While I've been viewing DVDs for years now, I have yet to make my own. I've goofed around on video in the past, shooting skits and other fun stuff, but the footage has been confined to slightly worn-out VHS tapes which aren't getting any younger. While I don't have the current capability to transfer the tapes over to DVD myself, I can't wait to do it! The idea of making my own menus---heck, designing my own cover art---sounds pretty fun to me. I'm not alone…there's sure to be tons of budding DVD producers out there who feel the same way I do.

I haven't paid much attention to the history of "DVD self-help" guides, so I was pretty interested in checking out the latest disc to arrive in the mailbox…DVD Home Moviemaking: A Beginner's Guide. Released by DVD International and produced by Richard Diercks, this is basically a step-by-step guide to creating, producing, and mastering your own DVDs at home. Nothing more, nothing less.

The running time on the main feature (broken into several chapters) is just over an hour, with each chapter running approximately 5-10 minutes each. That's a pretty serviceable time-frame here for what's covered, if not a touch too short. My initial reaction to the main feature itself was mixed, but I essentially got what I came for. Like most movies, it could have gone into greater detail in some places, and just skipped a few scenes. It basically plays much like a training video if you were starting at a new job (whether that's good or bad is up to the viewer). There's a few unintentional laughs to be had, of course…some cheesy acting, staged scenes and all that…but the information was presented in a well-organized manner and flows nicely. There's really not much more to say about this 'documentary' on a basic level, but I'll break down the different sections of the main feature so you know if this one's up your alley or not:

Introduction:
This section simply gives you a brief overview of what you'll find during the next hour (hey, sort of like what I'm doing right now!). This is especially handy for the impatient, as you can jump right to the chapters you're most interested in.

DVD Basics:
This section provides a background about what DVD is, from a breakdown of different DVD formats and capacity space to progression of the format so far. The narrarator also went out of his way to tell us that DVD stands for "Digital Versatile Disc", not "Digital Video Disc." Although this section didn't tell me anything new, this will provide a much-needed education for many DVD wannabes.

What You Need:
Here, you'll find a rundown on everything you'll need to begin. Again, this is pretty common knowledge to most people by now, but it's good they included it anyway. Thankfully, it didn't resort to a commercial for their own products. On a somewhat unrelated note, don't you just hate it when recipes tell you to only use "Hershey's Chocolate Chips" or "Gold Medal Flour", like it's the only option for making cookies? Sorry, I don't know where that came from…back to the review.

Shooting and Editing for DVD:
This is geared mostly towards the film end of things, instead of the actual DVD creation. It simply provides tips to maximize the look of your home videos to make better DVDs. This seemed a little out of place for the order it was in, but was interesting nonetheless.

Encoding and Transcoding:
This section was the most interesting for me, personally. It gave a nice overview of how DVDs are encoded (for the cheap seats, that means how you the raw information is transferred onto the little plastic disc we all know and love. For the life of me, I'll never understand how this works on a technical level, but at least it's nice to know it can be done.

Authoring:
This section simply covers the finishing touches to your DVD: menus, navigation, and stuff like that. Again, this wasn't anything that I didn't know already on a basic level, but it's good for the beginner's reference. That wraps up the main chapters…but wait, there's more!

Closing Sections:
Tacked on at the end are some basic closing hints and tips, hosted by a guy who seems a little uncomfortable in front of a camera. I know the most talented DVD production wizards usually aren't of the "socially-outgoing" variety, but at least the guy knows what he's talking about. These last few sections comprise the final 10 minutes or so of the main feature, and do a good job of wrapping up any loose ends. With that, the main feature comes to a close.

Overall, this wasn't a bad production. There's a few things I definitely want to point out: for one, the title of this DVD is very accurate. This is most certainly a beginner's guide, and won't be of very much help to those who already have a basic grasp of the concept. Hopefully, it won't fall into the hands of too many soccer moms and 14 year-olds with terrible design skills, but it's here to stay. Another thing that I want to mention was the timing of this release: it would have made a much greater impact a year or two ago. While I realize that DVD is really hitting its stride now (and the iron is certainly hot), it can't help but seem a little dated in execution. While this isn't meant as an attack on the DVD itself, this will be one to look back on in 20 years for a good laugh (like those old Tandy computer ads).

With that said, let's see how their DVD stacked up:

Video:
Video was a mixed bag here. First of all, the production was shot in 1.33:1 (full frame), which is fine for most documentaries. However, you'd think with a "forward-looking" effort like this one, it would be geared more towards a widescreen format. Still, this is only a personal preference, and this subject material doesn't necessarily warrant a widescreen composition anyway. The chapter transitions were clean and crisp, but some of the main footage was a little on the soft side, particularly the end sections. Colors were good and the image quality was enough to get by, but it's nothing spectacular.

Audio:
The audio is also pretty basic here. Presented in 2.0 Stereo, it gets the job done just fine for my tastes. Everything comes through well, and doesn't exhibit any outstanding problems. One concern, though: the same are that exhibited the most softness (the end sections) also sounded a bit more muffled in the audio department too. This is most likely due to the source material and not the DVD production itself, but it's not that big of a problem anyway.

Extras:
There's a few nice extras included here for your perusal. A handful are on the discs themselves, but DVD-Rom content is also included, a natural and nice touch. In any case, here's a basic list of everything extra. It's pretty self-explanatory, so I'll skip the descriptions:

• DVD Glossary
• Authoring and Production Checklists
• Additional Tips, Tricks & Secrets from the Pros
• Links to http://www.dvdauthor.com and other DVD Websites
• Free Trial Versions of DVD authoring programs
• Dozens of menu templates and backgrounds

Menu design and presentation:
Menus are fairly simple, but well done. They're attractive and do their job, although they're a little 'cookie-cutter'. Still, I can't criticize too much, as the navigation is simple and easy, and everything is put together well. The packaging itself is standard, and pretty much what you'd expect for this kind of production. No insert was included…maybe they didn't get a chance to see DVD Inserts: A Beginner's Guide (sorry, I couldn't resist). Overall, the design and presentation was well done.

Should anything else have been included?
I would have liked to see more detail in some of the sections, as well as some more overall content on the whole. Particularly, some interviews with other DVD producers, or even actual samples of some creative basic menu design. Still, a pretty decent amount of ground was covered, and should be enough for a beginner to digest properly.

DVD Home Moviemaking: A Beginner's Guide was a bit of a let-down in some areas, but it was put together skillfully and presents information in a easy-to-understand manner. Once again, this release is geared towards novice DVD creators, as it won't really offer much for intermediate or advanced folks. With that said, I'd advise those interested in this release to Rent It. Although you're not likely to find this at your local Blockbuster, the MSRP is a little too high to completely recommend a purchase, sight unseen. Still, it's not a bad value. If you're really interested in creating your own DVDs and see this for a good price, you could do a lot worse.