Web of lies...

Today someone pointed out that I missed Monday to start my DVD making guide. Instead of going back in time and just editing the post to not make me a liar I will just throw myself upon my sword thru neck and be a day late.

That being said, allow me to lay upon you my "Guide to Magic DVD Production".

Let's start with the basics: Video Chapters.

If I have learned one thing watching magic DVDs it's that you guys LOVE to put redundant title cards at the beginning of every... damn... chapter. The worst part of that is it's the SAME animation or video with the SAME shitty music. Allow me to break something down for you that will make your DVD less annoying to those watching it.

Unless the title cards add something to the forthcoming video, don't bother!

Redundant titles with the same piece of music get boring fast. If you can put a piece of footage that is about to demonstrate what you are about to see or learn next it's much more engaging. If your video is not structured that way then just use a "dip to black" transition and put a text title up over the teaching footage for a few seconds.

Also there is nothing wrong with using the same song over title cards but it should be a different part of the same song. Not the exact same piece of music constantly. That's just lazy.

So remember, if you simply must put something before the next chapter:

• Make it different footage/music every time
• Have it relate to what you are about to learn/see
• It better be short.

Speaking of titles, if you use a program that lets you create your own chapter points it's ok to have chapters stuck in at various parts of the timeline that don't necessarily have a solid link somewhere. Think of it like having a break in a paragraph. If the subject you are discussing is long, throw a point in when you veer off subject onto a related topic. It will make it easier for people to skip thru and find what they are looking for instead of fast forwarding thru 20 minutes of your annoying voice.

Speaking of music... we'll cover that in the next installment.