Customer Reviews

Windham Hill - Autumn Portrait

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The picture was a bit too grainy and indistinct for full enjoyment (judged aagainst newer DVDs, please don't think that the quality is so "bad" as to be unwatchable, it just could be much better). The quality of the 10 year-old VHS that I borrowed from the library was hardly worse.

The musical tracks are very good and the images of Vermont are wonderful. They deserve better treatment.

Windham Hill, please digitally re-master this (preferably in 5.1) and I would be willing to plunk down the purchase price all over again.

As it stands, buy it and enjoy it as unfortunately, this is the only way we can enjoy this wonderful collection (at least for now).

With todays graphics, video cards, cameras, DVD players, television sets etc., this release cannot hold up to the standards--the resulting resolution is fair at best (I can remember way back when I used the VHS rendition of this and the "Winter" release as video/audiophile standard test tapes).

But the magic of this and the "Winter" release is the scenery and the interpolation of the music along with it.

The new age music and the very beautiful scenery is just what is needed upon your laptop if you are on a long flight or if you live in a concrete and steel city (to remind you what trees and snow and peace is all about).

This product is one of my favorites. I love the music and the scenery. It is full of all kinds of scenery during the fall and is just magical. It arrived quickly and in excellent condition.

Just watched "Autumn Portrait" again, after not having seen it for 10 years. After re-reading my (rather harsh) review of "Water's Path" from 2000, I realized that the points against this DVD are about the same, but the video re-mastering is slightly better: If you play this in a DVD player, and watch it on an analog TV, plus turn on your old Dolby Pro Logic simulated stereo-to-3-channel, it's remarkably pleasant. Subject matter of the video probably will determine your purchase, but if you were just wanting to see what one of these Windham Hill videos was like, this one is the most readily & cheaply available, plus its transfer quality is better than "Winter" (fair) or "Water's Path" (poor). Let us ignore, for the moment, the artistic merit of new age music -- you wouldn't be reading this review if you weren't predisposed to enjoy it -- and simply say that this DVD shows the age of its release. Pioneer doesn't say whether Deluxe Digital created this reissue from original materials or from captured LaserDisc frames; but unlike "Water's Path", there are no black specks, white spots, nor any color sync problems. Sound quality is acceptable. (You get your choice of PCM or Dolby Digital.) Admittedly, I am of an age that I bought the LaserDisc in 1984, so maybe my eyes are failing, but it seems about the same quality to me. Of course, soft-focus video of moving water, falling leaves, mist, and raindrops on forest floor is not exactly technical demo disc material. But there aren't any hi-def titles to replace this old chestnut: if you want this genre, you must buy this DVD. I don't regret doing so, despite my previous disappointment that it wasn't remastered.

The sound tracks are pleasant and typical of Windham Hill; reason enough for purchasing. However, I have been profoundly disappointed with the DVD product. I was originally acquainted with the Laser Disc releases in the late 1980s and remembered them as visually stunning. However, the quality of video imagery on the DVD version is very poor resolution and not at all comparable to what is shown on the cover. Unfortunately there is better satisfaction from CD versions without distracting video.