How to convert and format a video for upload to SmugMug

If your video fails to upload, or uploads but then plays with no sound after upload, it may contain a codec or audio settings that are not compatible with our system. What follows are instructions for converting and exporting your video so that it is in a format compatible with SmugMug prior to uploading it.

We recommend a .mov file with the h.264 video codec and AAC 128kps audio (stereo or mono only, no surround sound). These are the most optimized settings for both file size as well as quality and compatibility. Here's how to convert your video to these settings:

Download and install MPEG Streamclip (PC and Mac) from:
http://www.squared5.com/

On Windows you may need to install the Quicktime player for the h.264 codec to show up in MPEG Streamclip. You can get it here.

Drag your video file into the main window of the MPEG Streamclip application.

In MPEG Streamclip, choose File -> Export to Quicktime.

In the options screen that appears next, choose the following settings;

Now upload the .mov file to SmugMug! Remember that videos only work with our Simple and Old Faithful uploaders.

PLEASE NOTE-leave the 'Frame Size' setting at 'unscaled' unless you want to change the size of your video. The application defaults to leaving the video at whatever resolution your video is already at.

It also defaults to 50% on the quality slider, we generally recommend the quality slider to be set anywhere from 50%-100%. Keep in mind that the higher the quality setting, the larger your video file will be.

If you want the highest video quality, then check the 'limit data rate' button, which will override the quality slider. Then set the data rate as follows:

Full HD (1080p) 1920x1080 8.0 Mbps
Hi-Def(720p) 1280x720 3.2Mbps
Mid-Def 960x540 1.8Mbps
iPod/DVD 640x480 1.2Mbps
Web 320x240 512Kbps

Note that this will result in a larger file size to upload. If you want a smaller file size at the expense of slightly lower video quality, un-check the 'limit data rate' checkbox and use the quality slider at about 50%-75%.

*If your video is 1080p,720p, or 480p deselect the 'interlaced' checkbox.