Confused - Need to Convert 4:3 Project to 16:9

ricklaut wrote on 2/8/2005, 12:37 PM
I thought this would be simple to get my head around, but after searching the forum I ended up confused. Hope someone can help with a simple workflow.

I have a 2 1/2 minute 4:3 project that is done. It has hundreds of stills w/ effects applied, some 4:3 video and a generous amount of generated media. It will be converted to DVD and displayed on a 16:9 plasma screen, so I want to convert to progressive scan (correct?) and change the aspect ratio. I also thought it would be wise to put a 4:3 version onto the same DVD for flexibility. For the 16:9 version, I was going to render out an uncompressed avi, bring that into a new 16:9 project and render as DVD Widescreen - is that the right way or is there a better or simpler method?

I don't have a 16:9 monitor here and the DVD will be mailed to a colleague for viewing, so I don't have the luxury of experimenting to figure out what works.

Thanks!

Rick

Comments

Former user wrote on 2/8/2005, 12:41 PM
YOu know that when rendering to 16 x 9, you will either be cropping the top and bottom off of each frame, or stretching the frame horizontally? If you are using still and have not allowed for this, you might lose a few heads of people.

Also, are you sure the DVD player and the monitor support progressive scan? 16 x 9 is not progressive by default.

Dave T2
ricklaut wrote on 2/8/2005, 12:47 PM
I think I'm fine with the cropping - I will be able to see any cropping issues in the preview within Vegas, correct?

The monitor is definitely capable of progressive; I'll have to verify that the DVD player is capable of progressive as well.

Will my process work OK to get there?

Rick
JohnnyRoy wrote on 2/8/2005, 12:54 PM
The correct way to do this is to apply a 16:9 crop to each and every event in the project. Then you need to watch it and check for heads being cut off as Dave pointed out and adjust the center of the crop accordingly.

Obviously this is very tedious. You might want to try a script like Celluloid. It will convert a 4:3 project to 16:9 in one click. Then all you have to do is watch it for heads being cut off. There is a free fully-functional trial on the VASST web site so you can use it on this project for free and decide if its worth buying for future projects.

~jr
ricklaut wrote on 2/9/2005, 4:56 AM
Ok - great information. I may get Celluloid, but I need to understand a little better how this works. Does the "16:9 crop" for each clip mean changing the clips property settings (right click, change to widescreen) or just put black bars top & bottom or does the AspectRatio script do it as well?

So the workflow is simple:

- 16:9 crop for each clip
- Render to Widescreen NTSC DV format

Any special settings I need to pay attention to in DVDA2 to get both versions on the DVD?

Rick
JohnnyRoy wrote on 2/9/2005, 5:35 AM
> I may get Celluloid, but I need to understand a little better how this works

Celluloid adjusts the Pan/Crop on each event to 16:9 widescreen. Then it sets the Project settings to Widescreen. You won’t “see” the black bars because the project is now 16:9 so there is no letterboxing needed. You should render to DVD Arcthitect NTSC Widescreen.

When viewed on a 4:3 TV the DVD player will letterbox it for you in real-time. If you also want a 4:3 Fullscreen stream, you should render that before you convert to widescreen and place both streams on the DVD. Add a menu that lets the viewer select which they want to see.

~jr
Laurence wrote on 2/9/2005, 6:16 AM
Celluloid looks great, but I'd recommend spending the extra money and getting the full Ultimate-S plugin, especially since you are already doing photo montage type work. It will save you lots of time on these projects and is well worth the investment.
ricklaut wrote on 2/9/2005, 7:58 AM
Got it - thanks everyone!

Rick