Technical Specification Of Stock Footage

[Laura Di Sandio]

Our stock video footage (http://www.omnimovi.com) collection has been generated on tape, the majority of which is HDV. Footage is produced in progressive field and available as Quicktime downloads as 720/24p(.m2v*) or 1080/24p(.m2v*) depending on capture and also PAL and NTSC.

*Why m2v? The hd stock footage was shot using an HDV camcorder; this records to tape using MPEG2. In order to maintain the best possible quality it is felt that the clips should be provided where possible in their native format, so in this case that would be MPEG2 transport streams (MPEG2 TS, m2t). However some edit platforms do not directly support the native HDV standard so this would present some users with problems using our clips. To maximise compatibility the MPEG2 TS clips have been re-packaged as m2v clips. The multiplexed HDV streams have been de-multiplexed and the audio (which is not used anyway) has been discarded. This leaves a file that contains just the original video. The stock video has been re-packaged in a different wrapper, this process does not add any further artifacts or degrade the image quality in the same way that transcoding or rendering the clip to another format would. M2v is the industry standard for MPEG2 video streams. Most modern NLE’s, either MAC or PC should be able to read these files. Depending on the edit application that you are using you may need to render or conform the clip for real-time performance. If your computer is having difficulty reading the clips then you may have to convert them to a format that your edit system supports. There are many excellent software encoders and conversion packages available that can convert m2v files to almost any other Windows or MAC codec. Canopus Pro-Coder is particularly good. There are also many free conversion programmes available for download from the Internet. One recommended free utility is MPEG Streamclip
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[Colin McDonald]

Originally Posted by Laura Di Sandio

(...http://www.omnimovi.com)...

The splash screen (pun intended) on your home page seems to be playing in the wrong aspect ratio. Might put people off?

[Colin McDonald]

Originally Posted by Colin McDonald

The splash screen (pun intended) on your home page seems to be playing in the wrong aspect ratio. Might put people off?

I see this has been fixed now.

[Liam Hall]

Originally Posted by Laura Di Sandio

Our stock video footage (http://www.omnimovi.com) collection has been generated on tape, the majority of which is HDV. Footage is produced in progressive field and available as Quicktime downloads as 720/24p(.m2v*) or 1080/24p(.m2v*) depending on capture and also PAL and NTSC.

*Why m2v? The hd stock footage was shot using an HDV camcorder; this records to tape using MPEG2. In order to maintain the best possible quality it is felt that the clips should be provided where possible in their native format, so in this case that would be MPEG2 transport streams (MPEG2 TS, m2t). However some edit platforms do not directly support the native HDV standard so this would present some users with problems using our clips. To maximise compatibility the MPEG2 TS clips have been re-packaged as m2v clips. The multiplexed HDV streams have been de-multiplexed and the audio (which is not used anyway) has been discarded. This leaves a file that contains just the original video. The stock video has been re-packaged in a different wrapper, this process does not add any further artifacts or degrade the image quality in the same way that transcoding or rendering the clip to another format would. M2v is the industry standard for MPEG2 video streams. Most modern NLE’s, either MAC or PC should be able to read these files. Depending on the edit application that you are using you may need to render or conform the clip for real-time performance. If your computer is having difficulty reading the clips then you may have to convert them to a format that your edit system supports. There are many excellent software encoders and conversion packages available that can convert m2v files to almost any other Windows or MAC codec. Canopus Pro-Coder is particularly good. There are also many free conversion programmes available for download from the Internet. One recommended free utility is MPEG Streamclip
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Wow, I've read more eloquent sales pitches:)

But I guess it worked as I visited your site.

A few things I noticed; the streaming video on your home page is extremely pixelated, which kind of makes a mockery of the claims made on the same page about "high quality footage".

Secondly, you claim;

Omnimovi is now the largest producer of contemporary lifestyle stock footage in the world, successfully satisfying all your linear content needs at a touch of a button – and at a very cost effective price.

How is this so? Are you bigger than Getty? I did three separate searches for 'lifestyle' footage and each search returned the same results - some shots of a woman getting a massage. Are 'golf', 'holidays' and 'exercise' not considered lifestyle or am I missing something here?

[Liam Hall]

I went on your site again today - I need some shots for a job, so I thought I'd give yours a proper look.

This time the search worked seamlessly - I used Safari today, Firefox yesterday. So, I guess it was a browser compatibility issue. The search also turned up a lot of shots, all nicely shot but all of a similar style.

Good luck with it.

Liam.