Atmospheres: Earth, Air & Water Blu-ray

Atmospheres: Earth, Air & Water

 (TV) (2008)

Documentary



For more details about Atmospheres: Earth, Air & Water on Blu-ray, see the Atmospheres: Earth, Air & Water Blu-ray Review

Atmospheres: Earth, Air & Water Blu-ray, Video Quality

 


Atmospheres looks spectacular in its 1080p/AVC encode, with the same sharpness and astoundingly popping color palette that made Planet Earth such a sensation a few years ago. Everything from the rust oranges of lava to the startling blues and greens of the Aurora Borealis are reproduced with absolutely accuracy and amazing saturation. This documentary is filled to the brim with swirling images, including lots of mist and clouds, and there is not a moment of macroblocking that I noticed throughout the 90 minutes. Fine line detail is superb and depth of field is simply top notch. Some of the close ups are actually alarming, they're so clear. I don't believe I've ever seen a beetle's "texture" so clearly before.

Atmospheres: Earth, Air & Water Blu-ray, Audio Quality

 


The good news is, National Geographic has provided the viewer with four options in terms of soundtracks on this release: two DD 5.1 mixes, one with music combined with (faint) nature sounds, and one with just the nature sounds, and two similar ones folded down to DD 2.0. (As noted in the review, there's no narration in this piece, which I personally loved). High def enthusiasts are probably not going to be very wowed by any of these choices, but there's nothing to complain about per se with what's here. While the natural sounds are at least semi-immersive, they're awfully quiet at times. That said, it's fun to hear the scamper of two beetles across sand make its way from channel to channel as the poor little bugs attempt to mount a huge dune. Water sounds are clear and (no pun intended) liquid, with some impressive LFE in the Niagara Falls sequence. While the original music by Mark Edmondson, Richard Morel and Jon Wolfson is enjoyable, it has a prevalence of low end, which tends to drown out all but the most intrusive ambient sounds combined in that mix. It's actually kind of fun to switch between the tracks as you watch this piece, to get little snippets of what they all have to offer. This is in no way a reference quality soundtrack (in any of its mixes), but it's clear, with excellent fidelity and range (if tilted toward the lower frequencies in the music tracks), and for those non-audiophiles in the audience, should suffice just fine.

Atmospheres: Earth, Air & Water Blu-ray, News and Updates

• Atmospheres Slips to 2009 - September 10, 2008


• National Geographic Brings Atmospheres to Blu-ray - July 2, 2008