According to online social media publication, Social Media Today, 78% of people watch video online each week and video streaming on mobile devices increases by 100% every year. On top of that, it’s predicted that one million videos per second will come online by 2022, accounting for 82% of all internet traffic. In short, video is big – and set to get bigger. If you want to participate in this boom, whether to share personal videos, build a brand, or advertise a product or service, you’ll need good video-production software. VEGAS Pro fits the bill for thousands of users a year, and with its latest release, VEGAS Pro 17, the software is stronger than ever.

While you can read our overview of VEGAS Pro here … in this article, we will focus on the improvements the company has made to the software in its latest release – which number over 30.

Organization

VEGAS Pro 17 benefits from several workflow improvements that make it easier and faster to create and edit videos. Chief among these are “nested timelines.” This means you can keep your main timeline clean, with only high-level frames, and then click to open a frame to view expanded sequences in more detail. It lets you drill down to the details or get an overview of your project as your workflow dictates. As a result, you can work on a longer video as a series of smaller projects. 

Also, timelines are now integrated with a storyboard workflow, so you can view your project in two different ways. Changes made in one interface are reflected in the other. 

This release of the software also includes a hamburger menu system that is fully customizable, allowing you to put the tools you use the most in one handy drop-down menu.

Editing

VEGAS Pro 17 has also made significant strides in video, audio and color editing.

In terms of editing your videos, most users will find “Smart Split” a welcome tool. It lets you simply select an entire section of your video and remove it without any awkward jump cuts. The software makes the deletion virtually undetectable. VEGAS Pro 17 also includes a rebuilt video-stabilization engine that removes any shake from your videos, as well as an automatic slideshow creator that quickly turns your images into montages that can stand on their own or be inserted into the timeline of your video. 

Additionally, there are significant special-effect additions including a “Lens Flare” that adds a dreamy, otherworldly aspect to any video as well as “Mesh Warp,” which lets you pinch and stretch your video for unusual and visually arresting effects.  

When it comes to color, VEGAS Pro 17 has revamped its color-grading workflow panel. By using dials and curves, adjusting the color of your videos is now even easier and more intuitive than before. The panel is also completely customizable, so you can set it up for exactly the way you work. What’s more, the software now allows you to save color profiles and apply them to future video projects.

And, although VEGAS Pro 17 is best known as video software, there are many out there who use the software for its robust audio-editing tools as well. This release of the program brings significant improvements here as well including: 40 audio effects; unlimited track mixing; automatic crossfades; surround-sound encoding; and more.

Summary

This is really a broad overview of the improvement brought to the (video production) table by VEGAS Pro 17. Many of the other new features may only appeal to more advanced video editors, but because the software gets high marks for its intuitive interface, it’s easy for beginners to dabble in all aspects of the program, which can build skills and techniques. It’s an amazingly jam-packed software package that’s well worth a look if you’re thinking about taking your videos to another level.

Download VEGAS Pro 17 here.