XL2 16:9 and DVDs

[Bryan Aycock]

Okay I know I have to set the anamorphic flag for my DVD, but what format is this video originally in whenever I import it into an authoring program. If I set my capture settings to anamorphic and my sequence to anamorphic, then how will my editor export it to the authoring program? In other words, what format must it be in to correctively apply the flag. The reason I'm asking this is because I set my DVD up for 16:9 in iDVD, and when I played it back on my 4:3 set it still looked stretched. I mean, there was just a very very little bit of the top and bottom of the screen letterboxed, but not enough to squish it to the correct proportions.

[Mike Teutsch]

Originally Posted by Bryan Aycock

Okay I know I have to set the anamorphic flag for my DVD, but what format is this video originally in whenever I import it into an authoring program. If I set my capture settings to anamorphic and my sequence to anamorphic, then how will my editor export it to the authoring program? In other words, what format must it be in to correctively apply the flag. The reason I'm asking this is because I set my DVD up for 16:9 in iDVD, and when I played it back on my 4:3 set it still looked stretched. I mean, there was just a very very little bit of the top and bottom of the screen letterboxed, but not enough to squish it to the correct proportions.

Bryan,

Not too sure I understand your question, so forgive me if I don't. But, are you saying that you are using an anamorphic filter on your XL2 16:9 footage? The 16:9 footage is not anamorphic, but is true 16:9. No anamorphic filter needed I don't think. Just process as 16:9 regular footage. If you apply a anamorphic filter to already 16:9 footage, I think it would be stretched.

I hope that this helps, and that I understand what you are asking.

Mike

[Bryan Aycock]

No Mike, I am asking about how my computer is storing this 16:9 footage in the hard drive, basically. I know it's squished to 4:3 on tape, but if I capture anamorphic and edit anamorphic, is my computer storing it as 16:9 footage. I'm assuming it's NOT--and is storing it just as it was on tape, and it's only displayed differently in FCP. So if it's quished to 4:3 on my hard drive, I have to export it to my DVD authoring program as a true 16:9 sequence so it can correctly apply the anamorphic flag. How do I export a natively squished 4:3 image as its true 16:9 image for my authoring program?...Compressor...Quicktime...? Thanks












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[Greg Boston]

Originally Posted by Bryan Aycock

So if it's quished to 4:3 on my hard drive, I have to export it to my DVD authoring program as a true 16:9 sequence so it can correctly apply the anamorphic flag. How do I export a natively squished 4:3 image as its true 16:9 image for my authoring program?...Compressor...Quicktime...? Thanks

In short, no you don't.


Your footage will always be 720X480. You set anamorphic 'flags' for the benefit of the display device to know that the 720 horizontal pixels should be elongated to create a 16:9 aspect ratio.

Shoot XL2 in 16:9 ---> capture DV NTSC with anamorphic(this tells the NLE to stretch the picture in the viewer window)

Set editor sequence to DV NTSC with anamorphic. (this tells the editor you want to see your footage in 16:9 in the composer window)

Render your sequence.

DVD authoring. Set video asset to DV NTSC anamorphic (this tells the authoring program you want to see stuff in 16:9 as you work)

Non video assets such as graphics backgrounds or photos need to be sized in their original creation app to 853X480 to create a proper 16:9 to match the footage. They have no 'anamorphic' provision. They are what they are.

Burn the DVD image with the 'anamorphic' bit set (tells the player how to display 16:9 footage depending on which display type is attached to player. You must set this up in the player's video setup menu. Choices for 16:9 on 4:3 display are letterbox or pan and scan. You should choose letterbox)

Your video has been 720X480 for this entire process. You 'tell' various applications along the way that you are using anamorphic video so that they display it properly for you. The applications don't ever change the actual pixel dimensions of the video.

This question comes up quite frequently.

-gb-

[Nick Weeks]

That's very helpful Greg, I've always been confused about the 16:9 and anamorphic modes

Thanks

[Bryan Aycock]

Is there really that big of a problem amongst consumer DVD players and their setups for letterboxing 16:9 on 4:3 screens? Can I feel confident that my market will correctly see the footage. I must say...a 4:3 picture looks much better stretched to 16:9 (fat) than a 16:9 picture squeezed to 4:3 (skinny). What do ya'll think?

[Greg Boston]

Originally Posted by Bryan Aycock

Is there really that big of a problem amongst consumer DVD players and their setups for letterboxing 16:9 on 4:3 screens? Can I feel confident that my market will correctly see the footage. I must say...a 4:3 picture looks much better stretched to 16:9 (fat) than a 16:9 picture squeezed to 4:3 (skinny). What do ya'll think?

Might be a good idea to include a brief set of instructions inside the DVD case that basically explains to end users how to properly setup their players to see your video as it was intended (16:9).

-gb-

[Julian Seeto]

just needing a bit of clarification, but im using sony vegas.
in the project properties, i must set it to widescreen, right?
or do i leave it as regular DV?
is this the same procedure with every NLE program? or are NLE's smart enough to detect the correct mode?

julz

[Andrew Brinkhaus]

My problem isnt a part of my NLE, but rather the creation of the DVD...I know the file isnt the problem (720x480, 16:9, DV AVI) because when I play it back in QT, it displays it as a proper letterboxed 16:9 file. I'm using Adobe Encore 1.0 to author the DVD, but when I burn it and watch it on my TV, its 4:3! I cannot find any settings within Encore to change the file settings to 16:9...What to do?

[Lucinda Luvaas]

This may already have been dealt with, I don't remember...anyway: I'm trying to make my dvd letterboxed/16:9. I use a Panasonic DVD Recorder and it does, in the setup options, give me the choice of 16:9 or 4:3, and then I can go to another menu, where I can choose Letterbox, or Pan and Scan. I chose Letterbox and looked at the dvd-r after it was finalized, on my 4:3 TV upstairs, which has a 16:9 setup and letterboxes dvd's that I rent from Netflix, so I know it does have that capability, even tho' the TV is a little old. Well, my burned dvd-r didn't show as letterboxed. It just takes up the whole screen. When I play the dvd-r on my other JVC pro monitor which has 16:9 aspect as well as 4:3, it shows as 16:9, but not letterboxed, you can just jog between the 16:9 and 4:3. And, when I take the dvd's to other places where they have 16:9, they show up as 16:9, taking up the whole screen..not letterboxed, which is fine. I just want to be able to make them letterboxed too.

So, I wonder if there's anything I can do to make a letterboxed dvd-r from this dvd recorder? Anyone have any knowledge about this?

Thanks so much if you do!

Lucinda