Creating Chapters from Scenes

[Chandlerweb]

I have just started using Roxio Easy Media Creator 9 and need to edit a video for a friend. I havent used any previous versions of Roxio software for video editing. I would like to know how I can create chapters that are based on the scenes detected during import. So far I have done the following:

1. Launched MyDVD
2. Select Capture/Import
3. This opened Roxio Media Import and I selected Camcorder as Source.
4. I clicked on Capture entire tape
5. At this point, the tape is being recorded and scenes are being detected automatically.
6. Once finished, I click stop and the scenes shown on the right are now displayed as a single file. I can see the scenes again by clicking on the arrow on the bottom right of the thumbnail so I know they are still there.
7. I now click done and am returned to MyDVD with a "Add New Title" window.
8. I left click on the file i just created and click "Add"
9. The file is now shown on the menu screen and it appears in the Project View tree on the left but there are no chapters.
10. I right click the new file in the tree and select "Edit Chapters"
11. Choosing Scene Detection, i get many more chapters than there were actual scenes, even when setting the sensitivity to zero. I am not sure what "At start of every panel" does - it did not appear to do anything. I also did not want to choose Every x mins etc.

Please - does anyone have any clues? I dont understand why I cant use the scene information as chapters as the info is clearly retained in EMC 9 even after rebooting the PC etc and it seems such a logical way of creating chapters to me.

 

I would be very grateful if anyone could provide some help on this. Thanks in advance.

[ggrussell]

I dont understand why I cant use the scene information as chapters as the info

Perhaps you need a better understanding of what 'scenes' is and/or the different ways it is handled in Videowave/MyDVD.

 

If you are using a DIGITAL camcorder and capturing via firewire, the date/time stamp on the tape is retained in the DV AVI file. This info correlates to when you started and stopped the tape. These are usually refer to as 'takes' , but when captured they are translated to 'scenes'. If you are capturing analog, then scene detection is done by 'detecting' different levels of brightness/darkness or some other method. Not as accurate, but generally works. The 'scenes' are not saved into separate files, but rather still in one large file. EMC just keeps track of the scenes according to where it is in the file.

 

In Videowave, you can add these 'scenes' to the Storyboard PANELS or to the Timeline in any order. You can also add editing 'markers' at any place within the movie. They come in handy when you need to jump to a specific point when editing, but these marks will also be translated into Chapter marks when the Videowave project is brought into MyDVD.

 

When In MyDVD and you 'add' your Videowave project, the option for 'each panel' means just that. If you added the scenes in Videowave where each scene is a 'panel' in the Storyboard, then they WILL automatically become a chapter mark with that option.

[grandpabruce]

Perhaps you need a better understanding of what 'scenes' is and/or the different ways it is handled in Videowave/MyDVD.

 

If you are using a DIGITAL camcorder and capturing via firewire, the date/time stamp on the tape is retained in the DV AVI file. This info correlates to when you started and stopped the tape. These are usually refer to as 'takes' , but when captured they are translated to 'scenes'. If you are capturing analog, then scene detection is done by 'detecting' different levels of brightness/darkness or some other method. Not as accurate, but generally works. The 'scenes' are not saved into separate files, but rather still in one large file. EMC just keeps track of the scenes according to where it is in the file.

 

In Videowave, you can add these 'scenes' to the Storyboard PANELS or to the Timeline in any order. You can also add editing 'markers' at any place within the movie. They come in handy when you need to jump to a specific point when editing, but these marks will also be translated into Chapter marks when the Videowave project is brought into MyDVD.

 

When In MyDVD and you 'add' your Videowave project, the option for 'each panel' means just that. If you added the scenes in Videowave where each scene is a 'panel' in the Storyboard, then they WILL automatically become a chapter mark with that option.

 

That is an excellent explanation, Gary. One which should be pinned.

[ggrussell]

Thanks... Sometimes it be difficult to explain something without posting too much. LOL

[sknis]

Problem 1: instead of outputting using fit to disc (which results in poor quality it it works), output to an image (iso) file and then use Disc Copier to burn the resulting iso file to a DVD. Disc Copier will transcode to fit the video on the DVD and it keeps excellent quality.

Problem 2: use Videowave to output to DVD quality video and then load those mpegs into myDVD as titles.

Problem 3. Go to the Tips and Tricks forum in EMC 9 and read/watch how to make a custom menu.

Problem 4 already answered above.

[grandpabruce]

Thanks... Sometimes it be difficult to explain something without posting too much. LOL

 

Nope, when it comes to something like that, it loses clarity, if you skimp on the words.

[Chandlerweb]

Thanks for your help on this. I managed to follow your instructions although I had to work out how to bring the VideoWave project into MyDVD. I eventually figured out that you can show media selector by going to View > media selector. So now I have a project with two videos, each with their own menus. If you dont mind - can i pick your brains on some other issues / questions I have encountered since? Not sure if I should start new threads or just cover it here (please let me know). Anyway, for now here are the questions:

 

1) When I choose 4.7GB disc and 'Fit to Disc', the DVD image created is too big to fit on the dvd by about 100MB even when I enable overburning. Why is this? Instead I have to select Standard Play but this compresses everything down to about 75% of the disc capacity which appears not to be very efficient.

 

2) I have encountered a couple of problems where the burning process hangs at certain points. I have identified the problems as chapters that are too short for transition effects and I have removed them which appears to have fixed the issue. However, it is frustrating that it gets through maybe 75% of the whole burn process before it encounters a problem with Movie 2 of 2. I then have to start to burn from movie 1 of 2 even though that encoded ok. Is there anyway to encode each movie separately and then import these into the DVD project so that I know I am only importing known good movies and if a problem does occur, i only need to edit and re-encode the one problematic movie??

 

3) I would like the top menu to have a full length track as the backing music but it appears the max length is 61secs. can this be changed and increased to 3+ minutes?

 

4) To get round the problem described in question 1, I thought i could shrink the oversize DVD image using DVD shrink. Does anyone know if there are any problems/issues/things to bare in mind when doing this?

 

Many thanks.

Paul

[bimicher]

Thanks for your help on this. I managed to follow your instructions although I had to work out how to bring the VideoWave project into MyDVD. I eventually figured out that you can show media selector by going to View > media selector. So now I have a project with two videos, each with their own menus. If you dont mind - can i pick your brains on some other issues / questions I have encountered since? Not sure if I should start new threads or just cover it here (please let me know). Anyway, for now here are the questions:

 

1) When I choose 4.7GB disc and 'Fit to Disc', the DVD image created is too big to fit on the dvd by about 100MB even when I enable overburning. Why is this? Instead I have to select Standard Play but this compresses everything down to about 75% of the disc capacity which appears not to be very efficient.

 

2) I have encountered a couple of problems where the burning process hangs at certain points. I have identified the problems as chapters that are too short for transition effects and I have removed them which appears to have fixed the issue. However, it is frustrating that it gets through maybe 75% of the whole burn process before it encounters a problem with Movie 2 of 2. I then have to start to burn from movie 1 of 2 even though that encoded ok. Is there anyway to encode each movie separately and then import these into the DVD project so that I know I am only importing known good movies and if a problem does occur, i only need to edit and re-encode the one problematic movie??

 

3) I would like the top menu to have a full length track as the backing music but it appears the max length is 61secs. can this be changed and increased to 3+ minutes?

 

4) To get round the problem described in question 1, I thought i could shrink the oversize DVD image using DVD shrink. Does anyone know if there are any problems/issues/things to bare in mind when doing this?

 

Many thanks.

Paul

 

Problem 1: instead of outputting using fit to disc (which results in poor quality it it works), output to an image (iso) file and then use Disc Copier to burn the resulting iso file to a DVD. Disc Copier will transcode to fit the video on the DVD and it keeps excellent quality.

Problem 2: use Videowave to output to DVD quality video and then load those mpegs into myDVD as titles.

[sknis]

I have just started using Roxio Easy Media Creator 9 and need to edit a video for a friend. I havent used any previous versions of Roxio software for video editing. I would like to know how I can create chapters that are based on the scenes detected during import. So far I have done the following:

1. Launched MyDVD
2. Select Capture/Import
3. This opened Roxio Media Import and I selected Camcorder as Source.
4. I clicked on Capture entire tape
5. At this point, the tape is being recorded and scenes are being detected automatically.
6. Once finished, I click stop and the scenes shown on the right are now displayed as a single file. I can see the scenes again by clicking on the arrow on the bottom right of the thumbnail so I know they are still there.
7. I now click done and am returned to MyDVD with a "Add New Title" window.
8. I left click on the file i just created and click "Add"
9. The file is now shown on the menu screen and it appears in the Project View tree on the left but there are no chapters.
10. I right click the new file in the tree and select "Edit Chapters"
11. Choosing Scene Detection, i get many more chapters than there were actual scenes, even when setting the sensitivity to zero. I am not sure what "At start of every panel" does - it did not appear to do anything. I also did not want to choose Every x mins etc.

Please - does anyone have any clues? I dont understand why I cant use the scene information as chapters as the info is clearly retained in EMC 9 even after rebooting the PC etc and it seems such a logical way of creating chapters to me.

 

I would be very grateful if anyone could provide some help on this. Thanks in advance.

 

You are almost right in doing what you are doing. Instead of using my DVD to do your editing and chapter selection, use Video Wave instead.

 

Also, try opening MyDVD from the Windows start menu rather than from the Roxio Home menu. When I do that, that scene functionality works; from the Home menu, it doesn't.