By David Gibbons
Revised July 2010
What will a DVD or Blu-Ray disk look like on your widescreen TV? Blu-Ray disks are a native widescreen format, so we won't worry about them. DVD's are a different matter. Hopefully the DVD makers will someday learn how to clearly label their DVDs. Until then, I hope this essay helps.
If you see any of the labels below on a DVD box, your DVD player should show a wide picture on your widescreen TV (Remember, you have to tell your DVD player you have a widescreen TV when you first set it up!):
Some badly labeled anamorphic DVD boxes say "Letterboxed" which confuses everyone. Read the box carefully to see if the fine print also says it is anamorphic, or if any of the other labels listed above are also used.
Widescreen TVs are 1.78 times as wide as they are tall, and compare to regular TVs like so:
Standard 4:3
1.33:1
Widescreen 16:9
1.78:1
1) Useful Picture and DVD Definitions:
a) Letterbox - Black bars are added at the top and bottom to make a wide picture "fill" a narrower screen. Letterboxing will be visible for very wide movies even on widescreen TVs, even when playing Blu-ray disks. See below.
b) Pillarbox - Black bars are added at the sides to make a 4:3 picture 'fit' in a 16:9 screen.
c) Pan-and-Scan - Cut off one or both edges of a wide picture until it fits a narrower screen. The 'scan' part comes from actually shifting the cut-off part around to catch important action on one side or the other of the screen. See below.
d) Anamorphic - DVDs sometimes have the picture digitally stored in a special "squashed" form that a DVD player can unsquash. This will fill the screen of a widescreen TV, IF you have a widescreen TV, AND if you have set your DVD player to work with your widescreen TV.
Whether or not the DVD anamorphic feature is present, the picture may still be letterboxed or Pan-and-Scan'ed if the picture was shot wider than your TV's screen.
2) What Shape Was The Presentation On The DVD Originally Shot In?
OLD movies and TV are 1.33 times as wide as they are tall (4:3).Some films are up to 2.66 times as wide as they were tall. Recently 1.78:1 (16:9) has become popular because of the development of widescreen TVs and HD TV.
3) Can My TV Show The Picture Better?
Widescreen TVs and some new standard TVs allow you to change the picture size or shape for a more pleasing appearance. Check out your owner's manual and remote control.
LETTERBOXED
All 3 faces visible in letterboxed image
PAN-AND-SCAN
Outer 2 faces cut off by more narrow screen
Good Viewing,
David Gibbons
