FYI, that Popular Mechanics piece on High-Def DVD that I alluded to a few times over the summer is finally in print, and on the web. The web manifestation contains an expanded version of the “must-own” list I compiled for the package as well. The emphasis here was on Hollywood fare getting the high-def treatment, so there’s nothing, say, about that 8K disc of Baraka…although I did get Chungking Express into the feature. The piece contains a lot of interesting information about how your Blu-ray sausage is made, if I may say so myself, and also delves into the differing philosophies involved. I’ve been preparing an end-of-the-year High-Def Consumer Guide to correspond with the publication of the piece, but as the PM piece doesn’t provide a link to my blog (it’s okay—they don’t link to Instapundit when he publishes in there either, so I can’t complain), to do so won’t necessarily enhance my scheme to monetize this site, which I only started hatching as I was typing the previous sentence. Nevertheless, I hope to post that later in the week.
Get your geek on
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Very good article, Glenn. Glad to see that there are people working with these HD transfers that don’t want to eliminate the ‘film look’ that so many of us love. It’s too bad that Lowry mentions that some producers want them to erase the grain.
Smallest nit to pick – Sleeping Beauty was photographed in Technirama (and released in SuperTechnirama 70), not VistaVision. The Technirama process was similar to VistaVision (both used horizontal 35mm negatives), but Technirama used lenses with a slight anamorphic squeeze to get a CinemaScope ratio final image. VistaVison’s lenses were standard spherical designed to give a 1.85 flat final image.
Oops. I hate when that happens. Really. I think the error must have come out of my conversations with John Lowry, when he talked about acquiring a special gate to do the scanning on “Sleeping Beauty” and mentioning VistaVision in that contexts, as I infer that the gates for VV and Technirama must be identical. In any case, I’ve contacted my editors and hopefully the fix will be put in the online version, and a correction made to the print version next issue. Drat.
Bullshit! Murderer! Etc. Good job hanging tough Friday.
Glenn -
Yes, the camera gate size is virtually identical to VistaVision; Technirama cameras were made from modified VistaVision cameras, which were made from modified 3‑strip Technicolor cameras…, so I’m sure he’s used to just saying VistaVision. There’s a lengthy description of Technirama and other widescreen & large format processes on Martin Hart’s Widescreen Museum website.
Just bought first Blu-ray player, and what you say about Shine a Light is perfect. It’s the best looking and sounding Blu-ray I’ve seen so far. Images much crisper than they were in IMAX.