With the turn of the century, the home computer has become a jack of all trades and video editing has never been easier than with PowerDirector Pro 2.5. PowerDirector Pro 2.5 allows you to virtually import from a plethora of different sources that include digital video cameras, TV capture cards, VCD's and even webcams. If this doesn't wet your appetite, PowerDirector can also open a variety of files that include AVI, MPG, JPEG, BMP, TIFF and even GIF. Thus allowing the user to personalise their movies in any way that they choose.
The first thing you will notice with PowerDirector is the user-friendly interface that is not only logically structured but also easy on the eyes. The software comes with a variety of wizards that allows you to create a various multimedia formats that include DVD, VCD, SuperVCD and mini-DVD, with the ability of either PAL or NTSC television standards. Once you have selected the appropriate destination for your movie via the wizard (there is also an option for hard drives), the program will automatically adjust the compression settings, frame rate and video quality of your movie. Although this is ideal for the novice user, professionals will be pleased to discover that these settings can also be manually set. If this sounds a little too complicated than PowerDirector can also create a "Quick Burn" which bypasses many of the settings and basically adjusts all the settings and engages in burning your CD or DVD without any questions asked!
The storyboard mode in PowerDirector allows you to cut and paste various scenes together, this feature is extremely reminiscent of a Hollywood movie studio. As DVD burners become more popular, the program also has the ability to create movie chapters and interactive menus that are found on just about every commercial DVD these days. Unlike earlier versions, PowerDirector now includes an advanced movie rendering algorithm that speeds back movie playback by only rendering specific sections of the movie which is an excellent feature when you have an extremely long movie.
For those that want a little more professionalism in their movies, PowerDirector also has the ability to include a variety of special effects in your movies that include motion vide effects, transition effects, audio effects, picture-in-picture effects and speed effects. The software boasts over 100 different special effects that can be added to your movie masterpieces. One our favourite special effects was the "water mark" that is commonly used on commercial stations and we added the impulsegamer logo to a variety of movies that we created which looked extremely professional.
In conclusion, PowerDirector Pro 2.5 is the perfect software accessory that caters for all your video editing needs. With the capability to import from just about any source and the ability to import a variety of file types with an in-built burning software, PowerDirector Pro 2.5 is a must own piece of software. Highly Recommended!
- Andrew B
