How to shoot video and use a video bitrate calculator

Here is a great video bitrate calculator to help you unravel the mystery of how to shoot a great-looking video.

Shooting quality video for the web requires you to know the proper settings, such as video bitrate and audio bitrate. Ultimately, you will be converting your media into a format to put it on your website. Understanding the conversion process is the key to setting things up correctly prior to recording, so that your software will give you the best quality files for uploading to the web.

If you are shooting video with a camera, some of the questions about dimensions are likely predeterminded for you. However, they will come into play when you edit and render (convert) your video for the web.

Here are some questions to consider prior to recording.

1. Will you be playing the video in a tradional 4:3 aspect ratio (like TV), or in a wider 16:9 ratios (like movie screens)? If you are recording from a camera, your camera is likely already set up to record in these dimensions.

2. Always try to record and encode in dimensions that are multiples of 16. Remember, the higher the resolution, the fatter the file and the more bandwidth required to play back. I always try to record in a higher resolution. Do my editing, and then use my software to reduce my dimensions when I convert it, prior to posting on the web. The table below outlines some good dimensions to use.

3. Will you be wanting people to view your video on their mobile phones? If so, 480×320 resolution is a good size that many phones will support.

Most sites that show videos convert them into the Flash Video (FLV) format for the web. Use the information above, and then visit Flash video bitrate calculator by Robert Reinhardt, prior to converting your video to determine your bit rate settings.

Follow these simple planning steps before shooting any video, and your audience will love the results!