A Question RE: 1080p on older titles

DampCat

DampCat

DampCat

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Hi

When a bluray is released, is the film itself shot in any different way? Or is 1080p just a new type of uh... compression, or similar, now that we have larger storage capabilities (bluray)?

It's just I've been wondering if a movie from pre-bluray era (for example The Shawshank Redemption) would actually benefit from being on a bluray?

Basically, is Hi Def a way of shooting? or a way of storing the AV on media?

I realise this is probably completely retarded.
 
Anything shot on a film camera will see a benefit with bluray as film camera's typical shoot at anything up to 4k (4096 x 2303) which obviously is far higher than bluray (1920x1080). this is why older films films like blade runner and The Shining ect look so good on bluray.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AAunIuaDDNU

a clip of the shining in 1080p. ibvously since its on youtube it wont be the highest bitrate and so not really indicative of the the PQ of the bluray relase, but even so you can still see the potential. Compare that clip to the dvd release and it's like night and day. the bluray is better still.
 
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DampCat said:
Or is 1080p just a new type of uh... compression, or similar, now that we have larger storage capabilities (bluray)?
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james.miller's info about film is bang on. I just want add a little about Blu-ray and 1080p...

You can think of Blu-ray as a recording format. What we put on a Blu-ray disc doesn't have to be 1080p. We could put higher or lower resolution video on to the disc. The disc would fill up quicker or slower accordingly. Blu-ray disc's capacity is all down to the technology that allows us to write more data in the same space and to read it back with a finely focused laser. Have a look at the this link to see how Blu-ray compares to DVD and CD

1080p is simply the highest resolution of the HD broadcast resolutions that was decided for the next generation of TVs.
 
Movies are literally captured on film. Like the negative film you used to get in your old cameras.

Now a frame of film can hold a lot of detail. IIRC a single good quality 35mm film frame can get you around 16 megapixels. Basically, what they do is scan in the film using a very high resolution/ppi scanner [analogue to digital conversion] and then save it as a bluray format movie.
 
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james.miller said:
Anything shot on a film camera will see a benefit with bluray as film camera's typical shoot at anything up to 4k (4096 x 2303) which obviously is far higher than bluray (1920x1080). this is why older films films like blade runner and The Shining ect look so good on bluray.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AAunIuaDDNU

a clip of the shining in 1080p. ibvously since its on bluray it wont be the highest bitrate and so not really indicative of the the PQ of the bluray relase, but even so you can still see the potential. Compare that clip to the dvd release and it's like night and day. the bluray is better still.
Click to expand...

The details in the tie and jacket...wow! I started just watching those instead of the actual face!
 
jellybeard999 said:
Old film as above.

Newer film is recorded digitally, but I believe at enormous resolution, and downscaled for bluray release etc.
Click to expand...

I think it still largely depends on the director...

Your choices vary you can have -

* 35mm film (most common)
* 70mm
* IMAX film (think this is 65mm loaded horizontally)
* Digital at 2k, 4k and above
* other formats - for example 28 Days Later is mostly shot on mini DV @ 576i so it looks awful on BluRay!

The choice is dependant on what look you're going for, film can be great to give you lovely grainy/gritty effects, especially in black and white - but a lot of this is added in post production now.

For 3D shooting is probably mostly digital, but it can be done with film too.

I generally don't mind what a film has been shot on (as long as the detail is there so 4k+ or 35mm) but i do prefer digital projection at the cinema - the 35mm prints are used too much and they wear out quickly - at a decent cinema you won't notice but towards the end of a run or at a budget cinema it can look quite bad.
 
A lot is also dependent on how a film is restored. These very few older films that will be restored from a 4k scan (originally before transferring to a 2k). This is due to the cost of producing a 4k telecine from the original negatives. However, when I film is restored using this method the results are amazing. The criterion release of The Thin Red Line and the forthcoming release of Taxi Driver came from 4k scan and look amazing. The Thin Red Line looks better then Avater imo.
 
Pick up a copy of Apocalypse Now on BD. It's difficult to find and not cheap but flippin' 'eck...

Stunning, simply stunning.
 
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