Problems Rendering a PAL 4;3 source to PAL 16:9

[Steve Roberts]

Drag the 4:3 footage onto the 16:9 comp.
Hit ctrl-alt-shift-H to make the footage match the width of the comp. It will now be cut off top and bottom.

If you want to see it look wide and normal, hit the pixel aspect ratio correction button at the bottom of the comp window. However, the rendered file will look slightly stretched, but it must be cut off top and bottom. There’s no way around that: 16:9 is not 4:3.

[Smoran]

Thanks for that advice.

However – when I rendered the result it produced an AVI that, when viewed, was 4:3 but with vertical stretching. So somewhere in the rendering options it is producing a 4:3 file.

The render settings are:
– Qlty – best
– res – Full
– Size – 720 x 576
– Output Module – Lossless
– Format – Video Windows Movie
– Final Size – 720 x 576

I have since tried changing the Output Size to a 16:9 aspect lock (manually input) .. and this seemed to do the trick.

Do you know what the size width value should be for PAL widescreen without the slight balck bar down the sides?

What format should I render it to in order to get the best dvd quality .. and which file format for importing into a DVD archtecting paackage? … sorry for going off-piste a little

[Steve Roberts]

Okay. Files for TV, DV, or DVD are supposed to look a little squeezed on a computer, because those files contain non-square pixels, and computers display square pixels. A software DVD player converts everything to square pixels, so it looks right on a computer.

Search the COW tutorials for an article by Rick Gerard on non-square pixels for an explanation.

You need to drag the video into a PAL DV widescreen comp preset. Shift-scale the video so it fits the width of the comp — you will lose material at top and bottom. If you want it to look “normal” while you work, hit the PAR correction button as I wrote. Render to an uncompressed AVI, then use a DVD authoring app (such as Adobe Encore DVD) to compress to MPEG-2, then author the DVD in the authoring app (set the 16:9 flag according to the app’s instructions), then burn it.

It will look fine on a TV. You must test your DVD on a TV.

[Smoran]

SUCCESS!!!!!

The key was to change the Output Module Settings for Strecth to 1024×768 and then manually stretching the video (proportinately)

Obviously there is the compromise as it reduces the qualtiy a little but fills the HD screen nicely, and also there is editing work to make sure that the vid is moved to maintain key areas of the video in the “safe” area.

What I will do is create DVD’s with widescreen and 4:3 options … one full screen the other better quality.

Thanks for your patience and the help

PS I read Rick’s tutorial …. it was his comments that PAL should adjust automatically that triggered the final solution…. so again – thanks