Forums / Technical Help / TUTORIALS: Vimeo HD exporting guides from many editors

Hello: I am the new owner of a HF100 and am very impressed by the video quality (as played back directly on my HD TV).

I have a question for vimeo.com posters. What is the bare minimum software I need to upload video clips to the vimeo website.

I do not need editing, frame inserts or anything fancy. Just take a MTS file as captured by the camera and convert to upload to Vimeo

I have the lame pixela software that comes with the canon HF100, which allows exporting files as-is to 3 formats (the largest of which is 720:480, MPEG-2 resolution). The resulting video on vimeo.com is not HD quality needless to say.

Do I need to buy additional software to do this simple task? Is there anything free that will do this ?

There is no freeware application at this time that will read MTS files, because AVCHD is a new format not well understood yet by open source applications. Short of waiting 1-2 more years for open source apps to catch up, I would suggest you buy Vegas Platinum 8.0d ($90), which can read and edit AVCHD, and allows you to export as WMV 720p among other features. I can help you out with Vegas, you can email me directly about it (no need to reply here for it).

UPDATE: There is a free way:
eugenia.gnomefiles.org/2008/05/04/avchd-transcoding-using-free-tools/

Email them to me on eloli-at-hotmail.com
thanks!

Thank you, Pinnacle tutorial added, linked above!

You're welcome. It was fun

Sticky'd.

Thanks Dalas, appreciated!

I updated the post above to also include Avid Xpress btw.

I do tell about the compression on quicktime, I don't use the 50% abstract notions, I use directly bitrate. And on Premiere Elements tutorials I export as "progressive", so this will create "full frames". So the tutorials are correct.

You don't do it on the final cut, you do it on the PF24 footage you captured, and *then* you edit. Here is the tutorial for the HV20 pulldown removal: eugenia.gnomefiles.org/2007/07/13/canon-hv20-24p-pulldown/ and for the HG10/HR10 pulldown removal: eugenia.gnomefiles.org/2008/01/04/canon-avchd-24p-pulldown-removal/
I am pretty sure that the tutorial is self-explanatory, it just requires your attention a bit.

24p pulldown removal is indeed a slow deal, but it's necessary so you don't end up with images like this one: eugenia.gnomefiles.org/images/pf24.jpg

As for de-interlace, this is a different thing. De-interlacing and pulldown removal is not the same thing. De-interlacing is available on the h.264 .mov exporting dialogs, but not in the MP4 ones. I hope Apple adds the option there too...

Maybe you could create a "custom" project that has true 25.000 progressive frames, instead of using HDV pre-sets?

Yes, but if you force de-interlacing during export it might screw it up (depends on the algorithms each video editor uses). It's best to turn either both footages interlaced or both progressive and then edit and then export.

You can't. If its 640x480 (e.g. from a digicam), you leave it as 640x480. You can't get the HD mode on Vimeo at that resolution without upsampling which means *losing* resolution, in your case. Leave it as is, or you might have to buy a miniDV camera for that. The Canon ZR800 costs $200.

Alternatively, you can just buy one of the new Kodak digicams that support 720p MPEG4 HD recording.

This is not true. Many of your shots are proper HD. But others seem to either not be HD sources that you inserted in the video, or you inserted them with wrong settings. So your export was as it was supposed to be. But *some* of your clips are simply not up to par with others. You also move the camera way to much and way too fast. This always gives a hard time to encoder, no matter which encoder. You must learn to use only the best pieces of your film, and not to move the camera fast.

Here are the formats I have available:
I:\programs\ffmpeg>ffmpeg -formats
FFmpeg version SVN-r11870, Copyright (c) 2000-2008 Fabrice Bellard, et al.
configuration: --enable-gpl --enable-pp --enable-swscaler --enable-pthreads --enable-liba52 --enable-avisynth --enable-libfaac --enable-libfaad --enable-libgsm --enable-libmp3lame --enable-libnut --enable-libtheora --enable-libvorbis --enable-libx264 --enable-libxvid --cpu=i686 --enable-memalign-hack --extra-ldflags=-static
libavutil version: 49.6.0
libavcodec version: 51.50.0
libavformat version: 52.7.0
libavdevice version: 52.0.0
built on Feb 5 2008 23:46:38, gcc: 4.2.3

File formats:
E 3g2 3gp2 format
E 3gp 3gp format
D 4xm 4X Technologies format
D MTV MTV format
DE RoQ Id RoQ format
D aac ADTS AAC
DE ac3 raw ac3
E adts ADTS AAC
DE aiff Audio IFF
DE alaw pcm A law format
DE amr 3gpp amr file format
D apc CRYO APC format
D ape Monkey's Audio
DE asf asf format
E asf_stream asf format
DE au SUN AU Format
DE avi avi format
E avm2 Flash 9 (AVM2) format
D avs AVISynth
D bethsoftvid Bethesda Softworks 'Daggerfall' VID format
D c93 Interplay C93
E crc crc testing format
D daud D-Cinema audio format
D dsicin Delphine Software International CIN format
D dts raw dts
DE dv DV video format
E dvd MPEG2 PS format (DVD VOB)
D dxa dxa
D ea Electronic Arts Multimedia Format
D ea_cdata Electronic Arts cdata
DE ffm ffm format
D film_cpk Sega FILM/CPK format
DE flac raw flac
D flic FLI/FLC/FLX animation format
DE flv flv format
E framecrc framecrc testing format
DE gif GIF Animation
DE gxf GXF format
DE h261 raw h261
DE h263 raw h263
DE h264 raw H264 video format
D idcin Id CIN format
DE image2 image2 sequence
DE image2pipe piped image2 sequence
D ingenient Ingenient MJPEG
D ipmovie Interplay MVE format
DE libnut nut format
D lmlm4 lmlm4 raw format
DE m4v raw MPEG4 video format
DE matroska Matroska File Format
DE mjpeg MJPEG video
D mm American Laser Games MM format
DE mmf mmf format
E mov mov format
D mov,mp4,m4a,3gp,3g2,mj2 QuickTime/MPEG4/Motion JPEG 2000 format
E mp2 MPEG audio layer 2
DE mp3 MPEG audio layer 3
E mp4 mp4 format
D mpc musepack
D mpc8 musepack8
DE mpeg MPEG1 System format
E mpeg1video MPEG video
E mpeg2video MPEG2 video
DE mpegts MPEG2 transport stream format
D mpegtsraw MPEG2 raw transport stream format
D mpegvideo MPEG video
E mpjpeg Mime multipart JPEG format
DE mulaw pcm mu law format
D mxf MXF format
D nsv NullSoft Video format
E null null video format
DE nut nut format
D nuv NuppelVideo format
DE ogg Ogg format
E psp psp mp4 format
D psxstr Sony Playstation STR format
D pva pva file and stream format
DE rawvideo raw video format
D redir Redirector format
DE rm rm format
E rtp RTP output format
D rtsp RTSP input format
DE s16be pcm signed 16 bit big endian format
DE s16le pcm signed 16 bit little endian format
DE s8 pcm signed 8 bit format
D sdp SDP
D shn raw shorten
D siff Beam Software SIFF
D smk Smacker Video
D sol Sierra SOL Format
E svcd MPEG2 PS format (VOB)
DE swf Flash format
D thp THP
D tiertexseq Tiertex Limited SEQ format
D tta true-audio
D txd txd format
DE u16be pcm unsigned 16 bit big endian format
DE u16le pcm unsigned 16 bit little endian format
DE u8 pcm unsigned 8 bit format
D vc1 raw vc1
D vc1test VC1 test bitstream format
E vcd MPEG1 System format (VCD)
D vmd Sierra VMD format
E vob MPEG2 PS format (VOB)
DE voc Creative Voice File format
DE wav wav format
D wc3movie Wing Commander III movie format
D wsaud Westwood Studios audio format
D wsvqa Westwood Studios VQA format
D wv WavPack
DE yuv4mpegpipe YUV4MPEG pipe format

Codecs:
D V 4xm
D V D 8bps
D V VMware video
D V D aasc
EA ac3
D A adpcm_4xm
DEA adpcm_adx
D A adpcm_ct
D A adpcm_ea
D A adpcm_ea_r1
D A adpcm_ea_r2
D A adpcm_ea_r3
D A adpcm_ea_xas
D A adpcm_ima_amv
D A adpcm_ima_dk3
D A adpcm_ima_dk4
D A adpcm_ima_ea_eacs
D A adpcm_ima_ea_sead
D A adpcm_ima_qt
D A adpcm_ima_smjpeg
DEA adpcm_ima_wav
D A adpcm_ima_ws
DEA adpcm_ms
D A adpcm_sbpro_2
D A adpcm_sbpro_3
D A adpcm_sbpro_4
DEA adpcm_swf
D A adpcm_thp
D A adpcm_xa
DEA adpcm_yamaha
D A alac
D V amv
D A ape
DEV D asv1
DEV D asv2
D A atrac 3
D V D avs
D V bethsoftvid
DEV bmp
D V D c93
D V D camstudio
D V D camtasia
D V D cavs
D V D cinepak
D V D cljr
D A cook
D V D cyuv
D A dca
DEV D dnxhd
D A dsicinaudio
D V D dsicinvideo
DES dvbsub
DES dvdsub
DEV D dvvideo
D V dxa
DEV D ffv1
DEVSD ffvhuff
DEA flac
DEV D flashsv
D V D flic
DEVSD flv
D V D fraps
DEA g726
DEV gif
DEV D h261
DEVSDT h263
D VSD h263i
EV h263p
D V DT h264
DEVSD huffyuv
D V D idcinvideo
D A imc
D V D indeo2
D V indeo3
D A interplay_dpcm
D V D interplayvideo
DEV D jpegls
D V kmvc
D A liba52
EA libfaac
D A libfaad
DEA libgsm
DEA libgsm_ms
EA libmp3lame
EV libtheora
EA libvorbis
EV libx264
EV libxvid
EV ljpeg
D V D loco
D A mace3
D A mace6
D V D mdec
DEV D mjpeg
D V D mjpegb
D V D mmvideo
DEA mp2
D A mp3
D A mp3adu
D A mp3on4
D A mpc sv7
D A mpc sv8
DEVSDT mpeg1video
DEVSDT mpeg2video
DEVSDT mpeg4
D A mpeg4aac
D VSDT mpegvideo
DEVSD msmpeg4
DEVSD msmpeg4v1
DEVSD msmpeg4v2
D V D msrle
D V D msvideo1
D V D mszh
D A nellymoser
D V D nuv
DEV pam
DEV pbm
DEA pcm_alaw
DEA pcm_mulaw
DEA pcm_s16be
DEA pcm_s16le
D A pcm_s16le_planar
DEA pcm_s24be
DEA pcm_s24daud
DEA pcm_s24le
DEA pcm_s32be
DEA pcm_s32le
DEA pcm_s8
DEA pcm_u16be
DEA pcm_u16le
DEA pcm_u24be
DEA pcm_u24le
DEA pcm_u32be
DEA pcm_u32le
DEA pcm_u8
DEA pcm_zork
D V pcx
DEV pgm
DEV pgmyuv
DEV png
DEV ppm
D V ptx
D A qdm2
D V D qdraw
D V D qpeg
DEV D qtrle
DEV rawvideo
D A real_144
D A real_288
DEA roq_dpcm
DEV D roqvideo
D V D rpza
DEV D rv10
DEV D rv20
DEV sgi
D A shorten
D A smackaud
D V smackvid
D V D smc
DEV snow
D A sol_dpcm
DEA sonic
EA sonicls
D V D sp5x
D V sunrast
DEV D svq1
D VSD svq3
DEV targa
D V theora
D V D thp
D V D tiertexseqvideo
DEV tiff
D V D truemotion1
D V D truemotion2
D A truespeech
D A tta
D V txd
D V D ultimotion
D V vb
D V vc1
D V D vcr1
D A vmdaudio
D V D vmdvideo
DEA vorbis
D V vp3
D V D vp5
D V D vp6
D V D vp6a
D V D vp6f
D V D vqavideo
D A wavpack
DEA wmav1
DEA wmav2
DEVSD wmv1
DEVSD wmv2
D V wmv3
D V D wnv1
D A ws_snd1
D A xan_dpcm
D V D xan_wc3
D V D xl
D S xsub
DEV D zlib
DEV zmbv

Bitstream filters:
text2movsub remove_extra noise mov2textsub mp3decomp mp3comp mjpegadump imxdump h264_mp4toannexb dump_extra
Supported file protocols:
file: http: pipe: rtp: tcp: udp:
Frame size, frame rate abbreviations:
ntsc pal qntsc qpal sntsc spal film ntsc-film sqcif qcif cif 4cif

Note, the names of encoders and decoders do not always match, so there are
several cases where the above table shows encoder only or decoder only entries
even though both encoding and decoding are supported. For example, the h263
decoder corresponds to the h263 and h263p encoders, for file formats it is even
worse.

This one "works" but the video plays back like it is in slow motion and doesn't line up with the audio at all:

ffmpeg.exe -r 29.97 -s 1440x1080 -y -i "T:\video\20080211\one.M2TS" -deinterlace -threads 2 -pass 1 -f mp4 -title "One Test" -vcodec mpeg4 -level 41 -refs 2 -loop 1 -deblockalpha 0 -deblockbeta 0 -parti4x4 1 -partp8x8 1 -partb8x8 1 -me full -subq 6 -brdo 1 -me_range 21 -s 1280x720 -r 24000/1001 -b 4096k -bt 4096k -bufsize 15000k -maxrate 16000k -g 300 -coder vlc -acodec libfaac -ac 2 -ab 128k "one_720p-24.avi"

There is no point including ffmpeg tutorials here. FFmpeg is always in flux and one version will work and another one will be full of bugs. Each user has to find a version that ffmpeg works for the codec they need and stick with it.

MeGui and AviSynth ended up being the easiest (and free!) solution for me. I wrote up all the gory details in my blog in case anyone else is having the same problems as me: travis.servebeer.com/blog.net/archive/2008/03/06/convert_transcode_avchd_codec_mtwots_video_file_canon_HGten_mpfour_avi_free_for_vimeo.aspx

Thanks for your help with everything!

You can't. Vimeo will always re-encode, so your best bet is using the current tutorials.

Here you are. This creates a PS3-compatible and xbox360/AppleTV MP4 h.264/AAC file:

mencoder INPUT.m2t -aspect 16:9 -of lavf -lavfopts format=psp -oac lavc -ovc lavc -lavcopts
aglobal=1:vglobal=1:coder=0:vcodec=libx264:acodec=libfaac:vbitrate=4500:abitrate=128 -vf scale=1280:720 -ofps 30000/1001 -o OUTPUT.mp4

Use "25" frame rate for 25p PAL, or "24000/1001" for 24p (without quotes), instead of the suggested NTSC 30000/1001 if required. Also modify the input filename, of course.

You're too kind. Thanks!

I would avoid VirtualDub. While VDub is powerful, the kind of h.264 files it creates are not compatible with devices, because it uses mp3 and AVI instead of AAC and MP4. Unless you export to XVID/mp3/AVI with VDub, I don't recommend it. Plus, it's a kind of an app that could confuse newbies.

Yes, Vimeo re-encodes in 24p. There is nothing you and I can do about it, except offering the original file for direct download. The tutorial is still correct.

Well, in that tutorial, there are THREE ways to export. You don't even tell us which one you use. But I suspect you use the easy method, the WMV one. In that method you can't limit it I believe. The next two you can, as you can see from the screenshots.

File a bug report with Vimeo. The tutorial is correct, and as long as you exported as such, it's their job to support the new formats. For now, you might want to export using the second suggested method. I haven't seen others having the same problem btw.

That tutorial for Ulead mentions THREE ways of doing it. You don't even tell us which method you are using! Anyways, what you see there is what you get -- if you have done everything correctly. I don't know why the de-interlacing option is not there if everything else is!

As for AVCHD-to-Vimeo, the best way to do it, is the way we show in this tutorial. That's why I wrote the tutorial. Then, it's up to Vimeo to not use too low bitrate and make the quality worse -- you can't control that part.

Hello Terry. Perhaps I have some useful information for you. It seems most users prefer Mac's and iMovie for editing and exporting. If I had a Mac I'd probably be loving life just like they are. For more fear of the unknown than any other reason, I still use a PC for editing and exporting and here is what works for me:

-Pinnacle Sudio 11 Ultimate (plus version works too)
--The installation of this software could have been simplified but once installed it is very simple to use.

-I export to WMV using the following 720p settings:
--Video: 1280 x 720, 8000 kbps, 60 fps
--Audio: 192 kbps, 16 bit, 5.1 surround, 44 kHz

You may say, wow 8Mbps is too much, but I also stream these WMV files to my Xbox 360 and they play beautifully, and great sound too. You may downgrade to 4Mbps/Stereo for Vimeo if you wish.

Play around with the WMV profiles and perhaps create one of your own. I suggest downloading Windows Media Encoder application straight from Microsoft and tweaking the profiles to your needs. Let me know if you need help with this.

Cheers.

That might be a new bug with Quicktime then. This used to work just fine. Download the freeware "JES Deinterlacer" to deinterlace the video then. Export as "Apple Intermediate Format" via iMovie though in order for JES to de-interlace, not as mpeg4/mov.

I am using iMovie HD 6 too, and I have had the same problem, but finally, I figured out how to get it encoded nicely without ugly interlace lines.

I made a 1 minute video clip with lots of motions, and encoded it to H.264 at several different settings; Key Frames, Dimensions, etc., always using QuickTime, because I don't have any other software to do it.

The results were that, I could not get it right.
The ugly interlace lines were always there.
Whether you check "deinterlace source video" or not, it does not make any difference.

I was so disappointed.

Then, I tried to "de-interlace" using "JES Deinterlacer": a freeware introduced here by Eugenia, and after many tries, finally I arrived to get my video encoded nicely without ugly interlace lines.

First, export the video from iMovie HD 6 to AIC at 1920 x 1080i, then "de-interlace" it with "JES Deinterlacer", and output again to AIC.
Open it with QuickTime, and convert it to H.264 at 1280 x 780 HD.

This is it, and the result is a nice progressive video clip without ugly interlace lines.

After all, it seems so simple, but it took so many tries to get here, and I am quite tired.
But anyway, I am so glad, and I thank you very much, Eugenia.

I hope that this would help you too, Pauline.

Probably a problem with your Vegas application. Maybe a too old version.

how can i get a newer version?

You buy it.

wrong, i fixed it.

I didn't say anything wrong. According to the clues you presented and error message, if your Vegas doesn't does over XGA resolution, you upgrade to a newer version that can. If the problem is elsewhere, I guess indeed, it was your error.

sorry, that sounded pretty rude. i was just trying to be playful.

thank you very much for your time.

The only lossless codec that iMovie offers is AIC, as you mentioned. Unfortunately, AIC is not supported by open source utilities like ffmpeg/mencoder, which is what VisualHub and all these converters out there are using. So the best way to preserve your videos are to keep all your existing iMovie files and export to AppleTV using iMovie, not Visual Hub. VisualHub does not support AVCHD files either, so the plain .mts files straight out of your camera won't work either. You can export from iMovie to a lossy codec, e.g. mjpeg, which is pretty good, but as I said, it's slightly lossy. Personally, I would just preserve the imovie files on an external big hard drive.

I know it's not lossless. But iMovie and even FCE use it as such, as their only way for an intermediate codec. There's no other choice.

jeez, you really have nothing nice to say at all do you.

It's clearly explained in the article that 2b is for Sony Vegas PRO, not for PLATINUM. These are two different versions of Vegas, and if you don't have these options in 2b, then you are not using PRO.

And if you ARE using PRO, then the only other explanation is that you are using a pirated version of Vegas Pro. The pirated version is missing a whole bunch of codecs, which make Vegas useless.

Yeah.. well not clearly enough for my stupid eyes. Thanks :)

The FCP tutorial I link above shows you how to export. You are simply using way too much bitrate. For 5 minutes, it shouldn't be over 185 MBs.

Thanks for your quick responding! so kind! I will look into it, thanks!

No and no. The problem is that both Vimeo's and the freeware apps/codecs out there don't support AVCHD yet. There is an avisynth script and library that can deal with it, but i don't recommend it for newbies. I am afraid that you will have to buy a video editor to load the AVCHD file and then export to a more popular format.

Thank you for the answer. I'm a newbie to the HD cam market, but I'm pretty tech savvy - I read your post re: converting from M2TS to the Vimeo-friendly format, so I'm going to give that a try. Cross your fingers! If that doesn't work, my husband's been (crying) for a Mac for years it seems, looks like another purchase is in our future.

You can buy a Mac, or you can simply buy Sony Vegas Platinum 8, which is much cheaper ($80 with rebates). After updating Vegas Platinum to the latest free update, you get AVCHD support, for much cheaper than buying a whole new computer. You will need over 1 GB of RAM for HD editing/exporting though.

If you are proficient with computer usage you can use a freeware way here: eugenia.gnomefiles.org/2008/05/04/avchd-transcoding-using-free-tools/

I am assuming you are on a PC and not on a Mac. If yes, the kind of MOV files the PC-based Premiere supports are not normal h.264/mpeg4 files, that's why there is no de-interlacing there. You should not be using MOV. You should be using either h.264 in MP4 or WMV, as shown in the tutorial of Premiere above. As for filesizes, for normal 4:3 NTSC video you should be exporting as shown in the tutorials, but at resolution 656x480 instead of 1280x720, 4:3 instead of widescreen (I assume you don't shoot in widescreen), and bitrate at 2000 instead of 4000 or 5000. Everything else is the same.

If you used the h.264 codec for your 4:3 SD video, you should not have a video over 15 MBs per minute (at 2000 kbps). This tells me that you exported with an uncompressed or Sorenson codec, not h.264.

That was 40 MBs. That's for a 874x480 file though. If your camera only shoots 4:3 and not widescreen, then your filesizes will be even smaller, because the resolution you would need to export is 656x480 instead, at just 2 mbps. As for the embed player, it does not matter the filesize, because Vimeo re-encodes in a standard bitrate for all videos. What matter is for your video to not be over 4 minutes as the attention span is small on the internet.