Larry Jordan - Choosing the Best Video Codec _ Final Cut Pro Training & Classes

22/10/2014 Larry Jordan - Choosing the Best Video Codec | Final Cut Pro Training & Classes

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You are here: Home Articles Choosing the Best Video Codec

Choosing the Best Video CodecPosted: May 15, 2011

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[ This article was first published in the June, 2006, issue ofLarry's Final Cut Pro Newsletter. Click here to subscribe. Updated February 2009 ]

This technique grew out of a comment from Diane Thompson, who wrote:

[Would you] explain the sequence settings in the GENERAL tab? I have been unable to find adescription of each of the compressors with info about its pros and cons or best use so that I canmake a decision which is best. (By the way, I really really appreciated last months videoprocessing tab discussion!)

Larry replies: Diane, email flame-throwing contests have started from much more innocent requests, but,what the heck, things are quiet at the moment. This is not an exhaustive discussion, as there are dozens anddozens of codecs with more sprouting up every day. However, I can help you understand what a codec doesand how to choose one that will work for you.

Also, capture card developers, such as Blackmagic Design and AJA, and camera manufacturers, such asPanasonic and Sony, often create their own codecs to take advantage of special technology built into theirequipment. This article will not cover those special codecs.

But, even with those restrictions, theres still lots to talk about. And Ill start with some background.

All Video is Compressed

All video that we shoot on tape or watch on TV is compressed. This has been true since the beginning of time or, well, the beginning of video at least.

Some video, like DV or HDV, is significantly compressed in a number of ways. Other video, likeDigiBetacam is compressed less.

The reason for all this compression is that video files are HUGE and engineers are always looking for ways tomake them smaller without sacrificing too much quality. Thats where codecs (short for:COmpressor/DECompressor) come in. A codec provides specific instructions on how to compress video toreduce its size, then decompress it to full quality for playback.

There are four principal goals to consider when choosing a codec:

1. The size of the compressed file2. The speed of compression3. The speed of decompression4. The quality of the final image

For instance, if you are posting a file to the Internet, the size of the file and the speed of decompression aremore important than how long it takes to compress the file in the first place or the quality of the final image.That is not to say these last two are unimportant, just less important.

On the other hand, if you are streaming a live event, the speed of compression is most important, because ifyou cant compress faster than real-time, no one will be able to watch the event.

As a third example, for a network television program, the speed of decompression and the quality of the finalimage are of paramount importance.

One last example, codecs are not just for moving images. BMP, PNG, TGA and TIFF are special codecs used



to save and restore still images. They are designed to provide the highest image quality, but dont compress ordecompress image sequences in real-time.

As a sidelight, codecs are often divided into lossy and lossless. A lossless codec preserves allthe original image quality so that when an image is restored it is indistinguishable from theoriginal. TIFF and PNG are examples of a lossless codec.

A lossy codec throws out visual information as part of the compression process, which meansthat the compressed image does not have the original quality of the source. All video codecs arelossy.

No one codec provides the best of all four of these criteria. Each codec concentrates on maximizing one ortwo of the four. There is no such thing as a perfect codec, as different codecs were created to meet differentcriteria.

So Many Codecs, So Little Time

Youve learned why there are so many codecs, however, Final Cut in some ways, makes selecting a codeceven worse.

Final Cut started life as a QuickTime editor, the same way that Adobe Illustrator started life as a PostScripteditor. Both rapidly evolved into something much more, but neither forgot their roots.

Final Cut supports all the codecs that QuickTime ever supported. And QuickTime supports all (or virtuallyall) its old codecs so that you can always play a QuickTime movie, no matter how old it is.

Examples of less used (and notice I did not say unnecessary) codecs include:



CinepakComponent VideoGraphicsApple Intermediate CodecApple Pixlet VideoPlanar RGBVC H.263VideoSorenson Video (but not Sorenson Video 3)

Now, before everyone starts shooting off emails, let me stress that for some applications in certain situationseven these codecs can be indispensable. However, for general everyday video use, you may feel comfortableignoring them.

Just for the record, not all codecs that Final Cut supports are for full-screen video. Ive already mentionedgraphics codecs like TIFF, PNG, BMP, and TGA.

There are also a lot of codecs specifically for the web. Web codecs are designed to reduce file size anddecompress quickly, however, they take longer than real-time to compress:

H.261MPEG-4VC H.263H.263H.264Sorenson Video 3Sorenson Video

Choosing a Video Codec

As you are starting to see, the list of codecs we can use for video (fast compression and fast decompression) isstarting to dwindle.

The first, and best, rule to keep in mind when choosing a video codec is to select the codec that matchesthe format of the video you are editing. Thus, if you are shooting NTSC DV, the DV/DVCPRO NTSCcodec is the best one to choose. (Outside the US, use the DV PAL codec with your PAL DV video.)The second rule is if you are selecting a codec to integrate multiple video formats choose the codec thatprovides the highest quality.The third rule is to select your codec based upon your final output format.

These rules are made to be broken. However, before you start breaking rules willy-nilly, you should probablyget a better understanding of what the impact is of selecting a specific codec.

In general, image quality increases with file size. As file size increases, you need bigger and faster hard disks;at some point, the files are so big they cant be played from an external FireWire drive.

Heres a table that ranks codecs from higher quality to lower for SD video. The rules are the same for HD, butthe files are bigger. Data rates and storage for NTSC and PAL are essentially equivalent.

Codec Quality Approx.data rate Space to store 1 hour of video Animation* Excellent 41 MB / second 147 GB Uncompressed 10-bitVery Good 26.7 MB / second 96 GB Uncompressed 8-bit Good 20.2 MB / second 72 GB DVCPro-50 Good 7MB / second 25 GB DV OK 3.75 MB / second 13 GB



* The Animation codec supports video, but is not generally used for real-time playback.

Then there are specialized codecs that significantly compress video for off-line, low-resolution work thatwould not be used in the final version of the program:

Offline RTMotion JPEG AMotion JPEG BPhoto-JPEGJPEG 2000

Choosing an HD codec

High-def (HD), in many ways, is less flexible than Standard-def. Here, you really need to choose a codec thatmatches the format of your camera.

Additionally, having a high-quality capture card is essential to support the higher-end HD formats. Also,increasingly, many camera manufacturers are creating proprietary formats which makes it very difficult toconvert video from one format to another the Sony XD/CAM series comes instantly to mind.

Conclusion

While there seem to be a lot of codecs to choose from, you can simplify your life by matching the codec toyour video format. And dont worry if you arent using lots of different codecs most editors only workwith a very few.

UPDATE February, 2009

Rich Roddman, of CMR Studios, writes:

I have been doing a lot of web video that the is shot on green screen. I bring the files into FinalCut as Pro Res media @ 1920 x 1080. My final output will be 640 x 480. (I use the 1080 so I canadjust the size for wide shot to close ups and anywhere in between as needed) If I have my mastertimeline (Square pixels & Progressive) at 720 x 480 I can playback with an orange bar, but if Imake the timeline 640 x 480 in get a red line and need to render to see anything. I dontunderstand why the aspect ratio set at NTSC (4:3) causes a full render to be needed but NTSCDV (3:2) can playback?

Larry replies: Rich, my guess is that this is because 720 x 480 is a video format designed for real-timeplayback inside Final Cut, while 640 x 480 is a video format designed for the web that can be played backonly after compression is complete.

[ Go to Top. ]

MORE PLAYBACK PROBLEMS

Derek Casari, of Fox Post, writes:

My question involves 1920 x 1080 resolutions. I had a couple of test clips made for me:



Liked this? 3Me gusta Tweet 4 StumbleUponPrint

Heres the deal. Only one file played back without motion artifacts when imported into justProTools. That was the Apple Photo JPG at 170 mb/s. The other Apple Photo JPG at the higherdata rate and the H.264 both showed artifacts. All of these were 24 fps and 1920 x 1080. Imthinking that the data rates are the issue and maybe Ill just have to empirically create a numberof files to find one that plays back without problems, which seem to be temporal aliasing. BTW,is Apple Photo JPGA different than regular photo JPGA? Im trying to avoid the GOP codecsbecause of the issues they have with sync and frame boundaries. Any suggestions on a codecAND data rate for playback of a QT movie imported into Protools at 1920 x 1080 would be a bighelp.

Larry replies: Derek, it depends upon how your video was shot.

Motion JPEG-A is designed to work with interlaced footage.

Photo-JPEG is designed to work with progressive images.

Both have a reasonably small data-rate, yet are easy to uncompress without taxing the playback system. Thisis critical because you want your computer to spend its time running ProTools, not in decoding compressedvideo.

H.264 uses GOP compression and requires serious computer horse-power to decode.

Comments

14 Comments to Choosing the Best Video Codec

1. Andy Crittenden says:October 27, 2012 at 10:01 am

Hello, I was setting out today to output some clips out of FCP 7 in the Photo Jpeg Codec, but I havenoticed a case of jitters a slight frame delay that doesnt exist in the original footage. Is theresomething Im missing? Heres the workflow:

Original footage shot with Canon 7D (19201080 24)Converted to 1920 x 1080 unscaled Apple Pro Res 422Brought into FCP 7.0.3Sequence Setting 1440 x1080 HD (14401080) (16:9) Edit TB 23.98 Photo-JPEG 100%Editing on Mac Pro OS 10.7.4 6 GB

I have also had the same result when I set my sequence setting to 1920 x 1080.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Andy

Reply



2. Gary Hamilton says:February 6, 2013 at 10:22 pm

I think your post is missing a critical piece of info:

> Heres a table that ranks codecs from higher quality to lower for SD video. The rules are the same forHD,> but the files are bigger. Data rates and storage for NTSC and PAL are essentially equivalent.

Did you intend to have a link from the Heres a table? I dont see any table.

Thanks,Gary

Reply

Gary Hamilton says:February 6, 2013 at 10:27 pm

Forgot to mention: Im trying to figure out which Codec to use in order to reduce the size of myvideo (which lasts just under 80min). Using the default Codec in FCPX 10.0.7 (Apple ProRes422), the .mov file comes out to nearly 82 gig. Im hoping to generate a decent-quality HD .movin under 32 gig.

Reply

3. Lucy Hannen says:March 16, 2013 at 1:01 pm

Dear all, dear Larry,Thank yu so much for your helpful information!But still Im trying to figure out the best and highest quality setting for exporting my movie, shot in1920-1080, and will be screened quite big by a HD-ready beamer (1080-720).What would be the best codec then (indeed, Im not seeing the list which Larry mentions above), H264?And is it sensible of me that I shoot the material 1920-1080, edit it in FCPX at the best quality (myproject setting is also 1920-1080), while my beamer cant handle tis, and thus will interlace the pixels?Can I better make my FCPX-projects 1080-720 in the first place?

I would be very very thankful..Kind regards from The NetherlandsLucy Hannen

Reply

4. Kathryn says:March 27, 2013 at 8:38 am



Hello,My video was heavily edited and layered and also contains several different sources including an HDcamera.I am trying to upload it to a sky drive for easy sharing/emailing at the highest possible resolution.The size has to be 1920 x1080 HD.My question is, which is the best codec for me to use in this instance?

Also, if I wanted to upload this movie to vimeo, what is the best codec?

Thank you.

Reply

5. John Curry says:May 8, 2013 at 12:36 pm

Hi Larry I do alot of info graphic bumpers and clips the graphics are done at 1920 x 1080 inIllustrator or Photoshop and imported into FCP. What is the best format to save graphics for importing(jpeg, tiff etc?) and what is the best codec for out put. The peices get used both for presentation(projection) and attached to web content.

Thanks for your help!!

Reply

6. linu says:June 6, 2013 at 1:58 am

sir i am using a nikon d700 cam to take a pic.now i need to make a av file.so i used fcp for editing but inthe fcp i cnt use the filter effects .bcse of the file size(42562832) its nt render .so i need to compressthe jpeg file.but i dnt know how to compress .thn i need to use filter effects in that file .can u give me asolution sir

Reply

7. JoeM says:December 6, 2013 at 2:19 pm

Hello Larry,

Thank you for all of your great info. I have a standard definition, NTSC, composite D2 master tapecreated in 1995 but not viewed since. If it will still playback, I am hoping to have it transferred to a harddrive, in a FCP 7 compatible format that will allow me to do some audio and color correction beforeexporting it to DVD for redistribution. Any thoughts as to which codec I should request it be convertedto? Right now Im thinking ProRes 422 HQ, but Im uncertain. Thanks.

Reply



Larry says:December 6, 2013 at 3:13 pm

ProRes 422 HQ is an excellent choice.

So is Uncompressed 10-bit 422.

Larry

Reply

8. Anne says:August 26, 2014 at 2:03 am

Hello Larry,

Thank you for this great article.I have one question: I am doing video with a camera Nikon D3S. I am shooting in PAL 1280720. Ihave rush .avi that I want to code with MPEG streamclip 1.9.2 to use them in Final Cut Pro 7.I do not know witch codec I have to choose to keep the best quality as possible.Thank you so much for your answer.Sorry for my bad english.

Anne

Reply

Anne says:August 27, 2014 at 6:40 am

Hello Larry,

Just one more info: last time I try with the codec Apple Pro Res 422 (LT) but I was not satisfiedwtih the quality. I read that Apple Pro Res 4444 is a bette option but after reading your article andyour explanation about loosly and loosless codec. I am not sure that Apple Pro Res 4444 is thebest codec to use to keep the best quality as possible.

Thank you so much for your advice!

Anne

Reply

LarryJ says:August 27, 2014 at 9:12 pm

Anne:



ProRes 4444 is an EXCELLENT codec probably one of the finest there is. However, ifyour sources originate on a video camera, as opposed to the computer, ProRes 422 HQshould be virtually indistinguishable from your camera masters.

Larry

Reply

9. Anne says:August 29, 2014 at 4:33 am

Hello Larry,

Thank you very much for your answer. It helps me a lot!

Have a good day

Anne

Reply

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