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MediaStudio Pro 6.0 - Review 

John McIver

MediaStudio Pro Version 6.0, from ULEAD SYSTEMS, is an application intended for video editing and related functions, written for use with PC's running Windows 98 or NT.

It can be considered to be the nearest direct competitor to Adobe's Premiere video editing software, and is often found bundled with video capture and output boards (as also is Premiere). It differs from Premiere in offering a broader range of features, with MediaStudio being five separate, but interlinked programs, rather than just one.

Having previously reviewed MediaStudio Pro, both in its original form and the previous Version 5.0, it is clear to see Version 6.0 has fully matured as a program. It appears very similar to the previous version, both in features and operation, with Version 6.0 being more about refining the existing product than adding a large number of flashy new features.

While several new features have been added to the program's interface, intended to improve operation, the more visible change is in the broader range of file formats now supported by the program. Ulead's range of products in the area of computer graphics have never been lacking in their support for large numbers of industry-standard file formats, and MediaStudio Pro 6.0 is no exception. This new version provides the expected support for Microsoft's AVI video format, but also now includes support for Apple QuickTime 4.0, MPEG-2 (DVD) and the more specialised Internet Realplayer and NetShow formats. Direct support for digital video is also now included.

System Requirements

Although the program requirements are not explicitly stated anywhere, it would appear MediaStudio will run successfully under Windows 95, 98, NT 4.0 or 2000. This review was performed using Windows 98 SE and no problems with the program operation were encountered at any time.

As far as computer hardware is concerned, a fast PC would be highly recommended, due to the heavy processing demands generally involved in the manipulation of video. A substantial amount of hard disk space would also be recommended. The actual amount would be dependent on the sort of work being performed. I managed to assemble several test video sequences, ranging in size from several seconds to about four minutes, with about 4 gigabytes of free disk space, with no practical problems encountered.

For someone intending to edit several minutes of video at a time, and often, a fast Pentium III processor and 10 or 20 gigabytes of free hard disk space would be a realistic system requirement. A more casual user, perhaps employing MediaStudio to assemble short computer animations (around 30 to 60 seconds) could easily get by with a mid-range Pentium II or Celeron processor and a few free gigabytes of free disk space. 

Installation

A full software installation will require about 113 megabytes of disk space for the storage of program files and examples.

The program is distributed on two CD's. One of these is the program CD and the other is a support CD (called a "Content CD"), containing several additional bundled applications plus some sample AVI animations. A comprehensive and readable 360 page manual is also provided.

Installation is by InstallShield. After the program proper is installed, the option is provided to install several additional animation packages. In the case of the review system, DirectMedia, NetShow, QuickTime 4 and a Windows 98 SE DV (Digital Video) patch were subsequently installed.

The bundled applications on the supporting CD included Cool 3D Version 2.0, from Ulead, Sonic Foundry Acid Express, Pixelan SpiceMaster Lite, CrystalGraphics Vortex LE and a PDF document describing a program called Hollywood FX. These programs are all provided as demonstrations for commercial applications. Additionally, well over 500 megabytes of sample video clips were present on the CD.

Operation

MediaStudio Pro is made up of five inter-related programs, these being Video Capture, Video Editor, Video Paint, Audio Editor and CG Infinity.

The Video Capture module (for capturing raw footage from the video source to the computer's disk).

The Video Capture module is intended for capturing raw video from an external source, such as a camera or video recorder. The hardware options available will depend on what video hardware and software drivers may have been loaded onto the controlling computer, with a list of the available options being provided in a configuration screen. The raw video can then be captured to the computer disk ready for further processing.

The Video Editor. This is the main component of the package and performs all the classic video editing operations, plus output to various digital animation file formats or videotape.

This will generally mean editing within the Video Editor application. The Editor can be used to cut the raw video into usable clips, then assemble these into a final sequence. The Video Editor works on "Time Lines" of audio and video. Multiple video and audio sequences can be defined in parallel, with the ability to transition between these. When a final result has been obtained it is possible to preview this, as a final check, then perform a final output back to video tape, or to any of several standard digital computer formats.

The Audio Editor (showing a sample waveform on the screen).

The other modules provided perform more of a supporting role to the core Video Editor operations. An Audio Editor is available to manipulate audio material, either by trimming it to size or applying any of several enhancement functions or special effects.

The Paint module. This is where manipulation of bitmap images occurs. It's like a conventional paint program in operation, but includes additional commands to handle multiple images.

A Video Paint program is provided, should the need arise to manipulate a sequence of still images, or an animation file. This can be best likened to a normal raster painting program in its operation, but with additional commands provided to handle multiple frames of information. A very broad range of image enhancement functions is included as well as the more traditional painting operations.

The CG Inifinity module, for creating vector graphics and performing keyframe animation on them.

Finally, a program called CG Infinity is provided. This is fundamentally a vector drawing program, but with the added ability to animate any linework created over a period of time. This program would be the application of choice if you wanted to have flying text or a logo appear over the top of an animation. Being based around vector geometry, rather than raster (bitmap) images, the final rendered image quality can be maximised. The object motion over time can be defined by spline paths, so when properly used the combination can produce very professional results.

Although fundamentally a video editing program, MediaStudio should be of particular interest to the technical animator, who may be using rendering programs such as 3D Studio or LightWave. Although these programs can produce AVI and other animation output directly, the final result is generally not as professional as one might hope. By rendering an animation to a numbered sequence of still images, then assembling the final result in a program like MediaStudio, far better results can almost always be obtained.

The simple addition at the start and end of any 3D rendered animation of a fade up from black and a fade back to black can make the final result look much more professional. Where two animations are involved, having one fade into the other can be a far better solution than having a straight cut between them.

If creating material which is to be replayed on a computer, one can also benefit from the ability to try out different file formats, or types of compression, to see how the final file size and image quality compare. Rendering a final animation in the Video Editor is invariably much faster than reprocessing in the original rendering program, with the added advantage of the extra potential creativity it offers. The Cinepak CODEC (Compressor/Decompressor) of Microsoft's AVI format has never failed me when assembling 3D computer graphic output, although something like MPEG may be much better suited to applications involving live video.

Conclusion

I found MediaStudio Pro Version 6.0 a stable and comprehensive program (or more correctly, set of programs) for handling video editing and related tasks. It offers a substantial range of industry standard output formats, including all of the most popular formats likely to be encountered in multimedia applications on the PC.

The programs have application not only in video editing, but also multimedia and the creation of technical animations. For anyone contemplating the creation of animated material on a PC, MediaStudio is well worth a look. Recommended.

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