First, let me say that I am total beginner when it comes to videos and video editing. I recently got a D800 which is my first ever video capturing device. I have been videoing our two new puppies and want to share the videos with family and friends. Using Sony Vegas, I have been able to do some basic trimming and editing of the videos, but am still stuck on how to compress or reduce the file size. I have tried rendering the file in Vegas, and have also tried DivX and Prism, but every time I render or export the file, it remains the same size as the original. For example the raw .MOV file is about 83 MB and is still 83 MB after is render the movie as a Sony MP4 file where they say it is ready for uploading to the internet. I also lowered it to 24fps and 720p. I thought these codecs were supposed to compress the video like audio MP3s and greatly reduce the file size without significant loss in IQ?

So my question is, how do I export an edited video, retain the original size of 1080p, reduce the file size to about 1/10 of the original and not loose too much IQ? My understanding was that this could be done similarly to audio MP3's. Or are we not there yet with video compression? I would like my 83 MB file to be under 10 MB so I can either upload it or attach it to emails.

Thanks

Okay, I'll assume this is either a dumb question, or not possible. Anyone know of any similar; but more active, video forums where one can ask questions like this?

Thanks

Probably DVXuser.com would be an option.
Unfortunately, i'm a bit clueless with the technicalities of video.....its definately a different world to stills shooting.

DPreview also have a Digital Video Talk forum, which may be the better option for a less complicated answer {i find DVXuser to be more for experienced video shooters}

I don't think I can help much as I use After Effects 6 and Premiere Pro 6 for my video work. I just bought and started using Cineform Studio Premium and it's 4k codec. So far I like it. I should point out that most of my video work is time lapse and that I use AE to convert raw files from my DSLR to time lapse video.The aurora vid that I posted earlier, when processed for 4k resolution, was over 3Gb for a 20s clip. That is cut drastically when I rendered for uploading to Vimeo however. Speaking of Vimeo, they have really good information on codecs and what works best.

I tried a bunch of different editing software and have decided that Sony Vegas fits my needs and price range best. However, I still have not resolved the exporting, file size and quality issue. It seems that no matter what software I sue and no matter what file format or size I export to, the file size is still really large and the video quality suffers. Yet, I can find lots of videos on YouTube that when I view them at 1080 the quality is still very good. My original MOV files look great at 1080, but when I export the file they no longer look good at that size. So how are people doing this? Surely there must be a codec (or many codecs) that do this, but I can't seem to find them. All I want is to be able to upload basic videos at a reduced file size, but still allow people to view the video at full size if desired.

Hey Tim,

If it's any consolation, I've got exactly the same question as you do and I have no answer, although I haven't spent nearly as much time as you have pursuing it. If I can't find the answer through honest research, I plan to simply ask one or two specific individuals who post videos on their websites which I know are reduced from HD. Meanwhile, if you do find the answer, I'd be interested to hear it.