iMovie, video file types, and filming. What do you use?

[penny moon]

Hi!! I have some questions for models who use a Mac and iMovie for their videos.

So, I've been filming through Quicktime using my Logitech c920. I can't record in Maximum Quality without Quicktime freezing, requiring me to force close the program, so I've been filming in High Quality mode instead. After I've done my editing through iMovie I export it and have a few different options 2 of which are 720p (.m4v file type) or 1080p (.mov file type). I've been exporting my videos as 720p (.m4v) because they are half the size of 1080p and I'm worried about quality degradation since I'm fairly certain quicktime is probably recording in 720p.

Since I'm only just starting out how important is it right now that I have 1080p and .mov videos available? Is there another free program I could be using to record that would actually record in 1080p without issues? Should I be converting the .m4v to .mov? What sort of preferences have you noticed from your buyers?

Thank you so much everyone

 

[ramblin]

As a buyer, 720p is fine by me. I find that quite a few clips I buy are 1080p and minimally compressed, and as gorgeous as they are, I usually end up either trashing them or re-encoding them myself because they use so much space on the hard drive. I also much prefer .mp4 over .mov, since it's compatible with more video players. I recommend you rename your .m4v to .mp4 before sharing them. It's the same format (unless you use encryption), but the .mp4 extension is understood by more players.

 

[penny moon]

As a buyer, 720p is fine by me. I find that quite a few clips I buy are 1080p and minimally compressed, and as gorgeous as they are, I usually end up either trashing them or re-encoding them myself because they use so much space on the hard drive. I also much prefer .mp4 over .mov, since it's compatible with more video players. I recommend you rename your .m4v to .mp4 before sharing them. It's the same format (unless you use encryption), but the .mp4 extension is understood by more players.

Thanks!! Oh my goodness, honestly this helps my nerves a lot. I'm aware that they're essentially the same thing, are you recommending this from a downloaded view? Like, you are suggesting other people aren't aware and will become confused since .mp4 is more recognizable?

 

[AutumnDayKink]

I use either 540 or 720 and my buyers say the quality is just fine. I think 1080 is so large that a lot of buyers wouldn't want that much space on their HD eaten up.

As far as file type, I'm under the impression that .mp4 and .wmv files are the most common/popular. I use a piece of software called FLV CRUNCH to convert the .mp4 from iMovie into a .wmv and upload both formats to Clips4Sale.

 

[penny moon]

I use either 540 or 720 and my buyers say the quality is just fine. I think 1080 is so large that a lot of buyers wouldn't want that much space on their HD eaten up.

As far as file type, I'm under the impression that .mp4 and .wmv files are the most common/popular. I use a piece of software called FLV CRUNCH to convert the .mp4 from iMovie into a .wmv and upload both formats to Clips4Sale.

Do people purchase a lot of .wmv? I've a fair bit about them being glitchy and unreliable.

 

[Entertainer33]

Do people purchase a lot of .wmv? I've a fair bit about them being glitchy and unreliable.

I only buy wmv if I have no choice.

Also, I watch my vids on a 13" Macbook. 1080 is wasted on this poor thing.

 

[ramblin]

Thanks!! Oh my goodness, honestly this helps my nerves a lot. I'm aware that they're essentially the same thing, are you recommending this from a downloaded view? Like, you are suggesting other people aren't aware and will become confused since .mp4 is more recognizable?

I recommend renaming to .mp4 in part because the user will recognize it as something they can use, but also because some software and devices won't play back .m4v unless it's renamed to .mp4.

Do people purchase a lot of .wmv? I've a fair bit about them being glitchy and unreliable.

I also will only take .wmv as a last resort, since it requires jumping through hoops to play back on Apple devices.

That said, my understanding is that for some sites (Clips4Sale in particular), recentness of the clip (in minutes and hours, not days) is a huge advantage, so it's common practice to convert each clip into each format supported by the site and schedule each format to release at a different time of day to keep the clip visible. A model that actually uses C4S may be able to confirm, correct or clarify.

 

[Entertainer33]

I recommend renaming to .mp4 in part because the user will recognize it as something they can use, but also because some software and devices won't play back .m4v unless it's renamed to .mp4.


I also will only take .wmv as a last resort, since it requires jumping through hoops to play back on Apple devices.

That said, my understanding is that for some sites (Clips4Sale in particular), recentness of the clip (in minutes and hours, not days) is a huge advantage, so it's common practice to convert each clip into each format supported by the site and schedule each format to release at a different time of day to keep the clip visible. A model that actually uses C4S may be able to confirm, correct or clarify.

As a once frequent buyer, yeah, rereleasing vids gets them seen more. Different formats justify it.

 

[TacoBelle]

So what software/apps should you use to switch video formats if you've already got a finished video? For example, I [legally acquire] movies that are in wonky formats (like .mkv) that play perfectly through VLCplayer, but not on other systems (like the Xbox). Soooooooooo... how do I switch those over to mp4s?

(Asking here instead of starting a new thread because this is kinda the same thing that you're already discussing.)

 

[Nordling]

So what software/apps should you use to switch video formats if you've already got a finished video? For example, I [legally acquire] movies that are in wonky formats (like .mkv) that play perfectly through VLCplayer, but not on other systems (like the Xbox). Soooooooooo... how do I switch those over to mp4s?

(Asking here instead of starting a new thread because this is kinda the same thing that you're already discussing.)

I use Wondershare's Video Converter. It's simple, fast and has almost every video format in the universe. There are versions for both Mac and Windows. It even has a few editing options.

 

[ramblin]

So what software/apps should you use to switch video formats if you've already got a finished video? For example, I [legally acquire] movies that are in wonky formats (like .mkv) that play perfectly through VLCplayer, but not on other systems (like the Xbox). Soooooooooo... how do I switch those over to mp4s?

(Asking here instead of starting a new thread because this is kinda the same thing that you're already discussing.)

I use HandBrake (https://handbrake.fr/) for compressing and converting to mp4. It's free, has no ads and works very well. It'll take in most anything and output either mp4 or mkv.

In your particular case though, the mkv is a different container which still has an mp4-compatible stream in it, so you can save time and quality by using something like MkvToMp4 (http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=163050) to convert without recompressing.