TP
Techy Peep
Founding member
All programmes generated from TVC studios are widescreen.
The problem is that new kit costs lots of money, so compromises are made.
To be honest, I'm not too sure why everyone is getting jumpy about whether it's 16:9 or 4:3. In effect, 16:9 to the viewer is letterboxed 4:3. As such, camera folk who are using 4:3 kit frame their shots accordingly (if they're Beeb anyhow)
And before Noggin gets in here (
: ), the horizontal resolution of 16:9 is the same as 4:3, but vertically is of a higher definition
(Edited by Techy Peep at 7:46 am on Sep. 25, 2001)
The problem is that new kit costs lots of money, so compromises are made.
To be honest, I'm not too sure why everyone is getting jumpy about whether it's 16:9 or 4:3. In effect, 16:9 to the viewer is letterboxed 4:3. As such, camera folk who are using 4:3 kit frame their shots accordingly (if they're Beeb anyhow)
And before Noggin gets in here (
: ), the horizontal resolution of 16:9 is the same as 4:3, but vertically is of a higher definition
(Edited by Techy Peep at 7:46 am on Sep. 25, 2001)
NG
noggin
Founding member
??? Techy Peep - Me jumpy ???
Well - I'll jump anway...
Seriously though in the UK - for all those techy digital anoraks:
4:3 = 720x576 active samples (702x576 if you are an analogue anorak)
16:9= 720x576 active samples
The number of samples is identical if you deal with raw sources, as the basic digital video format is identical.
However the 16:9 displayed frame is 'wider horizontally' - so the horizontal angular/spatial resolution is effectively reduced with the pixels/samples being wider... In other words - if you put a 16:9 telly next to a 4:3 telly of the same height, and point a 16:9 camera and a 4:3 camera at the same thing and keep the same picture height, the 16:9 picture will be softer horizontally than the 4:3 picture.
(However in reality, BBC 4:3 programmes are made in PAL, so softer than pure digital 4:3 720x576 material, so the difference in resolution is difficult to appreciate.)
This is confused further by the BBC Pres areas internally treating everything as 16:9 - even 4:3 sources.
Thus full-frame 4:3 pictures are converted to 12:9 pillarbox within a 16:9 frame as they whizz round the DTA. This means that BBC 4:3 progs (apart from CBBC which is treated differently) is reduced in HORIZONTAL resolution as the 720 horizontal samples of the 4:3 source material is squished to the central 540 horizontal samples, with 90 black samples added to create the left and right pillars. This does, therefore, reduce the horizontal resolution of 4:3 sources, effectively reducing them to an identical angular horizontal resolution to 16:9... Which is convenient... Therefore BBC 4:3 and 16:9 pictures look pretty much the same.
(And potentially a bit softer than an ITV1 digital 4:3 picture...)
I'll leave the 14:9 letterbox on analogue/pillarbox on digital arguments to others... Personally, as a widescreen viewer, I prefer it as a mid-term compromise to ITN and Skys no widescreen option.
Well - I'll jump anway...
Seriously though in the UK - for all those techy digital anoraks:
4:3 = 720x576 active samples (702x576 if you are an analogue anorak)
16:9= 720x576 active samples
The number of samples is identical if you deal with raw sources, as the basic digital video format is identical.
However the 16:9 displayed frame is 'wider horizontally' - so the horizontal angular/spatial resolution is effectively reduced with the pixels/samples being wider... In other words - if you put a 16:9 telly next to a 4:3 telly of the same height, and point a 16:9 camera and a 4:3 camera at the same thing and keep the same picture height, the 16:9 picture will be softer horizontally than the 4:3 picture.
(However in reality, BBC 4:3 programmes are made in PAL, so softer than pure digital 4:3 720x576 material, so the difference in resolution is difficult to appreciate.)
This is confused further by the BBC Pres areas internally treating everything as 16:9 - even 4:3 sources.
Thus full-frame 4:3 pictures are converted to 12:9 pillarbox within a 16:9 frame as they whizz round the DTA. This means that BBC 4:3 progs (apart from CBBC which is treated differently) is reduced in HORIZONTAL resolution as the 720 horizontal samples of the 4:3 source material is squished to the central 540 horizontal samples, with 90 black samples added to create the left and right pillars. This does, therefore, reduce the horizontal resolution of 4:3 sources, effectively reducing them to an identical angular horizontal resolution to 16:9... Which is convenient... Therefore BBC 4:3 and 16:9 pictures look pretty much the same.
(And potentially a bit softer than an ITV1 digital 4:3 picture...)
I'll leave the 14:9 letterbox on analogue/pillarbox on digital arguments to others... Personally, as a widescreen viewer, I prefer it as a mid-term compromise to ITN and Skys no widescreen option.
TP
Techy Peep
Founding member
Thanks Noggin! I knew you were going to come in! ha ha LOL 
Basically, because the vertical resolution is the same for 4:3 as it is 16:9, when your TV or box adjusts the 16:9 data to view widescreen (squashing it) you end up with a higher definition and clearer pictures
Basically, because the vertical resolution is the same for 4:3 as it is 16:9, when your TV or box adjusts the 16:9 data to view widescreen (squashing it) you end up with a higher definition and clearer pictures