Hi, I'm not new to dvd authoring/video editing at all - but i'm only an expert using a pc not a mac. In fact, i've never used a mac before, however, i'm considering getting a G5 computer. From what I hear they are very stable for any type of video/music/photography production and they are a good choice. I use my pc for this type of stuff 90% of the time. I currently use Pinnacle Studio 8 - and if any of you are familiar with this program you'll understand the trouble I have with it. It sometimes works, sometimes it doesn't - they have released patches to help correct certain problems that weren't fixed before the release of the software. Well, sometimes one patch will work fine, and then 2 projects later it goes bad - and then I try another one - that doesn't work - and then I uninstall, and go back to an older one - doesn't work - and then so on ... and so on....until I finally finish my project (sometimes creating the SAME movie (editing and all) at least 3 times due to loosing my work from the patches and uninstalling. It's quite frustrating but i've been doing it for 2 years now - and here's why - I have yet to find software for video editing/dvd authoring in the mid-price range that allows me to have full control of my menu designs. Everything has templates that you MUST use and if you change the picture they stretch it to fit the entire background when sometimes I like to choose a color for a background and then apply numerous images and choose fonts and different kinds of buttons and program them to do what I want...and I can also make more than 1 menu in my project. I'm sure there has to be something out there that will allow me to be creative like this...not only with menu's but with full screen titles and title overlays. I also like making my own motion menus as well.... Any suggestions? The reason I mentioned the mac computer was that I know they have DVD Studio pro and imovie/idvd - are these good for what i'm looking for? iDVD looks sort of basic to me - and am I understanding this correctly - do you make/edit your video in iMovie and them import it into iDVD for dvd authoring? any good options for me? for pc and mac.... thanks in advance for the help!
Knowing nothing about Mac, other than they're ugly I can recommend some software for PC that will suit your needs. Not cheap, but totally stable, unlike what you've been using. Sony Vegas for editing, and DVDLab Pro, or Sony Vegas 4 movie studio for authoring.
ok, so you think the Sony Vegas is a good way to go? I'm about to do a little research, but am I understanding this correctly - do I need an authoring software AND editing software - i'm used to using one software for all - i'm not opposed to changing that if it works out for the better - i'm certainly tired of Pinnacle products. thanks.
Certain products do certain things well. Rarely is there any product that does multiple things well. If you're on a budget, Sony Vegas 4 Movie Studio will do nicely, for both editing and authoring. I prefer Vegas 5 for editing, and DVDLab Pro for authoring, simply because the two combined give me much more flexibility, but at a significantly higher price. You simply can't beat the stability of Sony products, unlike their little brothers, the Sonic stuff (generally), maybe other than Scenarist (bring a suitcase of money).
I just looked at dvdlab pro - I like the looks of it -and it seems that I can be pretty creative with no limitations. Could I still use Studio 8 for editing? for the time being? and then import those mpegs into dvdlab pro.... also, is making your own motion menu's possible by placing buttons over an mpeg? I'm just a little afraid to spend a lot of money and not be able to do the stuff I love...you know?
Use whatever you want to edit. DLP's creativity is endless. I have tutorials and a couple of avi demos of motion menus. Menu 1: http://members.shaw.ca/videojunk/menu1.avi 192k Menu 2: http://members.shaw.ca/videojunk/menu2.avi 392k (Realize these are blurry from compression for the web). Tutorials: http://www.videohelp.com/guides.php?link=602 http://www.videohelp.com/guides.php?link=734 http://www.videohelp.com/guides.php?link=600 http://www.videohelp.com/guides.php?link=727
