File Compressions Matter

Word to the wise: If you are going to send me video to edit - especially via the Internet - please make sure it is properly compressed. Otherwise, you're creating headaches for all involved.

Compressions and codecs matter a great deal.

Earlier this year, I was given an opportunity to edit a series of business training videos. The first video included a 30 minute segment of a gentleman at a podium in front of a green screen talking about business law.

File format: Uncompressed MOV

File size: 6 GB

It took an hour to download this file from the Internet and was impossible to use as is. I did attempt to compress it into something more workable (H.264) - which took three days to complete - and told the potential client that he needed to learn about compressions and codecs. I wound up not getting the job. Contrast that with last Wednesday: the League of Women Voters of Johnson County invited me to shoot video of their panel on voting. The entire forum lasted about an hour and a half - three times the length of the aforementioned green screen.

File format: H.264 MP4

File size: 1.5 GB

That's right: the forum came out okay at three times the length and a fourth the size of the green screen video. Not to mention it was easy to work with and easy to upload to YouTube - upload took 2 hours. Compressions matter.