16:9 Image
Design the 4:3 Version
This may seem like an odd first step, but you cannot properly shoot video
for your widescreen production until you decide how you are going to fit the
16:9 image into a 4:3 raster for the millions of viewers with 4:3 displays.
There are three basic choices:
Center Crop
When shooting, frame every shot so that it will still look
acceptable with the sides cut off. Place marks on the viewfinder and review
shots throughout the process. Because of the difficulty this presents, Center
Crop is not a popular option with videographers and producers. This approach
either destroys the dynamic tension created by placing people at opposite edges
of the image when viewing the 16:9 version, or it chops off important portions
of the image when viewing the 4:3 version.
16:9 Letterbox
This approach is used often. The entire 16:9 image is squeezed to fit
within the 4:3 raster. The advantage is that nothing is lost in the frame. The
disadvantage is that roughly 25% of the available display resolution is wasted
in the gray stripes. 4:3 displays are often small and need all the
resolution they can get.
14x9 Letterbox
This is a compromise solution promoted by the BBC where the 16:9 image is
both shrunk and cropped, but by less than either single approach. It has the
advantage of higher resolution than 16:9 Letterbox, while retaining more of the
image than Center Crop. However, some feel that the resulting narrow gray
stripes look like a mistake when viewed on a typical underscanned display.
Design Graphics
After choosing a Letterboxed or Center Panel format for the 4:3 version, design the graphics using the respective guideline below.
Design Graphics - Letterboxed
Graphics can be applied before or after the 4:3 version is created. Doing
so before conversion (common graphics) saves production time but creates design
problems. Doing so after (separate graphics) offers distinct advantages that
may make the extra work worthwhile.
16:9 Image With Lower Third
Common Graphics
If the graphics are applied before aspect ratio conversion, they will be
shrunk 25% along with the image. To keep text readable, fonts may need to be
25% "oversized" on the 16:9 version. Ironically, the 16:9 version is often displayed on large screens where fonts should be smaller, not larger.
Separate Graphics
By instead creating separate graphics for 16:9 and 4:3 versions, the font size
remains constant and the 4:3 design can make use of the letterbox stripe area-
keeping the image area less cluttered.
Design Graphics - Center Panel
Again, graphics can be applied before or after the 4:3 version is created.
Doing so before conversion (common graphics) saves production time but creates
design problems. Doing so after (separate graphics) offers distinct advantages
that may make the extra work worthwhile. Here, the benefit of separate graphics
is to the 16:9 version.
Center Panel 4:3 With Lower Third
Common Graphics
The need to keep all graphics within the center 4:3 raster may leave some
viewers of the 16:9 version wondering "why don't they move the titles
over?".
Separate Graphics
By creating separate graphics for the 16:9 version, they can be optimized
for the widescreen display.
Shoot
Keep 4:3 version framing and graphics in mind when framing and reviewing
shots.
Offline
When offlining, use one of these techniques to view footage:
- Monitors or NLE with letterbox mode.
- Make letterboxed dubs for offlining.
- Just watch the clips "squashed" and don't blame the editor
later when you see them in 16:9, (at that point they will look stretched to
you).
Edit
Configure edit systems for 16:9, and keep graphics and 4:3 version in mind.
Create Graphics
If graphics are created within a professional video tool, there will often be an option to set the system for the 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio.
If the graphics are instead created in a computer tool such as Photoshop, many designers are used to sizing the graphics for import into non-linear-editors using the non-square pixel structure of digital video (720H x 486V). Often, 4:3 graphics are created using a canvas of 720H x 540V, and then resized before export to 720x486. The result when imported into the NLE will be correctly scaled images. For Widescreen production, the designer should instead work with a canvas of 864x486, and then scale to 720x486 upon export. (NLE systems using 480 vertical pixels should begin with 853x480)
Aspect Ratio Conversion, Graphics Layering
Either apply graphics before aspect ratio conversion as part of the editing process, or make the conversion and apply graphics separately to both 4:3 and 16:9 masters.
Distribution
Be sure to label versions carefully. Consider upconversion to high
definition - your digital widescreen production will look far better on
"HDTV" displays than traditional NTSC material.
