From 720p/23.98 timeline to SD DVD…suggestions?

[Shane Ross]

Oooo…now I get ot use THIS…that was made yesterday:

#42 – Quick and dirty way to author a DVD

Shane’s Stock Answer #42 – David Roth Weiss’ Secret Quick and Dirty Way to Author a DVD:

The absolute simplest way to make a DVD using FCP and DVDSP is as follows:

1. Export a QT movie, either a reference file or self contained using current settings.

2. Open DVDSP, select the “graphical” tab and you will see two little monitors, one blue, one green.

3. Select the left blue one and hit delete.

4. Now, select the green one, right click on it amd select the top option “first play”.

5. Now drag your QT from the broswer and drop it on top of the green monitor.

6. Now, for a DVD from an HD source, look to the right side and select the “general tab” in the track editor, and see the Display Mode, and select “16:9 pan-scan.”

7. Hit the little black and yellow burn icon at the top of the page and put a a DVD in when prompted. DVDSP will encode and burn your new DVD.

THATS ALL!!!

NOW…if you want a GOOD LOOKING DVD, instead of taking your REF movie into DVD SP, instead take it into Compressor and choose the BEST QUALITY ENCODE (2 pass VBR) that matches your show timing. Then take THAT result into DVD SP and follow the rest of the steps. Except you can choose “16:9 LETTERBOX” instead of PAN & SCAN if you want to see the entire image.

Shane

Littlefrog Post
http://www.lfhd.net

[Walter Biscardi]

42?! You’re up to 42? Sounds like a Tutorial DVD in the making!

Walter Biscardi, Jr.
https://www.biscardicreative.com
HD Editorial & Animation for Broadcast and independent productions.

All Things Apple Podcast! https://cowcast.creativecow.net/all_things_apple/index.html

Read my blog! https://blogs.creativecow.net/WalterBiscardi

[Shane Ross]

Yup…and I have the slot for #50 already, but it is a humorous post.

I USED TO HAVE 46…but then my hard drive died and when I loaded my backup, I only had 40…and I only remembered one of the other 6…

Gah…so close.

Shane

Littlefrog Post
http://www.lfhd.net

[Byrd Mcdonald]

I love this quick recipe for dvd making, but I’m cynical that this doesn’t even begin to address the real question of the “best” way to author an SD DVD that started live in 720p 24n codec.

I’m in the exact same situation, and i’m finding that certain approaches are lending much better results than following the quick recipe.

I’ve compared quality between this aforementioned approach, and a different approach of transcoding the HD to SD timeline, and then spitting out a final file for DVD SP.

I know I know…people cry “search the postings.” I’m here to tell you that I have and there are so many conflicting reports about how to downconvert that my eyes are bleeding. I feel like Focal Press should issue a volume on this issue alone.

Some of the varying opinions include.

[Shane Ross]

I work with 720p 24PN footage all the time…4 long format shows now. And every time I author a DVD, I use Compressor and the Best Quality settings, then DVD SP (first play trick) and the 16:9 letterbox option. All my DVDs look great…no complaints.

Works for me.

Shane

Littlefrog Post
http://www.lfhd.net

[David Roth weiss]

[Shane Ross] “Works for me.”

Works here too… My down and dirty method works almost just as well in most instances because DVDSP uses the Compressor engine. Compressor does have more controls and is thus more powerful, but those controls in the hands of someone who doesn’t know how to use them are not only not very helpful, they can be ruinous to creating a good quality DVD that will be beat hands down using even my down and dirty method.

David

David Roth Weiss
Director/Editor
David Weiss Productions, Inc.
Los Angeles

POST-PRODUCTION WITHOUT THE USUAL INSANITY

[Aaron D hose]

Well, what I decided to do before I received all these responses, was nest my HD sequence in an SD sequence first, and export as an SD file from there. I found that, as long as I made sure the SD sequence had field dominance set to “none,” the DVD ultimately looked great. If any field dominance was applied then the 720p shots would look aliased and the 1080i shots would stutter a bit…but I understand why.

Thx guys.
–a.h.

[David Roth weiss]

Aaron,

I’m happy that it worked, but that was a completely and utterly (I guess here on the Cow its udderly) useless step with an equally useless render. But, if you’re happy that’s all that matters.

David

David Roth Weiss
Director/Editor
David Weiss Productions, Inc.
Los Angeles

POST-PRODUCTION WITHOUT THE USUAL INSANITY

[Aaron D hose]

David, yes, I agree.
I hadn’t had much experience posting in 720pN and then going to SD DVD (or tape). Prior to this project I’d only shot a lot of HD, not necessarily cut or mastered. But now I’m fully on board and caught up with the process. 😉

Thx again.

[Dean Kuhnlein]

Help! I have lost it. I have burnt countless DVD’s in trying to resolve this same issue.

I have a 720p timeline (960×720). I want it to play on a 4×3 monitor with black on top and bottom (letterboxed) so the whole picture is viewable. The only way I have found to achieve this is with nesting it into a standard def timeline.

This can’t be the case. What am I missing? In DVD SP i have selected the 16×9 Pan & Scan- plays full screen- so I don’t get the left right landscape. I have selected 16×9 Letterbox- same result, full screen no left/right. I have selected 4×3…result is a squished image.

Should something have been done in Compressor to head this off? Or, can this be resolved in DVD Studio Pro?

Thanks for your help…am on deadline and ready to nest in a quicktime to a SD timeline…but I don’t like doing it this way.

dk

Drive Right. Pass Left.