tape or overlay on LCD in 4:3 for 16:9

[Shawn Murphy]

I want to shoot native 4:3, then crop to 16:9 in post. How do I determine how much tape or overlay to use on the LCD to ensure accurate framing? (I think I saw a post by Disjecta saying that he does it all by eye, but alas I'm not there yet)

 

[wahrez]

I did a calculation to get a 2.35 and then overlayed transparant tape. It worked fine and was accurate.

I figured out a way of checking though. I pulled some footage into to FCP at 4:3 and used the widescreen option to put bars top and bottom at 2.35:1 and with the footage being output to the camera the black bars matched exactly.

Hope this helps.

 

[GCM_Brad]

Here is what I do - put the camera into widescreen mode, lay the tape across the LCD, lining the edge up with the black bars. Put the camera back into normal 4:3.

I tested this out with some footage shot in widescreen and then imported into vegas - the black bars put on the widescreen footage matches perfectly with the 16:9 crop preset in vegas.

 

[kplo]

Be really, REALLY careful with tape. They're not all created equal...some can leave a nasty residue on your LCD.

Ken

 

[Shawn Murphy]

Here is what I do - put the camera into widescreen mode, lay the tape across the LCD, lining the edge up with the black bars. Put the camera back into normal 4:3.

I tested this out with some footage shot in widescreen and then imported into vegas - the black bars put on the widescreen footage matches perfectly with the 16:9 crop preset in vegas.

Well duh, I guess that was easier than I thought! And thanks for the reminder 'kplo' I think I'm actually going to use an overlay, I'll experiment with transparent and non-transparent, perhaps as an integral/optional part of my DIY hood idea which will be secured using Velcro.

Thanks again.