When you use the Burn-In Time Stamp and Burn-In Metadata tools, you can choose the file type of the burnt-in output file in Tools > Options > Burn-In > Output.
So how do you choose the output file type that is best for you ?
Broadly speaking, video file types can be divided into two categories based on how you intend to use them: "Delivery" and "Intermediate".
Delivery file types are small and portable, and easily copied or "delivered" electronically to colleagues or clients. They are optimized for playback on less powerful computers and devices, and take up little storage space. Their file size is so small because the video is very highly compressed, usually with a "lossy" compression scheme - losing some of the finest picture detail is what makes such small, portable files possible.
Intermediate file types are intended to be imported into other software so that the video footage can be further edited, effects added, or converted/transcoded into another file type. Intermediate files are effectively an intermediate stage in processing your video. The software they are imported into is likely to be running on the same (or nearby) computer as DVMP Pro, so it is unlikely that the files will need to be copied anywhere else. The priority of intermediate formats is maintaining the very best quality to begin the next editing stage, so intermediate files will be much larger and hence less portable than delivery file types.
The output file type MP4 file with AVC/H.264 video is an example of an excellent delivery format - we recommend you use it if you are delivering your time-stamped files directly to other people.This is the default output file type when you first install DVMP Pro.
MP4 file with Cineform video and AVI file with Cineform video are examples of intermediate file types. They both use the Cineform video encoder within an MP4 or AVI file container (some software finds it easier to import AVI files than MP4 files). It is the Cineform video encoder's ideal combination of speed, quality and relatively small file size (compared with other intermediate formats) that has made it one of the most popular intermediate formats in professional video production for many years. We recommend either of these two output file types if you need to do further editing or conversion of burned-in/time-stamped video files, need to preserve the very best quality,and you have plenty of hard drive space available.
Most mainstream video editing software should be able to import and work with files that have the Cineform video format, but for some you may have to install the Cineform decoders package which can be downloaded from the official Cineform web site: https://cineform.com/gopro-cineform-decoder (do not download it from anywhere else). Alternatively, the Cineform decoders also come bundled with GoPro's "Quik Desktop" software. These decoders can then be utilized by video editing software that does not have its own built-in support for Cineform.
Other examples of Intermediate file types are AVI file with Lagarith or Uncompressed video - see the AVI Video Compressors topic for more details.
If you are still unsure which output file type to use, don't worry too much about it. Although MP4 file with AVC/H.264 video is classed as a "delivery" format, in practice you will probably find that you can comfortably use it as an intermediate file (for further editing) aswell. Provided you keep the Quality slider setting quite high, you may not notice any significant quality loss in the picture. In that case you can always use MP4 file with AVC/H.264 video regardless of whether you intend to deliver the files, or continue to edit them.
See Also:
How Burn-in Works
Options - Burn-In
