Choosing the menu background

DVDit Pro lets you create menus using still images, video clips, or a single background color.

Any menu can also have a background audio track. If you use a video clip that includes audio (a program stream), the audio automatically becomes the menu’s background track. Otherwise, you must add the audio separately; see Using audio in menus for instructions.

To create a menu using an image or video:

  • Click the appropriate tab in the Palette window. To use a still image, click the Images tab. To use a video clip, click the Media tab.

  • Drag an image/video file onto the “Drag media here to create menu” icon in the Project window’s Menus group.

This creates a new menu icon in the Menus group. The image or first video frame appears on the Preview window’s Menu tab.

To control how DVDit Pro scales the image/video to fit the menu, see Scaling of non-4:3 images and video.

See also:

DVDit Pro bullet Choosing the menu background  Adjusting menu background colors

DVDit Pro bullet Choosing the menu background  Setting menu durations

To create a menu using a single background color:

  • If necessary, click the Menu tab in the Preview window.

  • Choose DVD Menus > Add Menu. A new menu icon appears in the Project window’s Menus group, and the Preview window shows a block of color.

  • To change the color, select the Background Color checkbox in the Preview window’s toolbar, then click one of the colors in the drop-down list.

For more choices, click the Custom option to open the Windows Color picker window, then choose or define the color you want.

To replace a menu’s background:

  • Double-click the menu’s icon in the Project window. The menu appears in the Preview window.

  • Do one of the following:
  • Drag a new video/image file onto the menu icon in the Project window.

  • Drag a new video/image file onto the menu displayed in the Preview window.

  • Select the Background Color checkbox in the Preview window’s toolbar (to replace a video/image with simple color).


Scaling of non-4:3 images and video

All menus have a 4:3 aspect ratio. NTSC menu dimensions are 720 x 480 pixels and PAL menus are 720 x 576 pixels. If you use an image or video clip with a different aspect ratio or different pixel dimensions, you can control how DVDit Pro scales it:

To change the menu background scaling:

  • Double-click the menu’s icon in the Project window. The menu appears in the Preview window and the Attributes window displays the menu’s attributes.

  • In the Display section of the Attributes window’s General tab, choose one of the Scaling options:
  • Center: Places the image/video at its original size in the center of the menu. If the image/video is larger than 720 x 480/576, its edges are cropped. If the image/video is smaller, black letterbox bars fill in the gap to the edge of the menu.

  • Stretch: Stretches or shrinks the image/video to fill the menu. If the original image/video does not have a 4:3 aspect ratio, it is distorted.

  • Zoom: Scales the image/video to completely fill the menu without distortion. If the original image/video does not have a 4:3 aspect ratio, it is cropped vertically or horizontally.

  • Letterbox: Scales the image/video to fill the menu in at least one dimension without distortion. If the original image/video does not have a 4:3 aspect ratio, black letterbox bars fill the gap to the edge of the menu.


Adjusting menu background colors

For menus with an image or video background, you can change the background’s hue, saturation, brightness, and contrast. See also Adjusting menu object colors and opacity.

To adjust a menu’s background color:

  • Double-click the menu’s icon in the Project window. The menu appears in the Preview window. The Attributes window displays the menu’s attributes.

  • Click the Effects tab in the Attributes window.

  • While observing the menu in the Preview window, adjust the Color controls in the Attributes window. To return the controls to their default settings, click the Reset button.

Choosing the menu background