Action Safe on Wide Screen TVs

I'm editing a commercial for broadcast (shot in 4:3), and am concerned about some elements on the far right side of the screen (specifically, I don't want them to be seen). They fall safely outside the action safe window, so I'm not too concerned about someone watching on a regular television. But will someone watching on a wide screen TV see material on the right and left side outside of the action safe window for a 4:3 shot?
Thanks.

Wow, I discover something new everyday. In the broadcast biz, I thought 'Action Safe' meant meeting someone other than your significant other in a hotel more than 200 miles from your house.
The things you learn hanging around here!
cheerios,
x

Similar Messages

Title Safe Area and Action Safe Area

I understand the recomandations about the Title Safe Area and Action Safe Area (PDF p215).
I am wondering if this is still acurate today, considering many people in the U.S have widescreen TVs. I`m just wondering if anybody still have a TV that only shows the Title safe area?
Also, on a Widescreen TV, is there any chance to have only the Action safe area?
Thanks.

I very much doubt anyone has a TV that only displays title safe area and nothing outside of it... the Title Safe area is a percentage reduction from the outer edge of the image. If a TV is showing in the 4:3 aspect ratio, any image will be sized appropriately to fit, and the title safe will be proportional... 10% in from the outer edge.
The title safe area originally existed to allow for text to be showing without too much distortion on a curved TV screen. The Action safe area simply extended beyond this to the edge of the screen, and is 5% in from the edge of the footage.
In the days of CRT sets, the glass screen has a plastic bezel which masks the very edge of the screen, meaning the image disappears neatly behind it. Action safe areas are just those that will appear beyond the bezel and be visible, but which might distort sightly due to the curvature of the glass.
On a computer screen the entire image is seen regardless, as the geometry of the screen is adjusted to appear within the entire display, and so AS and TS areas don't really apply.
Whether or not your screen is widescreen doesn't matter, it's all about pixel aspect ratios. The image is displayed proportionately, and the visible areas are the same from screen to screen. When setting up photoshop images with guides to show AS and TS, you'll find that the TV image is 720px wide, and the guides are set at 36px from the left and right for the AS, and 72px in for the TS. The vertical size differs between NTSC and PAL, and thus the guides are positioned differently, but still 5 and 10% respectively.

Action Safe Area

Hello,
I'm a "newbie" who is very eager to learn everthing I can about post-production using Final Cut Studio . . . I was going to reply to an archived post but not sure if anyone would stil be viewing that topic. Sorry if this is a well weathered question!
I've inversted in Apple Pro Training Text Books; Final Cut Pro 5; Soundtrack; Soundtrack Pro; Motion and DVD Studio Pro 4.
I'd like to learn as much as possible for myself, however any help from anybody would be appreciated.
Creating my project in FCP > Exporting to Quicktime > then Authoring in DVDSP.
Viewing in the simulator is exactly what I'm after!!
When I burn the project and play though the set top DVD player the images are cropped. I researched the issue on this forum and found posts explaining that the signal received by the TV was not the entire signal and that it was the TV that was the issue (I could be wrong, but that's the way it read to me) . . . I tested this theory by conecting my Powerbook to a projector via S-Video and selected - Digital Cinema Desktop Preview in the Simulator Preferences in DVDSP. Then I conected both the Yamaha DVD player (1 Year old) and the Pioneer DVD player (5 years old) and toggled between them to find out if my project would be successfully transmitted from both the laptop and a burnt DVD.
The result has lead me to believe the signal was not sent properly from the DVD players as both DVD players produced cropped results even though I was using a projector. The signal sent from the laptop was %100 and what I'd like to achieve from my DVD players. Weather in be a CRT, Plasma or Projector.
Are there any ways to compensate for the cropping eg: measurements or methods?
Hope this all makes sense.
Thanking you - JayMac

Welcome to the forums, JayMac.
The title of your message, "Action Safe Area," leads me to believe you've read about your action-safe and title-safe borders, and that you realize that all TVs "overscan" images. It might not be ideal, but they all do it, and you need to adjust for it. That's why Final Cut, Motion, and DVD Studio Pro all include the option of displaying "action safe" and "title safe" borders. Going past those borders will risk images getting cut off on a TV set due to overscan.
Your test with the video output from a PowerBook was not a valid test, unfortunately. If I hook my PowerBook to a TV set, I absolutely need the entire screen to display on the set, particularly the top of the screen--otherwise I wouldn't be able to see the menu bar to make selections. Therefore, computers with TV-out are designed to compensate for overscan, so that the entire desktop is visible.
The bottom line is that every TV overscans, and every TV overscans by a different amount. By using your active-safe and title-safe borders, you'll be assured that those parts of your video or menu will be visible. This is the best way of handling things, rather than trying to "fight the power" and somehow compensate for overscan.

No wide screen resolution option

i just connected my imac to a external display(HD TV) useing a vga cable. the only problem i have is that the resolution wont go high enough to tvs native resolution and ratio. i need a wide screen ratio but the only option i get in the dispay settings is 3:4
i do not want to pay for a fix.

VGA does not support widescreen and is limited to 640 x 480 resolution.

Mac does not recognize wide screen

I am using Mac OS X Lion 10.7.4 on my Mac mini, with Samsung monitor with default resolution 1360 x 768.
My Mac mini is connected to Samsung VGA port by Apple mini port to VGA adapter.
When starting, my Mac does not recognize the wide screen resolution and always starts in a 4:3 mode, (but it shows 1360x768 as the resolution in the settings). I have to do one of the following actions to bring my Mac to the wide screen resolution:
(1) Changing to some other resolution and bring back to the default resolution.
(2) Unplug the Apple mini port to VGA adapter and re-connect again.
(3) Put the machine to sleep and wake it up again.
I am using Ubuntu 12.04, (in a different partition) in the same hardware, but Ubuntu is perfectly recognizing the display.

I am sorry, but this issue is not solved even after PRAM reset.
Basically my Mac is recognizing the default resolution (1360x768), but it is opening in 4:3 mode (both sides of the screen left unused).
(PRAM reset does not seem to have made any change)

Viewing Title/Action Safe on Digital Cinema Desktop Preview

I am using DCD Preview to view playback from FCP on my MacBook pro on an external 23" Cinema Display. I like the feature, but I am curious if and how do you get the title/action safe feature from the canvas to show on the monitor. Also, can you view the viewer clips on the external monitor using DCDP? Couldn't seem to make it work.
I am an old Avid editor making a switchover and being able to playback this way is nice, but I can't show clients where things would hit on screen. I will be using a broadcast monitor in the studio, but I'd like to be able to take a DVI monitor with me for this portable system because of weight and size.
Thanks in advance,
Eddie

I don't think you can view title/action safe with DCDP. You should be able to view clips in the viewer with DCDP, at least it works for me. I suppose if you're dealing with some sort of nonstandard format that requires rendering, it might be a problem, but I just tried it with some DV material and it works fine.
Here's how I access DCDP: Make sure that video playback is set to DCDP in the view menu. Make the canvas (or viewer) active and hit command (apple) F12.

'Title Safe' and 'Action Safe' boundaries

I assume that the 'Title Safe' area is the boundaries where the Title should not exceed, and that the Action Safe' area is a boundary that the action should not exceed. However, does this mean that nothing will show beyond those boundaries, or that you might run the risk of cutoff if they are exceeded?
Thanks!

Hi(Bonjour)!
All material that is outside the action safe zone cannot be viewed on a TV set, but will be seen on a computer screen.
+Broadcast monitors+ are designed to display this area too.
Try your camcorder by frame the action very close the edges and look the clip in viewer. You should see the extra area. Some pro camcorders do offer an showing overscan feature to monitor this area upon shooting.
Michel Boissonneault

Wide screen pc monitor problem

For instance, on ebay, when I add specifications, the go or enter button doesn't show because it's a pop up screen so there's no way to scroll down. Or, when trying to submit on an order form, the submit button doesn't show and can't scroll down. I hate wide screen pc monitors, but I'm stuck with it. Anybody know how to fix this problem? If I zoom out on ebay, that doesn't work either.

You should be fine but if you want to be safe Newer Technology sells a stand for about $40
Newer Technology NuStand mini

Encoding for Wide Screen & Standard Screen

I have put together a number of standard definition clips from youtube which I wanted to show as a presentation on both wide screen and normal screen TVs (PAL). I have tried various different settings under the share menu and tried my luck with compressor 4 custom resolution but I am finding that when played on the TV at least on Wide Screen my picture is being croped on the sides.
Can someone kindly guide me as to what settings I need to use with FCPX or Compressor 4 so that I am able to view the full picture without being crropped, please - many thanks.

am having problem with images always being larger than the screen when imported to imovie 5
What screen? The computer screen or on the TV.
In the latter case, that is due to overscan. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overscan
In the former case, enable Ken Burns checkbox. Set both the start and end zoom to 1x. Disable Ken Burns again.

Project built without Action Safe Zone in Mind - help??

hello -
I am working with DVD Studio Pro for the first time and am having to take a project that was built in Final Cut for the web and burning it to DVD-Video in a 4:3 format.
The problem that I am having is that the project was built without Action Safe Zone in Mind and is getting cut off on the TV screen. Is there an easy way to just shrink the whole project in DVD Studio or FCP without having to touch the timeline?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!

You could create a new sequence in FCP, then put the original sequence into that new sequence. Control-click the video track in the new sequence, open the motion tab, and re-scale the entire sequence.

Unable to get HD Wide Screen 16:9 to fill the screen on TV.

12/20/08
Problem: I am not able to get HD Wide Screen 16:9 to fill the screen on TV. Leaves dark bands on the top and bottom of picture.
What I'm working with: Mac Pro Quad-Core Intel Xeon Processors with 2GB Memory soon to be 6GB & 30 inch screen. QuickTime Pro 7.5.5, Final Cut Express 4.0.1, and iDVD, 7.0.2.
New JVC, GZ-HD3U camcorder with QuickTime conversion software, recently updated, provided by JVC with the camera to change native TOD. files created in the camcorder to native MPEG2 files in Quicktime at a size of 1920 x 1080.
Two TV's, one Wide Screen HD and the other standard screen. I have changed the TV aspect rations back and forth from 4:3 to 16:9 and the only thing that changes is the size of the black bands on the top and bottom of the screen. The black spaces are larger in 16:9, making the picture appear squeezed.
I am using RW DVD discs so I can continue to try different setups without wasting discs and so far I have tried about 12 different arrangements. Two methods work but they are export conversions to a 4:3 aspect ratio and 720X480DV/DVCPRO-NTSC. Certainly this is a work around, but doing this looses the Wide Screen HD effects provided by the original JVC movies.
When I import the clips, and I've tried a number of different imports from QuickTime to Final Cut Express, I make sure that the Sequence set up matches or comes as close as possible to the imported clips. I've tried exporting them from FCE without changes and I have exported them using QuickTime to change them to different formats using nearly everything available trying to get the clips or sequences ready to import to iDVD.
In iDVD I have set up using both aspect ratios and it appears as thought setting up in 16:9 makes the spaces above and below even larger on TV. In fact it creates these spaces above and below even on the 720X480DV/DVCPRO-NTSC clips that work just fine on the 4:3 aspect ratio settings on the same TV.
If anyone has overcome this problem, I would greatly appreciate your guidance. So far, I've spent over a 100 hours on it to no avail.
Larry

Tom, I don't know where to go in FCE to create a AVCHD AIC Sequence. I can find the
1920X1080i60 in the Sequence format without any problem. And in QT don't know where to select AIC but I select Apple Intermediate Codec, and under compressor I select HDV 1080i interlaced frame rate 29.97. Under Export Size Settings I don't know rather to select 1920 x 1080 HD or HD 1920 x 1080 16:9 and what about preserve aspect ratio using and Deinterlace Source Video?
Part two: When I create a Sequence in FCE with the 1920X1080i60 designation, and then import a QT HD 1920X1080 16:9 Intermediate Codec clip into a bin and then open the clip in that sequence I'm asked if I want to match the clip to the sequence and if I don't I have rendering. If I match them the rendering, as you said, goes away. However, I notice that when I check out the Item Properties on them after the above process, the Aspect ratio in the clip and Sequence, suddenly becomes HD 1440x1080. Is this normal?
Larry

How do I set the pages to appear in the "wide screen" format, as they do when I use Explorer?

My home page - Yahoo.com - as well as all other pages, appear in a "wide screen" format when I use Internet Explorer 8. How can I change the settings in Firefox so that my pages look the same way, rather than the "narrow screen" appearance?

Me too!

How to get a WIDE screen view in Laptop...

I am using Sun Solaris 10 for x86 on Virtual Machine. But i am unable to get a wide screen view. I have a 15.4" screen laptop.
Do i need to change any setting in my Vitual Box????
Presently, i am getting a view having Aspect ration 1:1. i am looking for 16:9 aspect ration screen.

Hey,
Wide screen view for Solaris on virtual machine? I use the newest [virtualbox for windows|http://www.softsea.com/review/VirtualBox-for-Windows.html] version, what if you use vboxmanage setextradata resolution x*y? Look in the manual for the correct syntax. It might actually work. you can also try to force it in xorg.conf.
Hope this tip can help.

Gnome looks 4:3 on a my wide screen [SOLVED]

Hello!
I just installed Arch on my small Samsung Q45 notebook (with wide screen), and I'm having this curious problem with Gnome: even though X seems to stard at the correct resolution of 1280x800, Gnome panels do not fill up the full space.
An image is worth a thousand words so here we go:
http://www.italpro.net/images/gnome-strange.jpg
As you can see, the area at the right or at the bottom is perfectly usable, as I can move icons and windows there. However, the panels don't expand to fill it. This is probably due to a thing you can see in the screen resolution preferences dialog in the upper-right part of the screen: Gnome sees my screen as a 4:3 1024x768!!! Also it shows a weird refresh rate of 30hz.
Besides this problem, I can see everything perfectly well (readable chars, no flickers, perfect colours), so that must be a Gnome-related issue...?
Thanks,
Michele.
Last edited by lordarthas (2008-02-10 13:15:54)

Hello!
uastasi wrote:Take a look to your /etc/X11/xorg.conf at Monitor Section and try editing your refresh rate.
VertRefresh is set to:
VertRefresh 50.0 - 75.0
which is a setting that doesn't even include the 30.0 that Gnome is showing me in the resolution preferences dialog. Moreover, I see things perfectly well, so I think X is correctly started at 1280x800@60Hz - it's just Gnome that seems to not be understanding that! Anyhow, I tried changing the above line to:
VertRefresh 60.0
but nothing really changes.
You can also switch to tty1 and see if it is an issue related to Gnome.
It is: on text terminals, and even with other X window managers, everything works. It's just Gnome (and it's related GDM) which size themselves wrongly.
Thanks,
Michele.

Change of ratio from 4 x 3 to 16 x 9 wide screen..

Change of ratio from 4 x 3 to 16 x 9 wide screen.. in FCX pro
Can anybody please help me, who has prior knowledge of changing the ratio from 4 x 3 to 16.9 widescreen that I have already imported.. I have tried everything in the preferences.. Before I imported it, and after, however it is not working. It’s been imported from a FlashCARD… Thank you in anticipation

Hello once again Tom, sorry for the inconvenience, I'm quite new to this Final Cut Pro as you can tell. However here is information you requested I hope I got it right for you.
I will do my best to explain as I go on. I'm using a Canon XL2 broadcast camera which is capable of shooting in 9 x 6 and 4 x 3. It is a DV tape camera and additional to that I have on the back a datavideo (DN 60) flash card recorder. I do believe that the flash card recorder records in 16 x 9, so I am told by the distributors. I'm also told by the same distributors that for some reason Final Cut Pro X does not recognise the 16 x 9 flag, however Adobe, Sony Vegas etc they do recognise it and allow you to change the ratio size in their software. When I use the tape from the camera it exports into Final Cut Pro X as 16 x 9, so I will thought that the flash card recorder would record in the same format.
I can tell by the size of the clip in the viewfinder that it is not 16 x 9 when I import it in, I also make a quick 10 second movie and set that as my master file, no matter what I use to import it in the preferences it still won't stretch to widescreen, or in fact anything else I do as I send it to a master file, anything else than this I am at a loss, not sure what to do. I hope the picture of the move inspector is what you require also including the picture to let you see the size in reference.

Action Safe on Wide Screen TVs

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