Question / Help Aspect Ratio in relation to monitor and recordings?

[MisterMeatball]

I've been trying to find if anyone else has the same issue and haven't been able to, so forgive me if this is a repeat of other posts. I don't know much about the topic.

Some background: I am new to video capture, and recently recorded some footage.
Resolution: 1280x1024
Aspect ratio: 5:4 (1.25:1)

Any footage I record is square, and I am assuming it is the same aspect ratio as my screen.
Is there a way around this? How can I record footage at a ratio that would fit YouTube, for example?
Is this an obstacle which cannot be overcome short of purchasing a monitor with a different aspect ratio?

 

[R1CH]

You could run your screen at 1280x720, it would look terrible to you, but the footage would look fine to everyone else. Other than that, the best way is a new monitor with a 16:9 aspect ratio.

 

[MisterMeatball]

Thanks for the help! I will give it a go. Either way I'm going to be upgrading to a monitor with a more convenient aspect ratio at the beginning of the new month.