Convert Your Digital Camera QuickTime Movies to WMV or
AVI
While
previously there was a clear distinction between a
digital camcorder and a digital camera (to take still
photos only), the line seems to have blurred
significantly recently. The new generation of
digital cameras from leading manufacturers not only take
still photos with amazing clarity, they also record
high-quality video.
However,
the video format in which these high performance devices
record can cause issues. While most digital
cameras record in QuickTime format (MOV), some record in
MPEG 4 (MP4). This causes compatibility issues
because neither QuickTime nor MPEG 4 plays natively on a
Windows PC. You need to install the QuickTime
Player to make either of these formats play on Windows
PC. So, if you intend to distribute a video to a
wider audience, it is a good idea to convert it to a
Windows standard format like AVI or WMV.
If you have
a digital camera that records video in QuickTime, it is
a good idea to convert your videos into AVI or WMV
format using Digital Media
Converter. For instance, if you
intend to distribute via e-mail or the web, then the
small, yet high-quality Windows Media Format is the
format for you. It plays in Windows Media Player,
which comes standard on all Windows PCs. AVI can
also play in Windows Media Player and is a good choice
if you plan to edit your videos using editing software
like the popular Video Edit Magic.
Converting Your
QuickTime Files
Most digital cameras
have a USB connection. So you can easily transfer
video files from the camera to your PC.
Make sure you have
QuickTime Player installed on your PC. QuickTime
Player is available free from Apple and can be
downloaded from the following URL: http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/.
Apple sells a Pro
version, which is not required—the standard version will
work fine. When installing the standard version
choose the full installation. Now it's time for
the actual conversion.
- Start Digital Media Converter.
- On the File Menu, click on Add files. Navigate to your video
files, select one or as many as you want
to convert, and click OK.
- On the File Menu, select Convert to, and then AVI (if you
intend to edit the video) or WMV (for
easy distribution).
- On the File Menu, click on Start Conversion.
It is as easy as that!
If you are converting to
AVI there are several other settings you can change,
which are described in detail in a separate article, Understanding
Compression in AVI.