iMovie '09 & iDVD: The Missing Manual

Editing Backgrounds

The menu-screen background provides a look and atmosphere that defines the entire screen. As a result, choosing a new background can add a unique twist to an existing theme.

Here's what you can use as a replacement for the Apple-supplied backgrounds.

A Still Photo

Yep, you can replace the one that came with the Apple theme. In some cases, this simple action makes the theme look completely different.

Note

iDVD never distorts a photo that you install as a background. If it's not the right shape for your TV screen, you'll wind up with black letterbox bars to fill the gap. If you really care, you can prepare the photo in a program like Photoshop or Graphic Converter before installing it as a menu graphic. The dimensions for a standard TV set should be 720 x 540 pixels; for a widescreen set, use 854 x 480. (For the PAL system used in Europe, use 768 x 576 for standard, 1024 x 576 for widescreen.)

To bring this change about, drag the photo from the Media Browser (click Media, then Photos) or the Finder into any of these three spots:

• Any empty spot on the menu. Avoid the drop zones.

• The Menu Info panel. See Figure 18-7 for details on the Menu Info panel, also known as the Inspector panel.

  

  Figure 18-7. Click a blank spot on the menu, and then press ⌘-I to open the Inspector window for the menu itself. You can now drag a new photo into the Background well shown here.

• The Drop Zone ...