Photoshop Resolution Settings for HD Video at DVinfo.net

David Ruhland · August 23rd, 2009, 06:33 AM

I recently made an intro tile using Photoshops Default setting of 72dpi. I added text and an image to it (JPEG) The image and text "fall apart" pixelate etc when shown on my HDTV.

What resolution do i need to make the text, images, etc so that it doesnt look bad?

I found this thread, but got lost when they started talking about scanning images.

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/what-happ...op-images.html

Don Bloom · August 23rd, 2009, 06:49 AM

even for SD I make everything I do in PS 300 dpi.

It also seems that Lucinda Sans works better than Arial. MAybe it doesn't but to my eye, it seems to hold together better.

Danny O'Neill · August 23rd, 2009, 07:45 AM

David, if you have vegas installed just open photoshop

File New
Then in preset you will have a "Film and Video" option. Select this.
Now in "Size" you can select the presets for HD.

David Ruhland · August 23rd, 2009, 08:11 AM

Danny,

I do this, but the presets are at 72dpi. This is where my problem is coming i think. Thie image i posted was one of the presets

Jeff Harper · August 23rd, 2009, 08:47 AM

I suspect the colors involved with your image could be changed and it would work out better for you.

Khoi Pham · August 23rd, 2009, 09:03 AM

dpi is for printing, it has nothing to do with video, just go to New/File and set your width in pixels to 1920 and height to 1080 and create your text in it.

Mike Kujbida · August 23rd, 2009, 09:05 AM

David, create your own custom Photoshop presets if you have to and ignore dpi as it's a print term and has no relation to video.
Pixel size is the only thing you need to be concerned about.

The only time I'm interested in dpi is when I'm scanning images and, even then, I look at what the final image size in pixels will be at a specific dpi setting.
My rule of thumb is that 1" of image size at 100 dpi = 100 pixels.
I generally scan at 150 dpi.
Therefore, a standard sized photo (6" x 4") comes out to 900 x 600 pixels.
This is slightly larger than needed for NTSC (720 x 480) so I can do some mild zooming if desired.
At 200 dpi, this same image would be 1200 x 800 pixels, at 300 dpi it would be 1800 x 1200 pixels, etc.

Scanning Basics 101 - All about digital images, the website I mentioned in the thread you referenced, has a few pages dealing with the issue of dpi and video.

Jeff Harper · August 23rd, 2009, 09:11 AM

Khoi is right. DPI is for printing. You're using red on a black/white background and this combination is very poor. Red for titles can work, but certainly would not be my first choice. Your background changes from black to white and this is also a poor choice IMO.

Your design is the problem, not the image quality.

David Ruhland · August 24th, 2009, 05:31 AM

Okay, starting to get the just of this, but lets say i want to use an image as a background intro and lay text on it , Do i need to reduce it to 72dpi as well?

Jeff Harper · August 24th, 2009, 06:09 AM

Ignore dpi, it means nothing in video.

David Ruhland · August 24th, 2009, 06:21 AM

Thanks Jeff!

Its part of that learning curve going from still photography to video! Sometimes I feel like a newborn calf-standing for the first time!

Thanks again

Taky Cheung · August 24th, 2009, 09:58 AM

720 x 480 is SD resolution. Try creating a title that matches the frame size of your project. For HDV, I create 1440x1080 with 1.13 pixel scaling within photoshop.

Taky Cheung · August 24th, 2009, 10:01 AM

Also, your full range gradient will kill any encoding scheme. Try not to apply gradient in that extreme (from full white to full black). Also, pure red or a block of red is very difficult to encode well in video. Also try to import the PSD file or export in PNG to reduce compression artifacts. JPEG doesn't work well with line art.

August 23rd, 2009, 06:33 AM	#1
David Ruhland Major Player Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Madison WI Posts: 340	Photoshop Resolution Settings for HD Video I recently made an intro tile using Photoshops Default setting of 72dpi. I added text and an image to it (JPEG) The image and text "fall apart" pixelate etc when shown on my HDTV. What resolution do i need to make the text, images, etc so that it doesnt look bad? I found this thread, but got lost when they started talking about scanning images. http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/what-happ...op-images.html Attached Thumbnails __________________ Vegas 8.0c (Build 260)-(Upgraded to Sony Vegas 10 pro)Canon GL2, Canon HV30, HF200, HF20-Sony UWP Wirelesss Mic Kit, Intel Core 2 CPU-6600@2.40GHz-3.00GB Ram

August 23rd, 2009, 06:49 AM	#2
Don Bloom Inner Circle Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 6,609	even for SD I make everything I do in PS 300 dpi. It also seems that Lucinda Sans works better than Arial. MAybe it doesn't but to my eye, it seems to hold together better. __________________ What do I know? I'm just a video-O-grafer. Don

August 23rd, 2009, 07:45 AM	#3
Danny O'Neill Major Player Join Date: May 2008 Location: Northampton, UK Posts: 915	David, if you have vegas installed just open photoshop File New Then in preset you will have a "Film and Video" option. Select this. Now in "Size" you can select the presets for HD. __________________ mintyslippers.com

August 23rd, 2009, 08:11 AM	#4
David Ruhland Major Player Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Madison WI Posts: 340	Danny, I do this, but the presets are at 72dpi. This is where my problem is coming i think. Thie image i posted was one of the presets __________________ Vegas 8.0c (Build 260)-(Upgraded to Sony Vegas 10 pro)Canon GL2, Canon HV30, HF200, HF20-Sony UWP Wirelesss Mic Kit, Intel Core 2 CPU-6600@2.40GHz-3.00GB Ram

August 23rd, 2009, 09:03 AM	#6
Khoi Pham Major Player Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Dallas Posts: 747	dpi is for printing, it has nothing to do with video, just go to New/File and set your width in pixels to 1920 and height to 1080 and create your text in it. __________________ Khoi Pham www.proeditproductions.com

August 23rd, 2009, 08:47 AM	#5
Jeff Harper Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 8,425	I suspect the colors involved with your image could be changed and it would work out better for you.

August 23rd, 2009, 09:05 AM	#7
Mike Kujbida Inner Circle Join Date: May 2005 Location: Windsor, ON Canada Posts: 2,770	David, create your own custom Photoshop presets if you have to and ignore dpi as it's a print term and has no relation to video. Pixel size is the only thing you need to be concerned about. The only time I'm interested in dpi is when I'm scanning images and, even then, I look at what the final image size in pixels will be at a specific dpi setting. My rule of thumb is that 1" of image size at 100 dpi = 100 pixels. I generally scan at 150 dpi. Therefore, a standard sized photo (6" x 4") comes out to 900 x 600 pixels. This is slightly larger than needed for NTSC (720 x 480) so I can do some mild zooming if desired. At 200 dpi, this same image would be 1200 x 800 pixels, at 300 dpi it would be 1800 x 1200 pixels, etc. Scanning Basics 101 - All about digital images, the website I mentioned in the thread you referenced, has a few pages dealing with the issue of dpi and video.

August 23rd, 2009, 09:11 AM	#8
Jeff Harper Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 8,425	Khoi is right. DPI is for printing. You're using red on a black/white background and this combination is very poor. Red for titles can work, but certainly would not be my first choice. Your background changes from black to white and this is also a poor choice IMO. Your design is the problem, not the image quality.

August 24th, 2009, 05:31 AM	#9
David Ruhland Major Player Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Madison WI Posts: 340	Okay, starting to get the just of this, but lets say i want to use an image as a background intro and lay text on it , Do i need to reduce it to 72dpi as well? __________________ Vegas 8.0c (Build 260)-(Upgraded to Sony Vegas 10 pro)Canon GL2, Canon HV30, HF200, HF20-Sony UWP Wirelesss Mic Kit, Intel Core 2 CPU-6600@2.40GHz-3.00GB Ram

August 24th, 2009, 06:09 AM	#10
Jeff Harper Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 8,425	Ignore dpi, it means nothing in video.

August 24th, 2009, 06:21 AM	#11
David Ruhland Major Player Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Madison WI Posts: 340	Thanks Jeff! Its part of that learning curve going from still photography to video! Sometimes I feel like a newborn calf-standing for the first time! Thanks again __________________ Vegas 8.0c (Build 260)-(Upgraded to Sony Vegas 10 pro)Canon GL2, Canon HV30, HF200, HF20-Sony UWP Wirelesss Mic Kit, Intel Core 2 CPU-6600@2.40GHz-3.00GB Ram

August 24th, 2009, 09:58 AM	#12
Taky Cheung Inner Circle Join Date: May 2007 Location: Los Angeles, USA Posts: 2,114	720 x 480 is SD resolution. Try creating a title that matches the frame size of your project. For HDV, I create 1440x1080 with 1.13 pixel scaling within photoshop.

August 24th, 2009, 10:01 AM	#13
Taky Cheung Inner Circle Join Date: May 2007 Location: Los Angeles, USA Posts: 2,114	Also, your full range gradient will kill any encoding scheme. Try not to apply gradient in that extreme (from full white to full black). Also, pure red or a block of red is very difficult to encode well in video. Also try to import the PSD file or export in PNG to reduce compression artifacts. JPEG doesn't work well with line art.