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May 21, 2010
Is Mother Earth round? Not on TV
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Planet Earth as it should look (left) and as modern television has squeezed into a misshapen egg. -- PHOTO: VIDEOFILM
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WHEN television first arrived in the 1960s, the pictures were in black and white with almost square screens, or as the techno jargon went, in 4 x 3 aspect ratio.
Half a century later, television has evolved into a technologically superior piece of equipment, with multi-channelled sound, high definition and 3-D. TV screens are huge and wide.
But what amazes me is that their visual integrity is being compromised.
For example, a picture of planet Earth appears shaped like a rugby ball or an egg tilted sideways instead of a more perfectly contoured soccer ball, which it is.
This is because most TV programmes are still being broadcast in the 4 x 3 ratio when the modern television set is pegged at a wider 16 x 9 aspect or more. When an almost square picture is extended to 16x9 aspect by force, expanding the horizontal resolution, everything is stretched out of proportion (see picture above).
We are now watching people with wider, fatter faces and shorter, stockier or fatter bodies.
Everything is literally out of shape.
We can select the 4x3 feature on our TV remote controls instead of 16x9, but that is impractical as many shows are broadcast in a variation of aspect ratios.
The problem should be solved by the broadcaster, not the user. Besides, it is a visual waste to use only 70 per cent of our wide screens.
How can Singapore's media broadcasters resolve this problem to relieve us of the visual misery of having to watch images which are stretched silly.
After all, the solution is not impossible. Some movies have done it and at least one major station, the British Broadcasting Corporation, has made the effort to serve the viewer correctly.
Eric Chua
Is Mother Earth round? Not on TV
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<!-- story content : start -->
WHEN television first arrived in the 1960s, the pictures were in black and white with almost square screens, or as the techno jargon went, in 4 x 3 aspect ratio.
Half a century later, television has evolved into a technologically superior piece of equipment, with multi-channelled sound, high definition and 3-D. TV screens are huge and wide.
But what amazes me is that their visual integrity is being compromised.
For example, a picture of planet Earth appears shaped like a rugby ball or an egg tilted sideways instead of a more perfectly contoured soccer ball, which it is.
This is because most TV programmes are still being broadcast in the 4 x 3 ratio when the modern television set is pegged at a wider 16 x 9 aspect or more. When an almost square picture is extended to 16x9 aspect by force, expanding the horizontal resolution, everything is stretched out of proportion (see picture above).
We are now watching people with wider, fatter faces and shorter, stockier or fatter bodies.
Everything is literally out of shape.
We can select the 4x3 feature on our TV remote controls instead of 16x9, but that is impractical as many shows are broadcast in a variation of aspect ratios.
The problem should be solved by the broadcaster, not the user. Besides, it is a visual waste to use only 70 per cent of our wide screens.
How can Singapore's media broadcasters resolve this problem to relieve us of the visual misery of having to watch images which are stretched silly.
After all, the solution is not impossible. Some movies have done it and at least one major station, the British Broadcasting Corporation, has made the effort to serve the viewer correctly.
Eric Chua
