Sony Vegas to Youtube Tutorial - A Better Method

[FollowThatCairn]

Many thanks for this video! Great information, and I've used the "better" method with success. Would you be willing to expand on your comment that professionals might be uncomfortable with the method- if a person had access to scopes, and knew how to use them, how might their approach differ? Thanks for your time.

[musicvid10]

@FollowThatCairn

Using the page linked above called "Youtube Levels Fix," adjust both Output levels using the video scopes and your eyes to guide you. It takes practice!

[JasonGreeneVideo]

This video is, by far, one of the most useful tutorials I have come across.Thank you to all those who participated in making it. I have been using the suggested "better" method for both online (YouTube and Vimeo) and adapted to DVD. Before using it, I was very disappointed with the quality of DVD's that used HD source material. Vegas simply wasn't downconverting very well. However, with this method, my DVD's are exactly as I wanted/expected. Again, thanks musicvid and others!

[ckurthy]

@musicvid10

In VMS 11 there is no "file", it's "Project"--> Render as and then it opens a menu that's completely different then the one in the video. Weird.

[musicvid10]

@ckurthy

Click "CUSTOMIZE TEMPLATE," match the custom settings, and proceed. You can save the template so you can use it again. Tutorial was written before VMS 11 was released, but the workflow is the same. Further questions please post to the Vegas Movie Studio forum.

[Theokondak]

Hey Musicvid10, I just hit the same error on Handbrake again.The thread on Handbrake forum is active again with the not so new error messages.Please feel free to have a visit.Its on Windows Tech Support under the title : HandbrakeCLI Crash.

[rocker4579]

Hey I downloaded the codec but when I go the custom tab and then to video format The avid codec doesn't show up. Do I need to manually install the codec in Vegas or should it automatically show up in the video format tab? Please help

[DWTDmitri]

Argh, uncompressed AVI sucks. I've got some files of 20GB. Luckily I've got a 1TB hard drive, but the writing kills my RAID configuration...

[jabulasail]

Thank you very much for your excellent tutorial.

I have a question relating to file size:

I am shooting on a Sony EX1r, and used a short clip as a test. The original clip was only 100Mb, but when rendered (before HandBreak) using your method was enlarged to 400Mb! Is this normal? The size after HandBreak conversion was under 10Mb...which is great, but wouldn't it be smaller still if one started with a smaller size file. I'm not technically minded, so please forgive a dumb question.

Many thanks!!

[musicvid10]

@jabulasail

Sounds about right -- what were your EX1 and Handbrake final resolutions?

The DNxHD Intermediate uses intraframe compression, thus larger files but no visual loss, which is a good thing when going from one encoder to another ;?)

[jabulasail]

@musicvid10

I shoot with 1920x1080 unless overcranking. The resolution for the test was 1920x1080. I used the same resolution for HandBreak. I did tests with the Vegas QT7 render settings at 1920x1080 and again at 1280x720. Files size at the end of this render was identical although once processed by HandBreak, the final files size was slightly smaller for the 1280x720 version.

Something I noticed was that diagonal lines in the QT7 render were quite jagged. Do you have any idea why this is?

[musicvid10]

@jabulasail

The page at the "jazzythedog" link above is chock full of information about deinterlacing, resizing, and bitrates. Also feel free to post questions on the Sony Vegas forums. Happy Holidays!

[amendegw]

Just back for a visit to read the latest comments and noticed your Avid DNxHD URL (above) needs updating for 2.3.7

...Jerry

[Theokondak]

@musicvid10 Ok i am sorry.I just registered on HandBrake Forum.Well thing is that i can use handbrake with same settings for smaller files.Maybe its some kind of Overflow for Handbrake handling files that big?

[Theokondak]

I rendered a video with duration about 25minutes, which results about 33gigs uncompressed file.when i try to import it to Handbrake i keep getting error: Your Source might be copy protected, badly mastered or in a format which HandBrake Does not support.Please refer to Documentation and FAQ.

Anything i can do about that?

[musicvid10]

@Theokondak

Thanks for moving your questions to the Handbrake forum. As a result of our discussion, I am suggesting using a nightly build of Handbrake, and instructions for including an alpha blocking track will be included in the next version of the tutorial.

MV

[n0f4c321]

08:03-08:07

"...and the frame rate the same numeric value as the project.don't use same as source"

"Note: If your frame rate is 59.940,set this at 29.97 for Youtube."

My Video was shot in 1920x1080 at 29.97 fps.

My Sony Vegas Project Properties are of those Values.

Therefore I would use THE SAME FRAMERATE AS SOURCE right?

I just got confused by you saying DON'T USE.

I'm really new into this and your tutorial helps me a lot.

Thank you very much!

[musicvid10]

@n0f4c321 With Handbrake stable 0.9.5 the "Same as Source" option is variable frame rate, so we don't want to use it. You would select your numeric framerate, 29.97.

With the later nightly builds this has changed. So you could use "Same as Source" as long as you also check "Constant Frame Rate."

We don't want to upload any variable frame rate video to Youtube, because it can have a bad effect on the audio/video sync.

[turraisgone]

Sadly...getting the same issue as xarath1, installing latest quicktime and cannot do anything since the Custom button is greyed out...not sure what else to do.

[xarath1]

I have installed the AvidCodecsLE234Win, however when I goto Render and select Quicktime, the custom button is grayed out. The templates drop down is available below the quicktime selection but does not list an uncompressed setting. I am not sure what Im missing. After installing AvidCodecs I even tried to reboot, but that did not fix it either.

[musicvid10]

@xarath1 Post your question on the Sony Vegas user forums, where more people will see it. Also include your Vegas version and Quicktime version. Thanks.

[xarath1]

@musicvid10 I figured it out, it was because quicktime installation was broken, After uninstalling both Avid and Quicktime, and then reinstalling quicktime then Avid. It is now working.

[navaraman]

@xarath1

hi,

i have the same problem with you.

I am using sony vegas 11 (64bit) and quicktime 7.

Wich version do you use?I tryed uninstalling/reinstalling but didn't worked

[timej31]

All of a sudden I have started crashing when I render the intermediate file in Quicktime format using DNxHD. This just started last night. This is bad because I was having great success using this method. If I cannot get this resolved do you have an alternative intermediate file type you recommend? I am using Vegas Movie Studio 11 Platinum suite.

[musicvid10]

@timej31

Post your question on the Vegas Movie Studio forums with your project properties and render properties. It is most likely something simple in your settings.

[timej31]

@musicvid10 I did but no luck until now. Figured it out. Some how my saved preset became borked but I just deleted it and reused the pre-existing ones. Just edited to my liking and it works! I use this method and love the results.Thanks for all your information you guys do great work! Lots of fun.

[musicvid10]

@timej31 Glad you got it sorted.

[catwellvideo]

Thank you so much! This is a tremendous help as I was having difficulty following the process on the Vegas Forum. It is great to have the details spelled out.

[musicvid10]

@catwellvideo Thanks. Looking forward to seeing your work in 720p.

[alistairlock]

I have to concede: Good point. I, as the dumb narrator assumed that Lanczos was an acronym,

[RustyTube]

@alistairlock He was a mathematician and a physicist. Among his other accomplishments, he found a solution to Einstein’s field equation. And of course he is known for his resampling method commonly used in computer graphics.

[RustyTube]

Nice tutorial, but no need to make fun of the late Dr. Lánczos’ name. He was a Hungarian, and they speak a different language from the English, so their names are different but they are not weird. And, by the way, it is pronounced ˈlaːntsoʃ, or for those who cannot read IPA, LAHN-tsosh.

[musicvid10]

@RustyTube That was an attempt to inject a little humor into an otherwise dry discourse. Alistair delivered the script as written so it is my responsibility. I will keep your comment under consideration for the next tutorial version.

[dummerbube]

Why is the file first rendered in 1080 and made into 720 in handbrake again? What if I only (can) record in 720 - can I just everytime you talk of 1080 (before moving on with handbrake) change the 1080 into 720 or would this cause trouble with the different softwares used?

[musicvid10]

@dummerbube

If you are shooting in 720p format, do it all in Vegas or your own editor using the "good" method and forget the extra steps. Good idea to apply the levels filter if you're not sure what you've got.

The advantage of doing the downsize and deinterlace in Handbrake is better sharpness and motion detail.

If you upload native 1080i to Youtube, it doesn't play well in full screen and YT's deinterlacing is not as good.

[dummerbube]

@musicvid10 Ok, but doesn't it still make sense to improve 720p material too?

[musicvid10]

@dummerbube The quality improvements in Handbrake x264 over 2-pass Mainconcept at 8-10Mbps is small if there is no resizing or deinterlacing taking place. Unless there is high detail and motion in your video, you may not be able to notice a difference between the two after being processed by Youtube. (Actual time spent rendering is about the same.)

[musicvid10]

On the other hand, if you are rendering for your own website at ~4Mbps or below, there is a big advantage to using x264 over either Mainconcept or Sony AVC. We have actually tested it down to 1200Kbps 720p with acceptable results.

[dummerbube]

@musicvid10 I see, thank you for explanation! If I may ask another thing: I wasn't aware of the the mentioned "colour levels problem" before this video and since I have to edit some footage right now, I'd like to ask if there is a quick and easy method (unfortunately I got no time to spend time for reading several pages somewhere at the moment) to improve the colours again, away from the "grayish" colours that occured after I just applied the LevelsFX. Is there a quick way to achieve that?

[musicvid10]

@dummerbube Then your video may already have been shot at or near the correct levels. If it looks better to you without the filter, go without. Best of luck.

[dummerbube]

@musicvid10 Well, I guess I have to test that with videos with and without the filter, if there is a noticeable difference after uploading to youtube. But from how it look right now, applying the filter "offline", makes the colours worse.

[musicvid10]

@dummerbube You must test your video on Youtube to see the results. After the filter is applied, it will always look flatter in the Vegas preview because Youtube player EXPANDS THE LEVELS. Watch from 4:30 again and conduct your own tests so you will know what is right for you to do on your own system and workflow, which I know nothing about. Again, best of luck!

[musicvid10]

@dummerbube You may want to post further questions on the Sony Vegas peer support forums rather than this general Comments area, thanks.

[amendegw]

@dummerbube Just to expand on musicvid10's comments, if you go to the "Helpful Links" section of this Video and navigate to the URL listed under "Complete History and Archive of this Project" then click on "Local - Low Bitrate" you will see the results of the Sony AVC/MainConcept/Handbrake comparison at 1200Kbps. Phew! That would have been so much easier if I could just post a URL here.

[dummerbube]

@amendegw Thanks.

[arleybarleyfuture]

Absolutely great work through and very detailed, I am going to try something similar with premiere pro as my current rendering to avi has a very large file size and some strange artifacting. Out of interest, do you know if the luminance levels need to be corrected in Premier Pro too and how do you know if your footage was shot at REC 709 levels. Thank you and great work!

[musicvid10]

@arleybarleyfuture I don't know how it will respond through the PP workflow. I do know that many DSLRs, Point-and-Shoots, Pocket HD, etc. shoot 0-255 RGB and this needs to be corrected to 16-235 somewhere before upload. Active video scopes, such as in Vegas Pro, are the only way I know of to be completely sure, but I realized early on that most people don't use scopes. My method is "failsafe" in this respect and the filter can always be omitted if the footage was shot at true 709 levels.

[arleybarleyfuture]

@musicvid10 I followed your workflow with Premiere Pro without the levels change and actually found that the extended levels happened where they didn't before. I must assume that the conversion to Rec 709 done by Avid DV codec causes this issue as when I put it into RGB mode, the colours stayed the same from source to youtube. Strange that this has to be corrected in Vegas and not premier pro?

[musicvid10]

@arleybarleyfuture Thanks for the feedback. I may ask you to run some tests in PP before we publish the next version of the tutorial. One difference we know of is that the Vegas preview displays different levels than Premiere.

[AGrandt]

Very nice and informative video.

Please add the URL's for the various tools you reference in the description :)

[musicvid10]

@AGrandt

Done.

[AGrandt]

@musicvid10 Thanks :)

[MajesticSuperiorHen]

Fantastic, Thanks

[bubblevision]

Excellent job! Thanks!

[LONSTERVID]

Thank you! Looks perfect!



[williemd1]

It's about time. Excellent.

[johnmeyer77]

Thanks!!