DVD converting 16X9 to 4X3 letterbox

[DVDBear]

Hi everyone,

I've looked to see if I could find a guide for what I'm trying to do, but so far none of the ones I've seen really cover it.

I'm using Womble DVD Mpeg Editor to assemble some trailer reels. I rip them to VIDEO_TS folders using DVD Shrink and then pull them into Womble. Since they're coming from different discs some are 16X9, some 4X3. I would like to convert the 16X9 to 4x3 letterbox so I don't end up with full frame squeezed trailers in the middle of the other material. Do I have to convert the dvd files to a format like AVI first and then use something like Virtual Dub or is there any easier way to do this quickly?

Also curious if there is a reverse way to do 4x3 and side matte to 16X9? That way if the majority of the trailers I'm compiling are squeezed I can leave them that way and convert the flats.

Thanks for any help.

[45tripp]

No you can't use just vdub.
No it's probably not going to be that quick.

If you're going to convert you need at least an mpeg2 encoder.

Why convert though, is the first question?
I don't know what you are doing, but if there's no real editing and you're just putting trailers
in a row then each VTS can have video with separate aspect ratios.
Keep 4/3 together in one VTS and and 16/9 together in another.

As for converting,
there are many options.
16/9 -> 4/3 can be letterboxed, to side cropped, to anything in between.
4/3 -> 16/9 can be pillerboxed, to vertically cropped, to anything in between.
Some pics
http://www.mykaskin.freeserve.co.uk/myksvideopages/plugins.html

What you do depends on what you are working with and what you prefer.

I think I'd blindly crop 4/3 and go to 16/9.
Only maybe assymetrically cropping if sensitive image information happened to have
a top or bottom bias.

The easiest, best way to do it,
is to index the mpeg2 with dgindex,
resize with avisynth,
and encode with HC.

Example avisynth script of what I'd do with 4/3 ntsc:

LoadPlugin("C:\Program Files\AviSynth 2.5\dgdecode.dll")
mpeg2Source("trailer.d2v")
crop(0,60,0,-60)
lanczosresize(720,480)

Look up the tools/methods mentioned.

(you can resize and frameserve with vdub but avisynth is a lot better)

gl

[manono]

Also curious if there is a reverse way to do 4x3 and side matte to 16X9?

Of course there is. As 45tripp mentioned, it's possible to do any and all of the things about which you asked. If your source is a full screen 4:3 720x480 MPEG-2 of some kind, you convert it to 16:9 by adding black to the sides:

LanczosResize(540,480)
AddBorders(90,0,90,0)

Or if converting 16:9 to 4:3, and adding black above and below:

LanczosResize(720,360)
AddBorders(0,60,0,60)

Those are simplified versions of the scripts FitCD gave me. This is most easily done with best quality using Avisynth, although you could probably muddle your way through it frameserving via VDub. I think whether or not to go all 16:9 or all 4:3 depends mostly the numbers of which source you have, although you should think twice about losing resolution by converting 16:9 to 4:3. And as 45tripp mentioned, you can keep each the way it is, if for DVD, by putting the 16:9 ones in a different VTS from the 4:3 ones.

[DVDBear]

[quote="manono"]

I think whether or not to go all 16:9 or all 4:3 depends mostly the numbers of which source you have, although you should think twice about losing resolution by converting 16:9 to 4:3. And as 45tripp mentioned, you can keep each the way it is, if for DVD, by putting the 16:9 ones in a different VTS from the 4:3 ones.

Thanks guys for the suggestions. This is a little more advanced than I'm used to doing, but I'll try to learn. As for why convert, it's a little difficult to group the trailers by AR if you're trying to "theme" them by subject or whatever. But even if I did I'd still have to manually reset the monitor to either 4x3 or 16x9 for the appropriate section of the DVD, which if you're trying to create a continuous show with no breaks would be a bit clumsy. If, as you mentioned I have a majority of 16x9 material I will pillarbox the flat trailers, or crop them if they're intended for 1:85 anyway.

Thanks again.