We are a full time business which up till recently used a DV-Storm/Premiere editing solution. After being on the fence for a few months, we've recently made Vegas our primary editing interface, using Premiere/Storm for a few task specific jobs such as real time speed control to slow down surveilance tapes and real time color correction for doing a global change in a film transfer, among a few others.

Mike

I've been earning a living at video full time for over 20 years. I've been an Avid editor for 8 years and use Premier and DPS Veolcity as well. Vegas offers more features than all but perhaps Avid and its interface is the fastest and most powerful of them all. With Premier and DPS Velocity I find myself using After Effects quite a bit, but with Vegas, most things can be achieved within the program. For anyone who uses compositing in their projects Vegas can save hours of effort. It's a remarkable program and we are using it more and more as the primary application in which to start and finish a program.

I have been a TV commerical director for over 20 years (two Clios and a hundred other national and international awards). If you're old enough you have seen my work... Irish Spring, US Air Force, TV Guide, Reader's Digest, Juan Valdez (Coffee of Columbia), Schweppes, Kirin Beer, ATT, IBM and hundreds more.
Since 1989 I have produced and edited every one of those spots from my (admittedly very expensive) home studio. First in an Abacus based BetaSP to BetaSP format, then in 1992 in an AVID Media Composer with Alladin Realtime effects, and now in Vegas. I paid (and paid off) over $120,000 for my Media Composer. Although it easily did 90% of my national commerical work, I still regularly turned to After Effects for the "special stuff".
I have replaced everything with Vegas.
Now, admittedly, I am no longer doing the "highest end" work that I used to do. Most of that would be edited on a high end digital format, such as DigiBeta or 601 digital, and I don't know if Vegas is up to that (it may be). But I'm still working for national clients and these days do most of the source work in DVCAM and completion on Vegas. It's not quite as fast in certain arenas as the Media Composer (which has real time Chroma keying, as well as Real Time 3D effects), but the interface is great, and it does 99% of what I need. Plus I can take home the work and do stuff on my laptop, an impossiblity with the AVID.
I've been on Vegas for about 18 months and love it. Once the next generation of super high speed computers arrives, Vegas will be even better than my $100k system (which ain't worth too much anymore, anyway). Hope this helps.

Well,

I have been in broadcast TV production since 1979. Done about everything to be done in a tv station: master control, lighting, sound, editor,cameraman, producer, management. I've decided 15 months ago to leave the broadcast arena and make the big step to operate my own business at home doing video production. Most of my clients followed as I started producing non linear with Premiere, AE and Lightwave. I've discovered VV4 a couple of months ago, downloaded the demo version and adopted it as my main editing app.
I too REALY love to be my own boss! In fact, I have about 75 boss now (clients) instead of 1 "%?%$/%!!" boss. ;-)

Gilles

Hey Vicmilt,

Irish Spring: "Manly yes, but I like it too." Was that yours? I don't know how or why I remember that line after all these years and the Irish guy cutting the soap with a pocket knife but I do every time I use the product. I guess that makes me "old enough" at a tender 45.

Mike

Yup... did 'em all (or most all, anyway).
One of the reasons I was able to keep the account was that I figured out a way to get the bar of soap to cut smoothly (plus award winning cinematography). We had a lot of fun shooting those (generally at the Disney Ranch in LA). Every year we'd troop out to Disney with about 50 people in crew and talent, and shoot Wm Esty Advertising's latest way to get guys and girls showering in the "rough". Got lots of war stories, but they're all good...

I've been doing corporate and consumer video for 12 years. Worked with the Video Toaster until I started using Vegas 2. Used them both for Vegas 3, and now only use Vegas 4. The Toaster is on the shelf. I might bring it back out for Toaster 3 though.

I've (not) been in the biz for about 8 months. I did the famous "son walks across the living room" and the widely acclaimed church Christmas play. I started out way back when with Vegas 3.0 and now am up to 4.0. If some of you old timers can remember the PIII chip that's where I cut my teeth :)

I absolutely love to hear how people have progressed in there video career and as it sounds like "passion". I would love to be on my own and hearing how it is in striking distance of mortal men is encouraging. Now I know perfectly well that someone with 10, 20 or more years with Vegas and me with 8months (and no real world trials) is night and day. But, I will continue with my "hobby" and maybe just maybe one day...

In the mean time keep the stories, tips, how too's, encouragement coming! Vegas, cheap hardware and the internet (thank you Al). Now there is a REVOLUTION!


- Jason S.

I have been doing video since 1955 when I graduated in the first class ever at USC to get a degree in TV production! I did national commercias for ARCO, Continental Airlines, Craig Car Stereos and Pleasant Hawaiian Holidays and American International Pictures. For the past 15 years I have been in business for myself. I used other studios in the beginning, but switched to the Toaster when it first came out. I wrote the book "Complete Post Production with the Video Toaster" and was the "Toaster Post" contributing editor for "Video Toaster User" magazine. Since that time I have used the Trinity Play, ScreenPlay, Primiere 6.0 with the Matrox and looked at Toaster (2). Now I'm 70 years old, still doing video, and I have settled on Vegas as my No. 1 NLE. I love it.
Burt Wilson (tailgait)

I started with Vegas 1.0 as a hobby, and gradually went commercial. I have created over 58 videos so far (41 last year) including weddings, shower, 40th birthday, three soccer games, one basketball game, multiple family videos, three church videos, a music video, a 911 tribute filmed in NY and sent to the NY police/fire/port authorities, a 4th of July video for my city for local heros, three videos for the school (including the annual 5th grade graduation video), a video version of a popular childrens book (love you forever), a professional video for a Piano teacher, a video for a software startup (to secure funding), plus a video for Motorola, and nine product and corporate videos for GE, etc.

I picked up my first dedicated paying project when a company saw one of my public videos--and I then produced a capability and product sales video (sent to the king of Saudi Arabia and the Sultan of Bernie)--custom interiors of planes. Plus, I've picked up a corporate video for a military defense contracter and a golf course that is hosting a PGA tournament. I also have an offer to re-cut a new music video from recent video footage for a well-known professional country western singer. Although I haven't given up my day job, as a VP of Marketing for GE, I am not lacking for projects. . .that are now willing to pay for my services. Could turn into a living.

P.S. I know Victor Milt on this string--a real professional and mentor.

Very nice to hear these stories.. I think you can definetely make money using Vegas. Right now I'm working for MTV Netherlands, with Vegas installed at home. I shot some footage with the Sugababes (UK act) when they were in our studio, and just for practice I took the material home. The next day I showed it to our senior producer and it was broadcast the next week. After that a Dutch Jackass special followed, and another pilot for a tv-show. It's sooo easy using Vegas. Hopefully more to follow as well as a full time job!

Jason S. wrote:

"I did the famous "son walks across the living room"" LOL I loved that movie!!! I got to tell you the "spit up scene" brought me to tears. Very moving. Keep it up.

jack

I own a recording studio in a small community of about 50,000. Last October I rented a camera from a videographer that was moving his business to Oregon and I bought V3 since I already trusted SF products. I was very fortunate in that the videographer introduced me to his corporate clients but I was freaking out thinking there was no way I could learn how to use V3 quickly enough (I had some car ads to shoot and edit which are chocked full of special effects). Between the intuitive interface of V3 (and now V4) and this forum (which now feels like family) I faked my way through it. It has gone so surprisingly well, I got a loan and bought a couple of 3 chip cameras, and various accessories. I recently picked up (to shoot/edit) my first weekly (small time)TV show (local with about 900,000 viewers). I have plenty of work and have chosen video over the recording studio and I don't record any more. In fact my wife is using the isolation booth as a fancy ironing room!
Thank you SF and thank you forum...I just love you guys man (sniff, sniff)
Randy

Not yet, but I bought it for commercial use to replace Premiere. So it's my intent.

Will

I don't think I've ever met a Dutch Jackass. Or at least I didn't know it at the time. Could be I've seen a few on television.

What cameras do you shoot with...?

I am currently managing several Church broadcasts and producing various event videos. The compensation is very good and my business is steadily growing. All my work is produced using Vegas 4.0... I may be forced to quit my full time job in the very near future....

I still have my full-time job as a product support manager because filming and editing wedding videos is so competitive here in Montreal that I cannot make a living doing it full-time.

I use a ajd210 DVCpro camera from panasonic, Vegas 4 (just recently) and been doing videos for 12 years part-time.