Does Vegas have a story board option?

[Edward Troxel]

Yes, that option has been around for quite some time (several years at least). I do use it on occasion. It does have some quirks you need to watch out for, though. One example: If you are dragging a clip that had a dissolve onto another clip with a dissolve, sometimes these dissolves can be "added" so that the dissolve length is now doubled. So do verify the results afterwards.

ANOTHER reason to read the "readme" files from each release! :-)

[Ed Sanders]

As only a Vegas user, what is storyboard mode? Does it let you nest groups of clips and drag them as a unit?

[Richard Gooderick]

Originally Posted by Ed Sanders

As only a Vegas user, what is storyboard mode? Does it let you nest groups of clips and drag them as a unit?

Storyboard in Liquid is a user-selected mode that allows you to play around with your clips on a desktop. Each clip is represented by a pictogram. So your shots look like a pack of cards laid out on a card table. You can move them around just like cards on a table and you can select an image that represents the contents of the clip to make it easier to see what's what.
You can preview each clip by double clicking it. You can select small, medium and large options for each pictogram. You can choose to have the pictogram play back at the size you choose or, if you prefer, to have it open up in a preview window when you double click it.
So, if you are putting together a very visual sequence composed of many similar shots the storyboard mode allows you to select the best shots and put them together in the order that you like best. I find it a very visual and intuitive process and much better than trying to do the same thing on a timeline,
You can make the bad ones small and put them together in a pile so they don't get in the way. You can work with the ones that you like to construct a sequence. You do this by placing them, like cards, on the desktop, so that they overlap. If you double click the cards that are overlapped they will play back in sequence in a preview window.
When you have got the order of shots the way that you like you can send them all to the timeline and continue to work with them there.
I don't know how many other NLEs have a function like this. I find it invaluable for creative sequences.
Unfortunately Liquid is obsolete. Here's hoping that the NLE that replaces it has this function.

[Edward Troxel]

You realize you can do the same thing with "Windows Explorer" and then drag the relevant clips straight to the Vegas timeline...

[Jason Robinson]

Originally Posted by Mike Kujbida

Thanks for the tip Eugene!!
I had no idea that feature existed.
I really do need to spend some time reading the manual one of these days :-)

Skip the manual (at first) and just watch some of the excellent tutorial videos. If you realy want to get the most out of Vegas and do it fasst (yes it is a pun) then check out Vasst (I have no affiliation with that company other than being a customer to the tune of several hundreds of dollars of training videos & software that I purchased from them).

[Richard Jones]

Must admit the absence of a storyboard worried me a little when I was researching which NLE to use when I made the switch from Hi8 to VHS editing but its absence has never been a problem.

The tips given above all work well but I also use Batch Capture as well as the Trimmer. Batch Capture lets you capture the scenes relating to one aspect of the production (e.g. shots of the same place if you are making a travelogue) while the Trimmer can be used to select and size the parts you need in the order you want them by using the I and O and A/TAB A shortcut keys and using Ripple where you wish to insert the event between two others.

Sony Vegas is a fantastic editing programme - versatile and comprehensive - and I can't recommend it highly enough.

Richard

[David Delaney]

None of the links for the top 10 work for some reason....

[Bill Spearman]

Thanks for the clarification Ed - I am reading this as my trial of Vegas 9 is almost up, and wonderign what I missed. I have been just dragging them in through the Explorer tab, and am relieved to see I was on the right path. Once again, this Board is a treasure, and a wealth of information. Thank you all.

[Sam Houchins II]

Originally Posted by Brian Standing

Well, at the risk of breaking the sacred oath of exclusive membership... there's lots more tips at:

Top Ten Vegas Tips
Sony Vegas: Real World Tips
Ten More Vegas Tips and Tricks
Ten New Top Tips for Sony Vegas

Thanks for the comments on the website. One of your countrymen, Eric Idle, once said "You can have complete artistic freedom as long as you are willing to make no money at all." I have a day job that pays the bills and health insurance, so I'm free to pursue only the projects I like with my video work. It's a mixed blessing, though, 'cause of course the day job eats up time that could be used for video editing.

Hey Brian...
I loved the tips from the links you provided, especially a trick for making a quick, faux 3-D text effect. I saved the link in my favorites to go back to on demand, AND NOW THE PAGE IS GONE!!! wah!wah!wah! Any clue what that particular tip was or where the page went?
-Thanks!