Imported images appear darker.

[Abhi Nash]

There might be effects added to the track which you imported the Picture into.

Try this:
1.Import it into another track.
2.Re-install the software if the above tip doesn’t work.

Cheerio,
Abhi

[Billy Whitman]

I checked for effects, I tried sending pictures to another track and even tried importing the pictures to a new project. Every picture does it regardless. Re-installation didn’t seem to change anything either.

[Norman Black]

You probably have a levels problem. Images from still cameras are full range, 0-255, and your video output levels should typically be 16-235 (studio range).

Vegas does not normalize input into the studio video range so it is up to you to do this. Use Sony levels with the computer to studio RGB preset.

It should also be noted that many cameras that output AVC video also output full range and also need this adjustment. Canon, Nikon, Panasonic digital cameras and GoPro’s come to mind.

Normally this levels problem only shows on encodes and not the preview window, since the Vegas preview window wants full range. If you are using a secondary preview monitor you can get a levels issue depending on your preferences settings.

[Graham Bernard]

Norman is Spot-On!

Getting our heads around making sure ALL material/media complies with what WE want is the monkey on all our backs. Nothing has changed. Put very simply here’s why:

1/- Device Capture: We have devices that have a multitude of actual UPPER and LOWER levels being captured. Norman illustrates this.

2/- Vegas Pro’s Open Access: We have Vegas s/w that is so accommodating that it will allow, mostly, ALL Media of ALL ranges of Levels onto that Timeline – this IS a good thing. What Vegas will not do is automatically “correct” Levels to comply with the Project. Of course it wouldn’t, how would it know? How would it know what we wanted if at the same time it allows ALL Levels from ALL devices space on the Timeline – see? Some people say this is a bad thing. IMO, they are wrong! As the market fills up with more and more great devices, that NLE s/w that CAN and DOES allow mixed Level import will, hopefully, survive.

3/- WorkFlow: And here, I’m meaning specifically, the Levels “correction” or rather compliance and monitoring. As Norman states the Internal Preview Monitor it self cannot be “set”. You can add a Levels correction FX, but that would be Global to the WHOLE Project. So the Preview Monitor is kinda a dumb Monitor – it SHOWS or reveals what it “sees”. However, we do have an option to stream video OUT to a 2nd Monitor and on THAT we can set the Levels Correction or compliance to what WE want. And what we want, is this next.

4/- What is it we Want?!: This is the trickiest of tricks. Where or on WHAT are we going to “show” or publish our video? Would that be DVD? YouTube? Vimeo? Back projected from an MP4 on a USB stick through a VGA adapted projector? Or what? And guess what, each and every option for showing has had to be considered as part of the chain prior to sending to render.

So, to be pragmatic, I’ve had to take a realistic view on ALL of this:

A] Make ALL Media comply to the main footage’s Levels, otherwise I will go insane!

B] Make sure I am seeing what I want and work hard and smart on those areas that are just plain outta whack!

C] Determine WHERE this piece of perfection I’ve produced is going to be seen – that’ll be 4/- above – set a global Levels correction for that purpose and render. And, being the PITA I am I will ALSO render at least two Level settings to act as “keepers” just in case the Client isn’t understanding this whole process – ah, bless…..

I’m sure I’ve missed or inadvertently glossed over some parts, but that in a nutshell is what I’ve gleaned over the years. If you/we/I should remember one thing it is this – Vegas is mostly Media Agnostic. It will, like a good soldier, try to ingest/import whatever we throw at it and with that Openness comes great responsibility on us to act accordingly to adjust OUR media to comply with OUR wishes. Ignore that, and all bets are off.

HTHs, getting to fully integrate my understanding of Project Levels Compliance WITH my production has taken me the best part of 10 years. But that’s me. I’m really hoping that some of my outline above will make your journey time shorter and arrival time earlier than mine! – Gives a newer meaning to being “Level-Headed“!

Cheers

Grazie

Video Content Creator and Potter
PC 7 64-bit 16gb * Intel® Core™i7-2600k Quad Core 3.40GHz * 2GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 560 Ti
Cameras: Canon XF300 + PowerShot SX50HS Bridge

[John Rofrano]

As others have pointed out, all images are in Computer RGB and all Vegas projects (and most video) are in Studio RGB which means that every image that you drop into a project needs to be adjusted by adding Sony Levels with the Computer RGB to Studio RGB preset. I usually place all of my images on a single track and then just add the Levels filter to that track and I don’t have to worry about it anymore.

~jr

http://www.johnrofrano.com
http://www.vasst.com

[Norman Black]

I think it would be in Sony’s best interest to add a project or application preference to normalize known full range input to the Studio range.

The frequency of this too dark, crushed blacks question is a problem for Sony Vegas. This and other forums need a “sticky” thread to answer this. The “problem” being that people can think Vegas outputs poor quality video and is unprofessional.

Also, why the Vegas application preview windows does not have a studio to computer option like the secondary preview device is beyond me. The application preview window is by definition on a computer display which need full range for proper display. I now use this Vegas extension to help here
https://vegasvideo.de/extension-previewlevels-en.html

[Steve Rhoden]

Yes, Vegas developers need to address this issue once and for all!

Steve Rhoden
(Cow Leader)
Film Editor & Compositor.
Filmex Creative Media.
https://www.facebook.com/FilmexCreativeMedia
1-876-461-9019

[John Rofrano]

Yea, an option in the preferences would be nice. This gets a lot of people upset and it would be in Sony’s best interest to provide an automatic fix for those who want it.

~jr

http://www.johnrofrano.com
http://www.vasst.com

[Stephen Crye]

I vote for Grazie’s post to be in the sticky!

Steve

Win7 Pro X64 on Dell T7500, MultiTB SATA, 12GB RAM, nVidia Quadro 2000, Vegas 12, 11, 10, 9 DVDA 6.0 & 5.2(build 135) Sony HDR-CX550V, Panasonic GH3 with LUMIX G X VARIO 12-35mm / F2.8 ASPH, LUMIX G X VARIO 35-100mm / F2.8

[Steve Rhoden]

This issue has been complained about for years, it should have been
addressed long time. Issues like these (as small as it is) is
what enable some editors to not take Sony Vegas seriously.

Steve Rhoden
(Cow Leader)
Film Editor & Compositor.
Filmex Creative Media.
https://www.facebook.com/FilmexCreativeMedia
1-876-461-9019