Talking Pictures TV - Aspect Ratios

[Edward Huggins]

This is an interesting channel and they take care with their presentation standards and use of the correct, original, aspect ratio. They are encoded to size automatically. In my case it does trigger the sizing on my "Auto" setting (new 55" Panasonic) and I keep getting 4:3 aspect ratio movies stretched out to 16.9. Does anyone else have this problem?

[paulsherwin]

There should be a setting on the TV specifying how it handles 4:3 material. The default is often to use stretchyvision. The modes available depend on the TV, but pillarboxed 4:3 is always available.

The option isn't always obvious and sometimes some strange terminology is used.

There is often an aspect ratio button on the remote which allows you to step through available modes. It may be marked 'Wide' or 'Screen'.

[Grubhead]

You sometimes get a channel on Freeview that has problems with the widescreen and the auto switch. Often it goes away. But sometimes you need to retune the set to correct it.

I have noticed on some BBC TV shows that should be a full widescreen 16.9 that two black bands smaller than that needed for the 2.35 feature films are now showing up.
I find this a bit odd, because nobody has a TV that is slightly wider than a normal 16.9 TV.
Silent Witness was the first time I noticed them. I am just wondering if they are something to with 4K transmissions?

[McMurdo]

Talking Pictures 81 is an HD channel but isn't broadcast in HD, which is a shame given the lovely crisp B&W images you can get in HD with a good film transfer. My TV shows the aspect ratio correctly on 81, the little one in the kitchen always stretches 4:3 (a pet hate of mine) and I can't stop it.

The habit of some (pretentious IMHO) directors to show certain newly-made material with black bars top & bottom in HD is, I'm guessing, to have us believe the material is 'filmed' and hence 'better quality' or 'epic'. Since we're all widescreen now, it otherwise leaves such directors nowhere to go with this treatment! A bit like printing date & time on the image to make us understand it was filmed on a camcorder by an amateur..as if we couldn't work that out for ourselves.

Talking Pictures TV has an associated DVD shop where you can buy the films it shows on DVD. I treated myself to 'the sound barrier'. Full resolution of course is provided.

[Edward Huggins]

Originally Posted by Grubhead

You sometimes get a channel on Freeview that has problems with the widescreen and the auto switch. Often it goes away. But sometimes you need to retune the set to correct it.

I have noticed on some BBC TV shows that should be a full widescreen 16.9 that two black bands smaller than that needed for the 2.35 feature films are now showing up.
I find this a bit odd, because nobody has a TV that is slightly wider than a normal 16.9 TV.
Silent Witness was the first time I noticed them. I am just wondering if they are something to with 4K transmissions?

Yes, Philips made a near true Cinemascope TV and widely distributed to showrooms about 5 years ago (the only one so far?) but it did not find a market. Brave of Philips, but a sad result.

[jayceebee]

Originally Posted by McMurdo

Talking Pictures 81 is an HD channel but isn't broadcast in HD, which is a shame.

30/11/17 saw Talking Pictures TV move to a multiplex that can be received on any Free view receiver provided you local transmitter is not Freeview lite.

I for one am happy with the stretchyvision output, when coupled to an Aurora there is minimal distortion when viewed on a 4:3 set. If I'm watching on a 16:9 set at least I can use the format function on the TV to show the correct aspect ratio.

John.

[paulsherwin]

Stretchyvision is actually just native 4:3 video, and should display correctly on a 4:3 TV unless the TV firmware is being too clever for its own good. The issue here is how best to display 4:3 video on 16:9 screens. This will always be a compromise.

4:3 with pillarboxing is the purist's solution and will often look fine on a large screen LCD set. 14:9 with pillarboxing will often look best for 90s material where the director framed for 14:9 and 16:9 screens, but will lose significant screen info with pre-90s output where the director framed for 4:3 with a safe area to allow for CRT overscanning. 16:9 zooming eliminates pillarboxing but loses lots of screen info even from 1990s output. Stretchyvision looks awful on 16:9 screens to my eyes, but it does preserve all the screen info, and some people don't seem to mind it.

[Grubhead]

Originally Posted by Edward Huggins

Yes, Philips made a near true Cinemascope TV and widely distributed to showrooms about 5 years ago (the only one so far?) but it did not find a market. Brave of Philips, but a sad result.

Not quite dead actually. For at the present moment I am looking at this forum on is a 21:9 monitor. They are quite popular for gaming. Not that I use it for that. You can watch movies on it though. But for normal viewing of the computer I have two black bands down the sides of the picture. For if you select full screen it stretches the screen to fit!

But the ones on the TV shows with a 16:9 are not for 21:9. I would say they would be around 18:9. Not that I have ever heard of such a ratio!

[julie_m]

18:9? Surely you mean 2:1!

[Graham G3ZVT]

Originally Posted by julie_m

18:9? Surely you mean 2:1!

There is (or certainly was) a move to express aspect ratios in ninths, so 4:3 became 12:9

And don't call me Shirley, Julie!

[Grubhead]

I was watching Troy tonight and that is in this new widescreen ratio of 18:9. I call it that because it doesn't fit the 16:9 and if I put it on the 21:9 monitor it would not fill the entire screen.

[julie_m]

All these ratios, not in their lowest terms ..... My old maths teacher must be spinning in her grave about now .....

Percentages would be less visually jarring (admittedly, probably only to sufferers of a particular form of arithmomania), no harder to print and easier to compare (well, they were designed for exactly that purpose). 178%, 133% and 233% make more obvious sense than 16:9, 4:3 (= 12:9) and 7:3 (= 21:9).

[OscarFoxtrot]

Originally Posted by julie_m

My old maths teacher must be spinning in her grave about now ......

Rotationally transforming, perhaps.

[Focus Diode]

I find 4:3 is usually transmitted as 4:3. By rights the TV should automatically adjust to the correct aspect ratio, only this seems not as straightforward as you'd think.

Certainly when playing DVDs on such sets they usually appear in, "Enhanced 16:9" on such sets. The Sony Bravia can be adjusted by a touch of a button on the remote. The Samsung downstairs not so simple in having to go into settings.

Another thing I've noticed on using a HDD recorder is the recordings are automatically broken up when the aspect ratio changes, example a break bumper in 4:3 suddenly switching to 16:9 for the adverts etc.

Nevertheless Talking Pictures TV has been very welcome. Unusual for a modern channel they show an hour long programme originally made with two breaks in the programme as original without adding extra breaks abruptly. "A Family At War" even allowed for the original break bumpers.

Interesting topic but perhaps more relevant for the Modern Technology section?

[MurphyNut]

Nice to see Talking Pictures TV mentioned here, it's excellent if like me you love old films and TV shows that have now been almost ignored by the main channels.
I find I have to manually adjust the aspect ratio from time to time, not too difficult do on my TV.

[McMurdo]

30/11/17 saw Talking Pictures TV move to a multiplex that can be received on any Free view receiver

Thanks..just found it on my old TV here in the workshop! (sutton coldfield tx)

[SiriusHardware]

I've just been listening to BBC Radio 4's 'The Film Programme' (Broadcast on Sunday 15/04/18) and it featured a long and interesting interview with the chap who runs TPTV, seemingly from an ordinary house.

Should be available for a while on BBC iplayer Radio.

[SiriusHardware]

Originally Posted by Focus Diode

I find 4:3 is usually transmitted as 4:3. By

Another thing I've noticed on using a HDD recorder is the recordings are automatically broken up when the aspect ratio changes, example a break bumper in 4:3 suddenly switching to 16:9 for the adverts etc.

If your recorder allows you to rejoin the separated 4:3 aspect sections into one title you could consider this to be useful behaviour as it's automatically removing the adverts for you.

[Graham G3ZVT]

Originally Posted by SiriusHardware

I've just been listening to BBC Radio 4's 'The Film Programme' (Broadcast on Sunday 15/04/18) and it featured a long and interesting interview with the chap who runs TPTV, seemingly from an ordinary house.

Should be available for a while on BBC iplayer Radio.

And here it is
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09yfqsr

My wife and I watch TPTV quite a lot.
I like the music that accompanies the presentation segments of 16mm film running through a projector, it's the theme from the 1949 film "The Glass Mountain", my parents had it on a 78 when I was a child.

I wish they would drop the "This film has a PG certificate" nonsense.

[bobsterkent]

I've been watching this channel for ages now it's now my 'go to' choice when switching on.