Video editing - how to know what file type to use

[Misdreavus]

I'm using Pinnacle Studio Ultimate 12 to do some video editing, and am a bit confused as to what I should select for the "File Type" option. Here are my choices:

• Audio
• AVI
• DivX
• Flash Video
• iPod Compatible
• MOV
• MPEG-1
• MPEG-2
• MPEG-4
• Real Media
• Sony PSP Compatible
• Windows Media
• 3GP

I'm not really concerned with the size of the file as much as I am with having the best quality product possible. I assume that it's essentially a choice between MPEG or AVI, correct?

I would generally be doing one of the following with my completed projects:

• keeping on PC to play on PC
• keeping on PC to play on HDTV
• burning to DVD/video CD
• uploading to YouTube or similar site

Most of my videos were created by using a capture box with an external source, although some may be ripped from a DVD created by my DVD camcorder. Assuming I know the origin of my video and exactly what I want to use it for, how do I know what type of file I should render it as?

Thanks!

 

[Firestorm]

Those are containers though, not codecs. The codec is the compression that determines file size and quality. I would use H.264 in the MPEG-4, MOV, or AVI containers. That's the most common. That'll work best from both a file size and quality perspective. See if the H.264 option is in options somewhere. You'll need to convert while burning the DVD anyway. The DVD Authoring program will likely take care of that. YouTube will convert whatever you throw at it into the appropriate format when you upload it.

 

[symphonyx64]

I agree with Firestorm in that MPEG-4, or MOV would be your best bet for what you wish to do with the video files. I believe MPEG-4 is more compatible with various devices as MOV is a Quicktime standard.

 

[Misdreavus]

I read that my software is compatible with H.264, but I don't see it anywhere in the options. For MPEG-4, even if I choose "Custom" for the preset, the "Compression" drop-down menu for both video and audio is grayed out. Here's what I'm dealing with:

Pinnacle Studio Ultimate 12 - file settings for MPEG-4

Under "Options," the only thing available to me is a checkbox for progressive encoding. I can also set the data rate for both audio and video to much higher than it is at the moment... should I do that? This is all when I choose "Custom" as my preset; there are other options:

• Very Small
• Small / QSIF
• Small / QCIF
• Medium / SIF
• Medium / CIF
• Full size (good quality)
• Full size (best quality)

Since the #1 thing to me is quality, should I just use the "Full size (best quality)" option?

If I select "MOV" as the file type, it lets me choose between DV, MJPEG, and MPEG-4 as my compression options.

 

[Firestorm]

If that's the only option you have, try it and see how it looks. I've only really used Adobe Premier Pro and Final Cut Pro so I'm not familiar with Pinnacle Studio.

 

[Misdreavus]

If that's the only option you have, try it and see how it looks. I've only really used Adobe Premier Pro and Final Cut Pro so I'm not familiar with Pinnacle Studio.

Gotcha. If I want the highest quality possible, do you recommend I get different software, such as one of the ones you mentioned? I'm running Windows, and as far as I know, FCP is for Macs only. I have worked briefly with Adobe Premiere in the past, but now I just have Pinnacle Ultimate Studio 12, Roxio Easy Media Creator 9 Suite, and Windows Movie Maker for Vista and 7 (of which Pinnacle Ultimate Studio 12 is my most recent and most expensive acquisition).

Thanks for the advice!

 

[Deschain]

i use PSP12 at work in tandem with a "DVD Dazzle" hook up to capture DVD and VHS directly to the hard drive. i use Premiere/Encore for editing and authoring though, so i can't be of much service there.

what are you looking to use the files for (EDIT: saw you answered that already)? if you're capturing video from a camera or outside source with the intention of burning to DVD, then you'll want to capture to .avi and then compress to MPEG-2 (your only option when going to SD DVD). h.264 is an HD codec, so don't bother with it unless you're going for HD output (and also have HD footage in the first place).

if you're just looking to capture stuff to put up on the web, you still want to capture in the highest quality possible, so that when you smash it down, you lose the least amount of quality possible.

a couple of excellent free/shareware encoders are TMPGEnc (pretty easy to use, and best for web encoding)) and Avi2Dvd (not at ALL easy to use, but very customizable and much better quality output).

feel free to pick my brain more if you so desire.


EDIT: for PC playback and web uploading, encode to .mov, .wmv or .flv, as trying to watch uncompressed .avi files will lag most computers pretty bad.

 

[Firestorm]

Unless you're doing heavy editing, Windows Movie Maker in the newest Windows Live Essentials 2011 pack should fit your needs just fine and doesn't cost a cent. After a certain point, quality isn't noticeably better.

Deschain, I like DivX (or the free XviD) for standard def encodes and H.264 for HD.

 

[Deschain]

i've never used DivX. at work i use Sorenson Squeeze and Procoder 3 for encoding, so standard compression formats are the way to go.

 

[Misdreavus]

Unless you're doing heavy editing, Windows Movie Maker in the newest Windows Live Essentials 2011 pack should fit your needs just fine and doesn't cost a cent. After a certain point, quality isn't noticeably better.

Oh really? I've heard bad things about Windows Movie Maker in the past... you're saying the new version is as good as moderate-end (not super-expensive) video editing software? I downloaded it, but I don't see many of the advanced features that I had with Pinnacle, such as selecting interlaced or progressive.