Reviews Sony Vegas Movie Studio 11

There are several reasons to keep an eye on Sony Vegas Movie Studio 11. While this particular video editing software has always had a good selection of features and editing tools, the new release has increased its versatility and ease of use. One of the biggest changes you will see with this version is the user interface is more user-friendly, though it still doesn't hurt to run through a tutorial or two to learn all of the intricacies. With added 3D editing and Windows 7 support, this application is even better than before.

Sony Vegas Movie Studio is an application that keeps improving with each new release. Now the application is set up with 3D editing. This feature lets you make any 2D movie into eye-popping 3D. All you need is a pair of red and cyan glasses when you are done. These glasses don't have to be Sony specific, which means that anyone can watch your movie without needing to purchase glasses designed for Sony products. If you want something even more stunning you can use the NVIDIA 3D vision option, but this does require additional equipment.

The project wizard makes this application easy to use by helping you set up all of the details regarding the file format and name of the project. This way from the beginning you will know that your final project will be suitable for your chosen medium, such as Blu-ray or the web. There is also a slideshow creator tool that makes it easy to put photos together into a slideshow. The fastest way is to plug your photos into a quick template and then go through and add little details where needed for that personalized touch.
Vegas Movie Studio comes with a great selection of effects, not only for movies and photos but for music as well. There are more than 350 video effects and more than 200 transitions, plus it comes with 360 soundtracks. The soundtracks are fairly unique to this application. Now you don't have to worry about trying to find the perfect music in the perfect length to go with your movie. Just select the style you want, how long you need it to be, and away you go. If you do have a perfect song already on hand, just import the track and trim it down to the length you need.
When dealing with complex applications like video editing software, having reliable and comprehensive help and support is key to making the best possible movies. Sony provides an email address for contacting them if you happen to need a little extra help. We are pleased to see that there is a manual, FAQs, and user forums. While they do offer phone support, they do charge an extra fee for this service.

System Requirements:

Microsoft® Windows® XP SP3, Windows Vista™ SP2, or Windows 7
2 GHz processor (multicore or multiprocessor CPU recommended for HD or stereoscopic 3D)
400 MB hard-disk space for program installation
1 GB RAM (2 GB recommended)
OHCI-compatible i.LINK® connector*/IEEE-1394DV card (for DV capture and print-to-tape)
USB 2.0 connection (for importing from AVCHD or DVD camcorders)
Windows-compatible sound card
DVD-ROM drive (for installation from a DVD only)
Supported CD-recordable drive (for CD burning only)
Supported DVD-R/-RW/+R/+RW (for DVD burning only)
Supported BD-R/-RE drive (for Blu-ray Disc™ burning only)
Microsoft .NET Framework 3.51 (included on application disc)
Apple® QuickTime® 7.1.6 or later
Internet Connection (for Gracenote MusicID Service)

Features:

General Features

New! Streamlined New Project and Make Movie wizards
New! Improved native HDV .m2t playback performance and improved memory handling for HDV longform projects
New! Sony AVCHD enhancements
Freehand envelope drawing on the timeline
Display of media marker names in events
Improved snapping — color-coded visual snap indicator and the ability to snap to event edges on other tracks.
Multitrack video and audio editing
Easy drag-and-drop functionality
Show Me How interactive tutorials
Real-time editing of parameters during playback
Support for any aspect ratio (4:3, 16:9, etc)
Supports multiple file formats and frame rates
High Definition editing and output
Simple drag-and-drop operations
Explorer view
Project media bins
Over 500 video effects and transitions
Track markers and regions
Unlimited undo/redo

Video Features

New! Fullscreen preview to a primary and secondary Windows display
Real-time playback of effects, processes and transitions to external monitor
Color-correction tools
MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 support
Superior frame rate conversions
Credit rolls and text animation
External monitor preview
Ripple editing across tracks

Audio Features

New! Cinescore Studio plug-in for music soundtrack creation
Gracenote® MusicID™ CD album recognition
Multithreaded audio engine maximizes performance
Basic surround support
Support for multichannel (5.1) source files for Sony HDV Handycam® camcorders
16-bit, 44.1 kHz song quality for exceptional performance
Volume and pan envelopes
Audio time stretching
Event normalization
CD audio extraction
Audio/video synchronization detect and repair
DirectX audio plug-in support
VST audio effect support
ASIO™ drive support
Tape-style audio scrubbing
Audio restoration tools
Track-level audio FX and envelopes

Transitions and Effects

More than 220 customizable 2D and 3D transitions
Over 350 customizable video special effects
Add text animation, titles and scrolling credits
Red-eye removal tool
Green screen chroma key effects
Pan and crop tool to animate still images
Video and audio time stretching

Capture and Import

New! Import support for LEPC files
New! Import support for MJPEG-encoded files
Sony AVCHD import and edit support
Import and export support for ATRAC3™, ATRAC3plus™, and ATRAC Advanced Lossless™ files
Insert I-frames at marker positions when rendering MPEG-2 (works in conjunction with I-frame viewer in DVD Architect Studio 4.5).
ATRAC audio plug-in (Templates only)
Gracenote® MusicID™ CD album recognition
Import media from Sony® DVD Handycam® camcorders
Batch capture and automatic DV scene detection
PC connection via FireWire®, i.LINK™ connector or IEEE-1394 devices**
Import pictures in BMP, GIF, JPG, and PSD formats
Import AVI, DV, SWF, and MPEG 1 & MPEG 2 files
Import audio files in WAV, MP3, AIF, CD Audio and PCA formats

Export and Hardware Features