Quote:
Originally Posted by Quoth
Historic aspect Ratios:
TV/Video
UK TV approx 1935-1947 (closed 1939, reopened 1946) 5:4 = 1.25:1
Most TV before Widescreen TV 4:3 = 1.33*:1
Widescreen TV 16:9 = 1.77*:1
VGA (640 x 480) is a progressive version of NTSC etc 4:3. Highest common 4:3 was 1600 x 1200 by 2002.
Widescreen computer is is 16:9 or 16:10
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...ay_resolutions
Any A format paper is 1.414:1 (square root 2). Doubling or folding in half gives same ratio.
US Letter size is 1.31 ratio from 8.5 by 11 inches (215.9 by 279.4 mm)
Cinema
Older movies, esp. silent, often exactly 4.3 = 1.33*:1
Approximately 1928 to 1953 Academy Ratio 1.375:1. Usually cropped to 4:3 for TV.
Common Non-Anamorphic, WS (narrow) 5:3 = 1.66*:1
Common Non-Anamorphic, WS (wide) 1.85:1 (usually cropped to 1.77* for TV)
Anamorphic movies can be wider, 2.7:1 for Ben Hur.
Cinema projectors for almost 100 years have gates (matting) to set the projected ratio from about 1:1 to 3:1. Even before WWII some ultra-wide screen movoes used 3 coupled cameras and projectors (maybe one version of War & Peace).
So while 16:9 now makes sense for 2K, QHD and 4K big screens (up to 3 windows side by side) and TV, it makes no sense for "HD" laptops or any tablet, as it ONLY suits WS video for TV. |
All correct. Just to add to this. Anamorphic format is not exclusive to wide screen. It was the original, and for some time, only way to shoot wide screen footage. The process was achieved by shooting on regular 3:2 film stock, with a specialised anamorphic lens attached to camera that squished footage vertically. A similar lens was used for projection, that then reversed the process and produced wide ratios. Different technologies competed and produced various results using anamorphic lenses, there was Cinerama that was pretty unique, but soon you started to see movies that were shot on spherical lenses, and just cropped at top and bottom. In case of films shot on 35mm film, resolution was reduced, but when it came to massive 65mm film stock, like the one used on Lawrence of Arabia, results were actually superior. Today everything is still used. Anamorhpic lenses, digital, film stock, spherical lenses and cropping.