Slow Motion

Slow motion is a powerful video effect used to create a fluid, slowed-down version of the original footage. VEGAS Pro offers several methods to apply this effect, providing both high-quality results and flexibility in controlling playback speed.

  • Slow Motion OFX Plug-in:

    This method allows you to control the playback rate and fine-tune the quality of the effect with various parameters.

  • Direct Timeline Editing:

    Adjusting event properties or adding velocity envelopes directly on the timeline offers a more hands-on approach to slow motion.

USE CASES

  • Creating dramatic moments in sports footage.

  • Enhancing emotional scenes in film projects.

  • Highlighting important actions or details in tutorials or presentations.

Slow Motion OFX Plug-in

Slow Motion FX Dialog

FIGURE Slow Motion FX Dialog

  1. Click the Video FX tab to open the Video FX window.

  2. Select Slow Motion from the list of plug-ins.

  3. Drag the Default preset onto the timeline clip event that you want to apply it to.

  4. Adjust the parameters.

    Parameters

    Element Description
    Preset This allows you to select predefined settings for the Slow Motion effect, enabling faster editing by using ready-made configurations.
    Quality Controls the quality of the motion effect calculation. Options are Low, Medium, and High. Higher quality requires more processing power but delivers more precise results.
    Blending You can choose between "Blend" and "Nearest Frame". Blend creates smoother transitions, while Nearest Frame uses the closest available frame for clarity.
    Playback Rate Controls the speed of video playback. A value below 1.0 slows the video down, while values above 1.0 speed it up. This parameter can be animated for dynamic effects.
    Show Optical Flow Field Enable this option to visualize the motion flow fields used to calculate the in-between frames. This can help diagnose issues with motion detection.
    Adjust Event Length Click this button to automatically adjust the event length on the timeline to match the new playback speed, ensuring no frames are cut off.

  5. Click OK to apply the effect.

Automatic Event Length Adjustment

After applying slow motion, the clip may no longer fit within its original duration on the timeline. To adjust:

Click the Adjust Event Length button. This will automatically stretch the event to fit the new playback speed, ensuring all frames are preserved.

Direct Timeline Editing

There are two methods for applying slow motion directly within the timeline:

Adjusting Playback Rate via Event Properties

  1. Right-click on the timeline event and choose Properties.

  2. Change the sampling to Optical Flow.

  3. In the Playback Rate field, adjust the value to achieve the desired speed. A value below 1.0 slows the video down, while values above 1.0 speed it up.

  4. Click OK to apply the changes.

Adjusting Speed via Velocity Envelope

  1. Right-click on the timeline event and choose Switches | Optical Flow as sampling method.

  2. Right-click again the timeline event and select Insert/Remove Envelope | Velocity.

    A green line will appear over the event.

  3. Drag this line down to slow the video down, or drag it up to speed it up.

Uneven slow motion effect

  • Double-click on the velocity line to add keyframes and create variable speed changes within the event.

  • Alternative: Press SHIFT key and paint on the event, the drawn curve will be automatically simplified