This is the year for 3D and Sony Creative Software has stepped up with its new version of Sony Vegas Movie Studio HD Platinum 11, with 3D import from MVC 3D video and 3DMPO still image formats, editing and previewing on 3D monitors, or on standard monitors with red/cyan glasses, and sharing on YouTube 3D or Blu-ray 3D disc. This release adds improved GPU-accelerated AVC rendering, support for more progressive HD project formats, title and text animations and effects, and other workflow improvements.

Sony has continued its legacy of providing a family of consumer applications instead of a single integrated tool, with DVD Architect Studio 5.0 for DVD and now Blu-ray authoring included with Movie Studio HD Platinum, plus Sound Forge Audio Studio for audio editing and production ($65), and ACID Music Studio for music creation and mixing ($65).

Movie Studio is offered in several versions and bundles: The base Movie Studio HD 11 is focused on easy editing and sharing for HD media ($50). Movie Studio HD Platinum 11 supports higher-end features including 3D editing, GPU-accelerated AVC rendering, color correction, 5.1 audio, and disc authoring ($100). The Movie Studio HD Platinum 11 Production Suite bundles Audio Studio and more effects ($130). The Imagination Studio 3 bundle completes the set with Music Studio and Photo Go ($180).

Control

Sony has a legacy of providing in-depth control over editing options, albeit with a sometimes idiosyncratic approach. The Movie Studio interface can seem cluttered, with lots of icons and controls for direct access to controls, instead of "consumerizing" the look by burying them in context menus. And the menus themselves have a profusion of interesting options (such as "Quantize to Frames" and "Make Compositing Child").

This approach even highlights its flexible and pluggable design even for basic operations. For example, you don't just process AVC video, you use the Sony AVC/MVC plug-in; you don't use a text animator, you use the Titles and Text Plug-in; and applied effects are not just in a list, they are a Plug-In Chain.

As a result, there's a learning curve to get started (e.g., adding just one transition requires comprehending the Video Effect FX plug-in chain architecture). But then you can keep refining with even greater control, with 10 video and 10 audio tracks; over 400 transitions, filters, effects, and titles; and keyframeable effects.

Version 11 also adds event-level control over audio effects, plus a new Titles & Text plug-in for creating static and animated text, along with the Credit Roll plug-in for scrolling credits - although these are buried under the View / Media Generators menus.

Movie Studio also brings more professional features into a consumer tool, with image stabilization, primary and secondary color correction, and enhanced support for XDCAM, AVC DSLR cameras, and progressive HD formats. Movie Studio also continues Sony's focus on audio, with 5.1 surround and stereo AC-3 encoding, and audio timestretching and pitch shifting.

3D Editing

This same depth carries into the new 3D editing capability: You can import and edit your 3D content into your production just like any other media, or set up your project to match a specified media file. Then set the 3D viewing mode for your display type, including 3D displays (side-by-side, interlaced, with left/right swap) or on a standard display with anaglyphic (cyan/green) glasses.

In the Movie Studio style, there are also a plethora of options to precisely align the 3D views and depth with the "Sony Sterographic 3D Adjust" effect - including setting the horizontal and vertical offset, zoom, keystone, rotation, flip horizontal/vertical, and cropping. You also can create 3D by pairing material shot with two different cameras. You then share your production online via YouTube3D, or burn to Blu-ray disc to view on a 3D TV.