What's the best video format and resolution for your project?

🎥 Deciding on the best video format is like choosing the right suit for a gala; it needs to fit the occasion perfectly. Whether you opt for MP4 for its broad compatibility or MOV for higher quality with Apple devices, match the format to your distribution channels and audience's tech habits. This choice ensures your video doesn't just reach screens—it dazzles on them. Don't let tech snafus spoil your show; pick the format that lets your content shine.

The most important thing to understand about video formats is the difference between codecs and containers! Most of the time you'll find references to videos generally get simplified down to referring to the file using the container such as .MP4 or .MOV. Generally that's probably all you need to understand but if you are working in Video, especially in shooting or editing it's important to understand how CODECS and CONTAINERS differ and how they work together. Let's break it down, as it's name suggest the CONTAINER is the file structure that stores information like video and audio streams, metadata, etc The Codec on the other hand is is the program used to compress or store the data stored in the video and audio parts of the container.

Recently I create vertical videos more than before because of the Instagram reel system. So my settings are: Resolution: 1080x1920 Framerate: 29.97fps Bitrate: 4Mbps (or 6Mbps) Video format: MP4 | h.264 I always edited videos horizontally before. But now I think it's a good experience for me to edit vertically. By the way, I prefer Horizontal videos.

🌟 When it comes to video resolution, think of it as the thread count in luxury bedding—the higher, the richer the experience. Aim for 1080p to balance quality with accessibility, ensuring your video looks crisp on most devices. Or, if you're feeling ambitious and your audience has the tech, leap to 4K to make every detail pop, transforming ordinary scenes into visual feasts. Remember, the right resolution can make your visuals whisper or shout, so choose wisely to make the biggest impact.

Somehow instagram forced me to edit videos vertically. So my video's resolutions are mostly 1080x1920 The first times, it was so confusing for me to edit vertically, but now I get used to it and I think I became a good vertical editor!

In my experience on television, streaming and digital production the difference between HD and 4K to the naked eye (and most screens) is not as noticeable as you would expect. Where it does give you flexibility is in framing where you can crop videos quickly in different aspect ratios for different platforms. Think less about how it's exported and more how video is recorded for video resolution.

🔄 Selecting the right aspect ratio for your video is like choosing the perfect frame for a painting. It sets the stage for how your content will be viewed. Traditional 16:9 is the go-to for YouTube and home TVs, offering a familiar view that fills most screens comfortably. But if you’re targeting mobile viewers, consider 9:16 to dominate their full screen with no room for distractions. For a cinematic touch, the wider 21:9 can bring a dramatic flair, making everyday content feel like a film festival entry. Choose wisely to enhance the visual storytelling.

Before you think about aspect ratio, think about where the action is in your video. If it's filled with lots of text, people read right to left so you want to keep a traditional 4:3 or 16:9 ratio. If you want something more personal use a vertical 9:16 so you can accommodate more of your subjects face, body and hands in frame (like an interview.) 1:1 can often feel cramped for most videos, so I would rarely use.

Much like any creative process, there are rules around frame rates and there are also rule breakers. If you are new to filmmaking you might think... well the more frames the better. Gotta get my moneys worth, but unfortunately that isn't always the case. To begin let's define what frame rate is... frame rate, often shortened to FPS, is the number of frames (ie. Pictures) that are shown per second to make up a video. What's important to consider is the kind of content you are shooting, where it's going to be shown and who's going to watch it. Whatever your frame rate, be sure to make it intentional. Think about how it looks and why you want to shoot it that way!

I think the lowest recommended framerate for youtube is 24fps and for Instagram is 30fps. Of course you can use 24fps for Instagram but it's better to use 30fps for reels.

One of the best ways to create proxy videos for editing in Adobe Premiere is to decrease the bitrate of the video so you can render the video faster. Adobe Encoder is used for creating proxies for Adobe apps. And of course you can have proxy videos in Davinci resolve too.

Based on my experience Audio does a lot of the heavy lifting in how people perceive the quality of the video they are watching. There are many factors that can result in good, or bad audio quality from sampling rate to bit depth all the way down to the quality of the cable you use and the mic you plug into that cable. More often than not, people are happy to forgive slightly bad quality video if the audio is good enough it raises the bar of the entire video. When recording audio here are a few things to keep in mind: 1. Use the right mic for the job. Pick a microphone that has a pickup pattern that compliments the job you are trying to accomplish. 2. Be aware of background sounds and mute them if you can 3. Monitor your audio always!

Adobe Audition has great tools for enhancing audio, especially for podcasts and youtube videos. Some of the tools are: - Parametric Equalizer - single band compressor - noise reduction - normalize - etc One of the good features is the favourite part. You can record your settings, so you don't have to edit the whole audio every time. You just select the favourite recorded setting, then Audition does it for you.

I always try to remember (and give myself some flexibility in creation) that the tech specs and gear are only as good as what you are making. If you make something great people will watch it no matter what color, shape or size it's in. If it's beautiful but boring no one will remember you made it in 4K.

Everything is going to be around two important factors: - How good is your camera at different resolutions - What you plan to do with the footage. My cam (Sony FX30) give a soft footage at 1080. So I always record at 4K and then I can export at 4K, 2K, or 1080. But there are cameras out there that can gave you really good 1080 footage. What you plan to do with your footage: If you are going to crop from 4K to 1080 you can calculate that crop zoom and use to your advantage. But if you need some wide shots, then you need to record in the final resolution. At the end of the day, you also need yo consider the framerate because in some cameras that one will also limit the resolution!