An annoying feature—Pixel Aspect Ratio—PLEASE MAKE IT STOP!!!

JS
Posted By
Jay_Shmulewitz
Aug 10, 2004
Views
1150
Replies
17
Status
Closed
Somehow, someway when I open
Photoshop CS, I’ll open an existing image
(JPEG, TIFF, PDF. etc.) and it will default to
a window that gives the message:

Pixel aspect ratio correction is for preview purposes only. Turn it off for maximum image quality.

I go to View, then deselect it. I open more images, I get the same message.

HOW DO I TURN THIS THING OFF PERMANENTLY????
I don’t use Pixel aspect ratio correction. I never use it. I think it’s an annoying new feature that expands or condenses my images when I don’t want it to.
I didn’t see anything in the Photoshop preferences folder that would allow me to turn it off. I hate Pixel aspect ratio correction!!!!!!
I am welcome to any suggestions.

Does anybody out there know?

Sincerely,
Mr. Pissed off

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L
Larryr544
Aug 10, 2004
Go to the Image menu > Pixel Aspect Ratio
SW
Scott_Weichert
Aug 10, 2004
Actually, even resetting it in the menu will fix the current iamge, but not all images or all iamges in the opening process. I find this an annoying feature as well. I work with square pixels, just as Photoshop has for evey version prior to CS. Now, when I open images from certain source I MUST go to the menu for every file and reset the pixel aspect ration.

There needs to be a user definable option to LOCK the prefered pixel aspect ration. It makes far more sense to lock a ration based on the users workflow and then change the ration for individual images.

Short answer Jay,
You can’t turn it off. You need to go to the menu Image > Pixel Aspect Ration every time.
CC
Chris_Cox
Aug 10, 2004
Scott – that’s because the FILE has the aspect ratio set to something non-square.
JS
Jay_Shmulewitz
Aug 11, 2004
To Chris Cox,
Please clarify!
What do you mean the aspect ratio of the image is set to something non-square. Where would I go in Photoshop CS to change this?
What’s the procedure? How would I resolve it?
Is there a way to preset an image as "square"?

Also, if I open two images which both state they have Pixel aspect ratio correction. I then turn off Pixel aspect ratio correction on both of them. I take part of one image and paste it into the other as a layer, the layered image defaults back to Pixel aspect ratio correction and appears squished. I go to Image Menu >Pixel aspect ratio and it’s turned off. Do you know how to resolve this??

Sincerely,
Jay
MO
Mike_Ornellas
Aug 11, 2004
Hmm..

I would have to call that one a slip through the crack.

One would consider that a user would be transferring image data that has a scale relative to the type of work that you do, but than again, never guess how a user will use.

I really don’t know if there is a need to have the application function in a scaling manner as it does now between documents, but one thing is for sure, if it does so, it should tell you just like color mgmt. does. But than again, who reads dialog boxes now days.

;o~

I would say that you need to set your documents to a common pixel aspect ratio.
L
Larryr544
Aug 11, 2004
Jay – read this thread.
SW
Scott_Weichert
Aug 11, 2004
Chris,

The files are either screen shots or processed though a small postscript > tiff application on a PC. They have all been fine until Photoshop CS introduced non-square pixels. Now every file demands the View > Pixel Aspenct Ratio > Square be selected.
R
Ram
Aug 11, 2004
Jay,

Please do read this thread. If you don’t know who Chris Cox is, click on his name, or look at the splash screen in Photoshop.

When you wipe the egg off your face, turn to the manual and the Help files for further guidance. If you are still stuck after that, come back here and ask your questions calmly. There’s a lot of help to be had here.
J
jonf
Aug 11, 2004
The questions Jay is asking seem reasonable to me. I expect Chris is a big enough man to understand a bit of user frustration. When things suddenly stop working as they always have just because of an upgrade a few nerves will be always be touched.
R
Ram
Aug 11, 2004
Jonf,

Beside the unneeded exclamation point ("To Chris Cox, Please Clarify!", I also detected sarcasm in "Do you know how to resolve this??", with a double question mark. Sorry if I was wrong.
MO
Mike_Ornellas
Aug 12, 2004
I’d say Chris_IS_a big man. He’s also seen as a target to communicate issues to, but by no means does he represent the body of Adobe.

CS is the first round of implementation for non-square pixels and expecting it to be perfect in every way right out the shoot is not a realistic viewpoint.
JS
John_Slate
Aug 12, 2004
So this message comes up when a non-square pixel file is being opened.

That seems understandable.

You can preview the thing with rectangular pixels or you can interpolate pixels into the file, and get square pixels while retaining the appearance, for maximum quality…?

But it seems Scott is getting this message on screen shots… certainly they would be square pixels to start off with?

How did previous versions deal with the non-square pixel? Default to one resolution or the other, and come up as a distorted image? Or did it resample to keep from distorting?
B
Buko
Aug 12, 2004
This is all very interesting.

the only time I have seen this message is when I scanned an image after I had been scanning text for Omni Page ProX. I forgot to change VueScan pref to open the image in Photoshop. So the image scanned opened in Omni Page ProX when I opened the tif in PS I got the message and the image was at 50% in the width normal in length until I chose the correct pixel aspect ratio.
P
progress
Aug 12, 2004
i’ve had it on some square pixel files…i just ignored it…the files had been through the mill of email and pc/mac servers, but they were just standard pixel images.

perhaps something gets lost along the way
SW
Scott_Weichert
Aug 12, 2004
You shouldn’t just ignore it progress it does changes yoru image, even if only slightly.

I would jsut like a way to set the working environment to be a set pixel aspect ratio. Then if I need another ratio I can select it fromt ehmenu. Sort of like in interplolation preference.

The real problem occurs if you tick that "dont’ show again" checkbox in the ratio warning. Then you could be altering images and not knowing it.
JS
John_Slate
Aug 12, 2004
Here’s what I don’t get:

If you open a new document with a 2:1 pixel aspect ratio, and specify that you want a square image, why do you end up seeing a rectangle?

OK I know why, because by specifiying a square in the new document dialog you are obviously specifying the same number of pixels in each dimension and the 2:1 pixels make it into a rectangle.

But it seems to me that if you specify a square in inches not pixels you should see a square with rectangular pixels in it, just half as many pixels across as high, and the image size dialog should have 2 fields for resolution.

As it is you have one field for resolution and the horizontal ruler becomes twice as big as the vertical ruler, meaning that horizontal resolution = vertical resolution, it’s the physical dimension that is different… a 3 inch square that measures 6 inches across and 3 down.

So if you ae preparing a 2:1 file for an environment that needs that ratio, will your rectangular square appear in the other environment as a rectangle or a square? If the latter how could you work on it in it’s rectangular form and see what you are doing? And if the former, which makes sense, why would you want to turn off the 2:1 ratio display and be presented with a very squashed image?

And finally, if you have a 2:1 file, how do you turn it into a 1:1 file that looks the same, beside turning off the non-square display, then anamorphically scaling more pixels into the width… or would that do it? Would the file still retain the 2:1 attribute?

Ouch, my head hurts.
P
progress
Aug 12, 2004
Scott… i know it doesnt when its wrong, the files were square format…i know that, i bloody made them! something gets screwed along the line somewhere now and then…something triggers it off now and then. Screwed files? probably.

John…the pixel aspect ratio is really for tv type images…inches really doesnt come into it, your dealing with pixels at best.

The resolution is the same, its the shape of the pixels as viewed that isn’t. The image is composed to take this into account. Normally you work in a preview which is normal, when the file is rendered it is rendered distorted so the file when viewed on TV is undistorted.

When PS is previewing aspect ratio, its showing what it would look like at the final output at the tv monitor, but because your monitor has square pixels it cheats by interpolating one of the axis, so there is a loss visually. So if you want a square at final output, turn PARC on…draw your square…but if you want to line it up exactly to something else, turn it off so you can see pixel perfect.

If you have a non square pixel format and you want it square you can either scale it in one direction or change its aspect ration and accept that its distorted.

Aspirin?

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