Thoughts on BEST COMPRESSION for use with iDVD and DVD Studio Pro...

Hi all...
I'm having an issue with some visual artifacts that are present after burning a dvd using either idvd or dvd studio pro.
My sequence containts footage (h.264) and photographs with titles. The photos (w/moves) look great, very crisp. So do the titles.
However, the video looks awful. Pans and tilts creating streaking, so does any action with the frame.
I don't see this streaking while viewing in the qt window or when previewing the dvd...
I'm exporting as a qt reference using the dv/dvc pro setting, when I check the dvd on an ntsc monitor, the image is very streaky.
Any ideas?
Thanks,
Mark

Are you using FCP?? Then I see why you said QT reference movie... which is the best way. Being more descriptive about your setting when posting a question will return more helpful answers. (editing tool, source materials, machine spec...etc) You said that your footage was h264 and you posted your question in iMovie forum so I couldn't have guessed FCP and DV...
If your sequence is DV on FCP I can't think of anything else but QT reference movie route. I don't understand why your video won't show interlacing in QT player or DVD preview, but perhaps they force deinterlacing for preview, who knows.
You said your DVD looks 'very streaky' on ntsc tv. Is it to the point that it looks unnatural? Is overall motion jerky? If so, perhaps the field order had been messed with and changed. But I'm not quite sure about the exact nature of your problem. Visual problem in a subjective verbal description can be hard to communicate

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If you remember my video (640x480) NTSC in iMovie Project.
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Is this true ?
If so what are the parameters ? Again is for seeing in a widescreen TV

Someone told me that exporting movie to DV video QT from iMovie share option, for burning in iDVD, is the best quality possible.... Is this true ?
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If so what are the parameters ? Again is for seeing in a widescreen TV
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1 Do one of the following:
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• Press Command-O.
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About the iDVD Project Import
When DVD Studio Pro imports an iDVD 3 or iDVD 4 project or iDVD 4 archive project, it has standard locations it looks for to find the assets and themes used in the project. This is especially important if the project uses custom themes.
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• iDVD project bundle: This is the file created when you save the project.
• [user]/Library/iDVD/Favorites: This folder is located in your home folder.
• [root]/Library/iDVD/Favorites: This folder is located at the root of your disk.
• /Network/Library/iDVD/Favorites: This folder is on a network system specifically
configured by your system administrator for this purpose. (This is not the same as having a server networked into your computer.)
• iDVD application bundle: This is the iDVD application file that contains the default theme elements.
Note: When you create an archive project in iDVD 4, you can choose to include the themes and encoded files. For the best portability, you should include both options. This results in a larger archive file, but ensures you can take the file to any DVD Studio Pro system and import it without missing assets. If you do not choose to include the themes and encoded files in the archive file, those assets must be available in one of the standard locations.
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Important: To ensure all iDVD menu elements import correctly into DVD Studio Pro, you must navigate to each chapter index menu within iDVD before saving the project. This is also true for any menus you add to your iDVD project by clicking the Folder button.
Issues With Importing iDVD Projects
There are some issues to be aware of when you import iDVD projects:
• If you import an iDVD project with DVD-ROM content, DVD Studio Pro does not update the settings in the Disc Inspector’s General tab to reflect the DVD-ROM content. You must manually select the DVD-ROM layout and choose the folder to include.
• When you create a slideshow in iDVD, you can add arrow buttons to each still to provide viewers with an additional method of jumping to the previous and next stills. These arrow buttons are not imported when you import an iDVD project into DVD Studio Pro. The viewer must use the Previous and Next buttons on the DVD player’s remote control to jump between stills.
• The button highlights used in iDVD may look different when imported into DVD Studio Pro. In most cases, the text in the buttons is set to be included in the highlight. Additionally, buttons that use an underline in iDVD will not have an underline when imported into DVD Studio Pro.
• When you import an iDVD project, you may find that the button that is highlighted by default on some menus changes. During the project import, DVD Studio Pro numbers the buttons on each menu and highlights button 1 by default. You can assign any button on a menu to be the default button in the Menu tab in the Menu Inspector.
• If you import an iDVD project that contains a drop zone configured as a slideshow and has multiple slides assigned to it, DVD Studio Pro only shows the slideshow’s first slide in the drop zone.
Source: +DVD Studio Pro User Manual+

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