Best Quality Export Settings in MPEG Streamclip to Edit HD Video in iMovie

Hi,
I import video from data DVDs and regular DVDs and edit the videos in iMovie. In the past, I've always used MPEG Streamclip because it can read the native DVD VOB format. I then use the "Export to DV" option in MPEG Streamclip which exports a .DV file readable by QuickTime or iMovie. These are large files, but it is my understanding that this is best quality for editing.
Now I have started to receive HD Videos. When I use MPEG Streamclip the same way, it reduces the HD video into a windowbox 720x480 video loosing all HD resolution.
I've done some research online and apparently MPEG Streamclip's DV export options are pretty limited and other people have said to use the "Export to MPEG-4" or the "Export to QuickTime" which are more configurable. Each of these requires a Compression Codec Selection. Some have said to use H.264, but I've also read that you should not compress with H.264 if you're going to be doing editing.
I do not care about file size, I want maximum quality. The incoming DVD video is 1280 x 720 (HDTV 720p), what Compression selection do I select in MPEG Streamclip for "Export to MPEG-4" or "Export to QuickTime" to maintain the best quality for editing in iMovie? I appreciate your help!
Jerry

Use Apple Intermediate Codec for best quality and best editing performance.
If you have Final Cut Pro installed, you may have additional good options like ProRes 422.

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DVDs are in a socalled delivery format (mpeg2), which isn't meant and made for any processing as editing...
for using the iLife apps, you have to convert'em first, in recommended order, choose one of the following tools/workarounds:
* DVDxDV (free trial, 25$, Pro: 90$)
* Apple mpeg2 plugin (29$) + Streamclip (free)
* Cinematize >60$
* Mpeg2Works >25$ + Apple plug-in
* Toast 6/7 allows converting to dv/insert dvd, hit apple-k
* connect a miniDV Camcorder with analogue input to a DVD-player and transfer disk to tape/use as converter
none of these apps override copyprotection mechanisms as on commercial dvds...
http://danslagle.com/mac/iMovie/tips_tricks/6010.shtml
http://danslagle.com/mac/iMovie/tips_tricks/6018.shtml
<br
free? if you own a full version of Toast...
the bravehearted tries ffmpegX.. for me less convenient and less stable ...

What's the best quality export for a 720 X 480 size, 24fps mp4 file?

Whats the best quality export for a 720 X 480 size, 24fps mp4 file?
This movie trailer will be sent to a distributer overseas.
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Lagarith is a codec that you install separately. A very brief Search would have given you that info.
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What is the Best Quality Export??

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Shane's Stock Answer #3: How to output lossless Quicktime movies
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I believe that you are doing it right. Now, to get that into DVD SP the best way possible, you have to use Compressor and the BEST QUALITY presets. Take THOSE resulting files into DVD SP.
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Best Quality Export From Final Cut Pro Into After Effects?

So I converted all my footage into Apple Pro Res 422 (24 p, 1280 x 720) for use in FCP and want to export edited parts into After Effects. What is the best quality export to bring into After Effects and also export from After Effects back into FCP?

zikade wrote:
Depending on your storage and what you're up to with your footage I'd recommend uncompressed. Large files but you won't loose any quality. Animation is also lossless if you want to compress your footage. If your drives are not fast enough, go for ProRes HQ from FCP to AE, and Animation the way back...
Since you've converted to 422, stick with that. You cannot gain anything by exporting from FCP to a codec that has a higher bandwidth such as PRHQ or Animation. You just don't want to go down.
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AAC, 128 [kbps], 44.1khz, Stereo, Frequencey
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You could go that way, looks very nice.
I tried it but still not able to get it in my website.
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Best settings for MPEG Streamclip

Hi all,
Being forced to work off DVD source due to lack of options and want to ensure that I get the best possible results. Am using MPEG Streamclip and did a trial run to convert it into DV, converted the audio to 48khrz.
Picture was real time but audio needed rendering.
Can anyone advise me on the best possible settings for quality and realtime playback?
I'll be deliving in uncompressed quicktime and DVD.
Also, new to FCE and want to know where the best place to store the files I convert? Is this what the Sctatch disk is for?
Thanks in advance for your help, work on a weekend is never fun but you might just be able to help me get to the pub for a bit at least!
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Tom Wolsky wrote:
You converted to the wrong format. Do not convert to DV. Convert to QuickTime using DV PAL as the compressor. The frame rate is 25fps. The quality slider makes no difference.
You can only work in DV or Apple Intermediate Codec for HD in FCE. You cannot work in uncompressed formats so you're media has to be converted to DV.
I'm doing the same thing, but I'll be needing NTSC. I see in the Export to Quicktime dialog that there is no simple DV NTSC listed. The most promising-looking compression formats appear to be Apple DVCPRO50 - NTSC, Apple DV/DVCPRO - NTSC, Apple Intermediate Codec, Apple FCP Uncompressed 8(or 10)-bit 4:2:2.
Or is it better to use the Export to Other Formats dialog, and select QuickTime?
This is the first time I've used MPEG Streamclip (and I've only recently started using FCE 4), so I'm a little confused. What are the best settings to use for video that will be imported to FCE for NTSC?
Thanks.
-Gordon

Best image EXPORT settings for best quality

What should i have my export settings at when exporting to a jump drive to give to clients for web and printing use???
When i see my images uploaded on Facebook for example, the qulity looks poor which worries me that when printing the quality will be poor as well. Am i missing something in the setting for exporting? What is the proper way to export for the best quality image? HELP!
My settings now under Aperture>Presets>Image Export:
JPG Original size
300 dpi

t_hall10 wrote:
The information provided was helpful, but did not completely answer my question...
Are there specific settings with-in Aperture I can set for exporting so that clients have the ability to print as wanted and post on the web as wanted whithout losing any major amount of photo quality?
No, not for one size fits all.
I do appreciate this may be a frustrating answer, but non-the-less, that's how it is.
t_hall10 wrote:
Should I be gving 2 folders of pictures, one for web use and one for printing use? If I were to do that, what should the exporting setting be set for both folders?
Maybe, it's your choice.
Let's go through the settings.
The only real quality setting is for JPG compression. 12 is virtually no (lossless) compression but gives huge file sizes which may breach a websites limits.
A 16MP images on quality 12 will be about 22MB. 11 brings it down to 8MB and 10 down to 7MB. You'd be very hard pressed to see the difference between a 12 and a 10. But if you want to feel you are giving the best quality without the extreme file size, go for 11.
The the vast majority of web sites, like facebook, will either resize uploaded images and/or re-compress them. They may also crop them to a different aspect ratio to fit their browser software.
Many report the best size for upload to facebook, for small images is 960 pixels on the long side. For large images it's 2048. For different websites it may be different. It is discussed on many photography sites and blogs. You will find some promoting the 960 / 2048, and others with their own preferences. Here's a good one which also shows you many ways FB will mess with the images:
http://havecamerawilltravel.com/photographer/images-photos-facebook-sizes-dimens ions-types
The safest colour space is sRGB (Mac profile: sRGB IEC61966-2.1) as it will more often be right than wrong. You should preview your images on screen with this profile to get a feel for how it will look and avoid unexpected colour shifts in your files. Ideally your screen should be calibrated so you know what you are giving them is accurate.
To understand the printing issue, try this exercise:
If you have a printer installed on your Mac, it probably also installed some printer profiles. In Aperture, look at one of your nicer vibrant images. From the view menu turn on 'Onscreen Proofing' and then from the 'Proofing Profile' sub menu, select one of your printer profiles and look at how the onscreen image changes. Repeat with each of the printing profiles and see how the image changes each time.
This is only a fraction of the colour shifts that will be occuring after you give your file to someone and they print it on their own uncalibrated system with their uncalibrated printer.
Many photographers don't offer full size images to their clients. They will usually give them smaller versions for their own use, which may include small size printing.
They will either do the main printing themself on their own calibrated printer, or work with a print shop, and may have installed calibrated profiles on their system for the shops printing equipment so they can use onscreen proofing to gauge what the pictures will look like when printed on that equipment.
But if you are just giving a file to someone, you lose all control of how they will print it. Even experienced photographers and computer users can struggle to make the prints match close to what they look like on screen.
Most often photos will appear too dark, or the colours look wrong, or it lacks sharpness. There are some settings on the export presets for gamma and blackpoint compensation. Gamma will brighten the image for when it's printing too dark, and blackpoint will try to stop the shadows turning black (within the chosen colour space). But as you don't know in advance whether the images are going to print too dark, or the shadows are turning black, you can't really set these for a one-size fits all scenario.
So there are not many settings to help you here.
You are actually moving into the realm of defining your product. You could, for example, ask the client which site they intend to publish the photos on, research that site and produce files optimized specifically for that site.
You also need to decide what size (resolution) files to give them for printing and whether you are happy giving away your full size images.
These choices will lead you to a number of a different files sizes as 'your product', all should be in sRGB colour space, and all with quality 10 or 11. For any client's who know how to make use of a wider clour space like Adobe RGB for printing, they will probably ask you up front to supply the print versions as such.
Next, for each size and usage, you now need to sharpen these images.
This is because sharpeing is best applied to images that have been resized to their intended output size and should be sharpened in accordance with how they will be viewed. Images displayed on computer screen generally need less sharpening than those that will be printed. Depening on the printer, the images may need some oversharpening in the file, in order to appear crisp and sharp in the print. As you won't be controlling the printing process you should probably avoid oversharpening. The bottom line is, if people are taking on the task of their own printing, they'll need to figure out what they are doing to get good results, or use a commercial printer.
Andy

Best quality export - need to make a small mp4 file for website

Hi there - I need to make a short video clip for a website - the final version that I send needs to be 340x192 and 1mb per 10 sec. The clip is 200 seconds so it should therefore not be over 20 mb. The original footage was shot on an EX1 camera.
I exported the video as a full quality Quicktime mov file. I then used mpeg streamclip with the following settings:
Export to MPEG-4
Compression: H.264
Quality - 100%
Limit Data Rate: 1400 Kbps
Frame size: 340x192
Frame Blending: checked
Better Downscaling: checked
Deinterlace video: checked
The image looks terrible ... wondering if there is a better way to do this?
Any suggestions much appreciated!

> The image looks terrible ... wondering if there is a better way to do this?<
The reduction ratio you are attempting is almost 400:1, +-10% or so. Just so we're clear, the HD image is more than 2,000,000 distinct pixels in every frame, your frame size is about 68,000 pixels. That's 1/30 of the original size so, even before you add the quantization of the H.264 compression, you are throwing away 29 out of every 30 pixels that appeared in the original image.
I should imagine the quality is going to look horrendous, not merely terrible, compared to the original.
H.264 adds compression artifacts by averaging temporal and spatial differences, further diminishing the literal quality. You tend to see H.264 as better than, say, MPEG2 because the artifacts inherent in the processing are hidden better.
So that's the arithmetic because I can't tell if you understood that, forgive if you already know that stuff. Let's move on.
What do you think is "terrible" about the resulting movie?
What do you hope to improve?
You have very few choices. You cannot improve the resolution because of the outrageous scaling you are performing. You cannot get much better than H.264 to disguise this type of operation. You cannot increase the bitrate because of your server limitations.
bogiesan

Best quality exporting iMovie to DVD?

Hallo!
I have just finished a movie in iMovie HD 5, and now I am wondering how can I get the best possible quality when converting this project into a movie and then making a DVD?
Specific questions:
1. Which way to export the movie? Export it directly into iDVD, or make a quicktime movie, if so, use "high quality" option or try out the option "custom settings"?
2. When using "custom settings" - which option now? QT movie, MPEG-4?
3. If QT movie - which codec works best? DV, H.264?
3. With the QT movie finished, which program yields the best quality? iDVD, DVD Studio Pro? Toast?
Can someone please help me out here, or at least point me to a website where these options are explained?
thx a lot, Alexander
G5 2Ghz, PB G4 1,67, Sony HX 1000 Mac OS X (10.4.2)

Hi Alex,
no conversion needed:
iM works with dv, a dvd has finally mpeg2 - any "inbetween conversion" means loss of quality!
in case, you have many stills in your project, many recommend here NOT to use the export button in iM, but simply drag'n drop the project (that file with a star) onto an open iDVD project, so rendering is done by iDVD......

Best AVI export settings for a XDCAM EX 1080i60 35VBR FCP timeline

I've editted a couple of XDCAM EX 1080i60 35VBR timelines in Final Cut Pro. The dimensions of the source footage and timeline sequence settings are 1920 x 1080 XDCAM EX 1080i60 35VBR.
They will be used at a large conference center and the client has asked me to delivery HD AVI files.
So far, everytime I export an AVI file from either the FCP timelines, or HD Quicktime XDCAM EX 1080i60 35VBR composites that I've made from the timeline, the AVI file that results is either alot smaller than the 1920 x 1080 quicktime file and/or pixelated to some degree, and not as clean as the HD quicktime.
I have very little experience with AVI and was hoping someone could suggest appropriate export settings. As I said, the client only indicated they want AVI files, and that their equipment can display HD files.
So I'm trying to maintain the quality of the original and editted footage.
I'd like to work with the tools and export options available within FCP7 (FCS3) and quicktime, as opposed to having to purchase some AVI transcoder, but I guess I'd be open to that if I had to otherwise take a huge quality hit.
Thank you in advance for any assistance.

I'd like to work with the tools and export options available within FCP7 (FCS3) and quicktime, as opposed to having to purchase some AVI transcoder
As far as I know there are no tools/export options within FCP7 (FCS3) and/or Quicktime to do what you probably want to do (compressed HD AVI export). But if a fully uncompressed 1920x1080 AVI export is ok for you / your client then you can use Export > Quicktime Conversion, set the Format to AVI and change the Options >> Video >> Settings >> Compression type to "None" ... bear in mind that this will produce some pretty big exports file size wise (about 6-7 GB per minute).
Or instead, you can download and use MPEG Streamclip. Open your HD Quicktime XDCAM EX 1080i60 35VBR composites into MPEG Streamclip and choose File > Export to AVI ... then in the AVI Exporter window you can +choose the codec+ you need and press the "Make AVI" button (leave the settings at default, especially Frame Size which should be "unscaled"). Note that AVI is just a wrapper, not a codec. Make sure you chose an HD capable codec that your client can handle (it's unlikely that they will be able to play back any Apple XDCAM EX variant, or indeed any codec that starts with "Apple").
Or just send them an unscaled H264 test file and see how they get on with that (and you can export H264 from FCP, Compressor, Quicktime and/or MPEG Streamclip). It's scalable (handles any resolution including HD) and is pretty much universally supported delivery codec. I'd expect your client would be happy to accept it if you explain that the format will offer the quality the need.
However you proceed I'd strongly recommend you send the client a few test encodes first to have them confirm that they can indeed read / handle your encodes correctly.
Hope it helps
Andy

Best quicktime export settings - compression - from final cut pro

i have done this for a while. still don't know.
to translate an ntsc 24p project onto a dvd, which export settings (compressor)do you use in final cut pro? i use current settings, and once i am done with idvd ("best quality") it just doesn't look high quality. is this an idvd question?
powermac g5 2.7 ghz dual Mac OS X (10.4) 2.5 gb ram

I didn't know iDVD could handle 24fps project. Or is it a 29.97 (23.98 with a pulldown).
Best quality in iDVD just means that it works on it longer to compress it more to fit more on disk. Have you tried Best Speed version?
Patrick

Please help with highest quality export settings...

I have searched the forum and web for hours (no joke!) and I am still trying to figure out what are the best video settings to give me the highest HD quality video in daylight. I am using a Canon HF200 and the latest updated version of FCE. My problem is that I am unable to produce an HD quality video at 1920 x 1080 Full HD without being "jagged". I have two questions; what do you suggest to be the best FCE import and export settings to produce the best HD video, and what settings do you have your HF200 set to (for normal daylight conditions), to produce the best HD video file? The file will be played directly thru my computer to a plasma HDTV.
I have tried several settings, but using anything above 1280x720 16:9, makes the video "jagged". Again, I don't care about the size of the file or how long it takes, I just want the best. Is there something I am missing?
My FCP settings are the following:
I log and transfer the video from the camera into FCP (on a black MacBook; 2.16 GHz with 4 GB RAM) using the AVCHD Apple Intermediate Codec 1920 x 1080i source. I then export the video using the following:
Export using "Quicktime Conversion".
Quicktime options video settings are:
Frame Rate set to "Current"
Key Frames set to every "24" frames
Compressor quality: "best" (Encoding set to "best quality")
Data Rate set to "automatic"
Quicktime options video size are:
"HD 1280 x 720 16:9" (anything higher produces the jags!)
Deinterlace source video is NOT checked
My Canon HF 200 settings are the following:
- P mode
- FXP (17 Mbps)
- 60i framerate
all others are set to the normal default
I have read some reports saying the above is good and others suggesting changing FXP to MXP (24 Mbps) and/or the framerate from 60i to PF30. I don't care about the size of the file, I just want the highest quality HD file.
Any suggestions for the best FCE settings and/or HF200 settings would be very much appreciated!
Thanks for your help,
Evan

Thanks again for the feedback
Let me try my best to answer the above (I'm new at all this and I appreciate you guys taking the time to try and help me out).
First off, I tried rendering and that did not help.
Here is my sequence. I am not going into FCE from the camera directly. I have archived the video file from the camera using iMovie (as well as just making an exact copy of the camera files; they both appear to me to be the exact same, both can be logged and transferred into FCE, and both files give me a jagged FCE result).
Once I log and transfer the file(s), I then take the clip and add it to a sequence file (rendering or not rendering the clip(s) at this point does not make a difference), and then click/highlight the sequence file in the browser and export it.
As for "editing the video in a 1920x1080i60 sequence", I think I am. I am not doing any editing to the clip. It is logged and transferred using the AVCHD Apple Intermediate Codec 1920 x 1080i and then exported using either as a Quicktime Movie or Quicktime Conversion (set for 1920 x 1080 using H.264 compression; both ways still result in a jagged video).
That's about it...log and transfer, add clip to sequence, and then export sequence...
I hope this answers the above, but if not, I apologize; I'm still learning!
Also, if I use iMovie, with similar export (share) settings, I get a non-jagged video (I have tried with deinterlacing and not deinterlacing, and both video results are fine)
Thanks again,
Evan

How do i use proper settings in mpeg streamclip with m2t files?

hello,
i have seen this discussion before but not sure what codec i need to transfer to for my type of files...
i shot a video on the **sony hvr z7u** using compact flash cards and the video was shot on 1080i 24 frames per second...all the files are currently in m2t...
i used mpeg streamclip and used the follow settings:
-apple motion jpeg a
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-uncompressed sound
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-interlaced scaling was checked
although the files are workable in FCP the files themselves are gigantic...did i use the correct settings?
thanks very much,
steven

Steve
Download and install Sony's Compact Flash and Portable Recording Unit Log and Transfer plugin (BPE-SS-038D): http://support.sonybiz.net/software/detail.aspx?id=BPE-SS-038D&model=HVR-DR60
Andy

Best Quality Export Settings in MPEG Streamclip to Edit HD Video in iMovie

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