Need to make a mov file smaller without losing its video quality

[shesterz]

Hello everybody! Ok, so Im doing this birthday video for my girlfriend using Final cut pro X on my mac... So i recorded all her friends and family wishing her a happy birthday and all that good stuff.. I exported the video as a .mov file and tried to save it to my flash drive so she can see it when its her birthday.
The video got way too big (about 20gb) and i dont think she has quick time player on her PC (its not a mac).. What format should i convert it to? Is there any way i can make it smaller without losing its video quality? Any programs for mac that i can use to do that? Im willing to spend money on a program if its worth it.. Thanks a lot!

 

[codymac]

MPEG Streamclip

http://www.squared5.com/

 

[matteusclement]

handbrake

handbrake might be one to use.
Toast Titanium is another (paid)

 

[smokescreen76]

I don't use FCP X because it's pretty much iMovie on steroids...

... however, isn't one of the strengths of FCP X it's ability to export to a bunch of easy to understand presets - such as iPad, YouTube etc.

 

[acearchie]

Just export it as a h.264 720p video file.

 

[mBox]

First off how long is the video.
What was the project settings?
Use any of the Apple Devices Share settings.
I can get 30 min video down to 2GB at highest settings (Apple iMac option).

 

[JMG]

20gb sounds way too big. How long is the video? For reference, i made a 1080 5 minute video at 1500kb in under 2gb with audio.

What was most of the footage shot on? You should go no bigger on resolution than your source footage if you want the size to be manageable. Basically, there is no point to outputting a 1080 movie if all your footage is 720.

I would also recommend mpegstreamclip for your conversion.

 

[mBox]

Judging from final file the 20GB was probably ProRes 422 HD at about 20 minutes...from my experience.

 

[julesw]

Handbrake will do you nicely ...
reduce the bit rate

 

[Zwhaler]

I use Compressor 4, keep original resolution and framerate, adjust "Automatic" bitrate under Video Settings to "Best". See if that slightly reduces the filesize of the source, and shouldn't reduce visible quality either.

 

[Beach Guy]

I had the same problem...I just exported my project as an h.264 file as stated above. Problem solved.