Can I convert Convert 4:3 footage to 16:9

two ways - neither of which will be the equal of material originally shot at 16:9.

1. increase the size of the image by 1.33 (iirc) then CROP the top and bottom. Since you are scaling beyond 10%, there will be visible softening of the image.

2. keep the footage at 4:3 but place a letterbox mask over the top and bottom to reduce the aspect ratio to 16:9. This does not change the resolution of the image, just alters the area displayed. The footage should be used in 4:3 sequence. If you must have 16:9 footage, this is not the way to go.

x

Studio - isn't option 1 if you are moving from 16:9 to 4:3 - but leave out the crop? Or maybe I'm not understanding the answer.

There's also a way to stretch your image if you are working in a 16:9 anamorphic sequence...

Patrick

Set up an anamorphic timeline, bring the 4:3 footage over, then using the wireframe, re-size the image - then render it up.

You could also take the master to a lab and ask them to run it through an A.R.C. (Aspect Ratio Converter).

ps - By doing this, you will obviously crop off the top and bottom of the image. It depends on if your footage is 4x3 letterbox of full frame really.

basically 3 ways to treat 4:3 footage heading for 16:9 land
Edge Crop, Letterbox, and Squeeze

Edge Crop is sizing the 4:3 footage to fit the full width of the 16:9 image area, whilst cropping off (and losing forever) the top and/or bottom of the picture that lies outside the 16:9 image area.

Letterbox is sizing the 4:3 footage to fit the full height of the 16:9 image area, whilst filling the left and right of the 16:9 image area with black (often called a pillarbox)

Squeeze is stretching/distorting the image to fill both the width and height of the 16:9 image area.

Hi Bryan

I thought I'd copy the tip my editor friend Brendan emailed me (I was trying to convert a letterboxed 4:3 show to anamorphic 16:9). I echo the reservations of the other posters; be careful the framing on each shot is action safe after conversion, especially if you're trying to do this from true 4:3 flat footage.

You will get no benefit, actually you are degrading the footage as you will
have to blow the footage up.
But if you want to try it double click on the footage in the timeline. Open
the motion tab in the viewer. Under Basic Motion set the scale to 133. Under
Distort set the aspect ratio to 33.
This is blowing your footage up 33% to make it anamorphic

Just to add to the use of pillarboxing:
Tips from Walter Biscardi and Kevin Wild on the AJA forum at the Cow.
Hiding 4x3 in a 16x9 project.

For a nice method to hide 4x3 in a 16x9 project, watch how ESPN does it on some of their footage. It's easy to replicate:
Put a layer of your same clip under you main clip. On the background clip, scale it up so it fills 16 x 9 as a background. Add a guassian blur to it. Now, on your top clip, if it looks better, soften your edges (or crop if you need).
... Kevin Wild


Fox and NBC are doing the same thing with their sports. We're using the same method on our series and it looks great. We're using a blur of 50 on the two "side panels" and it really is working out well.
... Walter Biscardi

http://forums.creativecow.net/cgi-bin/newreadpost.cgi?univpostid=861420&forumid=98&postid=861427&pview=t

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