Just want to make a DVD...

[Tolwyn]

Actually, you're making more sense to me than you realize.

If I have both "true" 4:3 (DV) and then for "fun" I've cropped some stuff as you suggested (and resized it - knowing it will look funny on a PC), during the encoding process, does the encoder know what is widescreen and what isn't?

Can that be done "per chapter"?

Or does the entire DVD have to be either 4:3 or 16:9 (or whatever aspect ratio)?

Kinda know what I'm asking?

[FulciLives]

The MPEG encoder you use will have a setting for 16x9 or 4:3

It doesn't know if the input is 16x9 or 4:3 all it can do is set the MPEG aspect ratio per your instructions.

So if you input 16x9 you set the output as 16x9 or if you input 4:3 then you set the output as 4:3

Depends on your MPEG encoder because some can do resize like TMPGEnc where you tell it the input and output. With TMPGEnc you can input your 4:3 source ... crop the 60 off the top and bottom ... do the resize ... then output 16x9

I tend to use AviSynth scripting where I do all the crop and resize stuff in the script so my input is already 16x9 as it goes into the encoder.

I use Cinema Craft Encoder but you can also use AviSynth scripting with TMPGEnc.

Just one thing to remember ... if you do 16x9 you must use Full D1 resolution aka 720x480 NTSC or 720x576 PAL (you can also use 704x480 or 704x576). Other DVD resolutions such as Half D1 (352x480 or 352x576) cannot be anamorphic 16x9 enhanced. This is a limitation of the DVD format. The DVD player can not handle 16x9 correctly unless you use Full D1 resolution.

As for mixing 16x9 and 4:3 on the same DVD ...

I'm not sure how well that works as I hardly ever do it myself although I have had situations where the main feature is 16x9 WS but the trailer is 4:3 and even commercial DVD movies will do that sometimes.

But I don't think it is a good idea to break up the main feature ... any video on the DVD that is to play straight through should be in the same format be it 16x9 or 4:3

I don't have a 16x9 TV so for me ... on a 4:3 TV ... the 16x9 enhanced content and the 4:3 content (be it full screen or 4:3 WS) looks the same but I would imagine that it would look rather "odd" on a 16x9 TV to have some stuff be one way (16x9) and some stuff the other way (4:3).

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

P.S.
There is a way to encode 4:3 full frame content as 16x9 but it will only look "normal" on a 16x9 TV whereas it will look really "odd" on a 4:3 TV because the image will fill a 16x9 TV from top to bottom (with black only on the sides of the image) but on a 4:3 TV it would have black on all 4 sides of the image. So encoding 4:3 full frame as 16x9 should not be done unless you know for sure that it will be viewed on a 16x9 TV (i.e., a project you are doing for yourself and you only have a 16x9 TV etc.)

[offline]

As for mixing 16x9 and 4:3 on the same DVD

No problems with that, just make sure to keep the different ratio
mpeg's in seperate tracks (different video files) when authoring.