Beginner questions about display ratio and size (Answered)

[KyDan]

Greetings, I know this topic was discussed recently but I'm afraid to say some

of the questions and answers were a bit over my head.

Also I have a slightly different question on proper display.

I recently created a family slide show.

I used photos that are 1600 x 1200.

I have rendered a DVD of that show.

When I watch it on a 42" wide screen TV with screen size of 1920 x 1080

the show is stretched extra wide to fill the screen.

I can live with that. It's not extreme but if I can improve it I'd like to try.

I do not care if there are black bars on the sides of the screen.

In fact, I would prefer black bars with no distortion in the images.

Re-sizing and cropping all my photos seems like a lot of work for me.

( I know how to batch re-size them but the ratio is not changed)

Is there some setting in P2E that I can use to make the DVD display

properly?

Specifically in the Project Options screen tab what should my settings be for

Aspect ratio of slide?

Virtual size of slide?

Should the box be checked for Fixed size of slide?

Can someone give a beginner a very basic description of what these 3 items do for me?

I know some of you regulars are probably rolling your eyes because this has been

covered before!

I would just experiment and try different settings and burn a DVD for each to

see the results but my computer takes over 3 hours to render the show so I am

hoping there is an easy answer to my needed settings and I will then try another

burn.

Related question--

Do the above settings need to be changed if I create an MP4 file and watch that

on my HD TV via a Western Digital media player or Playstation3 console?

(I don't have one of those yet, but can borrow one on occasion)

Thanks for your help and patience!

[Guest Yachtsman1]

Hi Dan

Have you tried to change the aspect ratio on your TV? My Panasonic 32inch has 5 different settings. If you don't mind a quick fix with a black surround that may be the answer for this particular show?

Yachtsman1

[KyDan]

Have you tried to change the aspect ratio on your TV?

I have a view button that toggles between zoom and stretch but it doesn't seem to

make the DVD display in the correct ratio.

I wonder if some DVD players might be able to change this but the one I have

doesn't seem to want to help me there either.

[fh1805]

Dan,

I suspect that Yachtsman1 has pin-pointed your problem. It is quite likely that the re-sizing is happening between your DVD player and your TV rather than anything that PTE has or hasn't done. Does the aspect ratio of your TV match the aspect ratio at which you built the sequence?

With regards to the three settings you mention: firstly I must point out that I do not burn to DVD or play direct to my TV. However, some brief investigation has revealed the following: a sequence that I am working on, built using images sized at 1024x768 and with the Project Options...Screen setting of Aspect ratio = 4:3 (to match my digital projector), gives a Virtual Size of slide of 1024x768 (I didn't set that size, PTE set it for me).

Now, if I change the Aspect ratio to 5:4 (which then matches my monitor), PTE changes the Virtual Size to 1280x1024 (which matches the native resolution of my monitor). The visible effect of this change can be seen in the thumbnails of the slides and in the mini-player image. If I change it again to 16:9 (to simulate a HD format device) then the Virtual Size changes to 1280x720. And again I can see the effect in the thumbnails and mini-player.

So this seems to be a bit like changing the canvas size in Photoshop except that PTE resizes the images to fit as best it can whilst at the same time constraining the image proportions to their original aspect ratio.

"Fixed size of slide" would be ticked where, for whatever reason, you had a sequence built at, say, 1024x768 and, if it was to be played back on a monitor of 1280x1024, you did NOT want the images to be up-sized by PTE to fit the larger area.

I suggest that you create a little two or three slide sequence and play around with these settings to see for yourself what happens. Remember, when testing out PTE function it is usually best not to do it with one of your epic masterpieces - but on a small "throw it in the can if it goes wrong" sequence. And use re-writeable media so that you aren't simply producing lots of shiny silver coasters.

regards,

Peter

[Guest Yachtsman1]

I have a view button that toggles between zoom and stretch but it doesn't seem to

make the DVD display in the correct ratio.

I wonder if some DVD players might be able to change this but the one I have

doesn't seem to want to help me there either.

Hi Dan

The button you are talking about is the zoom button which just stretches the already stretched image. If your TV controller has a button named aspect, or you have aspect in your TV menu, you should be able to see "auto" "16-9" "14-9" "4-3" then zoom 1 ,2 and so on.

Let us know your TV model & we may be able to look at the manual.

Yachtsman1

[Ken Cox]

use a known value -- a newscast - with people - and find which aspect suits you - i normally run "JUST", 4:3 gives no distortion - i do not use a cable box so best i get is 480i, with a box i would get 760i, with satellite i would get 1080i with full hd - at present time the ratio by broadcast is 760i -- daveg has more data on this

to get things looking right on tv and my 21" monitor i had to settle on 1354/900

ken

[Howard Bagshaw]

Just a thought. I would split your problem solving into two bits.

How about trying a commercial DVD with a known aspect ration of 4:3 on your system? I found a number in my old collection which were old and/or made for TV shows. With such a DVD you will be able to set up your DVD player/ TV combination to give you the correct aspect ratio on screen, i.e. black bars down each side. As Yachtsman says, you'll need to find something in the TV menu.

When you have the DVD/TV behaving, then you can tackle the variables in the PTE production.

Incidentally, I'm not sure of what the 'virtual size of slide' actually does. If for instance I make a sequence using 1400 x 1050 slides (an aspect ratio of 4:3) the virtual size is set to 1024 x 768. I sometimes remember to set the virtual size to the actual size, other times not and I don't see any difference in the final sequence.

Howard

[davegee]

Dan,

I'm going to talk in terms of PAL aspect ratios - you are on NTSC so you will need to think a little differently.

When I make a PAL DVD my "image" on the DVD is ALWAYS going to be 4:3 regardless of my settings in PTE.

The show that I fit into that 4:3 box will have black lines (or not) depending on the AS of my show.

The best possible scenario is to make a 4:3 show to fit a PAL DVD.

If I make a 3:2 show and produce a PAL DVD my "image" on the DVD is going to take up the FULL width and have black lines top and bottom.

PAL is 768x576 and my Wide Screen TV is 1366x768.

My TV (SONY) has settings for WIDE, SMART, 4:3 etc and the ONLY one which gives a TRUE picture (without either short fat people or tall thin people) is the 4:3 setting. Same as the DVD.

The picture then takes up a proportionate number pixels on screen and I have black lines top and bottom AND on both sides. However the ASPECT RATIO is absolutely PERFECT. No other setting gives a TRUE aspect ratio picture.

The only way to get a true 3:2 picture which fits the height on your TV which is probably 1920x1080 is to create a 16:9 show at 1080 pixels high on your computer and connect your computer to your TV (preferably using a HDMI connection).

DG

[fh1805]

...Incidentally, I'm not sure of what the 'virtual size of slide' actually does...

The PTE v6.0 Online User Guide describes the Project Options...Screen tab on pages 52 onwards. This description includes a reference to the Common tab of Objects & Animations on page 33 where there is a discussion about the "Virtual Size of Slide" option. Having read these two sections through I am now reminded as to why the Virtual Size feature was introduced.

At about v5.5 or possibly v5.6, Igor withdrew support for the mode of "Original size". He had some good reasons from the point of view of ease of future programming and ease of future maintenance of the PTE code. Unbeknownst to him, many of the French users of PTE were making extensive use of the "Original Size" feature in their PTE sequences. The Virtual Size feature, together with the "Size/position in pixels..." feature (also found on the Common tab of the O&A window) were introduced to provide approximately equivalent function back into the new version, but in a way that would make the future programming and maintenance load one that was viable to support.

I suspect that, for most of us, there is no need to worry about these features provided we haven't changed them from the "as shipped" defaults.

regards,

Peter

[Ken Cox]

see

Image Dimensions in Common Usage

http://local.wasp.uwa.edu.au/~pbourke/dataformats/imagedim/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Display_resolution

http://www.fileformat.info/tip/web/imagesize.htm

a very interesting thread from the forum

http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=4671

ken

[KyDan]

Thanks to you all.

It's obvious that with all the options on today's electronics there is no easy answer

to this display issue.

I believe I have found MY answer but others may have to pursue other means.

My TV is a Sharp Aquos and I've found that the "view mode" button on the remote

is what I needed to fiddle with but..... the options available to me when

I press that button depends on the input the TV is receiving at the time.

In other words, if I'm watching a digital broadcast program my options are

different than if I'm watching the same channel in analog view.

(My cable TV company supplies me with both analog and digital

versions of all local TV broadcast signals)

So back to me trying to view my P2E DVD show....

I have a panasonic DVD/VHS recorder machine connected to my TV.

It's great in that it will record digital TV shows onto re-writable DVDs.

We use it all the time to record TV shows for later viewing as well as

watching commercial DVD movies.

(It also will easily copy old non-copy protected VHS tapes onto

DVD with just the push of a button. This is great if you have

old home "movies" on VHS tape.)

The problem for me is that machine refuses to play a computer made

DVD. I have tried DVDs burned on 3 different computers and it won't

play any of them.

So when I want to watch my P2E show I must pull out a little cheap

$29 DVD player just for the occasion.

I plugged that cheap player into the front jacks of my panasonic machine

just because they were there and easy to reach.

The result was a side to side stretch on my big screen TV.

The "view mode" button on my Aquos TV did not give me any options that

made any improvement in the stretch.

So just because I wanted to cover all the bases-- just now I

tried my little cheap DVD player plugged directly into the DVD

input on my TV.

BINGO!

Now when I hit my TV "view mode" button, I am given the option

for "side bars" which gives me black bars on the sides and

a proper ratio on screen.

My slide show is no longer stretched!!

Once again you have come to my rescue and I thank you!

With all the viewing options today with different screen ratios on computer

and TV I doubt this issue is going to get any easier for a while!

[Ken Cox]

now go to bestbuy and get a

SAMSUNG 1080P9 DVD PLAYER $ 70 +-

read the manual as to how to set it up

yu'll luv'it

ken

[KyDan]

now go to bestbuy and get a

SAMSUNG 1080P9 DVD PLAYER $ 70 +-

read the manual as to how to set it up

yu'll luv'it

ken

Ken, if I come home with one more "black box" that connects to the TV,

my wife will skin me alive!!!

(Just added a wireless router to my computer and Roku box to my TV yesterday!!)

For now I can store my cheap DVD player in the cabinet under the big TV and pull it

out for the annual "viewing of the vacations".

(I left myself a note in the vacation DVD sleeve so I'll know what to do

a year from now.)

The old memory ain't what it used to be!

We really do use our panasonic DVR on a regular basis.

It's hard to beat watching your favorite program without commercials!

[Ken Cox]

JUST LIKE FISHIN TACKLE

BUY IT - THEY ALL THE SAME COLOR

AND

set it up - go for it )

ken

[Barry Beckham]

Dan

Its great you have found a solution to your DVD problem, but I would have come at this a bit different. If your TV is a 1920*1080 flat screen TV, why not just make your slide show at that format, 1920*1080. The DVD will play perfectly on your TV edge to edge with no distorition and will still play fine on a smaller monitor like a 1024*768 or even a digital projector.

I also think that if you create your 1600*1200 DVD with the fixed size of slide in pixels checked in the Project Options Screen tab, that will prevent your images being stretched on the TV.

If 1920*1080 is a little too wide for your liking, you could stay with the nicer format in my view of 1920*1200 and just live with a black edge left and right on the PC screen and TV