Abstract: A method for padding an input video signal having a multiplicity of image blocks for shape adaptive discrete cosine transform first scans an image block containing object and background pixels to thereby detect a padding pixel located between object pixels on a same row or column in the image block and calculates a substitute pixel value based on pixel values of the object pixels in the image block. Once the substitute pixel value is determined, the padding pixel is compensated by the substitute pixel value to thereby provide a padded image block. The padded image block having an object region containing the object pixels and the padding pixel compensated by the substitute pixel value is transformed to a set of SA-DCT coefficients through the use of the shape adaptive discrete cosine transform.