Ben Turley
December 19th, 2010, 12:00 PM
I have some SD anamorphic clips digitized from a component source via a Blackmagic Shuttle. HDLink is being rather flaky, plus I want to trim the clips a bit so I use Blackmagic Media Express to import using the lossless 10-bit codec, with the Shuttle set to convert to anamorphic SD, then trim to another Blackmagic file using direct stream copy in Virtualdub, then convert to cineform using HDLink.
I have experimented with a number of other paths to the cineform file but however I do it Windows Explorer, Windows Media Player, Premiere Pro CS5 and Quicktime all show the clips as 4:3. GSpot and Mediainfo suggest the 5:4 pixel aspect ratio of PAL 4:3.
The closest I have come is in explicitly setting the aspect ratio to PAL anamorphic on the codec settings in Virtualdub and converting there rather than HDLink, but that involves the 8-bit 'full processing' of virtualdub plus I always hear that HDLink's files are superior. This plays widescreen in Windows media player, but still 4:3 in Quicktime and PPro.
Does anyone know a convenient way to set the pixel aspect ratio in an existing [Cineform] AVI?
If not, could it be added either in HDLink (the resize to SD PAL 16:9 does not seem to do it) or in Firstlight, alongside the various matting options in the 'framing' section.
While I'm rambling, one other thing would be on my Cineform wishlist. I'm a Windows 7 user and I understand that the Cineform tool-chain expects Administrator privileges, but I am also a Linux and Mac user away from video and my practise is to work as a basic user and escalate privileges as required (essentially Firstlight). I'm sure that administrator rights are a necessity from a technical standpoint, but at least could the 'CineFormActiveMetadataStatusViewer.exe' be added as a startup shortcut for all users, rather than sit as a direct file in the administrator's start menu? I like having it there but have to copy it across to my regular user start menu every time I update.
Other than that, I think NeoHD and Firstlight are fantastic tools and eagerly await the new toys of each update!
I have experimented with a number of other paths to the cineform file but however I do it Windows Explorer, Windows Media Player, Premiere Pro CS5 and Quicktime all show the clips as 4:3. GSpot and Mediainfo suggest the 5:4 pixel aspect ratio of PAL 4:3.
The closest I have come is in explicitly setting the aspect ratio to PAL anamorphic on the codec settings in Virtualdub and converting there rather than HDLink, but that involves the 8-bit 'full processing' of virtualdub plus I always hear that HDLink's files are superior. This plays widescreen in Windows media player, but still 4:3 in Quicktime and PPro.
Does anyone know a convenient way to set the pixel aspect ratio in an existing [Cineform] AVI?
If not, could it be added either in HDLink (the resize to SD PAL 16:9 does not seem to do it) or in Firstlight, alongside the various matting options in the 'framing' section.
While I'm rambling, one other thing would be on my Cineform wishlist. I'm a Windows 7 user and I understand that the Cineform tool-chain expects Administrator privileges, but I am also a Linux and Mac user away from video and my practise is to work as a basic user and escalate privileges as required (essentially Firstlight). I'm sure that administrator rights are a necessity from a technical standpoint, but at least could the 'CineFormActiveMetadataStatusViewer.exe' be added as a startup shortcut for all users, rather than sit as a direct file in the administrator's start menu? I like having it there but have to copy it across to my regular user start menu every time I update.
Other than that, I think NeoHD and Firstlight are fantastic tools and eagerly await the new toys of each update!