DVD movie size too large for TV screen: help!

joch · Post by **joch** » Sat Dec 31, 2005 11:43 am

Hi there,

I have recorded my movies that I made with a borrowed JVC camera on a DVD disk using my DVD recorder. I then imported the movie clips into VideoStudio. These movie clips have the following properties:

MPEG-2, Upper Field First
24 Bits, 720*576, 4:3
25 frames / sec
Variable bit rate (max. 6000 kbps)

I have added some images, titles, music, etc. and I now want to burn the project to DVD. Since I'm in Europe, I choose DVD PAL, which are my initial project settings as well. I do not have a wide screen TV, so I choose 4:3. The DVD gets burned, no problem, but... when I play the project on my DVD player connected to my TV, all of a sudden the movie doesn't fit my TV screen anymore. On top, at the bottom and left and right, parts are "missing". If a title is too much to the right or left, parts are missing. So, in stead of "My holiday in South Africa", for example, it displays "oliday in South Afr".

My project settings are 4:3, my movie clips are 4:3, my DVD burning settings are 4:3, my TV and dvd player are set up correctly...

What am I doing wrong, I'm going crazy here!

Thanks,

Best regards,
Joch.

Post by **Ken Berry** » Sat Dec 31, 2005 11:47 am

When you prepared your titles, did you keep them carefully well within the inner yellow rectangle which appears on screen when you are making titles? That indicates a safe area, well within the overall 'safe area' of the TV screen that the ultimate DVD will be shown on. If you make your titles too big or they go beyond that yellow rectangle, then they will probably always be cut off in the way you describe. No DVD will show every pixel out to the very edge of your original when played back on TV. And if you have ever done a DVD from old 8mm analogue tapes, you would know why. They usually have a discoloraton down one side or the other of the captured video, and quite often also some video noise, usually at the bottom of the clip. These are, of course, cut off when your final burned DVD is shown on TV because they are outside the TV 'safe area'.

If it is not that, then I am afraid I have to ask granma to suck eggs, and say whether you have adjusted your TV display to 4:3 instead of showing either the full widescreen or else the letterbox effect, which will display 4:3 on a full 16:9 TV screen, but cutting off a significant part of the edges of any video.

In either case, I guess the secret is always to contain your titles within a fairly tight area, and not make any of them too large.

EDIT: BTW -- I object on principle to the fact that, looking back at this post, I find that my comment about asking granma to s*u*c*k eggs, apparently has been censored and asterisks inserted. Since when has that word become not a worthy part of the English language??? And who has programmed it out and why???

joch · Post by **joch** » Sat Dec 31, 2005 11:57 am

Okay... some of my titles do exceed the safe area you are mentioning. But, is there a way then to get more of my movies into this safe area? Because right now, a significant part of my movie clips also exceed this safe area...?

Post by **Ken Berry** » Sat Dec 31, 2005 12:03 pm

If they are important parts of your video, then I can think of only two ways: 'crop' the overall size of your video so that it appears on screen either with a border all round it, or, if you can manage it, with the black borders matching the size of the safe-area boundaries so that all of your original video appears on screen.

OR else, when you are first shooting your video, bear in mind the fact that if something is happening around the edges of your shoot and you want them in the eventual video, then you might have to move back a bit more and shoot from a slightly greater distance or with a wider angle lens setting.

Anyway, my clock tells me I am only 45 minutes away from midnight on New Year's Eve, and feel I should get away and have a bit of a life apart from VS9!! I want to wish everyone a great year and (greater?) success with VS9 (and hope no one can find anything politically incorrect in my wish!!!)

rguthrie · Post by **rguthrie** » Sat Dec 31, 2005 12:04 pm

You'd have to Distort each clip (located in the Attributes tab) to fit into the safe zone. However, I think you're playing with fire there because broadcast TV has a safe zone for a reason and your video may wind up not looking right on other TVs. But, I'm no TV expert so you can give it a try.

Ron

joch · Post by **joch** » Sat Dec 31, 2005 12:12 pm

Okay, thanks very much for the quick responses... It all makes sense to me now.

One last thing: I'm only able to see the size of the safe area when I'm adding / editing titles. Is there a way to see this safe area in the other screens as well (edit, effect, overlay, etc.)?

Thanks again,

Regards,
Joch.

Post by **Ken Berry** » Sat Dec 31, 2005 12:27 pm

OK -- I lied! I didn't log off completely, but I +did+ at least ring a friend and wish her Happy New Year as well.

But no, I don't think there is any other screen which shows the safe area. I basically just bear in mind, with the size of the VS9 preview screen in mind, that you have to write off at least an area of about one quarter of an inch (or about .5 cm) from the edge of screen. Or if I want to be completely safe (no pun intended - well, not really!

) then I make sure nothing important in my video slips closer than about a half inch or 1 cm to the edge of screen.

joch · Post by **joch** » Sat Dec 31, 2005 12:49 pm

Oh, my word, you're in Australia... Well... I wish you a happy New Year then!

Thanks for your help,

Best regards,
Joch.

rwernyei · Post by **rwernyei** » Sat Dec 31, 2005 1:39 pm

One can do this. Use the cropping filter as Ken suggested and set it to 90% for HxW with stationary box checked and to show black border. Remember to set keyframes with the same values for the beginning and end. Now capture image to file from the timeline. You should have an image file reflecting your 10% safe area. Drop this into any photo editor and create a TGA, PSD, PNG, etc... Just cover over the exact black border with any color, I used bright yellow. I created a TGA and saved with transparency so it keeps the alpha channel. Now when you open your editor overlay this TGA for the entire size of your project and it will provide you instant feedback with the proper safe area throughout the editing process. Last step remove it and that's it. Hope this helps.

rguthrie · Post by **rguthrie** » Sat Dec 31, 2005 4:09 pm

joch,

If your video is on the Video Track, click on Distort Clip, the safe area border will display itself on the screen. But you have you select it first!

The Overlay Track is easier because you'll just need to click the Attributes tab and you'll see the safe area border.

Now you don't need to crop, create a picture, etc.

Happy New Year!
Ron G.

TubaDad · Post by **TubaDad** » Sat Dec 31, 2005 4:59 pm

Joch, have you tried this DVD on other players. I know this thread is focusing on how to fix this problem, but you might not have a problem with the DVD at all. I have one DVD player connected to a TV that everything appears zoomed in, for lack of a better term. When I take the same DVD and play it on my other DVD player, and other TV, everything is fine and I see my video from edge to edge, just like I formatted it in VS.

This is just one that I have experienced. I would hate for you to find out that the DVD is good and it is just a DVD player or TV problem. Maybe that logic has a priority problem, but I like the DVDs I create much better than I like my TV.

San_kev · Post by **San_kev** » Sun Jan 01, 2006 2:41 am

>
joch,

If your video is on the Video Track, click on Distort Clip, the safe area border will display itself on the screen. But you have you select it first!
The Overlay Track is easier because you'll just need to click the Attributes tab and you'll see the safe area border.
Now you don't need to crop, create a picture, etc.

Happy New Year!
Ron G.
>

Yes, NO NEED to CROP or ZOOM, like "rguthrie" said just Distor Clip under Attributtes, click and drag the GREEN corners until they inside the SAFE area **** DO THIS, RIGHT WHEN YOU PUT YOUR 'whole' CLIP IN THE TIMELINE, EVEN BEFORE EDITTING **** therefore you don't need to distor every clip after you cut/edit your movie.

Hope this work

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERY ONE

Sankev

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DVD movie size too large for TV screen: help!

DVD movie size too large for TV screen: help!

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