How to convert to .avi ?

[Stefan Hoefinger]

Hey!

I need to convert a Video, cut in Premiere CS3, to avi and to wmv for windows media player! The Video is 7 minutes long and it may not be bigger than 200MB. But there is no option for small .avi?

How should I realise that? If I convert it to an original .avi file, with which can I convert it to just 200 MB?

Thanks

[Robert M Wright]

Is this HD or SD?

[Stefan Hoefinger]

Shoot in HDV but as I put it on the computer it converted automatically to DV so its SD

thanks!

[Tripp Woelfel]

There are options through the Media Encoder to export avi files using a variety of compression schemes. It's not commonly done though since there other better wrapper/compressor options out there. The selection of which is most often driven by the physical delivery medium or media.

For example, MPEG-4.H.264 or Flash are selected for Web delivery and MPEG-2 for DVD. Some of these options are not absolute and are generally selected on factual data and the user's bias for or against a the look the codec will inflict upon the video.

Any appreciable compression will always change the way your video looks. It's a corollary to the Heisenberg Principle.

[Graham Hickling]

The most common highly-compressed avi floating around the web is compressed using the DivX codec (google for it).

There are plenty of freeware apps that will convert DV to DivX, but with the codec installed my guess is it would show up in the CS3 export options and/or media encoder options.

[Ervin Farkas]

Stefan,

you need to let us know: what is that you need to accomplish with this video? Does it have to play on a website? Do you have to FTP it to someone else, etc? Is it for further editing or just viewing?

And when you say "small avi", does that mean a frame size of say 320x240, or are you saying that the file size need to be small?

Choosing the codec is critical - the computer that will play back the file, has to have at least the playback version of the codec installed.

[Stefan Hoefinger]

We want to burn the .avi on a CD. Not SVCD or VCD! It should be an avi file on a normal CD with other files! BUt the problem is, that the other files are 500MB and the avi. should be maximum 200-250 in original size with lower quality!

THANKS!!!

[Ervin Farkas]

There is a range of avi codecs that come installed standard with the Windows operating system: Cinepak, Intel, Indeo, etc. You may choose one of these; however, you would achieve better quality using an interframe compression codec like Windows Media or even good old mpeg1 (not authored into VCD format) - Windows Media Player can play back mpeg1 but not mpeg2 (unless an mpeg2 codec or DVD player software is installed).

If I were you, I'd go with WinMedia, 7 minutes of video will look super when compressed to 200MB.

Now if the file needs to play on a Mac, that might be a different story, but you're not specifying that.

[Cameron Naghibi]

hmm i use Windows Movie Maker as a converter for windows based codecs, and the Vista version supports HD, just choose what codec to export as

[Jaime Morris]

Noobie questions here -
1. If HD converts to SD on import, why shoot on HD?
2. I have been hesitant to purchase an HDV HDD camera because most of what I read suggests that a direct import to CS3 will fail likely due to the mpeg 4 format(or mpeg 2 I guess depending on the cameras hard drive). If that is true, then what quality is lost by converting HDV (or even SD) from a Hard Drive camera via Windows Movie Maker and then opening in CS3 for editing?

Thanks in advance

[Ervin Farkas]

HD does not automatically convert to SD on import. Most camcorders offer this option, but it's up to you to decide.

The reason we prefer to shoot HD even though the final product might be an SD DVD is that depending on your workflow you might be able to get a higher quality SD product.

[Graham Hickling]

HDV, which is mpeg2, imports fine into CS3 on any moderately capable computer.

AVCHD, which is the mpeg4 format used by most of the hard drive camcorders, is not handled natively by CS3 and requires substatially more computer power to edit.

[Mike Gunter]

Originally Posted by Ervin Farkas

There is a range of avi codecs that come installed standard with the Windows operating system: Cinepak, Intel, Indeo, etc. You may choose one of these; however, you would achieve better quality using an interframe compression codec like Windows Media or even good old mpeg1 (not authored into VCD format) - Windows Media Player can play back mpeg1 but not mpeg2 (unless an mpeg2 codec or DVD player software is installed).

If I were you, I'd go with WinMedia, 7 minutes of video will look super when compressed to 200MB.

Now if the file needs to play on a Mac, that might be a different story, but you're not specifying that.

Hi Stefan,

Ervin has given some very good advice, and I don't want to muddy waters... I will add this if the content has to cross platforms and needs to be sort of independent of devices. I would recommend MPEG1. It's a thrifty CODEC, liked by most operating systems and delivers adequate quality at bit rates that won't break the bank. I like Windows Media, too, for Windows delivery, but MPEG1 is another option for crossing systems.

Mike

[Mike Gunter]

Originally Posted by Jaime Morris

Noobie questions here -
1. If HD converts to SD on import, why shoot on HD?
2. I have been hesitant to purchase an HDV HDD camera because most of what I read suggests that a direct import to CS3 will fail likely due to the mpeg 4 format(or mpeg 2 I guess depending on the cameras hard drive). If that is true, then what quality is lost by converting HDV (or even SD) from a Hard Drive camera via Windows Movie Maker and then opening in CS3 for editing?

Thanks in advance

As Ervin and Graham point out, there are two common consumer formats that get lumped together, HDV and AVCHD. HDV can be edited all day long on any current or near current, reasonably powerful computer with plenty of RAM and disc space and Premiere CS3 meeting Adobe's specifications.

Alas, CS3 doesn't do AVCHD... yet. However, I use two applications that convert AVCHD to editable MPEG TS streams that do a cracker jack job that seem to lose no quality, TMPGEnc Xpress 4.0 (AKA, Tsunami from TMPGEnc - Products: TMPGEnc 4.0 XPress Product Information ) and Procoder from ( Grass Valley ProCoder 3 ).

I think the TMPGEnc Xpress is every bit as good as Procoder and several hundred dollars more economical, but it is a bit slower. Whether either is worth buying right now only for converting AVCHD is questionable. My guess is that CS4 is around the corner (admittedly costing a heck of a lot more than $90 of TMPGEnc's price tag. ;-)

I'd likely get TMPGEnc for other things, but that's me. I use it every day. It's a terrific appt.

The real problem in acquisition is that some folks feel that any HD product will out class any SD product. That's not quite accurate. There's a lot going on besides just counting pixels. There's also video processing, and compression and lenses and well, it just goes on.

If everything was equal - and it rarely is - bigger pictures would make better video.

My best.

Mike