Image resolution of minimum 1.280 × 720 pixels — in practice usually 1.920 × 1.080 (Full HD). Digital standard for broadcast, streaming, and digital projection.
Anyone picking up a camera today automatically thinks in HD — at least 1,280 × 720, but usually 1,920 × 1,080 pixels. This is the point where digital image capture starts to get serious for professional productions. Anything below this looks soft, pixelated, and no longer contemporary — at least on modern displays and projection surfaces. HD is no longer a luxury, but the baseline. Streamers demand it, TV channels certainly do, and even for web content, viewers have long since gotten used to it.
In practice, we distinguish between two formats that have persisted: The 720p format (1,280 × 720) was originally the progressive standard for broadcast, but today it only plays a role in special live situations — football in a smaller format, fast streaming fallbacks. Full HD with 1,920 × 1,080 has become the actual working resolution. Whether we shoot on Digital Cinema Cameras, Sony FS7s, Blackmagic cameras, or even REDs — we deliver at least in Full HD, often as a DCP or as a ProRes master for streaming platforms. The advantage: file sizes are still manageable, editing performance on standard computers remains fluid, and most monitors and projectors can work with it without downscaling.
On set, HD capability plays a more subtle role than some might think. It's not just about the resolution itself, but about what it brings with it: focus becomes more critical — at 720p, sharpness forgives more; at 1080p, you see every misplaced focus pull in detail. Color grading becomes more precise. Lens aberrations become visible. That's why professional sets invest in better lenses, follow-focus systems, and sensible monitoring. HD demands technical cleanliness — and in return, delivers images that hold up on big screens and 55-inch monitors.
Technically, Full HD is now so established that any reasonably modern camera masters it. The real question on set is no longer whether you are HD-capable, but what goes beyond that: 4K, 6K, RAW recording — these terms shape the discussion today. However, HD remains the mandatory delivery format for broadcast and most streaming platforms. Anything you shoot in 4K will ultimately be downscaled to Full HD or lower if the viewer is streaming on their phone. HD is no longer sexy — but it is the working standard upon which the entire system is built.