Working with P2 Video

The following steps will guide you through the process of using P2 video in your VEGAS Pro project.

  1. Shoot your video with a P2 camera.

  2. Start a new VEGAS Pro project, and set your project properties to the format that most closely matches your desired output format (or use the Match Media Video Settings button in the Project Properties dialog to match an existing media file).

    For more information, see Setting project properties

  3. Use the Device Explorer window to import your P2 files.

    For more information, see Using the Device Explorer

  4. Drag your clips from the Project Media window to the timeline to create events.

  5. Edit your project as needed.

    TIP

    If you're working on a system with limited processing power, converting to a lower-resolution format will streamline the editing process and allow you to preview your project with higher frame rates. This process is called proxy editing.

    For more information, see Creating proxy files for high-definition editing

  6. Render your project to any supported rendering format.

If you want to render to P2 format and export the rendered file to a P2 camera, please use the following steps:

  1. Verify that your VEGAS Pro project is set match your P2 file settings.

    For more information, see "Updating Project Video Settings to Match a Video File."

  2. From the File menu, choose Render As.

  3. In the Render As dialog, choose Panasonic P2 MXF in the Output Format box.

  4. Use one of the following templates, or select a template and click the Customize Template button to edit its settings.

    If you use the Custom Template dialog to customize your rendering template, leave all settings at their default values except for the Frame size control.

  5. Use the Output File controls to choose where the files will be rendered. The P2 file format has strict file-naming requirements, so when you render P2 files, you choose an output folder rather than rendered file names.

    Click the Browse button to choose where you want to render:

  • To render to a P2 camera that's connected to your computer, choose the CONTENTS folder on the camera's memory card.

  • To render to a folder on your computer, choose a folder. If a P2-format CONTENTS folder exists in the selected folder, VEGAS Pro will use the existing folder structure. If no P2-format CONTENTS folder exists, VEGAS Pro will create all necessary files and folders

    File names are automatically incremented when you render. For example, if the highest-numbered clip in the selected render folder is ..\CONTENTS\VIDEO\00036R.mxf, the next file you render to that folder will be created as ..\CONTENTS\VIDEO\0004xx.mxf.

    IMPORTANT File naming is an important part of the P2 file specification. Do not change the file names in a P2 CONTENTS folder.