16:9 vs 4:3

[ct valley views]

I use X4 to create programs for Public Access TV. The shows are broadcast in widescreen. I only use standard 4:3 cameras. Is there any way to make "pillars" on each side of the video to keep the 4:3 format so the video doesn't stretch?

[BrianCee]

yes this is quite easy to do - first click on settings and in the drop down choose 'Widescreen(16:9)' so that a tick appears at left - OK the warning message. Now click on 'Settings' again but this time choose "Preferences" then down towards the bottom of the dialogue box choose a different background colour - just for now choose a bright yellow as that will help with the next steps. The oblong may appear in the preview screen with black bars top and bottom , this is just an effect due to the aspect ratio of the preview screen they will not appear in the final video.

Now put you video in the OVERLAY track and the picture will appear in the preview screen surrounded by yellow blocks - using ONLY the corner blocks drag them out until the video reaches both top and bottom of the yellow oblong - you almost certainly will need to drag both a top and a bottom corner to reach the edge of the yellow oblong - you may now need to centre the picture in the preview screen by moving the cursor over the picture so that it changes to a 4 point arrow and then left click and slide to put the picture in the centre but keeping within the yellow oblong.

You should now have your 4:3 image centred in a 16:9 oblong - now go back to preferences and set the background colour to whatever you wish - could be black but doesn't have to be - you could also put a 16:9 image or colour pattern in the top track so that only the edges are seen. Now you can render out a 16:9 video with your 4:3 video with the correct aspect.

[ct valley views]

Thanks for your quick reply. It seems to work OK.