Regarding pre-rendering -- are you are talking about "rendering to a new track"? where you take a section of timeline and render the video to a new file, which is then placed on a new track? Or are you talking about if you are talking about Tools > Selectively Prerender Video? Those files are generally considered temporary -- something you do just to get a smooth preview.

In either case, you are correct that you cannot remove any FX from a rendered video: once you "bake the cake", so to speak, the flavor is baked in and cannot be removed. When you render part of the timeline, you are creating a new .avi file (or whatever you render to), and if you had titles on that video, for example, the video information that is "under" those titles no longer exists in that file. If you have a "blur" FX, for example, the rendered file is permanently blurred.

These two situations would be the same in the Pro version -- once you have rendered anything you have baked the FX into the rendered video, and the only way to remove it is to delete the rendered file, bypass the FX, then re-render again later.

Tim L

The discovery arose from taking a snapshot and inserting into the Video Track just to realize that any FX applied via the Track was then done twice (initially rendered in the Snapshot, then again when inserted).

If you have the space .. you could place the snapshot on the track *above* the main track and it will not have the FX applied twice.

Or you could mute the track effect BEFORE taking the snapshot and then turn it back on afterwards. Then the snapshot would not have the effect applied.

To Musicvid: I believe I indicate that I did all the research already concerning Freeze Frame workaround, and have but one/1 question pertaining to. The one and only question was: can you temporarily turn off Prerender without deleting the files? (via Cleanup)

The Snapshot feature is based around the preview, and if you are using Prerender then the Snapshot is of the prerendered - turning off the Track FX by doing Bypass changes nothing in the Snapshot in this case. I do not want the prerendered snapshot because then any Track FX is additive to the snapshot inserted (doing the same FX twice again).

[BTW, I believe the reaction to when somebody brings up a question that has been asked a thousand+ times (ie, Freeze Frame) stems from the fact that it is a sore spot - why is there no such feature - you had to learn it, everybody that gets half way serious using VMS ends up learning it. Such things are actually in 'How To' help and video training, because so many people asked those kinds of questions... - I use to be a professional software programmer, and usually 'the squeaky wheel' did get the grease. I wonder if Sony does not put such features in VMS because of stimulating the usage (ie, a challenge for the customers) - yes I know about Velocity in Pro version, this can't be Sony's soul reason to hold out putting Freeze Frame in non-pro VMS - there are other low-end video editors with such features. VMS many versions ago had a plug-in that did a psuedo Freeze Frame, but not there today. Freeze Frame/Velocity will not be the reason I spend $.5k on Pro. OK, that is my band wagon.]

"If you have the space .. you could place the snapshot on the track *above* the main track and it will not have the FX applied twice."

I am doing that already - makes for a sloppy/confusing timeline. Thanks though.

"you could mute the track effect BEFORE taking the snapshot"

has no effect if using prerendered preview feature.

Q. Can Prereneder be temporarily disabled? (other than Cleanup - I am looking for a switch/option here). Prerender preview is a nice feature, but wasted if it can not be used for the sake of doing other things.