13 Replies Latest reply: Feb 17, 2013 6:15 PM by Matt Dubuque RSS

    HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!

    literally_figurative Community Member

      Hello all!

       

      So yes, I am a newbie when it comes to DVD Authoring but I need to get my feet wet with it. After looking at a basic tutorial I took a stab. Threw up a template, linked the main movie to a button and set it to return to menu when it was done. The footage was from a Canon T2i (or 550D as it is known as well) at 1920 x1080 and I wanted to burn standard DVDs. Well, it worked, but the quality was not so good. It's just under 26 minutes long, the quality is very so-so, not at all crisp, and really my real test is to see how the text looks. (Spoiler: Not with smooth lines!)

       

      So, what can I do to make my video have a high quality? I exported an MP4 h264 video as the final output and used that to make the DVD. I did 2 versions, playing with the settings and still ended up with less than stellar quality.


      I am now attempting a third disc, this time using Adobe Dynamic Link. I am pretty sure I left it at default and didn't change any settings, so we shall see how it comes out, but is there any rule of thumb getting DSLR HD footage down to SD? I have been reading the forums and that's where I got the dynamic link idea.

       

      What's interesting is I used the program ConvertXtoDVD and came out with a nice looking end product, but I did not care for the templates and did it with no menu. I would like to do it with Encore where I can learn to make more custom menus. Any help will be greatly appreciated, and I will report on how the Dynamic Link copy looks.

        • 1. Re: HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!
          raj2ashok Community Member

          Here are the recommended workflows for creating DVD from AVCHD/HD (1080i) clips.

           

          Workflow 1:

          1. Create a AVCHD 1080i30 (60i) sequence in PR

          2. Export to MPEG-2 DVD using "Match Source Attributes (High Quality)" preset and make sure that "Use Maximum Render Quality" is checked in Export Settings.

          3. Import the files into Encore and build to DVD

           

          Workflow 2:

          1. Create a AVCHD (1080i) sequence in PR

          2. File->Adobe Dynamic Link->Send to Encore

          3. In Encore, File->Transcode Settings, choose NTSC DV High Quality 8Mb CBR 1 Pass (or) NTSC DV High Quality 7Mb VBR 2 Pass preset and make sure that "Use Maximum Render Quality" is checked.

          4. Build to DVD

           

          When you select the preset encoder settings in En/Pr, you have to check the box that says, "Use Maximum Render Quality". If you don't, then you get the interlacing artifacts, soft output. Maximum Render Quality slows transcoding substantially, and requires much available RAM.

          • 2. Re: HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!
            literally_figurative Community Member

            Well the third version I did was in fact a lot nicer looking! But I couldn't remember at all what settings I use.


            I am not at all familar with AVCHD, though I see it mentioned a lot. Is that a CODEC? I have only dealth with HDV, DV and DSLR footage. My takeaway though, is to check "use max render" quality no matter what, right?

             

            For worflow one, are you referring to "Match Sequence Settings" >

            Also, your use of i30 and 60i is confusing me

             

            Does it matter what I export as, in terms of video type? Can I not export using max render quality in premiere, but use, say, h264?

            • 3. Re: HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!
              Bill Hunt CommunityMVP

              Not sure if you have seen Jeff Bellune's HD to SD TUTORIAL, but it offers a high-quality workflow.

               

              Good luck,

               

              Hunt

              • 4. Re: HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!
                literally_figurative Community Member

                Having given it a bit of a skim, is it so wrong that I'd rather just get good quality out of using premiere and encore only?

                • 5. Re: HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!
                  Ann Bens CommunityMVP

                  Match source attributes is only suitable for DV material, not for HDV or AVCHD as it uses the wrong settings.

                  Best is to choose a mpeg2-dvd progressive preset as your source is progressive and set it to two passes.

                  Dont forget to check Use Maximum Render Quality.

                  Import into Encore, make menu and burn to disk.

                  Get yourself some dvd rewritebles.

                  • 6. Re: HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!
                    literally_figurative Community Member

                    With that said, does it make a difference at all? I just did a version using workflow 1 above and I am going to burn it now. It seems with these methods there is no transcoding in Encore.

                     

                    P.S - Is there anything I can do about the menus? All the templates are straight up 4x3 and as much as I like those black spaces on my TV I'd like to fill them out. I know I may have to make a new thread for this.

                     

                    Appreciate the help, all!

                    • 7. Re: HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!
                      literally_figurative Community Member

                      Just want to say, results for workflow 1 are fantastic. Also for anyone who may be new to it like me, audio and video will not be one, so you'll need to drag that on the Encore timeline as well.

                      • 8. Re: HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!
                        raj2ashok Community Member

                        Glad that it works for you. Have you tried the second option as well?, kindly let me know the results.

                        • 9. Re: HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!
                          raj2ashok Community Member

                          literally_figurative wrote:

                           

                          Just want to say, results for workflow 1 are fantastic. Also for anyone who may be new to it like me, audio and video will not be one, so you'll need to drag that on the Encore timeline as well.


                          In order to aviod the above step (drag n drop), just select the video and audio files and Import them as timeline instead of import the files as assets.

                          • 10. Re: HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!
                            Bill Hunt CommunityMVP

                            For Menu Templates that do not match the Project Frame Size and PAR 100%, one can alter those in PS. When in PS, look under Image>Image Size and Image>Pixel Aspect Ratio. Adjust to match 100%.

                             

                            Good luck,

                             

                            Hunt

                             

                            PS - thanks for reporting your success with the HD to SD. That should help others, as well.

                            • 11. Re: HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!
                              Ann Bens CommunityMVP

                              literally_figurative wrote:

                               

                              P.S - Is there anything I can do about the menus? All the templates are straight up 4x3 and as much as I like those black spaces on my TV I'd like to fill them out. I know I may have to make a new thread for this.

                               

                              Appreciate the help, all!

                               

                              You need to choose a Widescreen HD template for BluRay in Encore.

                              If you do not like the templates choose the blanc HD template from Encore and finish it in Photoshop or rebuild an exciting template in Photoshop.

                              • 12. Re: HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!
                                literally_figurative Community Member

                                Apologies for rasing this from the dead (need to export another DVD and needed a refresher) but no, I haven't attempted workflow 2, so cannot report on that!

                                • 13. Re: HD to SD, My Video Looks Like Crap!
                                  Matt Dubuque Community Member

                                  Hi Bill, wow, that requires downloading and familiarizing myself with seven brand new programs and creating scripts.

                                   

                                  That's not a trivial undertaking for me.

                                   

                                  I guess it's true you have personally used this workflow with very satisfactory results?

                                   

                                  I know Jeff is legendary in Encore circles (and rightfully so!) but seven new programs to make it happen sounds like a pretty complex workflow.

                                   

                                  Thanks, as always for weighing in Bill!

                                   

                                  Matt Dubuque