4:3 to 16:9 Conversion Advice

[SaullyG]

Hi,
I have a client who now wants their 4:3 SD Video in a 16:9 Format.
I have read some posts regarding use of the layout tool but will this
method deliver better results than reencoding the mpeg2 thru Procoder
using a 16:9 setting?

Appreciate any advice.... Thanx much

SaullyG

[Tobe]

If the original is SD 4:3, then simply stretching it to 16x9 will give you a stretched lower resolution image that probably will not look good. Is there a reason the client wants it to become 16x9?

[STORMDAVE]

Zooming in 33% in the Layout tool seems to do the trick. Add the sharpen filter at about 15.

Just a warning, it might look bad, so check the quality before sending it out.

[SaullyG]

Is there a reason the client wants it to become 16x9?

The reason they now want it 16:9 is because they are insane! I get all the winners to work with.

SaullyG

[STORMDAVE]

My cameras only do 4:3 (Unfortunately) so I still deliver 4:3 and just tell the clients either they can zoom in with their TV, stretch (all of them will look fat) or just leave it as it is and the TV will display black bars on the left and right side. I think it's the black bar issue that people don't want to deal with.

By the way, if you shoot 4:3 and want to do 16:9 in post, you have to shoot properly. My Cameras have 16:9 guides (though they don't allow you to shoot 16:9, go figure) so if I "really" need to incorporate 16:9 footage in a project, I use these guides then zoom in 33% from the Layout tool.

I had to do something like this recently. I did a whole project in 16:9 but had to shoot some new footage. Shot it in 4:3 and zoomed in, looks pretty good.

[pjsssss]

Here's a nice little tutorial on Layout by Randy

http://www.rdonato.com/Tutorials/HDVandEdiusLayout/

[SaullyG]

Hi all,
I attemped to change the the 4:3 footage to 16:9 using the layout tool but I am
not achieving satisfactory results without unchecking the "keep aspect ratio" box.
Am I going about this the improper way?

Thanx,
SaullyG.

[STORMDAVE]

Hi all,
I attemped to change the the 4:3 footage to 16:9 using the layout tool but I am
not achieving satisfactory results without unchecking the "keep aspect ratio" box.
Am I going about this the improper way?

Thanx,
SaullyG.

If you uncheck "Keep aspect ratio" your image will squeeze into a 16:9 form, so no this isn't what you're supposed to be doing. Objects will look "fat". Most TV's even DVD players have this feature built in, so it would be useless to burn a DVD like this.

You're zooming in your image by 33%, scaling up pixels that weren't there before. If your footage is digitbeta @ 4:2:2 color space, you might have much better results. DV just won't look as good as more expensive footage. It's a lose/win situation.

[tingsern]

If you uncheck "Keep aspect ratio" your image will squeeze into a 16:9 form, so no this isn't what you're supposed to be doing. Objects will look "fat". Most TV's even DVD players have this feature built in, so it would be useless to burn a DVD like this.

I thought if you stretch a 4:3 image into a 16:9, objects will look "thin", not "fat". Am I getting it right?

[STORMDAVE]

I thought if you stretch a 4:3 image into a 16:9, objects will look "thin", not "fat". Am I getting it right?

No, if you stretch a 4:3 imagine into 16:9, people will look "fat". If you play 16:9 footage on a 4:3 monitor, it will look "thin"...unless your monitor supports a 16:9 switch, which my PVM monitor does. It adds black bars on the top and bottom for 16:9 footage so the aspect ratio is displayed correctly.

[muleferg]

If you play 16:9 footage on a 4:3 monitor, it will look "thin"...

I remember doing a job for a heavy lady once and her comment was ...can you make me look thin. So I shot it in 16.9. She saw it and loved it.
Mule

[xeberdee]

You could always put a black bars on the top and bottom of the 4:3 to get it to look like 16:9 viewing on a 4:3 set :)
But it does loo strange on a 16:9 box.