I've not ever needed to do this myself, but it seems to me that a variation of the @john_dennis suggestion of saving reusable project frames in png format might be to render a project having alpha throughout, like lower thirds or something, to a folder using the Vegas image-sequence preset selecting png as the image format. Should end up smaller than avi or ProRes. If that works, the developer issue could be reduced to providing a convenient way to import the image sequence back into Vegas as a video. Perhaps a user-script could do it, if 3rd parties haven't already. A little googling reveals this page with various ffmpeg command line examples to import portable video, including with audio. And there seems to be a number of other apps that can do it with a graphical ui.

Yes. There is the issue of audio as well. Many animations I use have audio included.

Is there no such option in the internal settings?

@m3lquixd

While not "automatic", here are a couple of tools that may help. There's a free tool "Set Alpha" in the HOS Free Tools Library that enables the user to set alpha for selected events.

If you have Vegasaur (paid app), you can use the Quick Properties dialog to set alpha for either selected media or selected events.

 

@wwaag Where can I download the first tool? Do you have the link?

@m3lquixd

Here's a link to the HOS Free Tools Library.

https://tools4vegas.com/library/

@m3lquixd

Here's a link to the HOS Free Tools Library.

https://tools4vegas.com/library/

Thanks!

@m3lquixd Magix has confirmed that the save button not active is an issue and has been added to their list of items to fix. But the save button is the solution to your original request.

+1 @jetdv

@m3lquixd Magix has confirmed that the save button not active is an issue and has been added to their list of items to fix. But the save button is the solution to your original request.

Nice!

@m3lquixd Here I use Moraizon DNxHD and ProRes Codecs for Quick Time. The size of the generated file is the standard of intermediate codecs, great lossless quality and VEGAS automatically recognizes it as it is a ProRes 4444 file with alpha channel.

@m3lquixd Here I use Moraizon DNxHD and ProRes Codecs for Quick Time. The size of the generated file is the standard of intermediate codecs, great lossless quality and VEGAS automatically recognizes it as it is a ProRes 4444 file with alpha channel.

@joelsonforte.br Where can I get the Miraizon ProRes 4444? It's paid?

From http://www.miraizon.com/support/support.html it looks like that product is no longer available.

From http://www.miraizon.com/support/support.html it looks like that product is no longer available.

Damn it!

I'm still scratching my head; the wisdom of any 32 bit QT7 Legacy encoder for intermediate use escapes me; memory loading is only one of many problems.

I agree with @Musicvid - you're MUCH better off using a ProRes alpha file - even if it *is* slightly larger in size than the QuickTime version. QuickTime is a deprecated feature that has many limitations.

Uncompressed AVI - 5 second file is 1.15 Gig so it is huge. (Alpha was NOT auto detected)

ProRes MOV - 5 second file is 25.3 Meg which is very reasonable. (Alpha WAS auto detected)

I don't have QuickTime installed so I don't know what size the 5 second title would be in comparison. AVI files were over 600 Meg. Rendering to an image sequence getting 150 files was about 4.5 Meg but that is also without audio where all other versions include audio (which you said you wanted).

Plus, there's the compatibility issue. QuickTime on the MAC no longer supports PNG sequence files. So if you sent the file to someone on a Mac, they couldn't play the file where they can play and use a ProRes file.

I agree with @Musicvid - you're MUCH better off using a ProRes alpha file - even if it *is* slightly larger in size than the QuickTime version. QuickTime is a deprecated feature that has many limitations.

Uncompressed AVI - 5 second file is 1.15 Gig so it is huge. (Alpha was NOT auto detected)

ProRes MOV - 5 second file is 25.3 Meg which is very reasonable. (Alpha WAS auto detected)

I don't have QuickTime installed so I don't know what size the 5 second title would be in comparison. AVI files were over 600 Meg. Rendering to an image sequence getting 150 files was about 4.5 Meg but that is also without audio where all other versions include audio (which you said you wanted).

Plus, there's the compatibility issue. QuickTime on the MAC no longer supports PNG sequence files. So if you sent the file to someone on a Mac, they couldn't play the file where they can play and use a ProRes file.

I tested Apple ProRes 444 and it's twice the size of Quicktime. It has the advantage of not needing to activate the alpha channel but the disadvantage of size.
A video I rendered here gave 600mb in quicktime and 1.3gb in Apple ProRes 444.

Here's a link to a short demo of rendering with alpha from Vegas using HOS. You can see the various file sizes produced from a few different codecs. However, ProRes 444 was not included at the time when I created the demo.

https://tools4vegas.com/renderwithalpha-demo/

Here's a link to a short demo of rendering with alpha from Vegas using HOS. You can see the various file sizes produced from a few different codecs. However, ProRes 444 was not included at the time when I created the demo.

https://tools4vegas.com/renderwithalpha-demo/

Alpha Motion PNG was very light.

I tested Apple ProRes 444 and it's twice the size of Quicktime.

It was explained clearly that Quicktime is a wrapper, not a codec format. Without the codec information, any meaningful comparison of options is meaningless. The QT7 wrapper can contain hundreds of codec combinations, all of them obsolete 32 bit formats, which can only access 4GB of memory at any time. You've been invited several times to provide that essential information; instead you chose to tell us about your experience.

Quicktime. Ok then.

https://www.vegascreativesoftware.info/us/forum/speaking-good-video-a-beginner-s-guide--104463/

https://www.vegascreativesoftware.info/us/forum/important-information-required-to-help-you--110457/

I'm not new to Vegas. I've been using it for over 10 years. I'm just new to the forum.

I appreciate the appeal to familiarity and habit, which we all do from time to time. However, there are simply better contemporary choices for 64 bit alpha intermediates in Vegas, whether or not the alpha  is recognized on import.

A decade ago, I would have said to use DNxHD/HR, a 32 bit codec in Quicktime wrapper. Now I wouldn't say that; I would always opt for 64 bit architecture. That said, I welcome you to the learning curve and implore you to at least consider the advice of peer professionals who are only trying to help, not embarrass.

Consider this: @wwaag, @jetdv, @john_dennis, and I have over two centuries of combined commercial experience to share, except that I'm now dropping out of the discussion, due to lack of a compelling interest.

@Musicvid Sorry if I expressed myself badly. I know everyone is trying to help and I really appreciate it!

@wwaag @jetdv @john_dennis @Dexcon @joelsonforte.br and all!

And many times I express myself wrong, because I don't speak English. All messages are passed through google translator.

Quicktime. Ok then.

https://www.vegascreativesoftware.info/us/forum/speaking-good-video-a-beginner-s-guide--104463/

https://www.vegascreativesoftware.info/us/forum/important-information-required-to-help-you--110457/

I'm not new to Vegas. I've been using it for over 10 years. I'm just new to the forum.

@Musicvid I was quite arrogant here and I apologize profusely!

You have several factors to consider - and, yes, size of the output file is one of them but I consider that a very minor one given the size and cost of hard drives today.

Quicktime -

• small file size
• No longer supported on Windows - support dropped July 2007
• Mac version no longer supports PNG sequence
• 32bit technology last updated over 15 years ago
• Alpha NOT auto detected

ProRes -

• larger file size (but definitely NOT the "largest")
• Supported on both Windows and Mac
• Used by download services such as Digital Juice
• 64bit technology still being updated
• Alpha IS auto detected

 

For this explanation, I think that the vegas team really won't support automatic alpha in quicktime...