No bars for 16:9 footage shots using XL2

if you did not capture these clips using a DV PAL Anamorphic capture preset then you need to add the anamorphic flag to them now ... with the Browser window in list view scroll the window to the right until you see the column heading "Anamorphic", then click in that column to add a tick adjacent to each captured source clip

ok, now you have told FCP that these clips should in fact be displayed / treated as 16:9

now you can choose to edit in a DV PAL Anamorphic timeline which will give you full frame 16:9 or in a standard (4:3) DV PAL timeline which will give you letterboxed 16:9 in a 4:3 frame

The XL2 has 4:3 aspect ratio CCD's. When you record 16:9 footage, it is aquired Full height Anamorphic, (FHA), i.e. the image is "squeezed" to 4:3 frame size so that it can be viewed as full frame 16:9 later. What changes is the pixel aspect ratio not the image aspect ratio.

The viewfinder on the XL2 is 4:3. However, in order to aid in composition, "safe area" framing, etc. the viewfinder shows black bars top and bottom when the XL2 is switched to 16:9 mode. This is purely an aesthetic issue to enable the videographer to visualise the footage as it will finally look in 16:9 while using a 4:3 viewfinder during recording.

Therefore, you are not supposed to see the black bars top and bottom of the image in FCP. You should be looking at full frame 16:9 footage without any black bars. So, what you are seeing is correct as long as your footage is either captured as anamorphic or you "ticked" the anamorphic field in the clip properties as described above.

Best Regards.

What are you viewing the image on? If the monitor is 16:9 then there should be no letterboxing (black bars) visible. If you are viewing the image on the computer screen, then the box that the video is displayed in (the canvas) can be reshaped as needed.

Hello,
I have XL2 and I use the same settings you use. I resolved this issue by this way:

Solution number one:

Capture settings: PAL 48 kzh Anamorphic;
Project settings: PAL 48 kzh Anamorphic.

You won't see black top and bottom bars, but don't worry. When you'll export it to Compressor (I hope you use it, if not, jump to the "Solution number two" of this message) select settings you want to apply to your video (for example DVD Best quality 90 min/MPEG-2 6.2Mbps 2-pass), then, clicking on your video element you will active settings management in the inspector window: here, the fourth voice (icon) is "filters": chose this, click it, then scroll down the panel until "letterbox" voice and select it, marking the square. Done this, immediately below, on the "Output" voice select 16X9 1.78:1 and preview the result on the preview window. You will have your video letterboxed with black top and bottom bars.

The solution number two:

Capture settings: PAL 48 kzh Anamorphic;
Project settings: PAL 48 kzh.

Move you captured clip inside the DV PAL 48 kzh sequence, you will have a letterboxed image. The last time I did this was with fcp 5, maybe now fcp 6 will ask you if you want it to convert for you the sequence settings to the source video settings. Tell him no.

I prefer the solution number one because here you will downconvert (sorry HD editors! It's not the proper therm! It's metaphoric!) the full XL2 sensor image to the DV pal 4:3 (isn,t it?) proportion, forcing fcp displayng letterboxing bars but loosing some real time effects you would have on the first scenario.


All this comes from a pratical. sometimes blind, experience. So, maybe something I said will be wrong. Everyone feel free to correct my mistakes, helping me to get better and better.

Best things,
Stefano Bianchi

Message was edited by: stebianchi

Message was edited by: stebianchi

Hi Roy,
Please see my previous post.

If you have recorded your footage with the XL2 set to 16:9 you are not supposed to see Black Bars top and bottom of your image in FCP.

The misunderstanding you are having is that you are expecting to see in FCP what you saw in the camera viewfinder and that just isn't going to happen. I know this sounds crazy but it's true of these early pro-sumer cameras.

Look carefully at the camera. Examine the viewfinder... it's 4:3. Take off the lens and look at the CCD... it's 4:3.

So... if your not seeing the bars in FCP your seeing your footage as it is supposed to be i.e. 16:9 "Full Height Anamorphic" or "FHA".

There is a little demo animation on Canon's site that may help explain what I am trying to say.

Click this link and then click on features and scroll down a bit to see it....

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=ModelInfoAct&fcategoryid=165&mo delid=10350#ModelFeaturesAct

Also, I have a PDF diagram I've used to explain this issue to students in the past. It may be helpful. I'll try and mail it. I don't think these discussions allow for attachments here.

Hope this all helps,
Best regards.

Message was edited by: FxDude

I wait for results!
Keep me informed, and good luck!

Stefano

Not so professional... I prefer the tea to the coffee (= time)!

Video Grain/noise could come from Gain control switched on (better would be not using it, unless you're in a very, very dark situation).

Or maybe - but I say, maybe - it could be generated by an excessive amount of effects added by the camera controls. If you have activated a lot of extra image filters, try to low them down a bit, and see what happend.

If there was a low light (night scenes), even if you didn't use gain or effects, image could be noisy: you should increase lights (where possible).

Strong dominants (sunlightin white balance settings in tungsten lighted scenes) can deteriotate your image quality.

I've never used color - at now - but I'm afraid MiniDV's color sampling ( http://www.larryjordan.biz/articles/lj_sampling.html) is too low to be elastic enought to be easily manipulated (or saved). Metaphorically, it's like trying to elaborate a 30 dpi image in Photoshop...

But If you (or someone else) reading this post will find something I told is mistaken, please write back!

Good luck Santu!

Stefano

Santu Roy wrote:
You mean it does not show bars in the Canvas? then why I see gray bars sometime?

Hi Roy,
Yes I mean you are not supposed to see black bars in the Canvas!!

My guess is that the grey bars you are seeing are part of the Viewer or Canvas because you have changed the aspect ratio of your footage as you described above. They are not part of your footage! so you can ignore them. They are part of the FCP User Interface.
Here is a way to verify this...

Create a project in FCP Make sure that it is DV PAL 48 KHz with a 4:3 aspect ratio, i.e. Anamorphic is off.

Create a sequence in the project and make sure the Sequence settings are the same as the project settings.

Reset the View in FCP by selecting Window> Arrange> Standard.

You should now have 4:3 aspect Viewer and Canvas.

Now import some footage into the project. Doesn't matter what it is.

In the Bin Ctrl>Click on the imported footage and choose Item Properties> Format... from the Menu.

Scroll through the format properties until you see Anamorphic and make sure it is NOT ticked. This indicates that the footage will display as 4:3 which is what we want for the purpose of this test.

Click OK to exit the format properties.

In the BIn double click on the footage to load it into the viewer. The footage should fill the Viewer with no bars on top bottom or sides.

Drag the footage to the Canvas to insert it into the sequence. The footage should fill the Canvas with no bars on top bottom or sides.

Now go back to the bin. Ctrl>Click on the footage again and choose Item Properties> Format... again.

Scroll to the Anamorphic field again but this time turn on Anamorphic by clicking in the Clip column. A tick should appear next to Anamorphic and...

Grey bars will appear above and below the footage in the Viewer.

The same thing will happen in the Canvas if you select Sequence> Settings and click the Anamorphic check box in the General Tab.

Now... If these are the grey bars you are referring to then as you can see they are nothing to do with your footage. They belong to FCP. So you can ignore them. If you want to get rid of them Here's how...

Resize the Viewer and Canvas windows so that the grey bars dissappear, (drag the windows from the bottom right corner to resize). This will also free up more workspace area for you which is a bonus.

If you want to avoid seeing the grey bars again then save a custom window layout in Window> Arrange> Save Window Layout...

I think that should solve that one... Happy days! 🙂

Now for the second part of your question...

Santu Roy wrote:
Else how do I get bars while exporting as MPEG2?

There is more confusion here...

Why do you want the Bars in your MPEG2?

The only reason reason to create an MPEG2 with black bars from your source footage, (which is 16:9 FHA) is if you intend your master to be viewed or displayed only on 4:3 devices or frames. i.e. 4:3 TV's, 4:3 Computer Monitors, 4:3 Studio Monitors, 4:3 Projecters, or on a website in a 4:3 frame such as YouTube. Most of those just mentioned are "old technology" now.

All 16:9 devices will automatically display the footage correctly if set to do so.

If you really need to do this then it is something that can be easily done in Compressor using the letterbox filter. However, be sure you need it to do it. Remember that you are basically reducing the size of your original footage and also, if people view it on a 16:9 display it will look strange.

I've always referred to this process as "Deep letterbox 16:9 for 4:3 output" but I'm sure it is called other things as well.

Whether you decide to add the bars to your MPEG or not, remember it is something you would do on your edit master so you can go ahead with the edit without the bars for now anyway.

Hope this helps you,
Best regards.

Hi Roy

Very happy you have been answered on the grey bars issue 🙂

Ok we have got to try to get the rest of this sorted for you.

This whole bars / no bars thing seems to have you very confused.

Please take time to read back over our previous posts carefully.

As I said, you are NOT... that is... NOT supposed to see the black bars on correctly displayed anamorphic footage.

You wrote:

Santu Roy wrote:
So you mean if the settings is set to 16:9 anamorphic although I don't see bars it will appear of his own when viewed?

NO I do not mean this.

The bars will not appear on their own because they are not there to begin with.

If you want to "Letterbox" your final edit, i.e. cause bars to be displayed top and bottom, then you have put them there yourself. The best way is to do it in Compressor as outlined above.

I think maybe the problem is that you don't understand what Anamorphic is.

Did you get the pdf file I mailed you containing diagrams of the different display aspects?

If you did not get the mail let me know and I'll send it again.

If you did get it please look carefully at the Anamorphic image (frame 2 in the pdf). You will notice it is horizontally squeezed. Looking at these images should help you understand.

When you tick the Anamorphic option in FCP you are telling FCP to display your footage in the correct dimensions as shown in frame 1 of the pdf.

I now have to repeat my earlier question... and please answer...

Why do you want the bars in your image? or, in other words... Why do you want to Letterbox your footage?

Also

Santu Roy wrote:

Every movie I see is having bar...

What movies are you talking about and do you know what format they were shot in?

please take time to think about this.

Regards.