How to Letterbox output
 

Got four shiney new commercials ready to go to braodcast all nicely printed to back to tape. How do I make the 110 letterbox its output so the spots won't look all screwey when they air.

What software?

I'm just wondering if the camera will output letterbox via firewire like the Sonys?

Hi Jerry,
If you are going to offer the tape as a 16.9 broadcast, the TV station will do an aspect ratio conversion. You just need to let them know that the master is 16.9 otherwise it will be squishy.
If the station only broadcasts 4.3 then the easiest way to display the 16.9 is to make up a normal 4.3 sequence and drop the 16.9 sequence into it. This will show a 4.3 frame letterboxed with the complete 16.9 vision. At least, that is how we do it in Australia. Hope I have given an answer that makes sense.

Not via firewire. HD is HD. There is no 4x3 version of HD with letterbox.

The HD110,200 & 250 can output a downconverted analog signal in letterbox or anamorphic.

If you are talking about doing a HD to SD downconvert via firewire, the ProHD series cameras do not have the capability.

Via analog is the way I will have to go. And over here in the US I don't trust the stations to do it. They barely even look at what they are putting into the systems. The Sony will auto downconvert to letterbox SD if you tell it to. Thanks for the help

You're perfectly right not to trust the TV station to letterbox your stuff for you, because that's not their job. It's a TV station, not a video post facility, they're in the business of taking what they're given and putting it on the air. It's your job to make sure the tape you give them is exactly as it should appear on the air. If you give them an anamorphic tape, don't be suprised when it shows up anamorphic on the air.