FITC 06: Get Great Looking Video Minus The File Size
Sorenson Squeeze 4 on2 encoding beats out of the box Flash 8 on2
Presentation Title
The Art of Encoding Video for Flash
Speaker(s)
Derrick Ypenburg (New Toronto Group, Community MX, Focus On Media)
Did I Stay For The Whole Thing?
Definitely.
Reason For Attending
I’ve worked with FLV in the past. I am working on a video side-project. I hope to do more video in the future. Looks like video for Flash is here to stay.
Highlights
This was an excellent presentation that focused on one main thesis and that was that it is possible to get good quality video at a low bit rate. Each step along the presentation helped reinforce this notion. Key points to remember were:
- If you are doing more serious encoding work, you are better off using a third-party encoder other than the Adobe Flash Encoder that comes with Flash 8.
- A lot of improvement to video quality is not done during the encoding process but by applying pre-process filters prior to encoding.
- One must be responsible for making the video reasonably accessible. What this means is that FLV hosters must be conscious of the amount of bandwidth used. The other thing to keep in mind is that viewers who are watching video encoded with alpha channels will see their CPU usage go up 4 time more than if they were watching flv without the alpha channel.
Derrick really hit it home that you just cannot just apply a generic setting for a particular bandwidth and expect amazing results. You really have to analyze the video and inspect for things that could be improved by applying pre-process filters and adjusting encoding parameters. In this respect, he did a great job arguing that video encoding is truly an art form that is easy to understand but a challenge to master.
Constructive Criticisms
Very clear and informative delivery for someone who claimed to have little sleep. It makes me think that if his session at FITC was good, then his instruction at New Toronto Group must be even better.
Would I See This Person Talk Again?
I would. Opportunities to see speakers at this caliber don’t come for free.
Post Event Action
Get my hands on Sorenson Squeeze and start directly applying the tips and tricks I’ve learned.
FITC 06: See other reviews
May 5th, 2006 at 3:34 pm
We actually decided to ask Derrick to speak after he did a Flash 8 video overview at FlashInTO a few months ago. He definitely presents in a clear understandable manner. And you are right, when he’s rested he’s even more on the ball from what I’ve seen.