crop 16:9 to 4:3 for TV output
 

hey my name is andreas I'm eighteen but I've been working with the HD100 and using this website since I was sixteen, thanks so much for everyone's continual posting, very useful.

I'm sorry but I have a project due today and I can't figure out where else to turn. how do I crop a 16:9 video to 4:3 for television out? I know its a horrible thing to do to a video, but its actually very important evidently... I was suprised when I couldn't figure it out... all I can come up with is import a 4:3 clip and then match it to crop, but that's taking longer than I thought to find a 4:3 clip. I was wondering if I'm missing something or if you know what I'd have to crop for it to work.

please help!

Andreas,

It would help if you told us what NLE you are working with.

fcp 5 sorry
I think its something like crop left 12 and crop right 12, but its a rather arbitrary guess

running out of time! I'm so screwed...

I found a frame off winnie the pooh, but its a small square in the middle of screen, letterboxing on all sides! at 150 percent I think it fits, but at this point I can't trust the measurement... someone please help!

If I'm reading your post right, Crop 12 Right and Left would give you a 4x3 image (within range that no one would notice a difference). But why worry with cropping at all? If you have your finished 16x9 sequence, create a new sequence that's 4x3, and then bring the 16x9 footage into the new sequence whatever is outside of the viewer will be cut off automatically when you render and export. A possible advantage of this would be it would allow you to keyframe the sequence and "Pan and Scan." If you wanted to. This would make sure that you had better framing for each shot and didn't just chop off the ends.

Another way to go (and the way I would go) would be once you have your 4x3 sequence with the 16x9 footage in it would be to create a letterbox version of your project. If when you put the 16x9 footage in the 4x3 sequence it has an anamorphic squeeze to it then just adjust the Aspect Ration (under basic motion) to -33.33 (if it's not negative then it's positive 33.33, I know the number, just can't remember right now positive or negative).

If when you put the 16x9 footage in the 4x3 sequence you don't see anamorphic distortion, then just adjust the size down (again under basic motion) to 66.66% (I think) and there you have it - a 4x3 frame letterboxed to 16x9.

I hope this is what you were looking for, or at least it helps in time...

Kevin

thanks a lot! done and done! a quick render and I'm out of here

dvinfo is the best.

Glad to hear all is well...