just as an aside - i long ago gave up worrying about levels, etc., or how it will look on anyone else's screen.

i use a calibrated external monitor (fed by intensity pro) and if my bars and program look right on it, i'm happy. have supplied work to tv stations this way for years with no problems.

just as an aside - i long ago gave up worrying about levels, etc., or how it will look on anyone else's screen.

i use a calibrated external monitor (fed by intensity pro) and if my bars and program look right on it, i'm happy. have supplied work to tv stations this way for years with no problems.

 

My challenge is not editing on a desktop workstation (Living circumstances changed back in Late December and had to move into a much smaller place - I'm having to have my office in my bedroom. Hence I can't use a proper calibration type device like what you mentioned. Guess it's a matter of hit and miss - at least for the web there's more wiggle room on this issue which is where I've delivered everything for the past few years.

So I jumped in with both feet on editing yesterdays shoot in Vegas Pro 13 - TBH, I'm stunned at how quickly I was able to edit (Managing audio was a dream compared to PPro). I think it took at least an hour off of my normal post production time when using Premiere Pro. I'll be exploring this more but I think it might have been the right time to commit to Vegas since I'm a one man shop, no collaboration, and need speed and efficiency for these short deadline projects. Rendered no problem using Vegas2Handbrake.

As an aside - Given the issues Vegas has had with files requiring Quicktime for mp4 and MOV wrapped video footage - for more serious type work, would transcoding to Cineform be a good idea? (Will need to look at a larger set of drives for this) Or is there another file format to transcode to that doesn't need Quicktime, maintains image quality and file sizes not as large as Cineform?

i've started using xavc-i with great success. can easily be done in free sony browse.

i've started using xavc-i with great success. can easily be done in free sony browse.

Have you experienced/noticed any degradation in IQ?

Hi Marco,

Thank you for your clear explanation of video levels.

Just want to know if my workflow is correct.

I am editing in full range (0-255), using 2 COLOR CURVES and 1 COLOR CORRECTOR in each of every video clip.

1st COLOR CURVES - to stretch the levels of each individual clip to 0-255,

2nd COLOR CURVES - to adjust RGB

and COLOR CORRECTOR to more precise color adjustment

When I finish my edits, I add LEVELS FX to VIDEO OUTPUT FX and then render.

Source: Mixed footage of Canon DSLR (0-255) and Sony Camcorder (16-255)

Delivery : DVD video

and Youtube via preset - Sony AVC/MVC 1920x1080 30p

What is the advantage of Correcting first the Video Levels vs Editing in full range and later add COMPUTER RGB TO STUDIO RGB LEVELS FX?

Thanks

"When I finish my edits, I add LEVELS FX to VIDEO OUTPUT FX and then render."

Which preset or which settings for the Levels FX do you use here?

"My challenge is not editing on a desktop workstation"

I quitted using a desktop workstation many years ago for similar reasons. And nowadays most of the time I use my notebook without even having an external display attached. The less equipment, the more I like it.

"I'm stunned at how quickly I was able to edit"

And maybe it would even get quicker once you found your individual workflow and boost it with appropriate scripts or one of the powerful scripting tools available for Vegas Pro. I just love script based workflow boosts taylored for my individual way of editing.

"Given the issues Vegas has had with files requiring Quicktime for mp4 and MOV wrapped video footage"

Maybe for this very issue VP14 would help as for many cases you would not need Quicktime anymore (I haven't installed Quicktime no more since I got a new notebook last year). But it is not that all the issues were already solved and not all of the common Quicktime formats are supported.

Looking for the perfect intermediate format – this always is a matter of your own perception and the very specs of your system.
If storage doesn't matter I find CineForm one of the best. If CPU power doesn't matter X-AVC could be a good choice. If storage is limited and CPU power average I find one of the XDCAM HD versions a good choice (no UHD sizes, though).
My system doesn't perform well with X-AVC, so whenever I need to use intermediates, I use either CineForm or XDCAM HD, dependend on the certain task.

"When I finish my edits, I add LEVELS FX to VIDEO OUTPUT FX and then render."

Which preset or which settings for the Levels FX do you use here?

Computer RGB to Studio RGB

Then you use a level stretching proces at the beginning (your step # 1) and a level compressing process at the end (your Levels Output FX), at the cost of quality when you're in an 8 bit project.

I would rather tend to find a workflow which modifies levels as rarely as possible. Except you don't mind a secondary quality degrade or you don't mind working within a CPU/GPU demanding floating-point system environment.

Now it is clearer to me the quality loss in my workflow.

So if Im going to:

1.) Edit in 16-235 Range, I have to add LEVEL FX >STUDIO RGB TO COMPUTER RGB to correctly display in my monitor and then disable before rendering.

2.) And all my Canon DSLR footage, Media Generatior, Title and Text, JPG Pictures... (0-255) should add LEVEL FX >COMPUTER RGB TO STUDIO RGB?

Thank you very much.

Just a post-note because the SeMW Extensions with its Preview Levels tool was mentioned in this discussion:

There is an updated version out now which makes SeMW Extensions usuable in the latest Magix branded version of Vegas Pro 13. See here:

https://www.vegascreativesoftware.info/de/forum/semw-extensions-for-vegas-14--103967/#ca654917