...and see the world thru a letterbox.

[jerryapril]

Hi guys

I wonder if there is a choice to buy a full screen BD's instead of letterboxed ones. I think at the down of BD they all seemed to be a full screen format. Now, its hard to get one. Avatar and Easy Rider comes to my mind as a full screen ones, as an example.

Or is it just me not liking a visor view? No, I did not drive a tank....

 

[simonlewis]

1) first of all you should have an oppertunity on your remote to zoom in on the picture.

2) if you zoom in you are missing half the film.

3) philips have a 21.9 widescreen tv.

4) of the picture is too small, you should have bought a bigger tv.

 

[bigboss]

Well, that's how the films are shot. Philips as mentioned, has a 21:9 TV instead of the usual 16:9.

16:9 is for the majority of TV programmes. A 21:9 TV will show black bars on each side with 16:9 programmes.

You can zoom it, but it will distort the picture and you will lose some picture on each side.

 

[MajorFubar]

Here's to more letterboxes. I remember when 4:3 was the norm and most films were pan-n-scan. Now and again you'd end up with two opposing noses talking to each other because the characters' faces were on the far L&R of the frame. Or you'd see one guy talking but not the person he was talking to.

 

[Glacialpath]

Think of it like this. 4:3 as the smallest picture (not always) the 16:9 has more picture either side of the 4:3. Then a 21:9 pictur eis even wider still than the 16:9. So when you get a letterbox picture it's because if you tried to fit the top of the picture where it meets the letter box and the bottom of the picture where it meets the letter box at the top and bottom of your 16:9 TV then the sides of the picture would be outside either side of you TV hence you loose that much picutre.

The best way round it is get a 21:9 projector screen with a projector that has an anamorphic lens. Then you won't have black masks top and bottom of the picture, you will just see the picture get wider.

Films broadcast on some TV channels still get the Pan-n-Scan treatment i.e. cutting the sides of the picture off to fit it full screen. You loose picture resolution that way and what once was a 1920x1080 picture including the black bars beomes reduces then rescaled up to 1080 having lost half the fine detail from the picture.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspect_ratio_(image)

Check out this link it will show you what I mean.