What Size Should Your Web Video Be?
Posted On: July 3, 2009
Posted In: aspect ratio, video dimensions, video size
Comments: 11 Responses
Posted In: aspect ratio, video dimensions, video size
Comments: 11 Responses
It’s a very common question…what size should my web video be? The answer is pretty straightforward. But first you need to know two key ingredients to get it right. In this video I share these ingredients, plus best practices for web video size.
Thanks Dave,
I see you went a got yourself
a new photo background in this video.
It’s amazing how versatile the black
ground you use in previous videos is
and how it isolates you and the message
making it more powerful … at least
in my mind …..
My mom always said to try and learn something new every day and this completed that for the day.
Thank You again for your excellent knowledge. I was wondering why my videos were looking rather strange and now I know why and know how to fix the problem.
Once again you proved your are the best.
You mention that standard definition aspect ration is 4:3 and High definition is 16:9. I believe that 16:9 is widescreen rather than high definition. For example, the FS100 camcorder records in 16:9 and is still not high definition – did I miss anything? In this case, what would the highest recommended resolution for an FS100 be?
BTW, I enjoy your videos and find them valuable!
Thanks,
Ben
@Ben – Some standard definition cameras (or HD cameras that allow you to shoot in SD mode) let you choose your aspect ratio…4:3 or 16:9.
But when choosing 16:9 with a standard definition, your video will still be 720×480 (for NTSC), in most cases, you just get black bars across the top and bottom. It’s an artistic effect to make it kind of “look” like HD.
Resolution for standard definition video is 720×480 for NTSC and 720×576 for PAL.
Resolution for high definition video is 1920×1080 or 1280×720.
In other words, you’re not increasing your resolution by shooting SD video at 16:9…you still have the same number of pixels.
Thanks Dave for your quick explanation. I thought the 16:9 is a true AR. Learned from you once more!
Dave,
I stumbled across your site and have to say that I am truly impressed.
You offer a wealth of great info that a budding video-guy like me has been scouring the web for.
Kudos!!!
All Good Wishes,
michael
Hi Dave,
In an answer to Ben you mention about the black bars along the top and bottom of the picture.
I have those but shoot in 4:3 and am wondering how to get rid?
I’m in the UK using a Canon MD235 and Sony Vegas.
@Russell – First, since you’re in the UK, your camera format is PAL. So make sure your video project is set to PAL too.
You don’t say if the bars appear in your actual videos or in your videos that have been converted to Flash and play on the web. For videos on the web, if you don’t use the correct size in your embed code for the player, black bars can appear.
Thanks, Dave.
I’ve tried changing the project to all versions of PAL, including PAL DV in Vegas but that just makes it fuzzy.
The bars are visible in actual videos before putting on the web and even before rendering.
Here’s an example:
http://www.vimeo.com/5214685
If you stay to 4:22 on that video you’ll see that when I put up photos the top and bottom bar are gone. There is then a bar on the left and right but I know that’s to do with the sizing of the picture, so that’s no problem.
Just to confirm, I’m shooting the video in 4:3 on my camera – it’s just when it’s in Vegas those top and bottom bars show like it’s widescreen.
@ Russell – Your actual video footage is definitely 16:9. The MD235, by default, shoots standard definition at 16:9…which gives you bars at the top and bottom.
To shoot at 4:3, you have to go into the camera’s setup menu and turn “Widescreen” off. When you do that, you’ll have 4:3 and in your viewfinder, you’ll have black bars on the left and right of the video. But that’s only in the viewfinder, the actual footage will have no bars anywhere.
Dave, you’re absolutely right. I had it set to 4:3 in the VCR menu but in the Camera Menu widescreen was ‘on’, giving 16:9.
Many thanks.