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The aspect ratio of an image is its displayed width divided by its displayed height (mathematically expressed as x:y [“x-to-y”] and x×y [“x-by-y”]).

The common cinema film aspect ratios used today are 1.85:1 and 2.39:1^[1]; the two common videography aspect ratios are 4:3 (1.33:1), universal for standard-definition video formats, and 16:9 (1.78:1), universal to high-definition television and European digital television; other cinema and video aspect ratios exist, most are currently disused.

Three aspect ratios are shown below. All three images have identical height thus showing different widths.

96x54
81x54
72x54

Converting formats of unequal ratios is done by either cropping the original image to the receiving format's aspect ratio, or by adding horizontal mattes (letterboxing) or vertical mattes (pillarboxing) to retain the original format's aspect ratio. Cinematographic format aspect ratios end with to one unit of measure (***:1), while videographic format aspect ratios denote whole numbers on both sides of the equation. In still camera photography, the most common aspect ratios are 4:3 and 3:2, though other, aspect ratios, such as 5:4, 7:5, and 1:1 (square format) are used.

Comparison of three common aspect ratios constrained by the screen's diagonal measure (black circle). The widest and shortest box (blue, 2.39:1), the middle box (green, 16:9) are common cinematographic formats. The square box (red, 4:3) is the standard definition television format.

In motion picture formats, the physical size of the film area between the sprocket perforations determines the image’s size. The universal standard (established by William Dickson and Thomas Edison in 1892) is a frame that is four perforations high. The film itself is 35mm wide (1.38in.), but the area between the perforations is 24.89mm by 18.67mm (0.980in. x 0.735in.).^[2] With a space designated for the standard optical soundtrack, and the frame size reduced to maintain an image that is wider than taller (mimicking human eyesight), this resulted in the Academy aperture of 22mm x 16mm (0.866in. x 0.630in.) or 1.37:1 aspect ratio.

The motion picture industry convention assigns a value of 1.0 to the image’s height, thus, an anamorphic frame is described as 2.40:1 or 2.40 ("two-four-oh"). In American cinemas, the common projection ratios are 1.85:1 and 2.40:1. Some European countries have 1.66:1 as the widescreen standard. 1.33:1 was used for all cinema films until the 1950s when the 1.85:1 aspect ration became the cinema projection standard in the U.S..

Development of various camera systems must therefore ultimately cater to the placement of the frame in relation to these lateral constraints of the perforations and the optical soundtrack area. One clever widescreen alternative, VistaVision, used standard 35 mm film running sideways through the camera gate, so that the sprocket holes were above and below frame, resulting in a larger horizontal negative size per frame as the vertical size was now restricted by the perforations. However, the 1.5 ratio of the initial VistaVision image needed to be cropped down to 1.85 and optically converted to a vertical print (on standard 4-perforation 35 mm film) to show in the projectors available at theaters. Though the format was briefly revived by Lucasfilm in the 1970s for special effects work that required larger negative size (due to image degradation from the optical printing steps necessary to make multi-layer composites), it went into obsolescence largely due to better cameras, lenses, and film stocks available to standard 4-perforation formats, in addition to increased lab costs of making prints in comparison to more standard vertical processes. (The horizontal process was later adapted to 70 mm film by IMAX.)

Super 16 mm film is frequently used for television production due to its lower cost, lack of need for soundtrack space on the film itself (as it is not projected but rather transferred to video), and aspect ratio similar to 16:9 (Super 16 mm is natively 1.66 whilst 16:9 is 1.78). It also can be blown up to 35 mm for theatrical release and therefore is also used for feature films.

The 4:3 ratio for standard television has been in use since television's origins and many computer monitors use the same aspect ratio. 4:3 is the aspect ratio defined by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as a standard after the advent of optical sound-on-film. By having TV match this aspect ratio, films previously photographed on film could be satisfactorily viewed on TV in the early days of the medium (i.e. the 1940s and the 1950s). When cinema attendance dropped, Hollywood created widescreen aspect ratios (such as the 1.85:1 ratio mentioned earlier) in order to differentiate their industry from the TV.

16:9 (generally named as: "Sixteen-by-Nine") is the international standard format of HDTV as used in Australia, Canada, Japan, South Korea, and the United States, as well as in Europe on HDTV and non-HD widescreen television (EDTV) PALplus. Japan's Hi-Vision originally started with a 5:3 ratio but converted when the international standards group introduced a wider ratio of 5⅓ to 3 (=16:9). The 1.78:1 aspect ratio was the compromise between the 35 mm US and UK widescreen standard (1.85:1) and the 35 mm European widescreen standard (1.66:1)^{[citation needed]}. Many digital video cameras have the capability to record in 16:9. Anamorphic DVD transfers store the information vertically stretched in a 4:3 aspect ratio; if the TV can handle an anamorphic image, it will horizontally decompress the signal to 16:9. If not, the DVD player can reduce scan lines and add letterboxing before sending the image to the TV. Wider ratios such as 1.85:1 and 2.40:1^[1] are accommodated within the 16:9 DVD frame by additional black bars within the image itself. The European Union and Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina have instituted the 16:9 Action Plan,^{[citation needed]} just to accelerate the development of the advanced television services in 16:9 aspect ratio, both in PAL and also in HDTV. The Community fund for the 16:9 Action Plan amounted to ECU 228 million.

4:3 (1.33:1)

16:9 (1.78:1)

See List of common resolutions for a listing of computer resolutions and aspect ratios.

See List of film formats for a full listing of film formats, including their aspect ratios.

Original Aspect Ratio (OAR) is a home cinema term for the aspect ratio or dimensions in which a film or visual production was produced — as envisioned by the people involved in the creation of the work. As an example, the film Gladiator was released to theaters in the 2.39:1 aspect ratio. It was filmed in Super 35 mm film and, in addition to being presented in cinemas and television in the Original Aspect Ratio of 2.39:1, it was also broadcast without the matte altering the aspect ratio to the television standard of 1.33:1. Because of the varied ways in which films are shot, IAR (Intended Aspect Ratio) is a more appropriate term, but is rarely used.

Modified Aspect Ratio is a home cinema term for the aspect ratio or dimensions in which a film was modified to fit a specific type of screen, as opposed to original aspect ratio. Modified aspect ratios are usually either 1.33:1 (historically), or (with the advent of widescreen television sets) 1.78:1 aspect ratio. 1.33:1 is the modified aspect ratio used historically in VHS format. A modified aspect ratio transfer is achieved by means of pan and scan or open matte, the latter meaning removing the cinematic matte from a 1.85:1 film to open up the full 1.33:1 frame.

A windowboxed image

Multiple aspect ratios create additional burdens on filmmakers and consumers, and confusion among TV broadcasters. It is common for a widescreen film to be presented in an altered format (cropped, letterboxed or expanded beyond the Original Aspect Ratio). It is also not uncommon for windowboxing to occur (when letterbox and pillarbox happen simultaneously). For instance, a 16:9 broadcast could embed a 4:3 commercial within the 16:9 image area. A viewer watching on a standard 4:3 (non-widescreen) television would see a 4:3 image of the commercial with 2 sets of black stripes, vertical and horizontal (windowboxing or the postage stamp effect). A similar scenario may also occur for a widescreen set owner when viewing 16:9 material embedded in a 4:3 frame, and then watching that in 16:9. It is also not uncommon that a 4:3 image is stretched horizontally to fit a 16:9 screen to avoid pillar boxing.

Both PAL and NTSC have provision for some data pulses contained within the video signal used to signal the aspect ratio (See ITU-R BT.1119-1 - Wide-Screen signalling for broadcasting). These pulses are detected by television sets that have widescreen displays and cause the television to automatically switch to 16:9 display mode. When 4:3 material is included (such as the aforementioned commercial), the television switches to a 4:3 display mode to correctly display the material. Where a video signal is transmitted via a European SCART connection, one of the status lines is used to signal 16:9 material as well.

For many artists, however, aspect ratio is determined not by the constraints of the technology or medium, but by the content or the story. Indeed, as long ago as the early 20th century, film directors such as D. W. Griffith, one of the early giants in film, would sometimes change the picture aspect ratio within the film. In "Intolerance", for example, a single shot where a character falls from a high wall has the sides of the vista greatly cropped to enhance the dramatic height of the fall. Today, Directors of Photography are often forced to compose the shot to keep the essential subjects in the "sweet spot" of the frame as a compositional compromise between the intended aspect ratio and the potential future alternate ratios to be presented.

Common aspect ratios in still photography include 4:3 (1.33) used by most point-and-shoot digital cameras; 3:2 (1.5) used by 35mm film, APS-C ("classis" mode) and most DSLRs; 1.81:1 (close to 16:9) used by APS-H high definition mode; 3:1 used by APS-P panoramic mode; and 1:1 (square) in a variety of cameras.

Common print sizes in the U.S. (in inches) include 4x6 (1.5), 5x7 (1.4), 4x5 and 8x10 (1.25), and 11x14 (1.27); large-format cameras typical use one of these aspect ratios. Medium-format cameras typically have format designated by nominal sizes in centimeters (6x6, 6x7, 6x9, 6x4.5), but these numbers should not be interpreted as exact in computing aspect ratios.

• Active Format Descriptor (AFD)
• Anamorphic widescreen
• Four Thirds System
• Full frame
• Letterbox
• List of common resolutions
• List of film formats
• Motion picture terminology
• Pan and scan
• Paper size
• Television & aspect ratio
• Widescreen
• Widescreen display modes

Cited references

General references

• The Letterbox and Widescreen Advocacy Page
• American Widescreen Museum
• Widescreen Apertures and Aspect Ratios
• Aspect - combined aspect ratio, frame size and bitrate calculator
• Calculator to Determine Size of 4:3 Image on 16:9 Screen (middle of the page)
• Aspect Ratios Explained: Part 1 Part 2
• Aspect Ratios: Digital Cameras, Print and Sensor Sizes
• Explanation of TV Aspect Ratio format description codes
• Number of DVDs for each aspect ratio
• TECHNICAL BULLETIN Understanding Aspect RatiosPDF (708 KiB)
• SCADplus: 16:9 Action plan for the television in the 16:9 screen format - European Union