var plugInName = "Sony Broadcast Colors"; // This is the name of the preset you want. Set this to null if you // want the default preset.
SCRIPTARGS Starts Vegas Pro and passes the specified arguments to a script. Example: Vegas100.exe /SCRIPTARGS "" /SCRIPT "
