How to make Subpictures with Photohsop

[Cunhambebe]

Hi there!
I'm having such a hard time trying to figure out how subpictures work. I can design menus in photoshop, but I it seems I still can't make subpictures in order to open the file with DVD Maestro.
Some users around here have kindly helped me but the outcome is the same: failure. Let's see what's happening..

1.I design the menu in Photoshop (many layers, each one for a certain feature: titles, pics, etc.
2.Over all these layers I set a new one and fill it with blue.
3.I hide this layer, click on the next down under and hit merge visible.

When I open the file in DVD Maestro it doesn't work, even if in the step number 2. I set red buttons over the blue color.

Another user told me to design 2 layers: one with the titles and background and the other one with the same titles in white and a black background - still don't know how to do this.

Any help, please?
Thanks in advance

[awai]

http://www.crazypants.com/reeltutorials/stillbasics.htm

[walter4h]

You may want to have a look at:
http://www.daileycreative.com/ReelDVD/Tutorial/Tutorial_3.asp
The links to the next and previous pages should be there.
However, this tutorial and also the one at CrazyPants.com
recommend a layer per each button, plus one for bkg.
Arky said it is not necessary, you can have all buttons in one layer
https://www.videohelp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=216658
(very helpful post, thanks again, Arky)
I tried it with ReelDVD, it works fine.
As far as I understand it, you can use a dedicated layer for ea button if you want only one button at a time to be seen, as you navigate. If you do not mind having all of them (visible or not) on the menu, then they can all be in one layer.
I have no idea how to do it with Maestro, but with ReelDVD I draw the buttons in Photoshop, all in one layer, with the color similar to that of the bkg, but still, a bit different to be able to see them in the Preview Design mode.
The second layer of that Photoshop file is my bkg, I save it as .PSD and then import into ReelDVD as "still menu with subpicture". Then go into Preview design mode, select the tool to outline the buttons and draw them over the borders of those buttons I created in Photoshop. I like the default "play-action-select" colors, so I did not bother changing them.
I tried to design a fancy bkg, with still pics from the movies, but could not make ReelDVD encode them properly - msg "Encoding still menu ***.psd" stays forever, and the resulting .bmp is just a black field.
But when I made the bkg of my menu one-color, everything worked fine.
hth: walter