Ok so Im very new to this job field and could use a little help with avid. We run avid express pro 5.5 . this weekend I shot some video on sonys z1u. After putting it all onto avid and editing everything i go to export it. Problem is when i export and burn to dvd its very very choppy. I exported as a qt ref and qt movie. both look like crap. I tried mpeg and that failed. Any help is appreciated!

Charles:

If you shot with a Z1U in HDV mode, you can't export with a QT reference file. If it's any decent sized program, you have to export it as a QT movie (at about a gig a minute), and then use a compression program like Sorenson or others to squeeze it down to DVD size. (less than 4 gigs)

I have yet to create a DVD out of AVID that I was happy with. I can get pretty smooth video, but it tends to be rather washed-out looking.

Charles, did you capture as DV or HDV?

Bill, what program are you using to encode your footage once it gets out of the Avid? How are you exporting out of Avid? 601 or RGB?

Chris: I'm using Sorenson Squeeze. I think I have been exporting it out of AVID both ways, but I believe the current setting is for 601 color.

Any suggestions?

Charles:

If you shot with a Z1U in HDV mode, you can't export with a QT reference file. If it's any decent sized program, you have to export it as a QT movie (at about a gig a minute), and then use a compression program like Sorenson or others to squeeze it down to DVD size. (less than 4 gigs)

I have yet to create a DVD out of AVID that I was happy with. I can get pretty smooth video, but it tends to be rather washed-out looking.

Bill, you can transcode into DNxHD and create a QT reference file from that. I would do that over creating a QT movie.

FWIW, I have created QT Ref files in MC and then imported them into DVD Architect (which comes with Sony Vegas) and have been very happy with the results.

As for 601 versus RGB color levels, you should use 601. You also may want to try selecting the Use Avid DV codec choice. I believe it corrects a problem that QT can have with mapping color levels.