Buying Sound and Vision

Let’s face it. iDVD has a lot of nice themes—but they’re not always the right themes. Life isn’t limited to theaters, road trips, and weddings. There are other holidays, other life events, other styles. If you’re celebrating Christmas or Valentine’s Day, a graduation, or a new home, or if you’re just looking for a different look, then you might want to think about going commercial. With some money to spend, you can expand the way your iDVD projects look and sound.

Store-Bought Themes

If you want new themes that just work, the way that built-in iDVD themes do, then buying pre-built themes can be the way to go. Once installed, third-party themes appear in your iDVD themes list; just click to use. Theme prices start at about $6 for a single theme or about $30 for a pack of six or more. Price, quality, and availability vary. Figure 22-5 showcases a couple of third-party offerings.

Motion Backgrounds

If you’re looking for another way to kick up your DVD productions a notch, then consider buying some commercial video loops for your menu backgrounds. Dozens of companies sell royalty-free video clips for use in movies and television. The price varies from barely affordable to “they’ve-got-to-be-kidding.” Page 451 describes how to add a motion background to your iDVD project for a professional flair.

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