1. VIDEO FORMAT
Video format is the technical arrangement of a video or movie, either in SD, HD or PAL. HD
runs on either 720p or 1080p with the 'p' standing for progressive scan.
Pros of SD
- The video does not need to buffer so will run a lot smoother than HD videos
- Everyone with a computer has standard definition so it is available to more people
Cons of SD
- Obviously the quality isn't as good as HD so will lack detail
Pros of HD
- Clear viewing
- Goes into greater detail
Cons of HD
- Depending on your internet connection, the video will take a long while to load
- Depending on the age of your computer, HD can be impossible to run because it's software
may not support it
The UK's average internet bandwidth is 7.6mps, which does well at taking care of lag and
buffering when viewing a video in HD. This is why when I create and upload a video to
YouTube, I use the HD option. HD attracts people to the content because of its quality, which
has resulted in the rise of UK homes owning HD TV's (up to 42% in 2012).
RESOLUTION
Resolution in computers is the number of pixels contained on a display monitor through a
horizontal and vertical axis. Resolution goes hand-in-hand with the quality of the footage.
The size of your monitor also plays a part too - the smaller your monitor is, the sharper the
content. This is because the pixels are being spread out, causing them to stretch, so if it is a
large monitor, the quality suffers due to the spreading.
I would use a higher resolution for my own videos as the detail is vast as opposed to a lower
resolution. Most computers are able to run videos with a higher resolution smoothly these
days because of their advances in their software and bandwidth.
COMPRESSION
Compression of files is used to compress all kinds of data into a compressed archive, which
must be decompressed first with a decompression utility to be able to open the original
file(s). It is used to save compressed video (MPEG), audio (MP3) and image (JPEG) files.
I personally would use MPEG 4 when uploading a compressed video to YouTube because the
content is of a much higher quality visually and with audio. It is also the recommended type
for YouTube.
SCREEN RATIO
Screen ratio, or aspect ratio, is the size of a screen when measured using the vertical height
and horizontal width. Traditional television screens have a aspect ratio of 4:3, which is 3

2. units of vertical screen height and 4 units of horizontal screen width. The common 21st
Century HDTV's have an aspect ratio of 16:9.
YouTube's screen ratio was originally 4:3, but with the launch of 720p in November 2008, it
was enlarged to a 16:9 screen ratio. I would choose a 16:9 screen ratio for a video of mine
because it almost have a cinematic feel to it, making the video more enjoyable to watch.
Pros of 4:3
-It is still common and is the standard aspect ratio for computers
Cons of 4:3
- The content on screen will be cropped on either side when watching HDTV
- They show 25% less than an aspect ratio of 16:9
Pros of 16:9
- 16:9 is the standard aspect ratio for HDTV, meaning that the quality will be perfect when it
comes to viewing a HD film or clip
- All movies these days are shot with this aspect ratio, therefore viewing a DVD/Blu-ray on a
TV with 16:9 will fit perfectly - leaving no cropping, stretching or distortion or any nature
Cons of 16:9
- Using a 4:3 monitor while watching something made for 16:9 will result in black lines at the
top and bottom of the screen, known as letterboxing.
I would use 16:9 as the quality is much better and the majority of monitors are capable of
viewing it.
FRAME RATE
YouTube videos run on 30-60 fps in accordance with your computer hardware and internet
bandwidth. The higher the frame rate the more detailed the images appear.
I would stick to 30 fps when making my own video because 30 fps is the standard frame rate
for videos.
Pros of low FPS
- Smooth video quality
Cons of high FPS
- Very smooth video quality
- Less stutter