convert 4:3 to 16:9

[Erik Pontius]

I would strongly advise against converting your films from 4×3 to 16×9. Just plan for your next film to be shot and framed 16×9.
For a number of reasons, the two biggest: 1) There will be quality loss. It is unavoidable. In order to “convert” your 4×3 material to 16×9, the image will need to be scaled UP so that the sides of your 4×3 frame meet the sides of the 16×9 frame. This will cause a quality loss. 2) In order to keep the aspect ratio correct when the image is scaled up, a sizeable portion of the top and/or bottom of the frame will be cropped out. You will be modifying your original artistic vision of framing. By using “pan & scan” techniques you maybe able to keep some of your framing similar, but it will not be the same, sacrifices will need to be made.

After all that if you are still curious or determined to do it, you can do this easily with After Effects.

1) Start a new AE project.
2) Import your DV AVI file into the project. Double-check to make sure that AE is properly interpreting your pixel aspect ratio and interlacing (clicking on the file, the information shown near the thumbnail in the project). If it is not correct, right-click on the AVI file and “choose interpret footage” and set the pixel aspect and interlacing properly (i.e. NTSC DV .09, lower field first)
3) Drop this DV Avi onto the “new composition” button at the bottom of the project window. This will create a new compostion the length of your AVI file.
4) Click on “Composition” then “composition settings”
5) Change the preset to “NTSC DV Widescreen” and click ok
6) Click on the layer with your AVI file. Press and hold down CTRL-ALT-SHIFT then press the H key and release all the keys. This will scale the layer to fit the width of the layer to the width of the composition.
7) Select the layer and press the P key to open the position properties. At the very beginning of the layer (press the HOME key) click the stopwatch to set a keyframe. Right-click on the keyframe and choose “toggle hold keyframe” Your diamond shaped keyframe will change to a square.
8) Scrub through your entire film, adjusting the vertical framing up or down to make sure that you are not cutting anyones eyes/mouth out, that an object of interest in the top or bottom of the 4×3 frame is not being cropped out, etc… each time you move the position a new hold keyframe will be added. You can toggle this hold keyframe on/off depending on the situation.
9) When everything is as you want it, choose to add this composition to the render queue and render out to a lossless codec (ie. Quicktime Animation).
10) Use a compression software (Squeeze, Procoder, etc…) to create a MPEG2 file with the proper pixel aspect ratio (1.2 for NTSC).
11) Author a DVD making sure that it recognizes the pixel aspect ratio of the file.
12) burn the disc
13) Make sure that your DVD player is properly setup and that it knows you have a 16×9 display.
14) play the disc.

Good luck with your next project.

Erik

[Helmuth E. guenther]

Erik,

thank you very much for your detailed explanations.

I will keep it as it is.

Best Regards

Helmuth

[Darren Edwards]

After experimenting with Red Giant’s new SD-HD up-res’ing
software, Instant HD, I think it’s possible to regain the
res lost in 4:3/16:9 re-ARCing.

After opening a 16:9 project, importing the 4:3, re-ARCing
(Aspect Ratio Conversion) the image whilst losing some of the
frame etc.; in AE, FCP or Premiere, import the file into a
720p project, apply Instant HD, up-res to 720p, render out,
and then import the 720p version into a regular SD 16:9
project and then resize down. It’s only a theory, but after
witnessing how well Instant HD up-res’d some of our DV AVI stuff,
I think it could work.

A couple of notes.
Instant HD will (currently, at least) only work with
progressive footge. That said, it’ll even up-res DV AVI
to 2K, although goodness knows how awful that’ll look.

When up-res’ing DV AVI to 720p, Instant HD’s palette has
a Sharpness dial which will also help regain some quality
lost during the 4:3 – 16:0 reARC.

Tryout version is fully functional but with a waterwark –
a mild peppering of tiny R, G and/or B pixels).
https://www.redgiantsoftware.com/instanthd.html

Good luck,
Darren.

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[Helmuth E. guenther]

Darren,

thank you very much for your answer! After some attempts I think I will stay with the 4:3 ratio on the legacy films.

New films I will do with a ratio of 16:9.

Thank you very much again!

Best Regards

Helmuth

[Darren Edwards]

Well, at least keeping it 4:3 you know you’re not
losing anything. 🙂

D.

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