Real D Vs. IMAX 3D.

[Jafloogan]

I have seen the movie 4 times in Real D and 3 times in IMAX, and I can safely say....

IMAX SUCKS

It's blurry. Simple as that. When Jake runs from the Thanitor, I couldn't make anything out.

In Real D, I could see everything clearly.

It was very disheartening.

Did anyone else notice this?

[Vauktu]

The way IMAX screens are built is far different from RealD. Your positioning in the theatre could have very well effected your view while watching Avatar in IMAX.

From my experience (12 RealD 3D, 1 IMAX), I can safely say IMAX is superior to RealD 3D. The image is much more clear in IMAX than it is in RealD.

[Jafloogan]

That was probably it. **** me...

I was sitting pretty close.

[Omocan]

Your positioning in the theater could have very well effected your view while watching Avatar in IMAX.

^this.^ with imax i believe you have to be close to the middle to get a good viewing effect. i've seen it twice in imax 3d and i was able to get dead smack in the middle and it was pretty darn good ive also seen it in real D 7 times. they are both good but with imax you get more of the picture also. thats what i like the most about it.

[Jafloogan]

I was sitting in the center, can being too close make things blurry?

[Na'vi ik ite]

I agree with Vauktu and Omocan...

I saw Avatar 10 times in IMAX (the authentic, six-story high screen with the sound system that could blow a hole in your chest), once in RealD3D, and once in "LieMAX" (:nlol:). I can safely say IMAX was superior to the other 3D formats.

Your sitting position will DEFINITELY affect your viewing experience. The first eight viewings, I sat fairly dead center, both from left to right and I tried to find the middle row from the top of the theater to the bottom. I don't recall any blurriness for any of those viewings. (One of those times, we were advised by someone who claimed to be an audio engineer to sit slightly right of center, which was the "sweet spot" sound-wise; honestly, I didn't notice any difference.)

The last two IMAX viewings, I sat centered left to right but down in the fourth or fifth row closest to the screen; I wanted to fill my entire field of vision with JUST the screen (yeah, I'm kinda kooky like that). It was then that I noticed a few blurry spots off to the extreme right or left of the screen, from my vantage point; I suspect that was the blurriness you mentioned in your post.

Someone else addressed these interesting points in a similar thread. In IMAX, the screen is the backdrop and things come out at you. Ferns looked to be only inches from me; the buzzing insects set off almost a reflexive reaction of "Ewww!"; when Jake finds himself alone in the forest for the first time, I wanted to reach out and grab his tail; and when Home Tree had fallen and there was ash drifting down, it seemed ash was actually raining down on me in the theater.

In contrast, RealD and "LieMAX" screens serve as the foreground, and the 3D effect stretches backward, so that things in the background appear "behind" the screen.

[Omocan]

I wanted to fill my entire field of vision with JUST the screen

lol, that my meaning of dead center. talking about the blurriness on the sides, i noticed it also does that in RealD if you are too close.

[Fridge Magnet]

I saw it three times in real d, and once in the IMAX. In my opinion I liked the Real D more, it was easier to see what was going on. In the IMAX it was right in my face lol, but it was still awesome :nlol:

[Pjalok'shi]

The 1st time I saw Avatar it was in IMAX. It kinda gave me a headache and if you tilted your just a little the 3D effect was lost. The picture wasn't clear, the lens on the glasses where warped, scratched and greasy. Did a little research on Real-D and saw it in that format a few days later. Never went to another IMAX viewing. Yeah IMAX has a bigger screen but thats the's where the pro's end and the con's begin. Watching it in Real-D is like playing a video game in 1080p for the 1st time and your just at awe at how clear everything is and how much you can see. I know for the 1st 10 minutes of the movie I was just looking around the background in the scenes saying wow in my head.

Real-D 3d > IMAX

[Buoyant Rock]

From my personal experience, I saw it twice in 2D, 5 times in RealD 3D, and once in IMAX (in that order). Following this sequence, I felt that 2D offered the storyline as a whole. RealD 3D clarified the whole experience, making it more amazing and captivating. IMAX 3D allowed me to (after I became a fan like so many) to pay attention to the details BEHIND the front layer images. I could SEE Pandora instead of the key focus of the lens. This for me was an awesome way to experience Avatar.

The positioning in the theater definately has a major effect on how you see the movie (from experience). Sitting in the middle is the way to go, regardless of how you watch it. =)

[superpidrooo]

REAL 3D it rocks, is cool and I can see all the details , but the one problem is that you see it all dark

[Txen]

There are really two kinds of IMAX, digital and film. I have only seen the digital IMAX and Real D. I thought both were good. The IMAX had the edge in sound for sure. I think both are really good.

One thing I wonder about. The IMAX uses linear polarization with one eye vertical and the other horizontal. If you tilt your head the images blur. I didn't notice that at all on the Real D. How does Real D separate the images? Is it a clockwise vs counterclockwise polarization instead of linear?

EDIT->Update: A quick look at wikipedia shows that it is circularly polarized and that is why you can tilt your head.


RealD 3D cinema technology uses circularly polarized light to produce stereoscopic image projection. Circular polarization technology has the advantage over linear polarization methods in that viewers are able to tilt their head and look about the theater naturally without a disturbing loss of 3D perception, whereas linear polarization projection requires viewers to keep their head orientation aligned within a narrow range of tilt for effective 3D perception; otherwise they may see double or darkened images.[6]

The projector alternately projects right-eye frames and left-eye frames 144 times per second.[6] It circularly polarizes these frames, clockwise for the right eye and counterclockwise for the left eye. A push-pull electro-optical liquid crystal modulator called a ZScreen is placed immediately in front of the projector lens to switch polarization. The audience wears spectacles with oppositely circularly polarized lenses to ensure each eye sees only its designated frame, even if the head is tilted. In RealD Cinema, each frame is projected three times to reduce flicker, a system called triple flash. The source video is usually produced at 24 frames per second per eye (total 48 frames/s), which may result in subtle ghosting and stuttering on horizontal camera movements. A silver screen is used to maintain the light polarization upon reflection and to reduce reflection loss to counter the inherent losses by the polarization filters. The result is a 3D picture that seems to extend behind and in front of the screen itself.

[Avatar'd]

I went to the "new" IMAX in Camarillo, CA to see avatar and I was not impressed. It looked like a giant square old tv. Its like they cut the sides off the screen and added them to the top. The sound was great though! But I agree with TC, IMAX was kinda lame.

[Jafloogan]

IMAX was louder. I still stand by what I said about picture quality though.

[Turuk Maktu]

I went to the "new" IMAX in Camarillo, CA to see avatar and I was not impressed. It looked like a giant square old tv. Its like they cut the sides off the screen and added them to the top. The sound was great though! But I agree with TC, IMAX was kinda lame.
It's the other way: The square old tv look on IMAX is 16:9 and real 3D is ultra wide screen. It means they didn't cut anything on the side and added it to the top at IMAX but they cutted lots of content for the real 3D versions on top and bottom:

Take a look at these postings for visual explanations:

Explanation 1 (http://www.avatar-forums.com/production-technology/2325-have-you-really-seen-avatar-6.html#post211704)
Explanation 2 (http://www.avatar-forums.com/production-technology/2325-have-you-really-seen-avatar-4.html#post94341)
Explanation 3 (http://www.avatar-forums.com/production-technology/2325-have-you-really-seen-avatar.html#post49637)

[neytirixjake]

*sighs* I've seen it both in Real3D and in IMAX, but for the IMAX viewing i arrived late and ended up squished 2 rows from the front, at the far right of the cinema with my neck cranked back at an unbelievable angle. It was TERRIBLE and i was so upset because i didn't have another chance to see it in IMAX before it left cinemas D: I'd planned to arrive at least 40 minutes early as well, but things got in the way. If it comes out in IMAX in the Autumn i'm booking a ticket as early as possible and arriving AT LEAST an hour and a half early (it's in a complex so i'll just sit in a cafe until the showing) to get the best seats. I hate to think my disasterous first and only experience of IMAX will be the only one, because i was stupid enough not to plan ahead.

[Be_Creative]

I liked Real D better, too!
IMAX was kind of blurry and not what I expected...
The sound was awesome though, but for the rest I prefer Real D

[Jafloogan]

I liked Real D better, too!
IMAX was kind of blurry and not what I expected...
The sound was awesome though, but for the rest I prefer Real D


I agree, the sound was better.

[Miami Surfer]

I have seen the IMAX 3D twice, and RealD once. The IMAX version was very sharp, I sat in the front/center (The only remaining seats for both viewings) and the screen filled my peripheral vision. I was viewing the film as I was almost going to fall with Jake down the waterfall. The sound of 70mm seven-track magnetic was amazing!

I liked both versions, only the IMAX was presented in the 1.78:1 ratio while the Real D was 2.35:1. It was cropped slightly on top and bottom.