Instagram Video | Useful tips and techniques to edit and encode

Created in October, 2010 by Mike Krieger and Kevin Systrom, Instagram is a free online mobile app/service based on photo and video sharing. The app makes it possible for users, taking pics and videos with their smartphones, to share them with the world via social media sites including Facebook, Flicker and Tumbler, privately or publicly. Instagram’s video sharing option was launched in 2013 and has continued to grow exponentially ever since.

Attracting People to Your Videos

Like anything, when it comes to using a service like Instagram to attract a targeted audience, or create impressive effects, you’ll really want to fine tune your videos, following the required Instagram video format, taking it above and beyond what you’d be able to accomplish using the Instagram app. The goal of this article is to provide tips and techniques that will help you achieve a more effective strategy for editing and encoding your Instagram videos and make them shine.

The most important thing to keep in mind is the Instagram approved length of the videos. On March 29th, Instagram publicized a significant change in how videos will be presented. Primarily that instead of their previous 15 second limit, the new Instagram video format can now be up to 60 seconds long. In addition, as part of today’s announcement, all consumers on iOS devices will now be able to produce a video using multiple clips in their camera roll.

Learn how to edit and encode your videos on Instagram

Before we get info the Instagram video format tips and techniques, install the Instagram app on your phone which you’ll find on Google Play.

Editing Your Video
To begin, you’ll need to place the video in an editing application and make improvements from there, keeping in mind that the dimensions of an Instagram video is 640 x 640. The majority of video editing applications make it possible to customize/modify the aspect ratio of video projects. If you’re not sure how to do this, Instagram will automatically crop the sides of the video for you to import and allow you to adjust the cropping position from inside of the app. If you’d rather verify the crop points before placing it on the phone, do it here or while in the encoding process.

Convert the Video into a H.264 Codec
The H.264 Codec format is best, since it looks fantastic and at the same time keeps the file size low, making the transfer process quick and easy. While Instagram accepts various other video formats, H.264 Codec is known as one of the easiest yet effective options. There are a number of encoding apps available today that convert to H.264, with good examples being MPEG Streamclip app (free) and the Adobe Media Encoder. You can also use a compressor that has a H.264 setting.

Transferring the Video to Your Phone
Once you have the video in the optimal format, the least complicated way to transfer it from your computer to your phone is using Dropbox, a cloud based storage app, and you can sign up for free for a limited amount (but plenty for smaller video projects) of storage space.

Next, upload your video to a specified folder (easy to create) in Dropbox on your computer. If you haven’t done it already, install the Dropbox app on your smartphone, locate your video file using the app, and then save it to your gallery or camera roll. From here you’ll be able to access the video from Instagram.

By following the Instagram video format recommendations, tips and techniques to edit and encode, you’ll be ready to share your video creations with the world.