New User-How to Improve Video

[Anthony_Buchanan]

So after I have my movie finished, I noticed the resolution on the clips that I used to be all over the board. I think that I read that output will default to the lowest resolution.

Looking on the internet, I found some software that is supposed to improve poor quality video to a higher resolution. I thought I would give this a try.

However, some of lower quality clips I have used, I have done extensive cuts in them; I really would like to avoid trying to improve a low quality clip and having to use the entire clip before I did the cuts. Was hoping someone had a suggestion?

As example, I’m using footage that has one costume character which is my focus; so I am cutting out “slivers” of just this character. One clip I cut into 10 different slivers. And then I realize that the original clip (and therefore all of my slivers) are really crappy quality (426x240) - so I’m worried the entire final product will be reduced to same crappy quality.

Does anyone have a suggestion other than trying to improve the original clip and starting over with the clipping of the slivers?

Thanks much- first time posting to this board. Very new user!
Thanks again for any help!

[shotcut]

@Anthony_Buchanan

I think that I read that output will default to the lowest resolution.

That is incorrect, please read

Video Mode

Introduction Video Mode is the project resolution, aspect ratio, frame rate, and color space. It is important to set this as you desire at the beginning of your project. If you try to change it later Shotcut will try to retain the timing of edits, but some users have reported problems, and it is risky. Also, at this time Shotcut will not automatically adjust anything for you related to size and positioning of elements like text and picture-in-picture when changing resolution. You can think of…

slivers of… 426x240

There is really no way to get around taking something that is very low resolution like this and extracting pieces that you may then increase even larger. Even when Export > Video > Interpolation is set to its highest in Shotcut - which you should try - it will not help a lot. It is largely a case of garbage in, garbage out. The only that may help is some new technology AI up-scalers, but they are not available in Shotcut.

[Anthony_Buchanan]

OK I was kind of afraid of that! I was just hoping! lol

Thanks much for the quick response. I’ll give that a try. I’m making an instructional video for some classes for a university I’m working for and wanted to use their mascot for the “trainer.”

I was going to try and use just clips from their school website along with things I pulled off of youtube, etc of clips of the mascot people had posted. I may end up just getting in touch with the spirit committee and seeing if they can record some stuff for me.

I may also try and make the lower quality clips be about a quarter of the screen or something like that. That should help, correct? Currently I’m overlaying text on a full screen video, but could easily just make the video smaller and let the text cover most of the screen.

Thanks again for the help!