Datasheet
All output from a computer, which is RGB based, to a printer goes through a CMYK
conversion as it’s printed. For professional print work, specially calibrated monitors are
used to better preview the CMYK color of an RGB image before it is printed. Fortunately,
only the print professionals need to worry about this conversion process because most of
it is handled by our graphics software to a fairly accurate degree.
VIEWING COLOR
The broadcast standard for North America is called NTSC, as listed in the next section.
One joke in the industry is that the acronym means Never The Same Color, referring to
the fact that the color you see from one TV screen to another will be different. The same
will hold true for computer monitors, especially flat panel displays. It’s important to keep
this in mind; all displays are calibrated differently, and what you see on one screen may
not be exactly what you see on another screen. If it’s important that the color matches on
different screens, say between home and school, you can use traditional color bars down-
loaded from the Internet or your own custom-made color chart to adjust the settings of
the monitors you work with so they match more closely.
Resolution, Aspect Ratio, Frame Rate
Resolution denotes the size of an image in the number of horizontal and vertical pixels,
usually given as # × #, such as 640 × 480. The higher the resolution, the finer the image
detail.
You will adjust your final render size to suit the final medium for which you are creat-
ing the animation. The following are some standard resolutions:
VGA (Video Graphics Array) 640 × 480 Formerly the standard computing resolution
and still a popular television resolution for
tape output.
720 × 486 The standard resolution for broadcast televi-
sion in North America.
NTSC DV 720 × 480 Close to the NTSC D1 resolution, this is the
typical resolution of digital video cameras.
PAL (Phase Alternation Line) 720 × 586 The standard broadcast resolution for most
European countries.
HDTV (High Definition TV) 1920 x 1080 The emerging television standard, sometimes
also referred to as 1080i.
1024 × 768 Typically the lowest allowable resolution for
film production at Academy ratio. Since film is
an optical format (whereas TV is a raster for-
mat), there is no real set defined resolution for
film. Suffice it to say, the higher the better.
2048 × 1556 Most studios output CG for film at this resolu-
tion, which gives the best size-to-performance
ratio.
4094 × 3072 A high resolution for film, used for highly
detailed shots.
4K Academy (4K is 4000 pixels
across)
2K Academy (2K refers to 2000
pixels across)
1K Academy (1K refers to 1000
pixels across)
NTSC D1 (National Television
System Committee)
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