so my short video comes out over 3 GB

[Lizard Lad]

Any ideas how to keep it down? (The upload time for 3 gb is terible!!!)

[Pte Jack]

What codec are you using??? What Format?? AVI, MP4, H2.64???
A 5 min vid should only be around 300-500MBs

[GS96|GamerChick]

If you use AVI the files can get quite fat. Try using an mp4.
EDIT: You should probably edit the video in something like sony vegas if you are just uploading directly out of SFM.

[R234]

It all depends on the format you use. I personally export my videos in a PNG image sequence, then put'em all back into an AVI video with VirtualDub. All the PNGs for my 10:45 long video weighed almost 9 gigs, but the resulting AVI is just 246 megs.

[Lizard Lad]

I am using AVI. my video is only abou 2 min. long

[R234]

There's your problem, then. SFM made AVIs are barely compressed, if at all, so they're quite heavy.

[GS96|GamerChick]

Never export an avi from sfm, it has terrible coding for those and they corrupt very easily, usually within 10 seconds into the video. Export it as an image sequence or if you don't have something to piece them together use an mp4 in h.264.
Here's an awesome tut: http://www.facepunch.com/showthread.php?t=1200056

[Lizard Lad]

Originally posted by GS96|GamerChick:

Never export an avi from sfm, it has terrible coding for those and they corrupt very easily, usually within 10 seconds into the video. Export it as an image sequence or if you don't have something to piece them together use an mp4 in h.264.
Here's an awesome tut: http://www.facepunch.com/showthread.php?t=1200056

I do not have the option to use mp4

[Hakurei]

Render as image sequence, rendering as anything else kills a lot of the quality. Then import the images into virtual dub.
You don't really need to understand this, just see what he's doing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1V5RPk4WK7o

[Pte Jack]

Also, to get the option to render in MP4, install (and i grit my teeth everytime I say this) Apple Quicktime. It will add the codec required to render in MP4.

[Lizard Lad]

Originally posted by Pte Jack:

Also, to get the option to render in MP4, install (and i grit my teeth everytime I say this) Apple Quicktime. It will add the codec required to render in MP4.

oh god... Quicktime? Do i have to or is there another option?

[psi onix]

TBH the the SFM AVI with "Cinepak" compression render option comes out looking pretty damn good by my eye(no loss in quality and no coruption issues), and is not as large as a straight up uncompressed AVI. My film is at 2 minutes currently and renders out to 1.6gb... that's actually why i made the youtube trhead earlier today. But in the end i will probably end up rendering as image sequence.

[[BFC] ILLBixby]

Outputing an image sequence is the best option for your final render. Any machinima we make, regardless of the engine, output is always a two step process: 1) output at the best, close to uncompressed video and/or image sequence possible, 2) then compress in a progrem better built for compressing (quicktime pro, handbrake, most editing programs).

And yes, don't grit your teeth over quicktime, h264 for example is an industry standard and amazing compression.

[Pte Jack]

It's not the program that I grit my teeth over, it's the fact that Apple actually made something good that works with a PC.... lol

[Lizard Lad]

Originally posted by Pte Jack:

It's not the program that I grit my teeth over, it's the fact that Apple actually made something good that works with a PC.... lol

Agreed.

[Lizard Lad]

I finished uploading. I had to use 360p in order to save a few mb

Of course there is a weird 1 min long who knows what at the end... Luckly youtube let me cut that part out

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MynlgzrFqg0&feature=youtu.be