Solved Video stretched when viewed on TV - What could I be doing wrong?

Hi! First time user here. Your website is a godsend.

I am really puzzled as to why my DVD video appears stretched when viewed on my TV. I feel as though I've followed the instructions for project creation, properties, etc. correctly in both Vegas Movie Studio (v11) and DVD Architect, but the result seems different from what I'm led to expect. Here are a few details:

This is my first time editing a video (and wouldn't you know I would make it a 50-minute wedding/honeymoon travelogue!). The video is SD, filmed on a Canon FS200 camcorder with an aspect ratio of 16:9. The clips are in MOD format. When I first tried to load them into my project, the application wouldn't "see" my camcorder, so I ended up copy/pasting them into my hard drive. From there, Vegas MS would not "see" the files until I finally found the "ALL FILES" selection when importing project media. I tried using the "auto-detect" feature when setting up my project properties, but Vegas did not recognize the clips as widescreen and set the project at 4:3. So, once in my project, the clips were squeezed horizontally. I learned how to correct that by selecting NTSC DV Widescreen (720x480, 29.970 fps). I also changed all of my clips to match.

I'm creating a DVD with menus - again, for the first time. When rendering, I was a little thrown by the option of whether to "stretch video to fill output frame size (do not letterbox). On the one hand, I don't want letterbox, but I feel as though I don't need my video stretched either. So I left that unchecked. But as for "Use widescreen DVD format," I have now rendered a couple times, once with the box checked (as per the tutorials, which makes sense to me as I want widescreen), and once without it box checked. The weird thing is, when I don't check that box, the video looks fine when I view the DVD over my DVD player. But when I do check it, the video gets stretched out, with a black strip on the top and bottom of the frame, like a letterbox. This happens even though everything looks fine when I preview the video in DVD Architect Studio.

I have chosen 16:9 at every possible turn, and I've chosen DVD Widescreen as my render option. The TV aspect ratio is 16:9. So...why would the DVD look stretched when viewed over a DVD player? Even more puzzling to me is, why would it NOT look stretched after I've rendered with the "Use DVD Widescreen format" option un-ticked? I'd appreciate it if you could help me troubleshoot so I can learn how these things interact.

My project properties in DVD Architect Studio are:

MPEG-2 video format
Bit rate: 8.0
Aspect Ratio: 16.9
Resolution: 720 x 480 NTSC
Frame Rate: 29.97

By the way, every other DVD put into my player (when renting a movie, etc.) looks just fine. Also, when I plug the camcorder directly in the TV, the aspect ratio is fine as well.

Many thanks for your help!

Paul

Hi Paul and welcome to the Forum.
I have moved your question into the DVD Architect sub-forum.

All your problems go directly back to the way you imported the Video files from your Canon FS200 camcorder.
I have an old Canon FS100, so I am very familiar with what you are experiencing.

Importing video from your Canon FS200
On the older Canon SD camcorders, you must use the free Pixela software that came with your camera to import into the computer.
The import application converts the raw .mod files into the correct MPEG2 video files. These MPEG2 video files will display properly in Movie Studio without having to do all these extra steps. I actually have a really old tutorial which shows exactly what to do here. You will need to find the discs that came with your camera and install the software. If you haven't deleted the original files from your camera or SD card, I suggest you re-import them using this method. If you have already deleted the original files, just follow the instructions below for working with MOD files.
www.moviestudiozen.com/free-tutorials/video-cameras/23-how-to-download-video-files-from-a-canon-standard-definition-video-camera


Working with .MOD files
Some of what I am about to say you have already worked out for yourself, but for the benefit of other people who read this thread I need to state a few important things.
MOD files are not natively supported by Movie Studio and Vegas Pro, however as you have already discovered, if you set Views to All Files in the File Explorer tab, you can at least see them. The problem with doing this is that the file is not being read properly by the software, so you need to open the Properties for each video file and manually set it.

Before you can do this, you need to import all the video files you want to work with into Movie Studio/Vegas Pro.
Then go to the Project Media tab and right-click on each file one at a time and select Properties.
Now find Pixel Aspect Ratio and set to match the video type your camera records to.
For a Standard Definition NTSC camera, set to 1.2121 (NTSC DV Widescreen)
For a Standard Definition PAL camera, set to 1.4568 (PAL DV Widescreen)



Setting Project Properties correctly to match the MOD files
The second important step is to now Match your Media settings correctly in the Project Properties tab. Once you do this, you shouldn't need to worry about fixing any other settings - everything will now display correctly with no black bars or stretched video.
Press Project Properties button above Preview Window.

When working with Widescreen Standard Definition NTSC video, set the Project Properties to look exactly like this.
If you open the Template drop down box, you will find this template which will set everything for you.



When working with Widescreen Standard Definition PAL video, set the Project Properties to look exactly like this.



Stretching video files
If you have correctly followed the two steps above, you do not need to stretch the video. Completely ignore this setting.

If your settings were incorrect back in Movie Studio, you will now have to re-render your videos so they are using the correct Frame Sizes/Aspect Ratio and then re-send then into DVD Architect. My BIG tip is to do this - open your current saved project and then re-save it with a different version name. Then you can experiment with different versions and not lose any important work if you make a mistake. This is also important so that you don't get old video file versions mixed up with newer repaired ones.

I can't comment any further until you have read and checked the steps I have outlined above.

Regards
Derek.

Derek,

Thank you SO much for this thorough reply. Great information to know. I don't anticipate getting a ton of use out of this Canon camcorder going forward, but it could come in handy.

The good news is, I think I can locate the disc with the Pixela software on it. The bad news may be - I think I'm about to cry - I assume this means I would have to re-edit my entire video? It took me about 60 hours to do (being new at this). If that's the case, I guess I would opt to un-tick the "DVD Widescreen Format" option when rendering and be done with this massive project. For some reason, that seems to keep the clips in their 16:9 aspect ratio.

Best,

Paul

If you are able to download and convert your original video clips to MPEG2, you do not have to re-do your project.
You can do a trick and simply replace the MOD versions with MPEG2 versions.
By doing this trick, all your edits and any Text you have added are not lost and will automatically be applied to the new MPEG2 versions of videos.

This is what you have to do.
1. Obviously download videos with Pixela app.
2. Save a new copy of existing project with a different name e.g. myproject-v201.vf, then close Movie Studio.
3. Go to the main folder on your computer where .MOD video files have been saved. Create a new folder inside of this and call it MOD versions.
4. Drag all MOD video files into folder MOD versions.
5. Now boot up Movie Studio and load myproject-v201.vf
6. Program will say files are missing. Select Specify a New Location or Replacement File.
7. Now find the folder where the new MPEG2 video files have been saved to and select the first video that is the same as the older .mod versions. Do this for each separate video that is in your project until the project completely opens up.
8. Now re-save the project again with another new name, e.g. myproject-v202.vf

Everything should look exactly as you remembered it. If it doesn't, it means you did not swap the correct video files. If this happens, open myproject-v201.vf and start again with the file swap. Once you get this step correct, it is time to re-render your project into a new video for DVD Architect.

Hey Derek,

Still having issues.

I tried to follow your instructions to a T. I found the Pixela installation disc and installed the software on my new computer, but it wouldn't take the serial number for my Casio FS200 camcorder. I realized I had the clips on the old computer I originally saved them to (using the Pixela software), so I copied those over to my new computer using a flash drive. I did all the folder management you suggested and re-named the newly transferred MPEG files (which is what the properties should them to be ) to match those in the MOD file folder. I then did the procedure of specifying the replacement files. In the process of doing that, I may have inadvertently cancelled out or it or done something else wrong, because when the project media loaded up, the video clips were showing as MOD files. But, I right-clicked on one of them and realized that I could REPLACE, one by one, each video clip. So that's what I did, replacing each MOD clip with its corresponding MPEG clip.

The MPEG video clips were all in 0.9091 (NTSC DV), so I changed them all to NTSC DV Widescreen to match my project properties.

As you predicted, all of my edits, transitions, titles, etc. were kept intact, so that is great.

I rendered using the DV Widescreen option.

In DVD Architect Studio, everything looked fine in the Preview screen.

After burning to a DVD, I threw it in the DVD player, and the image shows up stretched horizontally with a black letterbox-style bar at the top and bottom of the screen.

I'm at my wit's end. Any ideas? (I'll be sending you a donation when this is over with!)

Thanks,

Paul

Hi Paul

When you enter the Serial Number for your camera, DO NOT enter any letters that come after the actual number. If you do this, you should get it to work. Your number should be behind the battery compartment and look like this: 1234 5678 9012

I think I know what is wrong. It sounds like you have not set up DVD Architect properly in the Preference Settings.
Go to Options/Preferences/Preview - make sure the Aspect Ratio is set to 16:9 and not 4:3.

I am assuming your original video clips were actually recorded in 16:9 Widescreen Mode and not 4:3 Aspect Ratio. If they are in fact 4:3, then that would explain your problems.

Also check that your Project Properties in DVD Architect have been set correctly.
Go to File/Properties and make sure everything looks exactly like this.
The setting that may be causing your problems is Aspect Ratio - it should be 16:9 and not 4:3.



I will wait to here back from you about these things before proceeding on a wild goose chase.

Derek, thanks for your response. And welcome to my world (or maybe it's me joining yours).

- My DVD Architect aspect ratio in Options is set to 16.9.
- My DVD Architect project properties are set to 16.9. As you know, there's no option to set the resolution to DV Widescreen, so my selection looks like yours.

In Vegas Movie Studio, my project properties are all ticked/selected the way you've outlined above.

The only beginner's guess I have is: In DVD Architect Studio, under Options > Preferences > General, could it possibly be something about the fact that the box is checked (by default) for "Use best stretching algorithm when rendering" ? I suspect not, but I'm open to anything!

I'll try the serial number format you suggested for the Pixela software, although if successful, this would mostly be to work with future clips from that camcorder, which I hope to be able to use as a second camera for low-res stuff for YouTube, etc. Not sure I have it in me to work with these 165 clips yet again.

If I copied and pasted my original, Pixela-transferred files (all of which were identified as MPEG-2 in their properties) onto my new computer, and "replaced" them one by one into my project, wouldn't you think the process would still have worked? I mean, I'm ending up with the exact same media files as I would have if I had imported them from the camera (in theory).

This has to have a solution. I appreciate your help.

Paul

I just had another thought. These video clips were shot about 6 years ago, and I'm not 100% sure I imported onto my old computer using the Pixela software. I may have done that by just plugging my camcorder into my computer and doing it without Pixela. Then I probably imported them into my Pixela project.

If you go to the Pixela website, it's pretty clear that these are legacy products with minimal to no support nowadays. I'm going to try to install and authorize the software again (now that I know how to work with the camcorder serial number). Hopefully that will work, and hopefully it won't be seen as a duplicate registration since I already did it once. If I get the software registered....sigh....I guess I'll try importing/renaming/replacing all of the 165 he clip files again. I hope it also doesn't involve fixing the aspect ratio on each one.

Thanks again,

Paul

This has become more complicated than it should be. Here is one last try.

1. A completely out of the box thought. Do you have your DVD Player set to 16:9 output ? Do you have your TV set to 16:9 display for DVD display ?
Most DVD Players and Widescreen TV sets, have settings that can change how the output from a DVD Player displays. If it is set incorrectly, your video output from DVD Player will end up be stretched and not look right.

2. I assumed you were working with video that had been recently shot. If it is 6 years old, forget about trying to convert it with Pixela software - it's too late for that now. You need the other metadata files that would have been on your SD card or camera, for the import application to convert MOD into MPEG2 properly.

3. The reason why you are having a problem with stretched video, is because the Pixel Aspect Ratio has been set incorrectly somewhere in the chain, your original videos are not actually 4:3 (not widescreen) and/or you have multiple versions of the same videos rendered and the file names are all mixed up or your DVD Player/TV display is not set to 16:9.

4. I don't know which of my tutorials you have been using, so I don't know which exact method you used to render your video. If you have been using the Tools/Burn to Disc method, you probably have a large number of mixed up files now causing problems in the Vegas Cache. You need to clean this Cache immediately and reset the program, to make sure you don't have any old video files fooling you into thinking they are the newer versions.
Do this:
Turn Movie Studio Off.
Hold down CONTROL and SHIFT keys at the same time AND ALSO AT THE SAME TIME double click program icon on Desktop to Boot program.
Window will pop up.
Select Delete Cache and Yes.
This will restore program to Factory Default Settings.

5. After you have cleaned the Cache and Reset program, open the saved Movie Studio project with original MOD video file versions.
RE-SAVE this project immediately with a NEW NAME and create a NEW FOLDER, so that it can in no way get mixed up with anything BEFORE this.
MOD files before having their Properties fixed will look square instead of rectangle.
As soon as you change them to the correct Pixel Aspect Ratio, you should be able to tell straight away in the Preview Window if they look correct (i.e. not squished).
If it looks wrong after fixing the aspect ratio, then you will know that the original videos are actually 4:3 and not 16:9 widescreen.



Before - squished


After - true widescreen


6. This is what your Project Properties in Movie Studio should precisely be set to.



7. Now I am going to give you new instructions for how to render your videos 100% manually. This way you can check 100% before you get to DVD Architect, that they are true widescreen 16:9 and not squished. If you can do this successfully, there is no reason for videos to get squished in DVD Architect.

Go to Project/Render As.
To render your Video file, use these exact settings.
Make sure to Browse and select the NEW FOLDER location for this version of project, so that no old videos can get mixed up with new versions.



Now do a second render for just the Audio file.



8. Go to the folder you rendered these new videos to and check to see it looks OK - it should look perfect.

9. Now you can open your DVD Architect Project and import these NEW videos in.
Delete old videos first and then import new ones in.
Go straight to Preview.
If everything is OK, what you see in the Preview will be Widescreen 16:9.
If it does not look OK, the settings for your DVD Player/TV must be wrong.

Derek,

Thanks so much - again. I'm going to try everything you mentioned above. It may be a while before you hear back from me (you can breathe a sigh of relief), but a couple quick points.

I actually still have everything - the SD cards on which the clips were shot, installation discs, everything. We were careful not to delete the files from our SD cards until we had the video successfully edited and everything preserved somewhere else.

The reason I am still dealing with this, 6 years later, is this: I edited this thing back in 2010 on my 2005-era Dell PC. I spent about 50 hours on it, using the Pixela software. I recall everything looking fine (16:9) on preview during that editing process and having no issue with the aspect ratio of the clips. The issue came when it was time to render. I kept getting an error message that there was a .5 second gap somewhere in the edited video. I communicated back and forth extensively with Pixela, trying to solve the problem, and I finally gave up. I chalked it up to maybe overwhelming the Pixela app with a 50-minute "movie" and decided I needed more robust video editing software and would try again. I went with Vegas Movie Studio v11. Unfortunately, I neglected to check the system requirements and realized, about 20 hours into my second edit (in 2011) that I didn't have enough RAM to keep up with the software. The playback was jittery and froze up regularly. The advance of technology just caught up with me and took me by surprise. So, my bad. I let the project sit dormant for a while until I got a new computer. Last year, I bought a Lenovo laptop with tons of RAM and storage and made sure to get a good video care. I re-loaded the Vegas software, and have had no issues as far as the computer keeping up with things. Anyway, that's the reason for what must seem like a rather odd situation to you.

Since 2010, I've become committed to learning video thoroughly, as my wife wants to embark on a venture involving lots of interviews, a web channel, etc. So I need to learn this stuff.

Thanks again,

Paul