Still images go dark in video

Ronmio · Post by **Ronmio** » Fri Mar 03, 2006 6:02 am

I've been trying to create a slideshow using JPEGs. The thunmnails loaded into the gallery are clear and bright. When the images are on the timeline, they're clear and bright. But, after using Create Video File, the resulting playback is dark and murky.

I thought it might have to do with resampling so I pre-converted the JPEGs to 720x480 before bringing them into VS8. I also tried going into Preferences and unchecking Apply Color Filter as well as changing the Resmapling Quality to Best. The results were still dingey.

Any suggestions for getting the slideshow images to look more like the bright, original stills?

Post by **Ken Berry** » Fri Mar 03, 2006 6:53 am

Since you are doing a slideshow, did you use Frame Based as the field order, and did you apply the anti-flicker correction?

Be aware, though, that VS8 did not seem to do a good job at slideshows at all. VS9 is much better, though personally, I use Ulead's Movie Factory 4 as it produces excellent slideshows with apparently no effort... or in my case at least, even without any special preparation or re-sizing of the photos I use.

Trevor Andrew · Post by **Trevor Andrew** » Fri Mar 03, 2006 8:09 am

Hi

What settings are you using to create a video file.

Right click the dark and murky video file in the timeline and select properties.

What are they.?????????

Trevor

Ronmio · Post by **Ronmio** » Fri Mar 03, 2006 9:49 pm

Ken Berry wrote:Since you are doing a slideshow, did you use Frame Based as the field order, and did you apply the anti-flicker correction?

I did use Frame Based but not anti-flicker. I regenrated it with anit-flicker and it looks the same ... still dark.

Ken Berry wrote:Be aware, though, that VS8 did not seem to do a good job at slideshows at all. VS9 is much better, though personally, I use Ulead's Movie Factory 4 as it produces excellent slideshows with apparently no effort... or in my case at least, even without any special preparation or re-sizing of the photos I use.

Did you expereince the same problem as mine with VS8 and that went away with VS9?

Ronmio · Post by **Ronmio** » Fri Mar 03, 2006 10:07 pm

trevor andrew wrote:What settings are you using to create a video file. Right click the dark and murky video file in the timeline and select properties. What are they.?????????

The only thing that's on the timeline are the JPEGs and right-clicking only shows the JPEG's properties. However, in the Video Gallery pane, it does have a thumbnail for the resulting dark-and-murky MPEG file. Right-clicking on that shows these properties for the video portion:

MPEG-2 Video
270 frame(s)
24 Bits, 720 x 480, 4:3
29.970 FRames/Sec
Variable bit rate (Max. 6000 kbps)

(I assume the Audio properties aren't relevant)

None of the video properties give ME any clues. Should I be looking somewhere else to get more indicative info like the encoder?

Post by **Ken Berry** » Fri Mar 03, 2006 11:36 pm

No, sorry. Mine were never dark and dingey. The problems were mainly with flickering (even with anti-flicker selected) and sometimes squashed images, even when surrounding images, using the same settings were fine... Anyway, I soon discovered first Sonic's MyDVD, which did slideshows well, and then Movie Factory 2, ditto -- from where I moved on to Movie Factory 3 and now 4. I still use VS for video editing, but if a slideshow is involved, I use MF4, and also for disc production because its menu handling is more sophisticated.

I have to confess that I have not tried VS9 for a slideshow -- though many others have and say it is an enormous improvement over VS8. I have, however, used individual still photos mixed into some of my videos, and even applied the pan and zoom filter to them, and they came out just fine in VS9, whereas that could never be guaranteed in VS8.

Ronmio · Post by **Ronmio** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 5:39 am

Ken Berry wrote:... Anyway, I soon discovered first Sonic's MyDVD, which did slideshows well, and then Movie Factory 2, ditto -- from where I moved on to Movie Factory 3 and now 4. I still use VS for video editing, but if a slideshow is involved, I use MF4, and also for disc production because its menu handling is more sophisticated.

I have to confess that I have not tried VS9 for a slideshow -- though many others have and say it is an enormous improvement over VS8. I have, however, used individual still photos mixed into some of my videos, and even applied the pan and zoom filter to them, and they came out just fine in VS9, whereas that could never be guaranteed in VS8.

I have several software packages that do slideshows but what attracted me to VS8 is their fairly robust Pan and Zoom funtions (e.g., motion paths) for animating stills. I assume VS9 would have retained or improved that. If they have also improved the slideshow results – and addressed my particular problems with VS8 – I would like to hear from anyone with first-hand VS9 experience. How does MF4 stack up in regard to Pan and Zoom?

Post by **Ron P.** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 12:05 pm

Hi Ronmio,

I have used both MF4 (disk creator) & VS9 for slideshows. Now a simple answer to your question in reference to how does MF4 stack up...?

MF4 has an excellent Pan & Zoom, not unlike VS8 or 9. So it does just as well.

However the difference in programs is that with MF4 you are presented with several Pan & Zoom options, kind of like templates. Short of exporting your MF4 slideshow, then opening it in a video editor, you are not given any control over the Pan & Zoom. With VS9 you have the option to customize your Pan & Zoom.

In summary :
MF4, it creates great slideshows, being able to apply Pan & Zoom, and Transitions across your entire slideshow. However you can not customize them.
VS9, you can customize the Pan & Zoom, however you must use the Movie Wizard to apply a transition and Pan & Zoom across all slides, or do each slide individually. However when using the Movie Wizard to create a slideshow, it then allows opening it as a VS project to further customize. If you did not like how a Pan & Zoom was applied on certain slides, you can change it.

Will one do better then the other? That is a matter of preferences and personal opinion..

Ron P.

heinz-oz · Post by **heinz-oz** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 12:37 pm

Did all images get very dark or only some? From your previous post I gather, that you inserted the images into an mpeg project. Maybe the compression was just too severe in the one step, resulting in your problem?

I have never used jpeg images in mpeg projects, always inserted my images into DV-AVI projects with subsequent compression to mpeg.

Just a thought

Ronmio · Post by **Ronmio** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 1:44 pm

vidoman wrote:In summary :
MF4, it creates great slideshows, being able to apply Pan & Zoom, and Transitions across your entire slideshow. However you can not customize them.
VS9, you can customize the Pan & Zoom, however you must use the Movie Wizard to apply a transition and Pan & Zoom across all slides, or do each slide individually. However when using the Movie Wizard to create a slideshow, it then allows opening it as a VS project to further customize. If you did not like how a Pan & Zoom was applied on certain slides, you can change it.

Will one do better then the other? That is a matter of preferences and personal opinion.

Sounds like it's worth giving MF4 a shot.

Ronmio · Post by **Ronmio** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 1:57 pm

heinz-oz wrote:Did all images get very dark or only some? From your previous post I gather, that you inserted the images into an mpeg project. Maybe the compression was just too severe in the one step, resulting in your problem?

I have never used jpeg images in mpeg projects, always inserted my images into DV-AVI projects with subsequent compression to mpeg.

It was a simple matter of dropping all the JPEGs on the timeline and then trying saving it in all of VS8's available video-file formats including AVI. They all come out looking the same as far as dark with low contrast and dull colors. Sitting on the timeline and in the palyback window, the individual JPEG thumbnails are perfect, but in the video show they look bad no matter if the palyer is VS8, Windows Media Player, or REalPlayer in the case of the .RM version.

What's most striking is just after VS8 plays the results and it goes back to displaying the still in the playback window. It's like someone turned the room lights back on.

Trevor Andrew · Post by **Trevor Andrew** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 3:39 pm

Hi Ronmio

I have made several video files from jpeg images, no transitions or filters. Just the images.
I an unable to duplicate the conditions you are seeing.

The images and video files look the same in the tests I have done.

I assume that your images in the timeline view the same in ‘clip’ mode as in ‘project’ mode.

If you Share create video file using a video file rather than using jpeg images, do you get the same results?
Try converting the video library clip V 13.avi.

My only thought at the moment is to re-install VS 8.

Trevor

Bob Hughes · Post by **Bob Hughes** » Mon Sep 03, 2007 5:25 pm

I am using VS10 with Win 2K and have the opposite problem. My show turns out too bright. I have tried every combination I can think of with the same result. I suspect it may be a CodeC problem but not sure.
When I play tne mpg2 file in Windows media it looks great. When played in VLC media player it is too bright. The result VIDEO_TS is too bright in both VLC & Power DVD. It is also too bright when played tru DVD player on TV.
I have not seen this problem before and have created quit a few slide shows starting with VS8. I'll take every thing home & try on my XP system with VS11 in a week or 2.

Bob

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