10 Best Video File Formats for Simple Video Editing

Making videos and uploading them to different social media platforms has become a way to interact with the world while generating revenue in return. Many people have left their regular jobs and started Vlogging while visiting places, going to different restaurants, trying new recipes or even just sharing their daily beauty routines. Some have even started making videos to share their views about certain hot topics around them. The purpose of making these video formats is to make videos, edit them to make them seamless, add some creativity into it to grasp the audience’s attention and then share it with the rest of the world to see.

The process includes, recording, editing, beautifying and then uploading. There are various free and paid software available online and as separate software suites which are accessible to these video makers. All of them offer the same features of editing the videos, some have detailed editing features which give an enhanced look to the videos and some only offer basic editing features allowing the users to make their recorded content look presentable. When you are finishing the editing; you have to choose the best video compressor and compress your video to ensure that it is easy to stream when uploaded on different platforms. This article focuses on The Best Video Formats in which the edited video can be saved or stored so it is accessible to a larger number of audiences.

What are Video formats?

Video formats are a package or a container for the video content which is to be stored on digital devices and even digital servers. These packages do not only contain video but it also includes the audio, captions, transitions, and many more elements which make up the entire video. The video formats mainly consist of two parts:

1.Codecs

The codecs are tools that compress or decompress the data which is contained by the video file. The compression and decompression here ensure that the quality of the video remains intact. There are two types of codes, one is lossy codecs which reduce the quality of the video while compressing and editing and another one is lossless codes, which ensures that the quality of the video remains intact while you are editing it; however, the file size here increases.

2.Containers

The containers contain all of the elements of the video including the text, audio, video and any other elements added to it.

Best Video Formats

1.MP4 -MPEG-4

This is the most widely video format which is compatible with almost every smart device and platform. The video file saved in this format is of high quality and is compressed efficiently.

2.MOV – QuickTime

This is the video file format that is common on Apple’s devices. Whether it is Ios or MacOS, these files are compatible with all of the devices owned by Apple. These formats are perfect for larger screens as they have a very high quality.

3.MKV – Matroska

These file formats are common and are compatible with a large number of smart devices. The main advantage of these files are that they are ideal for editing purposes, for streaming and downloading video content as well. If you talk about their use, they are ideal when dealing with multiple languages, subtitles and even menus.

4. AVI – Audio Video Interleave

This is one of the oldest formats of video files, but it is still popular. The file format has a simple structure and is good for legacy systems. You would want to save your video file in this format is you are dealing with legacy projects or some specific requirements related to this.

5. WMV – Windows Media Video

This file format is common for systems and devices which operate on windows. They are quite smaller in size but they maintain the video quality as well. Due to the smaller size, they can be loaded easily and quickly which makes it commonly used as well. You can use these files for editing on windows systems and playbacks.

6. FLV – Flash Video

This is a file format which is popular for web streaming. It is very lightweight due to which it is the most preferred video formats for online platforms. Any game or video which runs through flash player supports this video format.

7. WEBM

Almost all of the modern browsers support this particular video format. This is an open-source video format which is of higher quality and has smaller size which makes it preferable. It is most common for web content and HTML5 videos.

8.H.264 – Advanced Video Coding

This is a common video format. Even though the video content is compressed, it still maintains the high-quality and is quite efficient.

9. F4V

This file format is a replacement for FLV video format. Its advantage is that it is an MPEG-4 Part 12 container which contains H.264 video and AAC audio. Hence, the content it carries is of a very high quality.

10. VOB

This file format is commonly used to save data in DVDs. Its advantage is that it saves video in MPEG-1 Part 2 and MPEG-2 Part 2 along with many audio formats.

To Wrap Up

Whatever your choice is while saving your video file into a suitable format. Ensure that it caters to your requirement and offers you the features which you need. Whether you are creating the video for personal need, streaming or you are working on a professional project, knowledge about each of these file formats would help you to understand them before choosing the format.

When you choose the required video format and you start editing your video before converting it, there are some essential things you need to keep in mind. If we think about them professionally, they can be ethical editing boundaries. If you are a professional video editor. Then You should know that the content that you are creating or editing is like telling a story to the people who await you. You do not just have to cut the clips and make them engaging, you are responsible for what you are disseminating to the people who are your viewers. 

Do not manipulate people by triggering their emotional side, and do not play with their feelings just to promote or sell your content. When you start editing, the first ethical standard is to ensure that you own the copyright of the video. 

If you do not have the copyright, you should obtain them before editing the content. Secondly is to make sure that while editing. You do not twist the facts stated in the video and edit the content to mislead the viewers. This is to avoid creating or spreading sensation through your video; do not exaggerate or manipulate the video. If your video contains data that shows people’s faces. Then ensure that you have their consent to feature them in the video. By following these ethical principles, you would be able to keep your integrity and maintain a respectable position among your peers and other professionals. 

User would gain trust and improve your reputation in the eyes of your viewers. You would be able to engage your audience as the videos produced by following ethical principles lead to sharing a deeper meaning and connecting with the audience more. You would be able to understand the legalities of video editing and will become a pro in the field. And last but not least your videos might be able to lead society to become a better place to live for yourself and the others around you.