Review : Ulead DVD PictureShow

Ulead has been a long standing name in the Image and Video processing market. Started in Taiwan a long time a go ( 1989 ) their primary focus is on image and video processing software. The latest versions of their products now also include DVD creation tools. Ulead tends to make overall well designed tools that are easy to use yet don't cut back on possibilities. They have a lot to offer for both beginners ( ease of use ) to pro's ( nearly limitless creation capabilities ).

The latest in their wide line of products called DVD PictureShow ( MSRP at 29.95$ if you download it or 34.95 if you want to have the CD ) allows you to make Photo VCD or DVD's. The tools is setup as one big wizard that walks you trough the entire process. You can jump back and forward any given time without losing your settings. This makes it easy to get started and produces a result in no time. It took me about 15 minutes to have my first result , and most time was spent deciding which of the, plenty ,templates to use. The tool supports most common CD writers and DVD writers directly. As a last treat you can also reuse slide show you already created using other Ulead tools such as Photo Explorer.

You can download a demo version on Ulead site.

Installation
Creating a project
Building the slideshows
Selecting the menu style
Previewing your project
Project Output
Wrap it up!
Update
Conclusion

1.Installation

The installation is flawless on both Win98, ME and 2000.( I Didn't test on XP yet, but it don't expect problems there either ). During installation the program asks you for the country you are located in. This is used to set the default video standard ( PAL or NTSC), you can override on this page if necessary. During project creation you have the possibility to change this by hitting <F6> at any time. When installation is complete it will ask to reboot the machine. You can do this at a later time if this is more convenient. However the reboot is necessary. Most programs just ask you to boot but will run fine without , well not this one. Apparently some of the components only get registered during the boot.

2.Creating a project.

Upon program launch you are asked if you want to build a VCD or DVD.

The VCD mode allows you to create up to 99 slide shows with up to 99 image per slide show. However the total number of images is limited to 1900 or amount of available space , whichever comes first. Typically music tends to consume a lot of space. In DVD mode the 1900 image limitation goes away and you can have 99 shows with 99 pictures each giving you theoretically a 9801 pictures capability.

3.Building the slide shows

The logical next step is of course to build the slide shows

Just hit the Add slide show button to create one. This opens a new windows where you can select your images. The first image you select becomes the image shown in the menu screen. Any subsequent images are embedded in the slide show itself, without omitting the first picture To edit an existing slideshow just hit the Edit Slideshow button.

Editing a slide show is just a matter of using drag and drop to get your pictures in place. You can also specify the slideshow title and select background music. The title can be edited later on in the process as well. The delay is common for all pictures. You can not set a specific time per picture. Further tools allow you to rotate pictures ( great for portrait mode pictures ).

You can rearrange pictures in the slideshow by just dragging them to the new location. Or if you want an even easier way just hit the Arrange button. This one pops up a new window where you can rearrange the pictures.

By setting the thumbnail size to 32 by 32 you see a lot of pictures. Here again it's just a matter of drag and drop to get to where you want to be..

Once you have finished creating your slideshow(s) Just hit OK to close this window and select Next to go and create your menu(s).

4.Selecting the menu style.

DVD PictureShow comes with a bunch of ready made templates. You can not specify font or the outline of the menu items. However you can opt to replace the background by your own picture and change the music associated with the template. However , you can't save your custom templates for later reuse. The program ships with plenty of built in templates.

You can edit the slideshow titles here by just clicking on the text and typing your new title. In DVD mode you can switch the numbers off ( VCD needs them for navigation )

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