Michael_Richard
Active member
why doesn't widescreen footage look like letterbox in a 4 x 3 tv? Is there any way to encode those instructions in the DVD. It always comes up full screen, and stretched at this point. Is this just the way it is?
widescreen
- Thread starter Michael_Richard
- Start date
Re: widescreen
For widescreen footage to look like letterbox in a 4 x 3 tv you will have to encode the widescreen into the mpeg file. In Vegas-DVD Architect you pick one of the widescreen presets in FCP I not sure how to - I use only Vegas? Someone with more knowledge may have to help here but I believe by changing the pixel aspect ratio from .9 (standard 4x3) to 1.2 16x9) will also work. But I know in Vegas you use one of the widescreen templates.
For widescreen footage to look like letterbox in a 4 x 3 tv you will have to encode the widescreen into the mpeg file. In Vegas-DVD Architect you pick one of the widescreen presets in FCP I not sure how to - I use only Vegas? Someone with more knowledge may have to help here but I believe by changing the pixel aspect ratio from .9 (standard 4x3) to 1.2 16x9) will also work. But I know in Vegas you use one of the widescreen templates.
Barry_Green
Moderator
Re: widescreen
Right -- you can do exactly what you want, but that happens when you encode the MPEG file for the DVD.
Right -- you can do exactly what you want, but that happens when you encode the MPEG file for the DVD.
Michael_Richard
Active member
Re: widescreen
I guess the reason I am gettting confused is my home theater setup at home. Samsung EDTV which will do progressive scan in DTV mode, which is how I watch DVD movies, to go along with a progressive scan dvd player.
When I play a widesreen dvd I have to hit the aspect button on the remote, much like the 16 x9 button on the little toshiba to see the picture in it's proper format. If I don't hit that aspect button the picture shows up as full screen.
On older tvs I am guessing that it will show up correctly, because I just tested the DVD's I burned on a couple of computers and footage I shot in squeeze mode displays correctly as widescreen on the monitors.
So if I shoot squeeze mode for dvd I can expect that the footage will look letterboxed, which is all I am concerned about. And I don't get the crop that I would get If I used letterbox.
I guess the reason I am gettting confused is my home theater setup at home. Samsung EDTV which will do progressive scan in DTV mode, which is how I watch DVD movies, to go along with a progressive scan dvd player.
When I play a widesreen dvd I have to hit the aspect button on the remote, much like the 16 x9 button on the little toshiba to see the picture in it's proper format. If I don't hit that aspect button the picture shows up as full screen.
On older tvs I am guessing that it will show up correctly, because I just tested the DVD's I burned on a couple of computers and footage I shot in squeeze mode displays correctly as widescreen on the monitors.
So if I shoot squeeze mode for dvd I can expect that the footage will look letterboxed, which is all I am concerned about. And I don't get the crop that I would get If I used letterbox.
Barry_Green
Moderator
Re: widescreen
Sounds like you need to go into your DVD player's menu and tell it you have a 4x3 TV, and that when it plays back a 16x9 DVD that you want the DVD player to automatically letterbox it.
The way you're doing it now, sounds like the DVD player thinks it already has a 16x9 TV connected to it, so it doesn't have to do any letterboxing.
The way you're doing it is probably giving you higher resolution though -- a TV with a switchable aspect ratio should give higher resolution than a DVD player's digital resizing algorithm.
Sounds like you need to go into your DVD player's menu and tell it you have a 4x3 TV, and that when it plays back a 16x9 DVD that you want the DVD player to automatically letterbox it.
The way you're doing it now, sounds like the DVD player thinks it already has a 16x9 TV connected to it, so it doesn't have to do any letterboxing.
The way you're doing it is probably giving you higher resolution though -- a TV with a switchable aspect ratio should give higher resolution than a DVD player's digital resizing algorithm.
Mike_Donis
Veteran
Re: widescreen
Definitely - I have a TV with an "Enhanced 16:9" option - it basically compresses the whole TV into a 16:9 window - kind of like resizing a computer monitor. It keeps full resolution, but the effect is a letterboxed image inside a 4:3 shape.
DVDs look great!
Definitely - I have a TV with an "Enhanced 16:9" option - it basically compresses the whole TV into a 16:9 window - kind of like resizing a computer monitor. It keeps full resolution, but the effect is a letterboxed image inside a 4:3 shape.
DVDs look great!