16:9 Projection

[Lucas]

i know i have entered this thread about a year late

Originally Posted by heritagenj

I did check with several Worship Software vendors on 16:9 support. Easy Worship confirmed that they support it, Sunday Plus did not (future plans), Song Show Plus and Media Shout have not answered yet.

Song show does support 16:9... you can set it in practice mode so why wouldn't it work for projection?

That was originally posted about 2 1/2 years ago - and SS+ was at the 5 or 6 version. If you can do it in practice mode then it should work in production. I haven't looked at SS+ since that time since we have been happy with Easy Worship - we even got the next version as a free upgrade this year.

[Lucas]

Originally Posted by heritagenj

That was originally posted about 2 1/2 years ago - and SS+ was at the 5 or 6 version.

I know.... i just saw that it was not answered so I thought what the heck.... why not?

[mwalker]

As a general rule, you should choose your screens based upon the "content" you are providing them.

Are you capable of widescreen comptuer graphics? Is your software capable of producing a 16:9 output? Do you have 16:9 native cameras? Do you have 4:3 cameras capable of anamorphic squeeze mode? Do you have the majority of your DVD content configured and/or edited for 16:9?

If the answers to these questions are no...or possibly "what are you talking about"...then it probably is too soon for you to go 16:9, but if not...then keep reading.

Let's assume you want to go 16:9...I usually set up the main graphics computer for 1280x768 (typically because some graphics cards don't have a 1280x720 option) and set up the dvd player's menu for a 16:9 "TV" type. You DONT have to use 16:9 native HD projectors to accomplish this. Most 4:3 native projectors have a "wide" mode that will project a 16:9 image. This is especially important when you are looking at large screens, such as 14'-25' wide. A 4:3 projector for a large screen may cost a third of the price of the 16:9 native HD projector. And in most cases, transitioning to 16:9 does NOT mean transitioning to high definition.

Also, if you use certain types of higher end video scaler/switchers, you can modify each input into the system (strech and squeeze each video input signal slightly) so that once these video signals are sent to the screen(s), they are all the same "size". This is especially helpful when attempting to display different "widescreen" DVDs because there are so many different sizes...it allows you to modify the input as needed.

Hope this helps a bit...

[late minute edit]: Song Show Plus can do 16:9...and has supported it for years. Most of the software programs are not limited to the program, but rather rely on the computer's graphics card...so even if a software program supports 16:9 and your graphics card only goes to 1024x768 or 1280x1024...then this will be a problem.