help! poor image quality

[enyi]

I've read some posts with the same title but none of the suggestions helped.

I created a video with jpeg images only (very high quality images, around 4-5MB each), but somehow when I use 'moving path' to zoom in and out, it's very jagged/noisy and when looked closely, I can see the square pixels.

In the past I have created a video that's just fine with other images, so to test it out I reused these images (that created the good video) in my current project, and it was bad. So this proves that I must have set some options wrong in my current project. Could someone help me please?

My current project setting:
-----------------------------------------
NTSC non-drop frame (30 fps)
Video tracks: 7
Microsoft AVI files
24 bits, 720 x 480, 30 fps
Frame-based
Uncompressed
Interleave audio for every 1 frames
PCM, 44.100 kHz, 16 Bit, Stereo
I did NOT check 'perform non-square pixel rendering'
------------------------------------------

and I tried to create a video with these settings:
------------------------------------------
MPEG files
24 bits, 720 x 480, 29.97 fps
Frame-based
(DVD-NTSC), 16:9
Video data rate: 6000 kbps
Audio data rate: 224 kbps
I did NOT check 'perform non-square pixel rendering'
video data rate is 'constant'
------------------------------------------

Does anyone know how I can improve the image quality in this video? I'd appreciate your help very help!!

[Devil]

1, Why non-drop?

2. Why square pixels?

3. How are you viewing the results?

I'm in PAL land, so know nothing of NTSC quirks, but it seems illogical.

[Gorf]

Resize them to something more reasonable before you put them in your project. MSP resizes by simply removing pixels, there's no resampling involved, so you'll get stepping just from that.

720x480 seems an odd size for square pixel, uncompressed. I'd have expected 640x480 for 4:3 or 853x480 for widescreen.

[Ron P.]

720 x 480 is the NTSC DVD non-square pixel frame size for television. TV's do not use square pixels, whereas PCs do.

I've not had any problems using that frame size or larger. If your images are smaller than that, they will suffer degradation from being resized by the program to the frame size of the video. Most of the time I just drop my originals, which are many times larger, into the project, and I also limit the amount of zooming.

If you're intentions are for DVD playback on a television, you should check the perform non-square pixel rendering, unless you have a High-Def, wide-screen TV, LCD or Plasma screen, which does not use non-square pixels. They are more like a PC monitor.

The program is going to resize your images to the frame size of your video project, thus to 720 x 480. It is best to use an image editor to resize them, as most NLEs don't do a very good job of resizing photos.

[troppo]

As learned as the previous responses are, the fact that the OP has already used the images in a project and they rendered out good, so this might indicate a settings problem?

[lazael]

...so this might indicate a settings problem?

Like resampling set to GOOD instead of BEST maybe?

[enyi]

where do I set the resample rate? Thanks a lot!

[Gorf]

{F6} preferences

[mirwais]

If you're intentions are for DVD playback on a television, you should check the perform non-square pixel rendering, unless you have a High-Def, wide-screen TV, LCD or Plasma screen, which does not use non-square pixels. They are more like a PC monitor.

Hello, If I want to make a dvd to watch on my plasma or lcd I have to make them 'square pixel'.
And if it's to watch on a standard tv it should be 'non-square pixel'.
What do commercial dvd movies use? Since they have to be compatible with SDTVS and HDTVS?
What exactly does the square/non-square option 'do' to the video?

Thanks

[Devil]

Thank goodness, I don't have this problem, being in PAL land. In reality, the pixel width of a frame is neither 704 nor 720, but 768, the difference being hidden in overscan. PAL is therefore 768:576, which is exactly 4:3. NTSC is 768:480, which is exactly 8:5 or, if you prefer it, 4:2½.

My guess is that the answer to your question is to use non-square pixels rendering for NTSC-only DVDs at all times. Flat screen TVs do the necessary conversion, as many of them do upscaling, in any case.

[sjj1805]

....
What exactly does the square/non-square option 'do' to the video?
Thanks

Non Square Pixel Rendering.

I admit that this used to confuse me for quite a while until eventually the penny dropped - so let me explain it in laymans language.

Think of a screen size - any screen size will do, for arguments sake we will say that our screen size is 100 x 100.
If we use Square pixels then we will have a perfect 100 x 100 square like a sheet of graph paper.
If we use non square pixels then these pixels could be oblong in shape.
Therefore the 100 x 100 will not be square.

To clarify that even further lets put some sizes to those pixels.
Let us say that our square pixels are 1" x 1" (OK a pixel isn't an inch - I am just trying to make things clear)
so we have a 100 x 100 square measuring 100" x 100"

In our non square pixel example each pixel is 1" high x 2" wide
so now our 100 x 100 grid is in fact 100" x 200" (Oblong)

Both examples contain a 100 x 100 grid but in the square one it is "Square" - the non-square one is "Oblong".