Creating a small, decent QT file

Hi,

Something very simple here but I can't figure it out.

I have a 3-minute DV project which is 2/3 stills and 1/3 video. I'm in FCP 6.06.

I can export a rough cut for PC-based client and make a decent looking WMV file (via Flip for Mac) at about 8-10 MB in size which is small enough to email rather than upload via FTP site.

Client wants another version sent to Mac-based person. (WMV file apparently won't play for Mac person.)

I try to export a QT file of reasonable low-res quality but can't get anything under 20 MB or so, and even at that size the viewing quality is awful. I'm exporting using the H.264 option and have tried all sorts of different combos re: frame rate, quality, restrict data etc. etc. I tried MPEG 4 in Compressor and still the files are too big to email.

So ... how do you export in QT to get a small, decent file, like I can do for a WMV file with no problem?

Many thanks.

P.

8-10MB? That's tiny by today's standards. Aim for more like 40-80MB.

A three-minute video at Standard Def should look pretty decent at 1000-3000kbps, H.264, 29.97fps, de-interlaced, multi-pass.

Forget e-mail. The attachment limitations there tend to be so low that they're not practical for video. Use an FTP site like Mediafire.


www.derekmok.com

Yes, I know 8-10 is tiny. This client has spotty internet access and avoids big downloads, and even downloading from an ftp site would be a bit advanced for them. I just try to accommodate clients' needs when it's required.

Then crunch the file to 320x240px, 500-800kbps. Reduce the FPS, and keep audio to mono, 64kbps.


www.derekmok.com

Clients with low technical ability is why there is yousendit, now called hightail. They get an e-mail, with a link they just click to download. And it's available for 2 weeks, so they can download it at home/the office/forward it to their mother.

And you never have to explain how it works.

Thanks for the response.
Actually, I do have clients who don't quite get the intricacies of Hightail, simple as it is. Hence my attempts to email a small file when possible.

P.

To reach Paul C's 3 minutes in 10MB goal requires getting the bitrate down to 444 kbps, picture + sound.

Since Flip4Mac made him a "decent looking" .wmv file, there can also be a "decent looking" .mov file. He just needs to look at what Flip4Mac made him -- what codec; what resolution; what framerate; what picture vs sound bitrates -- and make likewise.

Dennis Couzin
Berlin, Germany