Using the Presto Wizard for Windows

This section shows Step 4 of 5 for creating a Presto project with your presentation slides and videos in Vegas Pro. Go to Step 5.

 

Step 4: Adjust

In this step you have the option of fine-tuning the appearance of your presentation videos using any of the three available tabs:

Layout Sequence

 

 

Notes about this step

You can move on to the last step, Step 5: Make video, at any time, and you can return later to make further adjustments.

Presto saves all its data and settings as part of the Vegas Pro project file. This means you can close a project and re-open it later to do further work, or pass it on to a colleague to work on. When you open a project generated by Presto it will return you to an appropriate tab in the wizard.

 

 

Editing the Layout Sequence

The Layout Sequence tab defines the timing for the sequence of Presto layout transitions in the presentation video and allows you to easily edit this sequence. 

The example above illustrates a default layout generated automatically by Presto:

The Effect column in the Layout Sequence list indicates how each layout will be introduced. Cut means the layout change will be made immediately, whereas Transition means that an animated transition will occur between the previous layout and the new layout. The time allowed for the transition is the same as the time set for slide transitions. 

Selecting an item in the layout sequence list moves the timeline cursor to the point in the presentation at which that transition has just completed.

The Refresh button re-applies the layout to the project. This may be necessary after applying manual edits to the timeline.

 

 

Layout Templates list

The Layout Templates list provides you with a set of six predefined layouts that you can use in your project. The included layouts are listed below.

 

Slides only

Slides only

Presenter only

Presenter only

Left, slant 

Left, slanted (presenter on lower left, slides slanted)

Left, flat 

Left, flat (presenter on lower left, slides flat on upper right)

Right, slant 

Right, slanted (presenter on lower right, slides slanted)

Right, flat 

Right, flat (presenter on lower right, slides flat on upper left)

 

 

Adjusting the layout

To adjust the time at which a layout transition occurs:

  1. Select the item in the list that you wish to modify.
  2. Adjust the position of the timeline cursor to the time at which you want the transition to be completed.
  3. Click the Move to Cursor button.

To remove one or more layout items:

  1. Select the items in the layout sequence list that you wish to delete.
  2. Click the Delete button.

Note: You cannot delete or adjust the time of the first item in the list, as this defines the initial layout.

To restore Presto's default layout, click the Reset button.

To add a new layout sequence item into the list:

  1. Use the up and down arrows in the Layout Templates control to select the desired layout.
  2. Adjust the position of the timeline cursor to the time at which you want the new layout to come into effect.
  3. Click the Add at Cursor button.

To temporarily change the layout for part of the presentation:

  1. Use the up and down arrows in the Layout Templates control to select the desired layout.
  2. Select the region of the timeline cursor during which you want this layout to be in effect.
  3. Click the Add at Cursor button.

In this case, Presto will add two layout sequence items - one for the transition to the selected layout, and one for returning to the previous layout.

To change the layout template for one or more layout sequence items:

  1. Select the items in the layout sequence list that you want to modify.
  2. Use the up and down arrows in the Layout Templates control to select the desired layout.
  3. Double-click on the layout template.

To change the effect for one or more layout sequence items:

  1. Select the items in the layout sequence list that you want to modify.
  2. Click on the radio button for the desired effect (Cut or Transition).

 

 

Presenter Options tab

The Presenter Options tab controls the appearance of the presenter region in the two-up layouts that include both the slides and the presenter.

To enable or disable the spotlight mask (which is on by default), use the Spotlight Effect checkbox.

To add a faint shadow from the presenter region over the edge of the slide, use the Shadow Effect checkbox.

As annotated in the figure above, you can drag the presenter icon to adjust the position of the presenter, and drag the bar above the presenter icon to adjust the height of the presenter region.

To adjust the size of the presenter, click the + or - zoom buttons.

Changes to the presenter's size or position are applied to the entire project, not just the currently visible video frame. The extent to which the image of the presenter in the video can be moved or resized depends on the source media.

To restore the presenter size and position to the default setting, click the Reset button.

If you have manually deleted any of the pan-crop keyframes generated by Presto, or made track edits that have caused tracking issues, you can restore the keyframes by pressing the Restore Keyframes button.(For example, splitting an event can result in a poor transition between events; adjusting the start time of an event can cause the pan-crop keyframes to be misaligned.)

 

Presenter Options

 

 

Slide Options tab

The Slide Options tab controls slide transition effects and slide chapter markers.

Here you can adjust the transition time from one slide to the next. (This also controls the transition time for animated layout transitions). The default transition time is one second.

To change the transition effect between slides, click the Transition Effect drop-down menu. This menu lists all the transition effects installed in your copy of Vegas Pro. The Effect Preset menu (just below the Transition Effect menu) displays the default preset for the selected transition. (Presto is not able to modify this preset. For further information on editing transitions, refer to the Vegas Pro Help topics on transition effects.) The default transition is a standard cross fade (overlap) without any effect.

Check or uncheck the Include a chapter marker at the start of each slide checkbox to control the inclusion of slide markers. These markers are handy for navigating your project, and are also typically included in your rendered presentation video for navigation.

 

Slide Options