Goodbye 4x3, Hello HD.

    When you have lived most of your creative life thinking in a 4x3 box, it is hard to let go. Standard definition (SD) video and its standard picture dimension became so en-grained in my creative mind. I could compose the most beautiful and creative shots without thinking twice in this 4x3 format. Then came along SD in 16x9. Now as a filmmaker, I welcomed the cameras that shot natively in this format. If I wanted the effect on my old camera, I would have to add a letterbox filter in post production.  I love the cinematic look of 16x9, but at the time, most Brides still owned traditional TVs that had a 4x3 screen. Most, not all, did not like their wedding film to be displayed with those evil black bars on top and bottom. The artist and filmmaker in me cringed when people would rent 'Full Screen' versions of movies as opposed to watching it how God and the filmmaker intended, in its native and glorious 16x9. As time progressed, more and more brides liked the aesthetic look that 16x9 would give. I still played it safe, I only used it for ceremonies and cinematic recaps.

Catherine & Geoff's Cinematic Recap from Perfect Sky Productions on Vimeo.

      Then a funny thing happened on the way to SD nirvana, High Definition. HD brought in the era of 16x9 native displays. Plasma, LCD and DLP TVs where hitting the market and consumer where quick to buy them. The visual language of 4x3 changed to 16x9. So as we transition fully into HD wedding film production, I knew it was time to let go of the past and say goodbye to 4x3. I only have a few weddings left to edit that where shot traditionally in 4x3. From this point on, all weddings will be shot in 16x9 regardless of SD or HD. I have to retrain the brain, reboot. The clip below won me a WEVA creative excellence award and I believe it was the only 4x3 clip to win that year. Farewell 4x3, R.I.P.

Emily+Lance's Cinematic Recap from Perfect Sky Productions on Vimeo.

16x9 sample.

Kelly & Robert's Cinematic Recap from Perfect Sky Productions on Vimeo.