Sony Vegas Movie Studio 9

Sony Vegas is usually described as "very powerful," but with a "steep learning curve." Sony Vegas Movie Studio 9, while more powerful than ever, has integrated "Show Me How" tutorials that have significantly improved its usability.  The use of these tutorials carries over to the bundled DVD Architect Studio, which is Sony's DVD authoring application.  This contrasts with the "wizard" approach of many competing editors, in that once you have been led through the process you typically discover many options that allow you to fine-tune the process -- something not seen in deliberately simplified wizards.

One exception that proves the rule is the "Import AVCHD" function, which is a wizard, and which is less flexible than the equivalent function in competing software.  Importing AVCHD in Vegas 9 is all or nothing.  The option to browse the camcorder's contents and select which files you want to import doesn't seem to be available.  You can see and judge for yourself in the following video, from Ron Risman's excellent review at Cameratown:

Capture AVCHD Video From Your Camcorder Using Sony Vegas Movie Studio 9 from Ron Risman on Vimeo.

Vegas Movie Studio 9.0's feature set is a subset of the features found in the Sony Vegas professional edition, and much of the useful power has been retained.  For example, you get four audio tracks, and powerful audio editing facilities, with volume and pan automation.  For even more audio control, launch the bundled SoundForge editor.

On the other hand, some things are missing, like automatic color correction, image stabilization, and zoom, that are available with other editors in this price range.

Ron Risman of Cameratown provides a good demonstration of what it's like to edit your video with this software here:

Sony Vegas Movie Studio 9 - Part 2 (Editing) from Ron Risman on Vimeo.