Sidetracked to a Slide show but too much flicker!

Question

Hi all.
As my wife is a pro photographer...I've been asked to do a slide show with audio track for a client.
I've spent a few hours now reading so many posts on this forum relating to why still images flicker on a DVD when played on a TV. Amazing what you guys know it really is. :-)
So having now made numerous tests with: image sizes and formats (PSD TIF JPGetc), Blurs, Contrast settings etc, I am left with a hugh pile of used DVDs, but still cannot get the photos in my slide show to stop flickering when played on any LCD or CRT TV.
I have read posts advising that there are better products for slide shows than PrE8, so I'm currently dowloading an evaluation version of ProShow Gold.
I guess I am just looking for confirmation that I am on the right track with this mode of thinking..? It would seem that using PrE8 for a slide show is kind of like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut?
Thanks
Craig.
Egypt.

Answer 1

When you say a DVD s/w player....? Is that a separate application?
Yes. I use CyberLink's PowerDVD, but the freeware, MediaPlayer Classic HC is a good one too. As I have the full-paid versions of CyberLink on all machines, I have it set as the default DVD player, though I do have MPC HC too.
When you say you 'Import those into Encore for authoring' are you saying that it is the Encore application that burns your final DVD? Does the method of DVD authoring actually have any bearing on the flicker issue?
In my case, Encore is my authoring application of choice. Good news - it's great and works beautifully with both my PrPro and with Photoshop. Bad news - it is no longer sold as a stand-alone application, and is ONLY available bundled with Adobe PrPro, as of CS3 and now CS4.
All that Encore does is author DVD's and BD's (Blu-ray Discs). My version, EncoreDVD 2.0, does not have BD authoring capabilities, but, as of now, I only work in SD DVD Projects, so that limitation is not of consequence to me - yet.
Most of my Projects are Burned from Encore, though I can and do use ImgBurn (or Gear DVD) to do some Burns, especially if I have Burned to Folder, or done an Image (ISO), in my workflow.
Encore does have a very rudimentary SlideShow creation feature, but I do not use it. There are too many limitations, and the only thing that it offers, beyond what I do in PrPro, is Random Pan & Zoom, something that I would never do, as I view each image as unique, requiring my eye to determine exactly how the Pans & Zooms are applied, and adjusted. It also has a 99 image per SlideShow limit. I just have zero reason to use it.
I have never had an issue with flickering, and really cannot comment on flicker removal in Encore. Never needed it, so never looked for it. Also, since it is an authoring program, ONLY, I rather doubt that it has this. It would be an operation for the NLE, not the authoring app. Encore can do no editing (except for that SlideShow feature), in either Audio, or Video - none.
The image output was JPG.
As I've stated elsewhere, I am not a fan of JPEG compression, even at lower compression levels. This is both for print and video work. I only use JPEG, when I am doing work that will go onto a client's Web site, and often choose PNG over JPEG. I find that I can see slight pixelization with JPEG's, and eschew that format. As most of my images are in camera RAW (NEF's in my case), all of these come into PS through ARC, and are in .PSD format. I will do all of my image editing in that format, then resize for video and Save_As .PSD, which will then be Imported into my NLE (Non Linear Editor). I just never get to JPEG. Depending on your source material, and exactly how you are editing these images, you might want to explore not using JPEG in the scheme. As your wife is a professional photographer, test whether she can see a quality improvement. Some do not, but I can with my images. Not saying that PSD will eliminate your flickering problems, but it might be worth a look.
As for the ProShow programs, they do look good, and many professionals, who do major SlideShows are very pleased with them. One such producer on the PrPro forum got me to look into Producer, and it seems to be excellent. I just need to justify the purchase (and learning time), against the number of SlideShows that I am likely to do.
Last, with regards to the DVD RW's, remember that those are just for testing, and NOT for delivery. For that, I strongly recommend Verbatim, or Taiyo Yuden blank media. Nowadays, the -R vs +R is not the issue, that it once was. I always use +R for all DVD-9's (DL), but will use either for DVD-5's.
Good luck,
Hunt