Using FCP with Mac g5 Quad. Finished photo montage with some inserted SD video. All pics used were digital. After rendering the project looks fine when viewing on Cinema display but after exporting into Quicktime some of the photos are very pixelated. Tried to write again but same result... any suggestions to correct?

Thanks,
John

Without more information, it's difficult to say. You said you exported to quicktime...well what was the codec, what was the bitrate, what was the resolution, is this going to web or dvd? Did you use just "export" or "export using compressor"? Depending on what you're trying to do, all these factor in the the quality of the final video.

Noah:

Thanks. Sorry for the lack of info...still learning. We went to Export...Quicktime Movie and selected DV NTSC 48khz and then selected make self contained movie and this is for DVD. Appreciate your input.
John

Open up the quicktime file then open up the movie properties and make sure 'high quality' is checked under the video track settings.

In the end, it would also be much quicker to prepare it straight for DVD by rendering using compressor- make a mpeg2 file and an aiff. All the presets are there so it is very easy to figure out just by playing around.

Thank you. Appreciate your help. Will give this a try. I will let you know if there still is a problem.
John

Since you are new to FCP, just make sure you get the aspect ratio right when you export using compressor, and select the least amount of compression you can. (Don't use the 150 minute preset for 4:3 SD when your vid is 45 minutes) If you make your own settings, just make sure the bitrate isn't too high or you might have some trouble when you go to burn the discs in DVD Studio.

Patrick...it worked! Thanks. Noah I will look at what you suggested. So much to learn but love it.
John