There's nothing you need to know about the file's format, but the input file (-i) is video1.avi. Here you're saying: Let's use the ffmpeg CLI (ffmpeg). Here's an example command to show you what this structure might look like in action:įfmpeg -i video1.avi -s 320x240 -vcodec msmpeg4v2 video2.avi And the other more common one has this structure: (We'll put the commands we use for examples again in the Popular FFMPEG Commands section.) One is like the command you just ran in the Getting Started section, where you're trying to find something out about ffmpeg itself. There's an easy way to install with homebrew though, and we detail that in the start of the Live Stream to the Browser with FFMPEG CLI and Python.Īfter you have it installed, test it works by checking the version:Ĭommands in ffmpeg have two basic structures. Getting Startedįfmpeg CLI can be a pain to install. We can't cover everything here, so we'll focus on ffmpeg for now, and some of the basics you'll want in order to start understanding this tool. In addition to there being four major applications, there's tons of libraries for each application that help you accomplish tasks in different languages and environments. The ffmpeg project has four major applications: You'll find it used for transcoding, simple editing, video scaling, video post-production effects and standards compliance.

It is command-line based and lets you handle video, audio, multimedia files, and streams. It's an opensource software project for working with audio and video. You may even have heard of it before you know exactly what it does, but it's used everywhere in video projects. If you work with video, you've heard of ffmpeg. The guide is to help ease you into using ffmpeg by explaining some basics about how scripts are structured, provide resources that will help you, walk you through some popular commands, and describe some common pitfalls you might encounter. If the sections for Mac and then Python don't apply to you, you may need to supplement this beginner's primer with other online content. Before we dive in, this beginner's manual will contain some general purpose information and then some information that's specific to Mac users and Python users.įfmpeg is an amazing set of tools, but it's also available in a variety of flavors.

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