[opendtv] Re: (No Date: Tue, 28 Sep 2004 10:30:37 -0400

From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: "OpenDTV (E-mail)" <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Wed, 3 Nov 2004 11:12:54 -0500

Craig Birkmaier wrote:

> The fact remains that the human visual field is
> closer to 4:3 than 16:9. But this is not relevant
> unless you are designing an immersive display
> experience like IMAX.

No, you are only partly correct in this.

The *screen* aspect ratio best suited to human
vision is clearly not even close to 4:3. The
mistake is to equate the screen aspect ratio
with the ratio of field of view angles we
see. You seem to still be making that mistake.
Maybe I'm just misinterpreting your words.

If you used your notion, the article that claims
a field of view of 180h by 60v degrees would
translate to a 3:1 screen ratio. Yet, as proven
with simple trig, this simply is wrong. Even that
3:1 ratio, in a screen, could stand some
widening.

IMAX is simply filling the front wall of a venue
with steeply raked seating arrangement. It is not
designed to *most efficiently* fill your
peripheral vision.

The best screen aspect ratio, in my opinion, is
therefore not going to be based just on filling
peripheral vision, nor should it be based on
what movies made the most money. It should instead
favor wide aspect ratio for the technical reasons
given, and it should be a compromise to best fit
the *majority* of upcoming *content*.

Although I personally was in favor of 2:1 back
when, now that the TV industry and movie industry
have both converged on 1.77:1 or 1.85:1, the
16:9 compromise makes very good sense. This
compromise makes even more sense considering that
your typical new stadium style movie theaters will
likely encourage new blockbusters to use 1.85:1
rather than 2.35:1 aspect ratios. In stadium
theaters, 2.35:1 blockbusters create *smaller*
images than 1.85:1 movies. Hardly what the
Cinerama, Vistavision, or Panavision folks had
in mind!!

Bert

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Follow-Ups:
- [opendtv] Re: (No Date: Tue, 28 Sep 2004 10:30:37 -0400
  - From: Tom Barry

[opendtv] Re: (No Date: Tue, 28 Sep 2004 10:30:37 -0400

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