How can I edit H.D. video files with no loss? I need lossless editing of 1080p (1440 x 1080 pixels) videos.?
Question by le cochon bleu: How can I edit H.D. video files with no loss? I need lossless editing of 1080p (1440 x 1080 pixels) videos.?
What I’ve tried just produces low quality videos.
Please help.
The H.D. video files are the common files for lower priced 1080p video recorders – .mov
There is some software by ArcSoft that came with the H.D. video camera which has a nice, high definition playback Theatre program and a nice ability to make still photos from the H.D. videos, easy to use and good quality photos. The package claimed that it came with conversion and editing software, and that is true, but it’s really poor. Basically the output files made go from 1080p H.D. video to appearing roughly like V.G.A. video (640 x 480 pixels quality) in the best parts, many bits of it much worse than the videos of my former camera with V.G.A. video recording. The H.D. files are not supposed to be reduced in this way – they have nearly all of their decent qualities taken from them, and the films are not taken with components that adapt well (in my experience) to be shown like that. The films I have tried converting / editing simply were made to be seen at high definition, and look poorer than most lower resolution camera films produce when reduced to low resolution.
I have tried a few programs which claim to deal well with H.D., but I presume now they mean 720p, (maybe only 900 pixels or something similar x 720). It is good that the video editors let you try them out first, stamping their logos on the videos. At least I know not to buy some of these anyway. One I tried was Movavi, which seemed to produce lower resolution than 1440 x 1080 videos deserve when I converted a video.
1080p H.D. video filming is getting popular these days, with Aiptek, Digilife, Toshiba and other makers offering small, good quality 1440 x 1080 camcorders for less than $ 250 / £180, and Sanyo offering great 1980 x 1080 H.D. resolution for around $ 500 / £300.
But there’s not much point in making videos if in editing, the resolution ends up in part worse than the V.G.A. resolution.
I looked through a few forums, and came across someone like me who had vastly inferior films output when he tried to edit, and he bought a lot of editing software over a number of months, and each did the same thing. I don’t want to spend money to end up in the same situation.
So firstly,
1. is there software which takes 1080p files raw, lets you edit them completely losslessly, and then makes an output file, completely losslessly? It would be O.K. to make an output file which is of the same type as the input file, .mov, if all of the typical editing functions are there. Then again, the ultimate destination is to write the films to D.V.D., so can the films also be written to D.V.D. losslessly? This must be possible – it must have been envisaged by the makers of H.D. video for people at home, not just fanatics who have adapted with semi-pro home studio equipment or really expensive software.
What is the software called please, where do you get it, how much does it cost?
One thing to note is that the size of the files is not really a consideration. If it has to be that 1080p videos made at home have to be shorter for D.V.D.s or internet sending, then that’s how it is. The important thing is the quality. It would be a much better idea to go and take V.G.A. videos if the file size were the problem, as they’re frequently going to be better than the reduced H.D. videos I’ve seen.
The second possibility is about conversion of 1080p files to an editor which will not take .mov files, if the editor deals losslessly with 1080p.
2. If a program like Windows Movie Maker or similar can edit and then produce 1080p video videos as output, is it possible to get a completely lossless converter to a Movie Maker type of file for this?
As well as the software which came with the camera, for this purpose, I’e also tried a few others, including AVCWare Video Converter. Thankfully the free trials mean you can see the results before you would decide to pay (but for trial only as they have graphics or text stamped on the trial files). I tried converting to MP4 files, avi, wmv also. These conversions have been far too poor, worse than V.G.A. vide, even selecting the highest conversion settings, like video bitrate and sound bitrate, as opposed to going for smaller files.
Yes the file sizes were ‘compressed’, which so many comments on the web make a big thing about, but the resulting video quality is how (or often worse than) you would expect for such a reduction in file size. Why make High Definition films to compress them into poor quality films? It makes no sense. There are the handheld devices, and I suppose this is why the compression formats are, but I’ve concluded they must be the only reason. On camera and video recorder boxes and adverts all over the world, the greatness of MP4 compression is shouted about. But on the evidence of the converter programs, the MP4 format is only good for handheld devices. I guess I’m just realising this. But the Windows Media Video (.wmv) conver
The long question continues:
… But the .wmv file made was nearly as bad. avi conversion at highest settings was foggy. Strange, it ‘analogued’ the film, hard to see a digital film at laptop playback size. But still foggy & unclear where a defining element of the raw film was lovely clarity.
The only option in conversion was for much lower quality films – not even a thing of choice, it just happened.
If H.D. completely lossless editing software is very expensive, can you use simple computer code commands by command prompt to:
1. join raw .mov video files together to make a longer file
and / or
2. cut a .mov video size, e.g. by commands making a new file of the 1st 25 mb of a 40 mb file, and cut off the last 10 mb of a .mov video file?
So, 3 suggested ways of lossless 1080p H.D. video editing. Possible? 1. Lossless (raw) video editor, 2 Lossless conversion + lossless editor, 3. Computer code by command prompt.
I would really appreciate help.
Before I get around to looking at the software:
Thanks to answerer 2 for saying that Movie Maker is usually not for H.D. films. I see what you’re saying is my difficulty having edited H.D. films basically tells a standard story. And maybe V.G.A. is the way forward, or 720p anyway.
But surely, surely, as the .mov films transfer fine by themselves to computer – there is software which simply can join one .mov file with a second, for example, to produce simply a longer .mov file. As I said, I don’t have a problem with .mov files. As you said, they’re compressed, and for Web sites like YouTube and Vimeo upload .mov files. I’ve shared a few unedited films.
I’m fairly sure there is a good answer to this, but I have to ask, why play back videos on your camcorder? Surely it has less processing power than your computer? Though I know it’s handy – the camera plays back the films well on portable and larger screen L.C.D. T.V.s.
1 way to answer – make a comment. maybe after resolved.
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2nd reply to some answers.
Re: ans. 3 + 4 below
Thanks for the suggestions.
Are you sure the editor, Leowa, produces Full H.D. output videos losslessly from originals? Leowa doesn’t claim that.
Reading all answerer 2 wrote, nearly ruling out Full H.D. (-p video capture) for edited home video production, I’m not sure. And bearing in mind answerer 1’s suggested H.D. editing software costs 400 dollars, and doesn’t even work on my operating system, Vista (& won’t be made for Vista they say), I’m further unsure. When I thought the software might be ‘very expensive’, I considered about 150 dollars less than the Corel program costs. I didn’t expect to pay over the cost of a H.D. video camera just to edit its films.
I looked at AVS before, I don’t think it outputs lossless Full H.D.
So I ask the answerers to comment (possible after ‘resolved’ if you’ve already answered) and anyone else to answer: Full H.D. videos with the suggested software / other programs?
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3rd Reply to answers (below) so far.
Sorry, answerer 4. I see that AVS has a new H.D. editing facility. I didn’t see that when I tried the trial version a few months ago.
The H.D. abilities in the ASV description doesn’t include .mov files, but it says, not when talking about H.D., it deals with .mov. After all that answerer 2 said, and that it seems very difficult to edit specifically .mov H.D. files, I’d like to know if ASV can edit and produce full 1080p H.D. output with H.D. .mov input (not neccesarily in .mov output, but I guess from reading answerer 4 that’s the most likely option in any editor). O.K., maybe it’s not fully lossless, but if it’s 1080p., that may be O.K. I’d also be interested if ASV only makes very good quality 720p output from 1080p input.
If you know please post a comment (you may have to wait until after q. ‘resolved’ if you’ve answered already) or post a new answer.
Best answer:
Answer by rodjared
Heres what I use, but not cheap bud if you have to buy it. Wink, Wink.
http://www.corel.com/servlet/Satellite/us/en/Product/1175263344628#tabview=tab0
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