I finished cutting the DVD of the photos from April's trip to Japan, something I've been meaning to do for a while. I divided the photos into the separate locations (flight across, Nara, Takayama, etc) and used Picasa's create movie function to generate movies from the sets of photos. I found that the best compromise between file size and creation speed were to use the Indeo video compression with quick compress set on. Picasa uses a pan and scan technique to add movement to the photo slideshow.
I imported each of the movies into Ulead Video Studio 8, where I added transitions and music. Already I can see the limitations using Video Studio, but then I'm not trying to create a masterpiece. Even a photo slideshow is too much work.
Most of the music is from John Williams' soundtrack to Memoirs of a Geisha, although I added a little of Alan Silvestri's The Abyss for the Osaka Aquarium scenes.
Now I need to make movies of all our other holidays…