I've been trying to render a small project (2 minutes) so that the movie fills the screen on my phone. I've chosen the largest projects sizes (3840 x 2160) and also those half that size down to 1080 X 720. Also various formats. Ten or 15 times... and the resulting movie fills about half the screen on my phone. I've looked at the manual, several you tube tutorials.
I'm using Movie Studio 16 Plantinum. Does anyone have an idea what I might be doing wrong?
What model phone do you have, and what rendering settings are you using?
Ken: I have a Moto G6 phone. I've rendered the movie as a wmv file, 1440x 1080. But I've tried bigger and smaller sizes too. All have generated the 2 minute movies that fill up only about half of my phone screen. Or laptop screen.
It seems your phone has a screen size 2160 x 1080 which is an aspect ratio of 18:9 (or 2:1). So you should set your Project Properties to 2160 x 1080 and make sure you render to 2160 x 1080 (customize a rendering template, for example Internet HD 1080p, and next to Frame size select "(Custom frame size)" in the dropdown list and set Width and Height to 2160 and 1080). If the source video that you put on the timeline is not 2:1 aspect ratio, select Event Pan/Crop, right-click on the event image and select "Match Output Aspect". This will then ensure the rendered video fills the preview screen and also your phone screen.
The important thing is to ensure you render to the same aspect ratio as your phone screen.
Ken.
Okay, Ken! I will try this pronto. My frustration level was high; this lowers it a lot. I'll let you know how this goes later today. Thanks do much.
Ken: I've been trying things just as you said, many times, in fact. And, the screen is not filling up...
There seems something amiss at the very beginning of a new project when I add media. After I place a picture or some video piece on the timeline, it does not fill up the entire preview window, no matter what settings I try. And, when I render a small selection just in the way you said, the result does not fill the screen! Only about half of it, just like the preview window.
About two weeks ago I made a little video (of me reading the poem Ozymandias) which filled the screen nicely. But I don't remember what I did to get that to happen. I was still fresh in the use of Movie Studio. And, I've since deleted the files for the project other than the final result.
Have you any suggestions I could explore? I can send you some screenshots, if that might help.
Jack
Unless the frame is the same shape (aspect) as the video it will not fill it up. Ever.
You need to tell us what you want. Do you want a vertical frame filled with the video? Do you want a horizontal frame with bars on the video? Do you want the video all FAT in a horizontal frame?
Tell us or draw a picture of what you want, please.
I still have the program Vegas Video Platinum 8.0 and I put two items of media on its timeline... with the result that they filled the preview screen and when rendered, it filled my laptop screen. I didn't have the aspect ratios quite right, but the horizontal was filled from end to end. Not the vertical.
That's what I've been trying to accomplish with Movie Studio Platinum 16. I've taken a screen shot of the Vegas preview window and one of the MS 16 preview window. I'd like to get the MS 16 preview window to be filled the same way as the Vegas one. I've tried many, many times to accomplish that. Unsuccessfully. If I can the preview window right, I think I can get the rendered version right.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/uoCHTV3F7UQjc3hp8
I'm a retired, but I'm going out for four or five hours. It's 11 am here in Edmonton. Thanks a lot for any help you can give.
Jack
It looks you have to change the projectproperties to get the same preview.
Set to the same as in VMS 8: 640x480 ore change the one used in VMS 16 to1440x1080
Good evening
I did that, i.e., changed MS 16 project size to 640 x 480. But the preview window remains only about half full. See the picture from the link. So it is something else. I don't know what though. Does anyone know what I might try next? I think the preview size is directly connected to the final product that I render.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/pK84bW6pphC4NWu8A
Jack
Could you have a PIP FX applied somewhere?
I checked. No PIP fx. But I have used PIP on two projects in the last week, Does it leave a memory?
Jack
Whoa. I looked at the track fx, and, sure enough, there was a PIP effect at work. I removed it... and the preview screen filled up.
My goodness, do track fx properties just hang in like a bad memory?
Thank you so much EricLNZ.
Jack
My goodness, do track fx properties just hang in like a bad memory?
Well yes, if you don't turn them off, they do exactly that.
Your two projects are wildly different. One is 640x480, the other is 2160x1080.
Thank you to all of you who responded. My high level frustration has dissipated like hot air out of an open bbq.
Jack
My goodness, do track fx properties just hang in like a bad memory?
Sort of. When you open a new project you get a track labelled 'Text' and another "Picture-in-picture" Both are video tracks like any other. BUT the PIP track has a PIP FX automatically applied as a Track FX. Consequently anything added to the track is reduced in size. You are not the first to stumble over this. I wish Vegas didn't do it.
Thank you very much!