Hate that trimmer anyway. .. I know its not great work flow, but I just trim it on the time line....

We have an hour and 44 minute project we need to do. It's in 10 sections now and we need to compile the 10 sections together end to end with simple titles for the sections and brightness and contrast correcting. Oh, and possibly some minor audio level changes.

It wouldn't seem there would need to render too much right? The guy uses vegas and has one gig of RAM. He doesn't know if that's enough RAM to render it all. Is it? He says for really big projects it only gets about 50% through and stops because he doesn't have enough RAM. But since there isn't many effects or anything, just brightness/contrast correcting and titles I thought maybe it would work.

Anyone know?

Also, is 80 gig enough to hold an hour and 44 minutes of footage?

You should be fine with only 1 gb of ram. I have rendered feature length movies hundreds of times with only 1 gb of ram.

Are you attempting to perform a Dynamic Ram Preview?

I recommend that you use "File|Render As" to render your project.

To turn off "Dynamic Ram Preview":

"To turn off dynamic RAM previewing, enter 0 in the Dynamic RAM preview (max) box on the Video tab of the Preferences dialog."

Dear Werner,

I attempted to duplicate your problem.

I am using Vegas 6.0d.

I used a ".M2T" file from a Canon XL H1, then captured it using Vegas' internal capture program. Then I rendered it using the Cineform software included with Vegas 6.0d.

Then I loaded the take into the trimmer and played it with Video Preview on.

I did not have any problems.

as a reference, 1hour of DV equates to 13gb...

So far I have only authored two DVDs in DVDA and they are fine if viewed on an stand alone DVD player, the main menu appears and all is selectable from there as authored. Opening the DVD on a PC all kind of files are dipalyed, though if I remember correctly choosing the first video file might lead to the main menu page as well.

My question:
How to author a DVD in DVDA so that, when opened on a PC, it shows a window with a custom made file structure, or even better the main menu page?
( In the WMP one can choose to go to the main menu page, but I want a DVD to open so that anybody who does not know much about computer and how to use software can access the DVD's content easily. )

Don't most PCs come with a software DVD player now - wg PowerDVD, etc?

When you install it will usually come up in the list of "what do you want to do" when you insert a DVD.

Ian

Weird. I'm using 6.0d also, but I was using the .avi-files from cineform (large - progressive, it's from a JVC GY-HD101E)

Let's just hope the problem is solved with the Sony Vegas 7.0a version...

All the ones I've authored for DVD players also play correctly in computers. It sounds like that computer is set up to "explore" the disc instead of "play" the disc. Assuming the computer had DVD software installed, you should be able to get it to play as well.

1Gig should be plenty. The only time I've really seen RAM be an issue is if you're using a LOT of LARGE photos. Is that the case? If yes, you might want to pre-render those sections before the final full render.

Personally, I disagree with dropping the RAM Preview to zero unless there's some specific reason to do so (i.e. using a plugin like WAX). Even then, I would go above zero before rendering.

I agree, you should not have to set Dynamic Ram Preview to 0.

This was only included so you could perform a test. I was worried that you were doing a dynamic ram render instead of a normal render.

Thanks for the reply. Is this the type of problem that replacing the soundcard with a better sound card would fix?

I should add that the hiss experienced is substantial. When Vegas is armed to record, the green graph bars extend more than half way across, all from the hiss. Adding voice through a mic only bumps the bars a bit even though the volume is turned up.

Thanks for the reply. Is this the type of problem that replacing the soundcard with a better sound card would fix?

I should add that the hiss experienced is substantial. When Vegas is armed to record, the green graph bars extend more than half way across, all from the hiss. Adding voice through a mic only bumps the bars a bit even though the volume is turned up.

This would suggest your pre isn't hot enough. Vegas doesn't add gain during record. You need to do this at the input of your mic, which is likely your Blaster or other sound card controls.

I have a two cam shoot here and I want to color correct each cam differently. I am using DoubleTake for the multicam part and it's done 1.5 hours of a kids playing music badly ;) Is it possible to not only expand track layers but to split them... since I bounce from one cam to the next the expanded view has one cam on top and the other on bottom.

Any suggestions welcome.

Do the color correction on the EVENT - not on the track. Then when it's copied to the master track the correction will be copied as well.

Do the color correction on the EVENT - not on the track. Then when it's copied to the master track the correction will be copied as well.

I thought of that.. but it's a 1.5 hour concert with LOTS of cuts.... I guess I could do a copy and paste attributes after highlighting the rest?

I thought of that.. but it's a 1.5 hour concert with LOTS of cuts.... I guess I could do a copy and paste attributes after highlighting the rest?

You could also repair/correct in the Media Pool and that will apply the correction to all events stemming from the original clip.

That's excellent... I didn't know that!

Hi Brian,

My method would be to use an instance of the Sony Black & White plugin on the video track or clip you want to affect.

At the beginning of your clip you'll want a FX keyframe with the plugin level at 100% (ie 100% b&w) and at the end of the clip add a second keyframe with the value set to 0% (ie off, or full colour).

Ian . . .

is there a keyframe feature on the sony b&w filter? I couldn't find it. I'm using vegas 5.

Brian,

When you open up the b&w plugin there should be a timeline with keyframe tools at the bottom of the plugin window (maybe the window got resized?).

Bizarrely, I just uninstalled v5 about 30 minutes ago, having upgraded to v7 so I can't check this, sorry!

Ian . . .

You could also split the clip, apply 100% B&W (or desaturate in color corrector, whatever) to the first part, and then do a dissolve from one to the other.

is there a keyframe feature on the sony b&w filter? I couldn't find it. I'm using vegas 5.

Yes, there's a keyframe on the Sony B&W filter. Use it all the time. As was mentioned, it's at the bottom of the effects dialog - there's a timeline there. If you can't see that timeline (it's resizable) then it's probably been resized to "nothing". Move the mouse slowly toward the bottom of the dialog box. As soon as it turns into an up/down arrow, click and drag upward.

Technically you can use any filter that can adjust the saturation so you have multiple options to do this effect.

I am at the point where I have to render my HD footage to DVD. I would like some suggestions on how to go about this - which codec do I use? I remember hearing that HD get converted to SD, but how is this accomplished? I don't want the client looking at this and saying, er...this doesn't look like HD. Any help appreciated.

David

DVD = MPEG2. Just do a File - Render As, pick the proper MPEG2 preset, and proceed as normal.

So just render as an AVI? I am not using DVD architect because I find that is doesn't seem to work for me..

Also, is this going to maintain my 16:9 ratio? I want the black bars on the top and bottom on people's TV screen and not to stretch out - so do I need to render it how?

Render as MPEG2 and pick one of the widescreen presets. That will give you a DVD compliant 16x9 file. You should render the audio separately as AC3. Then use those files in whatever authoring program you're using.

I've asked around a little on this subject and am still a little "fuzzy" as to the answer. Perhaps some of you more knowledgeable can help me (and others) out.

Vegas 7.0 includes new features that evidently allow it to edit and manipulate HDV footage more efficiently. How did they implement this and is a secondary software like Cineform's ConnectHD still necessary?

#1) How did Sony implement "better editing HDV" in Vegas 7?
Are they simply just using your processor more efficiently to edit Mpeg-2 footage on the timeline? It's my understanding you do not want to edit in Mpeg-2 on the timeline for a variety of reasons, some including speed of editing as well as frame cut problems due to Group of Pictures (I & B Frames and what not).

#2) Is there a benefit/need to Cineform's ConnectHD Intermidiary codec still? Will the 3.04 version of of ConnectHD even work with Sony Vegas 7 well? I understand using this intermediary codec allowed for a much quicker editing process on the timeline by somehow converted the Mpeg-2 HDV video via capture into a proprietary video format for editing on the timeline. Something I'm not too familiar with is what happens when I have my edit session complete and I'm ready to export to various formats? Does this video have to pass back through the ConnectHD intermediary codec or can I export directly from the timeline to Windows High Definition Video, Quicktime Sorenson, DVD video disk, etc.

In a nutshell, is the $200 spent on ConnectHD still necessary with Vegas 7.0 and if so, what are the benefits it provides?

Jon

Okay, another "newbie" type of question here. I'm just getting into Video editing and have purchased two HDR-FX1 Sony Camcorders and am going to be setup with a good editing computer running Vegas 7.0.

While awaiting my camera's, I've been playing around with Vegas 6.0d and my Sony 1-chip DV camera. When using either Vegas, (or any other video editor for that matter) the video coming in has a really dark look to it. It's clearly not as lit up as what is being shown to my on the flipout LCD monitor on my camera.

Does anybody know why these editors are showing my video to be so dark? Is there a way to configure my editor or computer up front to have what is displayed on my monitor reflect the true look of the captured video?

Jon

Jon, the question may be "why is the video on my camera lcd so bright?" Or, "why is my PC monitor so dark?" Or "why is my camera underexposing these scenes?"

Because Vegas capture did not change your brightness, nor did Vegas (unless you've inadvertantly made adjustments to track video level in the track header, which is easy to do).

To figure out what's going on, you need to do some measurements:
Put suspect video on the timeline. Open the scope. (view | video scopes). Select the waveform monitor.

If you have the cursor over a scene with whites in it and they are somewhere between 90 and 110 units then the original exposure in the camera was close enough and your PC monitor is showing you a dimmer picture than you want.

Peak values in the waveform monitor of less than 95 or 90 in a scene that has white means that the camera is underexposing the scene. LCD monitors on cameras are not totally trustworthy guides to exposure, they can be made too bright (or dim) too.

Bottom line - a firewire transfer of DV tape using Vegas Capture doesn't change a thing - it's just a transfer of the 1s and 0s that are on the tape. Vegas doesn't change anything unless you select a filter, touch the "level" slider in the track header, or touch the "opacity" envelope on the clip on the timeline.

You should also setup the scopes correctly.

If you didn't change the Vegas preferences, then the default codec will decode to studioRGB color space. So in the scopes preferences/settings, check the box beside studioRGB.

The 7.5 IRE setting determines where Vegas puts black level on the scopes; this also happens to be a confusing setting, as it tries to emulate what an analog vectorscope would show (but it doesn't know what an analog vectorscope would show). I just leave it unchecked, so that black level should end up at 0 on Vegas' scopes. Anything under 0 will usually get clipped.

With the 7.5 setting checked, then anything under 7.5 will get clipped. Vegas has no marking for 7.5, so I do things the other way.

Thank you both for the help. I do realize that Vegas or any of my other NLE's aren't changing the video to look so dark, but what I couldn't figure out was why it display on my monitor so dark. Obviously, the first thing I did was try to up the brightness on my monitors (2 - 19" Samsung CRT's) but of course, that washed everything else on the screen out and made everything way to bright. So I knew that couldn't be the problem.

I talked to a guy who's married to Apple and FCP and he gave me the typical answer "PC's suck for editing, you should be using a MAC as they display stuff the way it should" Well, I won't take anything away from a Macintosh but I know damn well that PC's don't suck and there certainly aren't millions of editors out there all starring at dark video on their screens and just living with it.

Hi Jon,

As usual, Seth & Glenn are pointing you in the right direction. There's nothing wrong with your equipment.

As a general rule of thumb - TVs and LCDs tend to make video look brighter while computer CRTs tend to make video look darker. This is normal, and just something to keep in mind when shooting & editing. Seth & Glenn's advice will help you adjust your system for the differences.

Itested today the V7 demo - HDV now is running native (m2t - HDV rawfiles, captured straight from the cam) with full 25 fps framerate @preview - or draft quality, 1/4 output preview size and additional color correction.
System is a P4 / 3GHz 533 / 2GByte Dual-DDR (older system).
I would say VERY big improvement against v6 !
I guess on a actual system (core 2 duo or similar) Vegas now will fly like a rocket. :-)

Here is actual Look of Film HD ! First test shot HDR-FX1

http://www.box.net/public/3x1cch85ku

I would like to post full Quality but I have no server to host it!!

Here is Low Quality Render test TO WATCH not real quality!!!
http://www.box.net/public/5k7n1y8cri

What if I intend on editing 1080/60i though? Would this be no different?

Here is actual Look of Film HD ! First test shot HDR-FX1

http://www.box.net/public/3x1cch85ku

I would like to post full Quality but I have no server to host it!!

Here is Low Quality Render test TO WATCH not real quality!!!

http://www.box.net/public/oc9vfa0ph5

Thanks Steve but this doesn't quite answer the question I have posed. Does ConnectHD or a similiar intermediary codec offer any advantages in Vegas 7 over whatever is built into the software?

Jon

I tried rendering the same native HDV file, with a filter on it, on Vegas Movie Studio Plat, and on the Demo of 7. I have a meter that reads the Dual core usage, and both maxed out both cores during render.

I actually have Vegas 6 coming from BH so I can take advantage of upgrade to 7, but I wonder if they had actually added whats in 7 to Movie Studio already, because Movie Studio Plat was sold specifically for editing of HDV.. I will see how the straight 6 version works on the dual cores when I get it.

What if I intend on editing 1080/60i though? Would this be no different?

My project referenced above was 1080i 60 fps interlaced, shot with FX1.

Actually, with the first run through I added sharpness as a test, and I was impressed with the result..

#2) Is there a benefit/need to Cineform's ConnectHD Intermidiary codec still? Will the 3.04 version of of ConnectHD even work with Sony Vegas 7 well? I understand using this intermediary codec allowed for a much quicker editing process on the timeline by somehow converted the Mpeg-2 HDV video via capture into a proprietary video format for editing on the timeline. Something I'm not too familiar with is what happens when I have my edit session complete and I'm ready to export to various formats? Does this video have to pass back through the ConnectHD intermediary codec or can I export directly from the timeline to Windows High Definition Video, Quicktime Sorenson, DVD video disk, etc.

In a nutshell, is the $200 spent on ConnectHD still necessary with Vegas 7.0 and if so, what are the benefits it provides?

Jon

Here is Doug Spotted Eagles take on this same question, as I asked it:

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?p=541443#post541443

The other thing you may learn from this is do not color correct using your PC monitor. Use a calibrated NTSC monitor out side the PC. Set up to "view preview on an external monitor" attached to the camcorder or deck ( connected to the 1394 port of course)

Ron Evans

I use RayLight to compress for edit much less Taxi on computer! Raylight Rules
I have cineform ,I use it sometimes to import thats it !The rest Raylight from Dv film!
Dont know much about V7 yet and codecs it comes with!

I had a similar problem a while back. I found, that on one of my systems, when switching from vegas to other video applications, something would reset my video display settings. This would make my video appear very dark with washed out colors. I accidently found an icon hidden on the right side of my task bar that gave me access to the display properties of the cheapo video card I was using. This was the only place I could find this utility. I often have to set this to default settings to get things cleared up. Just an idea.

Thank you both for the help. I do realize that Vegas or any of my other NLE's aren't changing the video to look so dark, but what I couldn't figure out was why it display on my monitor so dark. Obviously, the first thing I did was try to up the brightness on my monitors (2 - 19" Samsung CRT's) but of course, that washed everything else on the screen out and made everything way to bright. So I knew that couldn't be the problem.

I talked to a guy who's married to Apple and FCP and he gave me the typical answer "PC's suck for editing, you should be using a MAC as they display stuff the way it should" Well, I won't take anything away from a Macintosh but I know damn well that PC's don't suck and there certainly aren't millions of editors out there all starring at dark video on their screens and just living with it.

John:

My ATI video card has a an adjustment for video overlay. You need to into the video Card set up. Right click on the desktop, and the display properties menu will come up, then select advances, and start going through the various choices. Try looking under the "color management" tab, for instance. There may be a way to adjust the overlay somewhere there, depending on your card...

Super, these are some excellent tips!

I have recently upgraded my computer and had to format with new codec on my drive, I am wondering if this is causing the problem because I cannot change the settings when rendering with MainConcept MPEG-2 codec. I can change all over settings for avi, wmv, mov, mp3 etc, but mainconcept doesn't work. Any ideas how to fix this?

I've been there.
I agree with the others here.

You have to find your video adapters settings to adjust for your video overlay.

Building a new computer system to go along with my Sony HDR-FX1's on the way and am contemplating the benefits of having 4Gb of RAM over 2Gb. In my search around these forumns, I couldn't find too many people who were currently using this much RAM. For the extra $250.00 do you think 4Gb offers a solid benefit over 2Gb?

My alternative is to save the $250 and buy the ConnectHD 3.04 Intermediary codec, but I'm not yet sure/convinced it's needed in Vegas 7.

Jon

If Im not mistaken, Windows XP will only utilize 2 or 2 1/2 gigs of ram even if you have more than that. Thats the way it is with my system anyway. I own a BOXX system with two dual core opterons and 4 gigs of ram. Under SYSTEM in the control panel, Windows only sees 2.5 gigs. I think WinX64 allows you to use more, im not sure tho.

-burk

I found this on Microsoft's website regarding Windows XP Professional Memory. Says that Windows XP can indeed see 4Gb of memory.

http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/system/platform/server/PAE/PAEmem.mspx

Jon

AH! A better answer, the post 3 down explains it all.

http://bink.nu/forums/8805/ShowPost.aspx

Windows can only see 4Gb of memory, period. Which means if you have a pagefile of 1.5Gb setup, Windows will only see 2.5Gb of system RAM. Appears the solution is probably to turn off the pagefile.

Jon