Converting 16:9 to 4:3 by removing vertical black bars

[ubuntu]

Does anyone know how to convert an mpg from 16:9 to 4:3 by chopping off the left and right black bars ?

The digital broadcasts from my tuner card I want to record onto DVD are 4:3 source programs broadcast as 16:9 with vertical black bars on either side.

If I tell Video Studio 8 SE to convert my mpg back to 4:3 it puts two more black bars (this time on top and bottom) around the image, making it smaller still.

I could just author DVDs in 16:9 ratio and watch them with Pan/Scan to remove the vertical black bars, but it seems a waste of DVD space to record them that way.

Thanks for any assistance guys.

[thecoalman]

Does anyone know how to convert an mpg from 16:9 to 4:3 by chopping off the left and right black bars ?

The digital broadcasts from my tuner card I want to record onto DVD are 4:3 source programs broadcast as 16:9 with vertical black bars on either side.

If I tell Video Studio 8 SE to convert my mpg back to 4:3 it puts two more black bars (this time on top and bottom) around the image, making it smaller still.

I could just author DVDs in 16:9 ratio and watch them with Pan/Scan to remove the vertical black bars, but it seems a waste of DVD space to record them that way.

Thanks for any assistance guys.

Most digital broadcasts are in odd resolutions and the reciever converts it to a the correct resolution for viewing on a TV. Sounds as if it's not getting converted and your getting the raw signal if the black bars are part of your video. BTW 16:9 has "bars" across the top, and are not part of the video as far as DVD or Digital Cams go. They are created by the DVD player which is why when you converted it to 16:9 and played it they appeared since it was flagged as 16:9.

Are you using a digital tuning card are you connecting your digital reciver to a regular capture card and which one?

You can crop the video but I don't think VS8 supports that.

[ubuntu]

Hi Coalman,

I'm using a digital tuner card, "Ultraview DVB-T Plus" by Dvico.

It can record the raw broadcast transport stream (all subchannels) or just the mpg signal of the subchannel being viewed.

Its view settings let me watch 4:3 programs without the vertical black bars being transmitted, but the mpg file it creates is always 16:9.

BTW, I didn't convert it to 16:9, I went the other way and converted the 16:9 back to 4:3, picking up black bars at top and bottom as part of the new 4:3 mpg, with the original 4:3 image small and in the middle.

Can you name any software capable of cropping the left and right black bars of a 16:9 image?

Regards,
ubuntu

[thecoalman]

Ah I get you.... it's 4:3 signal and it's cpaturing it at 16:9. Usually that would not be an issue because 16:9 video and 4:3 video have the same resolution. Yopu could just change the header file using something such as restream or just author as 4:3 The aspect ratio of a video is flagged in the video header so software such as MS Media Player -or- it's flagged in the ifo file on DVD so they display at the correct aspect..... just thought I'd give you a little background so we could establish that 16:9 and 4:3 are the same resolution. At no point are the black bars part of the video.

Where your issue is that it's imposing a 4:3 video on a 16:9, artificially inserting the black bars left and right to maintain the correct aspect.... Kind of like a PIP.

Am I following what your saying, If you burn this file you have created to DVD that is incorrect as a 16:9 it will display with the correct aspect but be letterboxed on all four sides???

I'd try to get it to capture in 4:3 if at all possible, you would be losing a lot of resolution if you can't plus the quality loss during the cropping. Why it wouldn't I don't know. Is there any other capture software that came with it you could try?

Edit: Like I said I don't know if VS8 supports cropping, that is usually one of the features found on high end editors such as MSP, there's others (two that I can think of that are free) but I'm not sure if I'm supposed to mention them here....

Anyhow I see VS8 has the PIP option. You could try experimenting with that as a work around. But if you really want good quality you should try to figure out how to capture it in 4:3. Cropping or using the PIP if possible isn't really a good solution.

[rwernyei]

ubunto,
You can use the Cropping filter in Video Studio.
Here's a tutorial written for VS7, just make sure to set beginning and ending keys and check Stationary box.

http://www.videohelp.com/forum/userguides/183096.php

[lbecque]

ubunto,
You can use the Cropping filter in Video Studio.
Here's a tutorial written for VS7, just make sure to set beginning and ending keys and check Stationary box.

http://www.videohelp.com/forum/userguides/183096.php

I never knew that it had a cropping filter.
I read through the tutuorial but I can't get it to work.
THERE IS NO CROPPING FILTER ON MY VS7!!!???
I see a 'color balance' and then 'emboss'.
How do I add 'cropping'?

or do I not have it because I have VS7SE?