Thanks Vin. I'll give it a shot

I just found out it seems to be a spontanious problem with Vegas 7.0b.

Vegas 6.0a worked fine with all the files I used, including the video only files.

I can't re-install Vegas 6.0a because my hard drive space is only down to about 400-300MB and I can't get a new hard drive.

So I'll guess I'll just wait to see if 7.0c delivers a fix to the bug.

Not having this issue with 7b, but if your hard drive is so full as to be within 15% of capacity, this alone can generate all sorts of problems.

m2t file quality different (better) in 7 than 6?
 

Is the vegas m2t file quality different (better) in 7 than 6 (when capture)? Or... is the m2t file the same (quality) of version 7 but version 7 is making editing smoother plus lots of other tweaks?

No.
Capture is merely file transfer; Vegas does nothing to your video file on capture, it is a bit for bit copy of what your camera stored.
Vegas 7 has some optimizations that allows for faster processing and access to the CPU, but it bears no relevance to image quality.

Any white or warm balancing plugins for Vegas
 

Anyone know of a good set of plugins (economical or demo if possible) that will give me different options for white and warm balancing in Vegas?

Dwight

What you are doing sounds OK. I would keep your project settings at HDV and use the “stretch video to fill output frame size (do not letterbox)” option so that any difference in aspect ratio is compensated for.

From what I’ve read, the Blu-ray spec uses the Microsoft’s VC-1 (VC-9) codec and MPEG-4 AVC High Profile so the two best formats are MP4 and HDWMV. Unfortunately, I don’t know the specifics of the settings to use so that it doesn’t get re-encoded by Blu-ray authoring applications (which don’t even exist yet). It sure is painful out here on the bleeding edge. ;-)

Maybe someone who has a Blu-ray burner can comment?

~jr

Is this the software or my camera?
 

Check out the right side of this video see the black moving around. Is this because I have a hood on my GL1? or what is causing this?

http://videos.streetfire.net/video/w...5e00d2b2f9.htm

Update:

Posted the issue to Sony online customer service/support nine days ago.

Still waiting for a response (after receiving the initial "we've got your inquiry and are getting to it ...).

Vegas 7 - Pan & Crop to anamorphic widescreen
 

Hello,

I'm trying to make 16x9 widescreen from 4x3 normal video.

I can add black bars on top and bottom to get letterboxed 16x9, but I want anamorphic 16x9. So I select "Stretch to fill frame = yes" and "Maintain aspect ration = no" (this way you get that squashy image that looks good on widescreen TV's)

Then I render to DVD PAL Widescreen and everything starts to render. The problem however is that I get interlaced lines when I play the resulting Mpeg video. I also get interlaced lines when played on TV...

When I NOT stretch the video to fill frame (letterbox) and render in DVD PAL 4x3 everything's ok... so it seems like the 'stretch to fill frame' is causing trouble...

Am I doing something wrong here or is it just not possible to make 16x9 anamorphic video from 4x3 video while NOT ruining the interlaced video?

/edit
Seems like Premiere Pro 2 is doing a better job... but I can't really believe Vegas 7 can't do something basic like this correctly...

It sounds to me like you're seeing more artifacts with the anamorphic output simply because your cropped video is taking up the entire 720x576 raster... You're basically "zooming in" on your footage and making your pixels (and artifacts) larger and thus more noticeable. Conversely, if you simply drop in some black mattes (hardcoded letterbox), you're not "zooming in"... the portion of the image you're still using isn't getting blown up.

I hate to say it because it's not what you want to hear, but you're always going to get sub-par results when cropping 4:3-native DV footage to 16:9. There's not a lot of resolution to begin with in the DV format, and you're basically throwing away some of the precious little you have.

To get decent 16:9 anamorphic DV, you need either a camera with native 16:9 chips or an anamorphic lens adapter. If you can afford neither of those right now, then you probably need to either make peace with 4:3 video or make peace with sub-par 16:9.

Sorry if I've rained on your parade. :)

Don't worry, you're not raining on my parade :) But what I'm getting is definitely NOT just some more artifacts because of zooming. When there's no movement, everythings fine, but when there's movement, the image looks terrible (see attachment: interlaced.jpg) The only thing I have to change to fix this, is NOT to do "stretch to fill frame" I just have to make it letterbox, so really depends on wether I use the "stretch to fill frame" option or not.

Adobe premiere Pro 2.0 is not having this problem stretching the video to anamorphic: See interlaced_good.jpg So it can be done correctly! And yes, it's NOT that adobe premiere is de-interlacing. It really outputs interlaced video that looks good ánd smooth. Furthermore I make sure I choose "lower field first and interlaced" when outputting to MPEG2, so it really isn't about setting the wrong field order or something like that....

Vegas video 7 is just doing something wrong with the interlaced lines when stretching to anamorphic 16x9... Nobody else encountered this???

Hi Bram,

For most of my film projects I do a 4:3 to anamorphic 16:9 conversion using Vegas. Including Vegas 7. I only work with 25P PAL footage (from a DVX100 PAL camera), but I'm sure it also works for interlaced PAL video. Follow the steps below:
1. set your project to PAL DV AVI Widescreen in the Project Settings
2. import/capture your 4:3 footage in this project and add it to the timeline
3. For each clip use the Pan/Crop tool to add the 16:9 widescreen frame - the footage in the preview window will look like widescreen without black bars top and below, right?
4. Render the timeline to MPEG2, but do two things: set the Quality to Best (this activates a better calculation method for resized events, and that's happening with the 4:3>16:9 conversion) and choose for the 2-Pass rendering.

This should do the job fine. It works for me very well.

Note: the workflow described above works with Vegas 7. In previous versions of Vegas you have to use the Switch function for each clip on the timeline, where there is some aspect ratio option you have to turn on/off (I can't recall the exact setting, but try it and you'll see the result in the preview window).

Greetings from the Netherlands.

Isn't there an undocumented procedure for inverting the layout in 5.0? I used to have it that way but just had to reinstall and was searching for the method again when I found this thread.

you need to get to internal preferences
I think its hold shift when opening preferences.
In there is a timeline on top option.
going from memory here...

frame dock on top is what it's called in v6

That's right, Jim, thanks. Meanwhile I had found the article by Spot:
http://www.sundancemediagroup.com/ar...Sony_Vegas.htm

Hi Peter,

Thnx for the explanation. Unfortunately, your description doesn't work for 25i. (I tried)

It seems Vegas just stretches the video no matter what, without taking care of the interlaced lines. The jitter I'm getting also looks like bigger interlaced lines, which is totally logical...

It seems I'm now stuck with Adobe Premiere 2, since that one does appear to take care of the interlaced lines while stretching...

I really like Vegas, but it's quite stupid that such an advanced video editting application doesn't seem to be able to resize interlaced video...

Greetings back from the Netherlands!

Small blob on lens/picture... can fix in post?
 

Well... after reviewing dailies from my short... a few of the scenes (consecutive of course) have a small blob in the picture... obviously my cameraman, didnt clean the lens!! AAaaa...! No returning for re-shoot. It is just a small blob... but in some key scenes... HOW do I fix it? Dont tell me I have to go frame by frame??? If I do... is there a "stamp" type tool (like in Photoshop where you can pick up some material just to the side of the damage and stamp down over it) in Vegas? or... do I have to make a mask for every frame... Oh boy... please let me know the best method...

Hmmm.... tonight I will do some testing myself with 25i footage.

Are you sure Premiere isn't de-interlacing the footage during/before changing the aspect ratio?
And have you checked your converted Vegas footage on a normal tv (as computerscreens often have a problem playback interlaced footage correctly?)

Well, something's up here, but I doubt that there's a bug in this one...
 

Vegas deinterlaces any footage that's going to see a frame-rate/size conversion for a given render (in "good" or "best" rendering modes). Of course, when it's generating interlaced footage, it interlaces output.

The simplest way to think of this is to think of input and output fields as frames. Your 50i footage can be thought of as 50 fields per second. When Vegas makes 50i output, it can actually render 50 frames per second (if the processing chain calls for it) and pull the appropriate field data from that frame information.

Also, if you are dropping these files back into Vegas to preview, preview-quality viewing can show some pretty strange scaling artifacts with interlaced footage. We do this for performance. Preview quality is definitely not intended for final output.

Carl, you are going to know a whole lot more about track motion by the time you are done with this.

Grab some frames of video to make your stamps with. (if you need guidance on this, look at the second post in this thread http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=48730)

Take them into photoshop or paintshop pro or your favorite image editor and cut out everything but the stamp area. Export as a .png with transparency.

You could also do this within Vegas using cookie cutter on a still that you copy and paste if that's easier than photoshop - either would work fine, I find working with an external still image editor a little easier.

Create a new video track in Vegas, above your existing video track(s). Drop your png into the new track, over the relevant section of video.

The next steps are to open track motion for that track (the icon with two rectangles & an arrow in the track header), and then move the image around until it covers the blob. If the blob is stuck to the lens I guess you don't need to do any motion tracking.

If there are transparency issues, look for the "compositing mode" icon in the track header and make sure it's set to "source alpha".

If you do have to do some tracking, check out Edward Troxel's excellent Vegas Tips newsletters at www.jetdv.com

Take a look at Vol 1 #12 - November 2003
Blurring Faces a la “Cops”. The application is different, but the use of keyframes in track motion is the same.

very basic question
 

I am attempting my first Vegas edit and have problem with audio. When I place my clips on the timeline there is an audible click between adjoining clips. I cannot find the way to join two clips seamlessly. I've tried to drag all the clips together from the media pool to the timline but than I get audio compression between each clip. I am stuck.

I'm not sure exactly what the problem here is... can you give us more info?

The clicking part seems really strange. You're talking about two clips of audio that are touching each other, right? And the clips sound fine by themselves?

Can you explain what you mean by getting "audio compression between each clip"?

Peter,

Yes, I checked the footage on an normal TV, but that was the first time I noticed something was very wrong. On my computer, Windows Media Player shows regular interlaced footage very smoothly (just like a TV) and with no weird horizontal lines by the way. It just goes wrong with the by Vegas 7 anamorpically stretched interlaced footage..

Furthermore, those screengrabs are from Media Player and not from the (low quality) Vegas preview window. Also, Premiere Pro 2 isn't de-interlacing. It looks just as smooth and sharp as the original AVI (trust me on this, I know how to recognize de-interlaced footage)

Perhaps it's nog a bug, but it's just a feature Vegas doesn't have?

Have you tried using the primary color corrector that comes with Vegas? It's very powerful and that (plus the secondary color corrector) is what most people use for fixing white balance in Vegas. There's quite a lot of discussion about how to do it on the Sony forum.

If you are looking for a "one click" solution, I don't know that there is any solution (for any NLE) that can get consistently good results. But I know there is an "auto levels" plugin from Mike Crash that is free.

Excalibur Sync Question
 

I have three camera feeds from a shoot this weekend. Due to an error on the beginning sync, I have to sync near the end of the feeds. That is the first problem. The second is that one of the cameras starts and stops halfway through, before the sync point.


I split that track and made the second half camera 4 and fround the sync point, calling it s4.

Is there any way to set up a second set of sync points for the first half of that track, I can sync it to one of the other tracks, just not both.

Make sense?

Thanks!

Before you go out on a limb, DO try Vegas' own Colour Curves "Warm Colours" profile - EXCELLENT! Or you could knock-up your own.

Andrew, I'm in Windsor as well so I've sent you a private email.

Mike

Go ahead and just sync that one clip manually. You can use the 1/3/4/6 keys on the numeric keypad to fine tune the placement left and right.

Zoom in and check for the presence of very short fade out and fade in at the intersection between two clips. That's one thing that causes a click. Vegas will insert such fades when you split a clip in Vegas if the prefs are set that way.

You didn't mention how the clips got created to begin with. But in the event that they are not clips that were split from a single track, then they simply may not match well enough. I've had success with cross-fading such clips by simply dragging the end of one over the beginning of the other slightly.

Thanks Edward!

I hit create project after putting in my markers, and nothing happened.........?

You hit "Sync" instead unless you're talking about the camera switches - in that case you use the Multi-Cam button.

Create Project is used if you have nothing on the timeline and want the clips you select to be automatically added and the tracks automatically named in preparation for the rest.

After closer scrutiny it looks like both audio and video are affected. I had 3 cameras rolling continuosly but my capture was set to scene detection so I ended up with lots of clips, even from stationary cameras. It seems that I cannot seamlessly connect those events (from one camera/one tape on a single track- I haven't attempted to sinchronize all three yet). With audio I get either a compression when it slightly overlaps or a "click" when there is a space between the events. Actually click perhaps is not an acurate description - it is an audio artifact similar to one when someone is plugging in audio cable or something like that. I tried different settings with "quantize to frames" and snapping tool off and on but to no avail. I've tried to manually connect the events on the timeline or drag a selection of clips from the media pool to the timeline hoping that Vegas would put them together seamlessly. Perhaps I expect to much from the program and need to recapture each tape as a single clip. Thanks for your help.

Mike - great to find a local expert!

While that would be the best bet, since there's no way to join video files together without editing them together and rendering them, I still don't understand why an empty area of audio track between clips would give you anything audible at all. And I still don't know what you mean by "compression" when audio events overlap. Do you mean there's a crossfade or fade ins/outs at the edges of events? If that's the case, you can turn off these auto fades in the preferences somewhere (or at least adjust the length of the fades down to zero).

Thank you Seth
 

I will give your advice a try... hopefully it is not too time consuming...

Creating a Glare or light bounce effect
 

I have a sword that I need a specialized light effect on. I would like the light to bounce off the tip in a starburst type effect. I know there is a lens flare but I need to be able to control the "starburst" effect and place it where I need it.

The same effect would be used for creating a sparkle in an eye or on a tooth if you get the idea.

I need ideas - I know they're there but can't yet figure this out. tks.

Invalid data encountered??
 

DVD Architect will no longer make a DVD folder for me. When it gets to writing the main VOB file I get the error message:

Warning: An error occurred while writing a file
Invalid data encountered when processing an MPEG file

This is driving me crazy. The program used to be so reliable. I've reinstalled XP, Vegas and DVD Architect.

Does anyone have a clue about this?

wmv9 mode differences? help!
 

Render as>select: windows media video V9>template, select: 512 kbps>custom button>video tab>mode:

What the difference between

CBR
CBR (two-pass)
Bit Rate VBR (Peak)
Quality
Bit Rate VBR

Driving me nuts – I’ve looked in the manual, did a search here and on the web in general -- and no luck!!

I understand the difference between CBR and VBR – but how about the variations ie, ‘Quality’ ‘VBR peak’, ‘Bit Rate VBR’ ??

Thanks!

you formatted your hard drive,
 

then you installed xp, then sp2, then any current upgrades and slipstreams.

then vegas, any updates and bugfixes, then the burner software (dvarchitect) and any updates.

then you DID NOT copy any OLD data (that might be corrupted or virus infected).

you captured NEW FILES from your camera and ran them thru vegas and tried to burn them and got the same error?

it happens every time on every file you try to burn?

if you restore old date, you could be restoring viruses or malware at the same time.

you could get a sector editor and page thru that file and see if a sector can't be read

before you reload again, I would download spybot search and destroy and ad-aware (NOT adware) and run them (BOTH, TWICE) then something like AVG, these are all free and you can get them at tucows.com, get the latest malware file definition updates

sacrafice goat/chicken......nothing smaller than a chicken tho.

if you know what kind of MB you have you could check for bios updates. unplug and replug the cables on your dvd burner, esp the ribbon connector at the burner, and the mb.

get some canned air and blow out the dvd burner........I'm running out of ideas.......

remember, nothing smaller than a chicken.

I thought I knew the WMV format really well, but I really don't use VBR much. Here are some hints for you:

CBR - constant bit rate. Good for most clips with consistent content. Quality is mostly determined by your choices in the bitrate tab and the quality slider (see below). It's good for web, because if you are on a WM server you can do multibitrate files under this option (windows media server only!) where there will be a handshake between the WM player and server where the player tells the server what bitrate to send, and it will autoadjust in changing conditions.

CBR (two-pass) - like above, but the first pass analyzes your clip so the encoder can do a better job on the second pass. Worth testing - see more on testing below. Takes twice as long.

Bit Rate VBR (Peak) - ummm when you choose this flavor of Variable Bit Rate, you get to choose the peak bitrate it wouldn't exceed. But, don't forget to add your audio bitrate to this number to get the overall bitrate. (***edit***)Good if your playback device has limited throughput, such as a CDROM drive (***end edit***). VBR is good if your clip is not of consistent complexity, it gives more bits to the complex parts and fewer to the simple parts.

Quality - this would be the slider between good motion follow at the possible expense of some blockiness to the left, and sharper to the right. Usually, somewhere between 75 and 90, but... see more on testing below.

Bit Rate VBR - Like VBR peak but you only specify an average bitrate, and let it peak as high as it wants. (***edit***) Good for hard-drive playback. (***end edit***)

*********edit*************
Note that VBR isn't for web distro - it doesn't do progressive download/play, nor will it work on a WM server. OK for download and then play, but who wants that?
*************************

You might find more information by downloading the freeware windows media encoder from microsoft and checking out the help files.

Bitrate is extremely important for internet distribution. Not so much for hard drive or Data-DVD or CD playback.

Your mileage ALWAYS varies. Encoding is an art as well as a craft - testing short excerpts is pretty dang important if encoding for web, and still desireable while you're figuring it out no matter how you're distributing or playing the content.

Complexity - How many pixels of the frame change on every frame? A pan, a dissolve, a jerky cam, noise due to gain or a single chip camera shooting black... all these things lead to every pixel changing on every frame. Takes more bits. For web distro, it's all about reducing bits.

So much of this is dependant upon your content - gotta' test.