-
4:3 and Letterboxing
Hello all….again!
The stuff keeps rolling downhill on this project I am on and I am about to jump out my window….which is on the 1st floor so it would be more of a symbolic jump than a real jump but anyway……
My client just sent me the broadcast standards for their network and it has be staring at the work I just did and wondering how to salvage it. The timeline is a NTSC DV 720×480 Timeline with Anamorphic 16:9 as the footage was given to me shot widescreen on everything ranging from ripping a DVD to HDV footage and everything in between.
Anyway, the question here is that the broadcast standards were just given to me as: “NRB Network content broadcast format is Standard Definition [4:3]. While material with a 16:9 presentation is acceptable, it must be delivered to NRB Network as a “letterboxed” 4:3 master. Anamorphic 16:9 (tall and skinny) is not acceptable.”
So after I laid off a DVCAM master for them as an anamorphic but now that won’t work. However, the Widescreen Matte Effect in FCP doesn’t have a 16:9 setting, just 1.66:1 and other film ratios.
So anyway, the question is how do I take a 4:3 timeline and make it 16:9 via letterboxing to meet the networks demands?
Thanks so much all.
-
6 Replies
-
Some video cards can letterbox on the fly so you could use one if you have it. I know the AJA Kona3 does it.
Simple drop that anamorphic sequence in a standard 4:3 sequence, everything else set to match the prev sequence. You now have a letterboxed sequence. Just output this to tape and you are good to go.
-
Love the levity in your post, Jonathan.
And ditto to what Michael says.
-
I’m beginning to wonder why I always think I need to send these types of jobs to Compressor…
HD to SD, anamorphic to letterbox – is the scaling in FCP as good as what I’d get out of Compressor with all settings tailored for best quality?
-Adam
– – –
Video Photographer / Avid & Final Cut Editor -
For HD to SD, I’d use compressor.
-
Hi Michael,
Thanks for the reply ( and sorry for the long delay in answering).
I sadly do not have a tower to have an AJA/Black Magic card. I am stuck on an iMac for the moment so my only means of out putting is vi FW to a SONY HDV/DVCAM deck.
Do you have any other suggestions?
– Jonathan
-
Hey Jonathan
As Michael noted, drop the Anamorphic 16:9 edit into a standard (not anamorphic) DV NTSC sequence … it will letterbox it automatically and you can output/export as needed.
Best
Andy
Reply to this Discussion! Login or Sign Up