[Ralph Parker]

Thanks Zac.
I tried what you said, and while it gave me a 3-D image that was essentially identical to the image created using the Box instead of the Line, unfortunately, it gave me the same splatter as before as well.
I have reached my deadline for this project, so I had to use some lighting effects to minimize the visibility of the lines, but it’d be nice to know what’s causing them.
Thanks again for the suggestion. At least you taught me another way to achieve the 3-D look for an object.

Ralph Parker
2×2.4 Quad Core Xeon, 8GB
Final Cut Pro 7, Motion 4, Etc.

[Ralph Parker]

Thank you, Mark, for your detailed reply.

[Mark Spano] “You can make a progressive DVD if your cut is progressive”
If the DVD standard is indeed interlaced, when you say you can make a progressive DVD, does the m2V encoding do some sleight of hand to make progressive frames into interlaced?
If I were to convert the project sequences to progressive, (for learning’s sake), by using the mentioned settings, would that give my video a softer “film look” as opposed to the harsh, stark video look?

Ralph Parker
2×2.4 Quad Core Xeon, 8GB
Final Cut Pro 7, Motion 4, Etc.

[Ralph Parker]

There are a couple of ways to do this, but here is one: Create a NEW sequence in 4:3. When both the new sequence tab is shown in the top of the timeline window along with the original 16:9 sequence tab, drag the 4:3 sequence tab off to open a second timeline window. You can then select your clips in the 16:9 timeline and drag them all at once into the 4:3 timeline window. Then apply the scale change as described by Rafael. You now have two sequences of the same movie, but one is 4:3 and one 16:9.

Ralph Parker
2×2.4 Quad Core Xeon, 8GB
Final Cut Pro 7, Motion 4, Etc.

[Ralph Parker]

I know this is a three month old thread, but I’ve got a somewhat related question.
My FCP sequence is set to 1440×1080, pixel ratio is set to HD 1440×1080. The 16:9 Anamororphic box is NOT checked. Upper Field Dominance Odd, 29.97 fps.
The media (consisting of jpegs, HDV and Motion clips) is transcoded to ProRes 422 on import.

The video looks fine in the Canvas (with the adjustment for pixel ratio setting turned on).

Questions: What can I expect with regard to quality if I change my sequence setting to 1440×1080 progressive and then burn in DVDSP?
And, when I do change the sequence with the 16:9 Anamorphic box checked, the image in the canvas still looks fine, but has black bars on both sides with what appears to be a much wider “viewing” area. Which is preferred for final output to 16:9?

Thanks.

Ralph Parker
2×2.4 Quad Core Xeon, 8GB
Final Cut Pro 7, Motion 4, Etc.

[Ralph Parker]

I think Mark nailed it. I used Preview to resize from an image 3264 pixels wide to 1000 pixels wide. I did a little fine tuning with the scaling and cropping in Motion to get the exact size I needed, but it looks much, much better. It also plays more smoothly.

By the way Mark, I just started using Motion for the first time about a month ago and used your Apple Pro Training Series book on Motion 4 and read it cover to cover in a couple of days. What a great guide for beginners and intermediate users of Motion! Thanks so much for the help!

Ralph Parker
2×2.4 Quad Core Xeon, 8GB
Final Cut Pro 7, Motion 4, Etc.

[Ralph Parker]

Oops. Forgot to answer your question.
I imported the jpegs directly into Motion and scaled them down in it.

Ralph Parker
2×2.4 Quad Core Xeon, 8GB
Final Cut Pro 7, Motion 4, Etc.

[Ralph Parker]

It is my understanding that as a general rule, it’s preferable to use uncompressed images. In this particular case, I doubt it matters much since it’s a large, hi-res jpg.
I’m happy to upload a clip, but I’ve never done it on this site. What is an appropriate format?
Thanks.

Ralph Parker
2×2.4 Quad Core Xeon, 8GB
Final Cut Pro 7, Motion 4, Etc.