Questions...

[TVincent]

I am working on a Videostudio 10 project and I am hoping I can get some suggestions/ideas on the following.

1.Will I lose any VSP files if I re-install my VS10 program?

2.I had some old VHS converted over into a MOV. format. I then took each video and created a new video format. I selected same as project settings. I noticed that each video flickers/blurry line down at the bottom of the screen. Does anyone have any ideas on how to eliminate the flickering? Also, is there anything I can do in the project/preference settings to enhance the quality of the video.

3.I created a slideshow of the videos and pictures. I played the DVD in my DVD player and everything looked great. I then played it on a friend¡¦s portable dvd player that was hooked up to a projector. The video played great the first time but on the second go around it kept changing colors and even froze up. My friend then took it home and it kept looking up on her. Any thoughts???

4.I have created several libraries in Video Libraries with AVI store bought video backgrounds. Is there anything I can do extra when I insert these video clips into the timeline to enhance the quality?

5.When I am ready to create a video file, I am a little confused on which selection I should select. 1. Same as project settings 2. Same as first video clip 3.DV 4:3 4. DVD 4:3. Most of my projects are picture slideshows with video backgrounds.

6.Sometimes I am having issues with the transitions flickering from one photo to the next. Is there anything I can do to fix this?

Thank you for any input that you can provide.

[MrA]

I am working on a Videostudio 10 project and I am hoping I can get some suggestions/ideas on the following.

Hopefully I can help..

1.Will I lose any VSP files if I re-install my VS10 program?

So long as you didn't save them in any of the VS10 folders, no..

2.I had some old VHS converted over into a MOV. format. I then took each video and created a new video format. I selected same as project settings. I noticed that each video flickers/blurry line down at the bottom of the screen. Does anyone have any ideas on how to eliminate the flickering? Also, is there anything I can do in the project/preference settings to enhance the quality of the video.

Ok, what is happening here is, you are losing quality every time you convert from one format to another. Your using VHS tapes, so, you should be able to remember the bad times you had when copying a VHS tape to another VHS tape, the quality went down considerably.

Same goes for computer formats, i.e., .MOV to another format. This is because, generally speaking, you dealing with "compression". If you use a PC or Mac, you can compress files into a .zip archive. You are actually striping redundant information out of the file and replacing it with a "marker" that when uncompressed, represents what is actually not there.

In video, you have two options, (sort of), either it's un-compressed (represented as AVI) or it is, (represented as .mpeg, .mpg, .mov, fla, and many more, etc).

For now, "traditionally speaking" AVI is raw, uncompressed digital video data. ( I say for now, this may change with advances in hardware and video technology).

If you copy AVI, you won't lose any quality. It's that, it's ALL the 1's and 0's, and it's there for you to mess around with.

When you convert something that is already compressed (ANYTHING THAT ISN'T AVI, IS already compressed). So you now have something that doesn't actually have all the 1's and 0's, but a marker saying, "well, we had 234 zero's here, but, let's use this marker to represent that fact." When you convert this again, the conversion doesn't see "well we got.." and only see's what's actually there, so, there is were quality is lost.

This also applies to saving multiple copy of .jpg images. You can basically say that .mpg is the motion equivelent to .jpg.. (again, sort of)

3.I created a slideshow of the videos and pictures. I played the DVD in my DVD player and everything looked great. I then played it on a friend’s portable dvd player that was hooked up to a projector. The video played great the first time but on the second go around it kept changing colors and even froze up. My friend then took it home and it kept looking up on her. Any thoughts???

Oh, wait, my decifer ring just figured this one out, lol, it "kept locking up".

That's (and I'm so glad I never went into that field) is a hardware issue. Basically, what I am saying, just cause you burn the best possible award winning vid on a DVD and it works for you, doesn't mean it will work on everyone else's DVD/PC/IPOD/ITUNES/ZUME/? in the world.. Unless you pay a DVD production company thousands of dollars to do so. So, be happy it works, otherwise, tell your freind HIS player sucks..(easy way out)

4.I have created several libraries in Video Libraries with AVI store bought video backgrounds. Is there anything I can do extra when I insert these video clips into the timeline to enhance the quality?

Yes my freind there is. Expirement. They are no set rules on making a great video. (well, there are guidelines on WHAT NOT to do). Use your imagination, if you like it, well, hey, you just got your first great review.

"Quality" can mean a lot of different things in video editing. For example, if you are having poor quality play back, maybe, hmm, make it worse? Blurr it more? It's a background right? So many factors, so few, ahem, so many factors..

5.When I am ready to create a video file, I am a little confused on which selection I should select. 1. Same as project settings 2. Same as first video clip 3.DV 4:3 4. DVD 4:3. Most of my projects are picture slideshows with video backgrounds.

What's the target format? Is it a regular TV or is HD TV, or PC? Mobile device? That's all they want to know there.. In VS10, though, if the project IS NOT the same as the output, then you lose quality, like above mentioned.

My suggestion is to make an "intro" in the resolution you want, and include this as the first clip. Then you have the format you want ready to add on clips. (maybe a short title clip of who did the recording) Doesn't have to be a lion with a circle around it while roaring, etc..

6.Sometimes I am having issues with the transitions flickering from one photo to the next. Is there anything I can do to fix this?

Check settings in the prefernce's for stills, make sure "anti-flickering" is checked.

This can also be a hardware issue with you computer. You need to have really fast hardware, and preferablly a 3d graphics card to make vid editing work. But, I actually have great success on low end machines, with built in graphics hardware, but, it's very machine type specific, and since I don't sell hardware, you out of luck there..

Thank you for any input that you can provide.

Was enjoyable.. Have a nice day!

[DVDDoug]

I noticed that each video flickers/blurry line down at the bottom of the screen. Does anyone have any ideas on how to eliminate the flickering?

If this is just the bottom couple of lines, it's probably from the original VHS tape, and it will be hidden by the TV's normal overscan. If you want to clean it up for viewing on the computer (which is not set-up for overscan) you will need to crop the video, or cover-up the bottom couple of lines with a black rectangle. (I've forgotten the exact filter to use for that... But, I did cover-up the "news-crawl" from a TV capture once.)

I played the DVD in my DVD player and everything looked great. I then played it on a friend's portable dvd player that was hooked up to a projector. The video played great the first time but on the second go around it kept changing colors and even froze up. My friend then took it home and it kept [locking-up] on her.

Some DVD players can't play "burned" DVDs at all. Some have trouble with R/W discs or dual-layer discs. Many players were made before dual-layer blanks & burners existed. (Dual-layer commercial "stamped" DVDs have existed since the beginning.) The rumor is, that the new super-cheap DVD players will play anything... I suspect most new DVD players will play anything, cheap or not.

Your odds are generally best with DVD-R, but if you don't have the owner's manual, or if the owners manual doesn't say, you will just have to experiment. If it doesn't play DVD-R or DVD+R, it's probably not going to play any homemade DVDs reliably.


A couple of other things you can try:

Use a slow burning speed (4X or lower).
If you used a bitrate greater than 8000kpbs, try reducing it to below 7000.

[heinz-oz]

MrAmigo2121 wrote

...,either it's un-compressed (represented as AVI) or it is, (represented as .mpeg, .mpg, .mov, fla, and many more, etc).

I don't want to take away from your otherwise good response, however, AVI is NOT representing an uncompressed file. There is uncompressed AVI, yes, but there is also DV-AVI which we deal with most of the time. This is slightly (~11%) compressed but is lossless in its first generation. Subsequent renderings to DV-AVI will start to lose quality too, ever so slightly. On top of that we have all manner of very highly compressed video formats like DivX, Xvid, MP4 to mention the most common. All of these will come in an AVI wrapper at times.

Hence, AVI does not represent uncompressed files.

[MrA]

There is uncompressed AVI, yes, but there is also DV-AVI which we deal with most of the time. This is slightly (~11%) compressed but is lossless in its first generation. Subsequent renderings to DV-AVI will start to lose quality too, ever so slightly. On top of that we have all manner of very highly compressed video formats like DivX, Xvid, MP4 to mention the most common. All of these will come in an AVI wrapper at times.

Hence, AVI does not represent uncompressed files.

I have to disagree, once you "throw" in a file format, other than AVI, you are dealing with a compressed format, meaning, some form of digital compression has taken placed. AVI is the TRUE format, granted. AVI can be ONLY one of two, HD, or SD...

"On top of that", if it's Divx, Xvid, etc., it is already compressed.. Which means quality is lost.. in the orignal poster arguments...

[TVincent]

I would like to thank everyone for taking the time to answer my questions.