I have been a bit too bored lately and have about 5+ hours of free time each day. I have been spending this time trying to learn Quantum Mechanics and other physics related material like M-Theory, but there is only so much of that a Finance major can take each day....
I want to attempt to create some professional looking 3d or 2D menus for DVDs that I either re-author or make myself.
I would first like to know what software is a must. I would like both freeware and commercial suggestions and please include an estimated price if you can.
Secondly, I need some guides for making menus. I have done some searching, but I have only been able to find menu creation using software with premade templates (standard thumbnail menus or simple click text menu).
Off the top of my head, software that I currently own is:
Cinema 4d 8.0 Studio
Blender
Bryce 5
Jasc Paint Shop Pro 8
I am planning on upgrading my Cinema 4d to either 8.5 or 9.1. I do not know if any of these are good for menus, but I can create video clips with C4D, Blender, & Bryce.
I have a lot of patience, so a time consuming project will not bother me.
I've heard of Sonic Scenarist, but isn't that thing around $25,000? That one will be a bit too much for me.
How do the other programs compare to Scenarist (adobe encore, DVDLab Pro, Pinnacle Studio)? Also how do DVD Maestro and Sony's Vegas and DVD Architect compare to the lot?
I tried out DVDlabpro and made a menu. It is pretty simple. I made 3 menus for my movie in about 10 minutes. The whole authoring process was a lot simpler than I though. It is actually easier than stuff like Nero Vision Express and the results are much better.
I think I was on the right track about wanting to use Cinema4d. I was more into making a menu that that has a lot of 3D effects (kind of like menus from X-men 2). I think Cinema4d is the way to go, just the render times for making videos are killing me. I would need to get a few more PCs before I attempt something like that. For now, I am just making an intro for my movies (sort of like the THX thing).
Thanks for all the input. If anyone can think of more suggestions, please tell me. I have not made a final decision as to which software to use. I am still going to give DVD Architect, Sonic Scenarist, Pinnacle, and Encore a try before deciding. Hopefully I can find a demo for all of them. I know Architect and Encore have demos.
One more thing. Does anyone know where I can find some good guides for using Photoshop CS2? It seems like that I can import .psd files for menus. Photoshop has a lot of potential if I create 3D stills in C4d or Bryce.
a Great Program for Makeing Just DVD Menu"s is called "MediaChance DVD Menu Studio" which can Make 2d and 3d menu"s with Vector Graphics and the Program can be used as a Menu Creation Tool integrated into "DVDLab Pro" .....
With these 2 programs together you can Make DVD"s that only very few Programs could accomplish....
