Decreasing Quality after Export to Encore

Question

Hello friends> Before I pose my question, I want to thank you all. The last 75 days have been an intense period of growth for me, going from ZERO filming and Adobe Premeire / Encore (CS5.5) experience, to where I am now. I'm probably still a beginner, but I've filmed a great instrutional DVD with a solid menu and chapters, and edited it very well. I'm very pleased with the product I have now.
Anyway, I have YOU all to thank. Guys like Harm Millaard and Bill Hunt- I've read so many of your posts as I learned how to use this amazing software.
Until now, I've managed to figure out everything on my own... but now, I come to you with a desparate problem that I cannot solve on my own.
Essentially, the problem is this: The quality of the video on the DVD is much poorer than the quality of the video in Adobe Premeire.
There's an obvious reason for this: I filmed in 1440x1080, and the NTSC format in Encore is of course 720x480. That much makes sense.
So the REAL problem I have is this:
I know my project is NOT HiDef. I don't expect that. But, the quality is lower than it should be. My eyes, for example, are pixelated and have no "sparkle", even when the DVD player window is at the 720x480 size.
I compare this to any given production DVD (non HiDef), like Lord of the Rings. I can maximize the window on a 1080p monitor, and even though it too is 720x480, it STILL looks good. It's not pixelated. When I expand mine to 1080p, it's very pixelated.
This is what I need help with...
I can give you the specifics of the production method and provide screenshots if it would help, but as you know, the dynamic linkfrom Premeire to Encore is pretty simple and doesn't give you a lot of room for error- it's pretty tight. In short, here are some of the things I've tried:
> I've tried rendering the production into a 720x480 sequence instead of a 1080p sequence. The final product from Encore is the same quality.
> I bought and used a pretty darn good camera.
> I bought some really nice lights to use, and really studied 3 point lighting, so I don't think the lighting is the problem. When I look a the raw 1080p files on my computer, they are breathtakingly clear.
Okay friends.... I hope you can help me!
-V.R.

Answer 1

Hello guys!
Thank you all so much. The video that showed how to export the footage with the proper setting was very educational.
The problem is, I'm still at square one. I've tried two things, with no increase in quality.
Here are the details: My originals were shot at 1440x1080, at a framerate of 60i.
I didn't realize 60i was only for high motion, otherwise I would have at least done 60p....
Anyway, I followed the man's instructions for exporting 1080 60i footage, and did the following:
MPEG2-DVD
Preset: NTSC Widescreen High Quality
Field Order = Upper
VBR - 2 Pass
Use Maximum Render Quality
Bitrate: Min-2.8mbs, target-7mbs, max-8mbs
GOP Settings: M frames=3, N frames=15
On an old TV, the DVD doesn't look terrible. And when the window on my computer is at 720x480, it looks "okay". But when I "maximize" the window, it looks very bad. The eyes and face are completely pixelated. I understand I'm more than doubling the size of the video when I maximize on a 1080p monitor, but EVERY other DVD I have ever boght- even janky, no-name 4x4 DVDs filmed with huge shoulder cameras from the 90s, look pretty darn good when "maximized".
Perhaps I'm expecting too much, but I filmed with very high quality, I have a very nice computer, and Adobe has given me the best software. I believe I'm truly in a position to deliver a "market ready" product.
The DVD is only 30 minutes long, so "room" is not a problem. I'm already selling about $400 worth of these DVDs per day, and am about to place a big order with a fulfillment center for $12,000 worth.
Before I do that, I MUST improve the quality... I know a lot of my customers are watching this on their computers, and not on their DVD players with standard def TVs.
Here's a screen shot of the DVD at 720x480 size: http://screencast.com/t/7a91ujCLHkT
Here's the garbage I'm getting when maximized: http://screencast.com/t/XjqyD3cf04UV
I really hope one of you gurus can help me.
Thank you SO MUCH.
V.R.