MOV/H.264 vs MPEG4-AVC/H.264 at DVinfo.net
DV Info Net

Go Back   DV Info Net > Canon EOS / MXF / AVCHD / HDV / DV Camera Systems > Canon XA and VIXIA Series AVCHD Camcorders > Canon VIXIA Series AVCHD and HDV Camcorders

Canon VIXIA Series AVCHD and HDV Camcorders
For VIXIA / LEGRIA Series (HF G, HF S, HF and HV) consumer camcorders.

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old March 11th, 2010, 08:16 AM   #1
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Saly Hungary
Posts: 169
MOV/H.264 vs MPEG4-AVC/H.264

Hello,
I am comparing a DSLR (550d) and a camcorder (HF S series).
What concerns me is the Video Recording system, because of ease of editing. What is the difference between these 2 systems (MOV/H.264 and MPEG4-AVC/H.264) and more important, what will be more easy to edit (I use AVID but also have CS3)?
Thanks,
Rob
Rob deJong is offline   Reply With Quote
Old March 12th, 2010, 01:41 AM   #2
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Saly Hungary
Posts: 169
Nobody knows the difference between these formats?
Rob deJong is offline   Reply With Quote
Old March 12th, 2010, 07:55 AM   #3
Inner Circle
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Tallahassee, FL
Posts: 4,100
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rob deJong View Post
Hello,
I am comparing a DSLR (550d) and a camcorder (HF S series).
What concerns me is the Video Recording system, because of ease of editing. What is the difference between these 2 systems (MOV/H.264 and MPEG4-AVC/H.264) and more important, what will be more easy to edit (I use AVID but also have CS3)?
Thanks,
Rob
MOV is simply a container. It is not a codec, and many, many different kinds of codecs can be stored in it.

h.264 defines a compression scheme with broad reach and many variables. It is also known as AVC (Advanced Video Codec). The MPEG group typically names these specs after themselves so MPEG-4 is just an alias for it, much like MPEG-2, and MPEG-1.

AVCHD, which you didn't mention but what the HF-S series shoots, is a subset of the h.264/AVC/Mpeg4 standard that is limited to 24Mbps maximum. Some of the cameras aimed at beginners shoot this at 17Mbps to get more room onto a card. The HF-S series can shoot at this range too to extend recording time. The Panasonic Lumix GH1 shoots at this speed all the time.

The Canon DSLRs shoot h.264 at ~40Mbps for the 5D and ~48Mbps for the 7D/550D.

Avid will convert every one of these to DNxHD in an MXF container so the native format is immaterial to you if you will be taking these into Avid. Premiere will not transcode these but editing the 17MBs variant is doable on most strong machines. The i7 class machines can generally manage editing the 24Mps variant. But in either case, transcoding is smart and recommended. These are terrible editing codecs.

The real trouble starts with trying to edit the 5D/7D/550D footage. It's just too much. So I would call transcoding of these a requirement for any real editing work.

Does that help?
__________________
DVX100, PMW-EX1, Canon 550D, FigRig, Dell Octocore, Avid MC4/5, MB Looks, RedCineX, Matrox MX02 mini, GTech RAID, Edirol R-4, Senn. G2 Evo, Countryman, Moles and Lowels.
Perrone Ford is offline   Reply With Quote
Old March 18th, 2010, 07:16 AM   #4
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Saly Hungary
Posts: 169
Yes, that helps. I hope.
Rob deJong is offline   Reply
Reply

DV Info Net refers all where-to-buy and where-to-rent questions exclusively to these trusted full line dealers and rental houses...

B&H Photo Video
(866) 521-7381
New York, NY USA

Scan Computers Int. Ltd.
+44 0871-472-4747
Bolton, Lancashire UK


DV Info Net also encourages you to support local businesses and buy from an authorized dealer in your neighborhood.
  You are here: DV Info Net > Canon EOS / MXF / AVCHD / HDV / DV Camera Systems > Canon XA and VIXIA Series AVCHD Camcorders > Canon VIXIA Series AVCHD and HDV Camcorders

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

 



All times are GMT -6. The time now is 05:53 AM.


DV Info Net -- Real Names, Real People, Real Info!
1998-2024 The Digital Video Information Network