Blog Archives

A reader asked me how I organize my files when I’m creating a DVD. Well, organization best starts at the beginning of a project, so in this brief article, I outline the folders I create and where I store my files.

Want to give your DVDs a more professional look? In this detailed, step-by-step article, you’ll learn how to create menus and button highlights in Photoshop, import them into DVD Studio Pro, build a menu and add buttons, all to create a professional-grade menu. (Part 1 of 2 – the second part discusses how to create a motion menu in Final Cut Pro for a DVD.)

Creating a single layer DVD is relatively easy. But a dual-layer DVD requires that we pay attention to where the switch occurs between the two layers — called the Dual-Layer Break Point. This article explains what it is, how to find it, and what you need to know to successfully create a dual-layer DVD.

Larry fields a few questions regarding DVD problems from transcoding HD to SD, the advantages of Blu-Ray, and more.

Working with video clips in different aspect ratios (i.e. 4:3 and 16:9) can cause headaches for anyone. In this article, Daniel Rain describes his system of working with a variety of different files in PAL.

Apple now supports creating Blu-ray Discs in Final Cut Studio 3. This support involves using templates to create your discs. However, making changes to these templates is easy to do, but hard to find. This article explains what you need to do to create your own customized Blu-ray Disc templates.

Most of the time the default settings in Compressor are not too bad. But, sometimes, problems arise when down-converting high-def material to standard-def (HD to SD). In this case, if you are getting images that look worse than you expect, try this two-step process (called “pre-compression”) and see if your image quality improves.

I’ve taught this technique in my classes for a long time, but recently discovered that I have not written about it. When you are compressing a QuickTime movie for a DVD, the default settings for video and audio compression may need to be tweaked.

Nothing lasts forever, and that includes DVD media. This article discusses what you need to know to make sure your backups and precious data survive for the long-haul.

In spite of the hype, optical media is not dead. The two variations for HD media – AVCHD and Blu-ray Discs – are still valuable tools in an editor’s toolkit. In this article, David Scott writes about his success in using Blu-ray Discs to meet the needs of his project.

With Blu-ray winning the DVD format war, attention has now turned to the costs of creating a Blu-ray DVD. This article explains that the cost of replicating one of these new format discs isn’t cheap.

In a recent conversation with Bruce Nazarian, president of the DVD Association, during The BuZZ podcast, we were discussing the sudden shift toward Blu-Ray DVDs.

What is the future for distributing HD video? Is it Blu-ray or is it digital downloads? In this thoughtful opinion piece, Jason Chong, Kit Laughlin, and Lorin David Schultz share their thoughts on where the future is headed. Even though recent events have made Blu-ray Discs easier to create on a Mac, that doesn’t mean they’ve won the war. The battle rages and you get to choose.

Are you having problems getting Final Cut to render? It may not be a software problem. Eric Solstein sent us this cautionary tale on the problems of heat. If your system is acting up, read this article.

There are four ways inside DVD Studio Pro to control how 16:9 video plays back on a 4:3 monitor. This article describes what you need to know and provides suggestions on which one is best to use.

In this article I want to give you some suggestions on proper selection of compression bit-rates; as well as how to improve the compatibility of the CDs and DVDs that you burn.

AVCHD Discs are a nice compromise between full-HD Blu-ray Discs, and the standard def DVDs we’ve all been using for the last 20 years. While, currently, Final Cut Studio can not create Blu-ray Discs, it can create a version of Blu-ray called “AVCHD.” This article explains what AVCHD Discs are, why you would use them, and how you create them.

With Blu-ray winning the DVD format war, attention has now turned to the costs of creating a Blu-ray DVD. This article explains that the cost of replicating one of these new format discs isn’t cheap.