when openning I used
dvd ntsc widescreen
dvd
720 x 480

this is probly way wrong right? I didnt go into the properties tab just used this at the start of the program! as a isaid i am a noobie to the program!

thanks for your time

Paul

Hi P:

Your project properties may be okay, or they may need a little tweaking. Here is a cut and paste form another post that I did recently. It explains how to set your project properties and how to choose your render settings based on your media.

This is rather long so please print it and give these steps a try.

On your menu, choose "Project" and then "Properties." Go to the "Video" tab. On the first line it should say "Template." This is the template that controls your project, not your render. Write down the name of the template.

Look over to the far right on this tab and you should see a small icon of a yellow file. This is a very important icon. It is the "Match Media Settings" icon. Hover your mouse over this icon and you should see this caption appear.

Click on the "Match Media Settings" icon. Now go and find a video clip on your computer that is the same as the ones in your project. It doesn't have to be a clip that is actually in your project, but it should be the same kind of clip. Click on the clip.

Now have a look back at the template. Did it change from what you wrote down just a moment ago? If it changed, scratch out the old name and write down the new name on your scratchpad. We will refer to this when we look at the render settings in just a moment.

Take a look at the rest of the "Video" tab. This is an easy way to confirm what your media is and the default properties. Note the width and height of your video. We'll need that when we render.

Okay now let's look at rendering.

You want to choose your render settings based on what you saw in the Project Properties window. For example, I have HDV 1440x10080 video. I typically use these settings when I render:

Save as type
MainConcept MPEG-2

Template
1) HDV 1080-60i for high def render, or 2) DVD Architect NTSC Widescreen Video Stream for standard def render.

I like to check the box "Stretch video to fill output frame (do not letterbox)." Then choose "Save" to render.

Note when you render this way you will have to do a second render for audio using the Dolby Digital Ac-3 Studio "save as type." Be sure to name this the same as the first file so that DVD-A can magically find it when you make the DVD.

So give that a try and it may help with your output.

Kim