You have created the most awesome, super cool, video ever and everyone wants to see it and share it. You are ready to launch your creation on the Internet but you have noticed that it looks better on your iPod than in full screen on your 30” computer monitor. Then it occurs to you that your HD television screen is big, your iPod screen is small and your computer desktop screen is somewhere in the middle. You suddenly notice your video suffers from monitor-size-phobia (the bigger the monitor; the bigger the video; the more pixilated it looks.) What size, in pixels, should your video be? (For a deeper look at video quality, check out my previous blog: Broadcast Quality Video vs. Internet Quality Video!) Will your video be the right size on all monitors? Unfortunately a one-size fit all is not quite reality but by knowing some general rules about video sizes, you can determine which size will be best for your audience.

Current Web Video Sizes.
Video can be displayed in almost any size imaginable but there are obviously some accepted norms right now. The most widely used standard is 320×240 (pixels). This is mostly due to Apple’s Video iPod, which has a screen size of 320×240. It is important to note that the 320×240 size is based upon the 4:3 aspect ratio of television. The next size up is 640×480 (video standard), which is also based upon the 4:3 aspect ratio, however, this size is a little too large for most monitors. The next smaller 4:3 size down from 320×240 is 160×120. This size is too small for web video.

Your next question might be what about 16:9? 16:9, or widescreen, is the aspect ratio of most new televisions. The widescreen format is more natural for the human eye and represents more closely the aspect ratio of theatrical films. Widescreen televisions come in either 1280×720 or 1920×1080, with both in aspect rations of 16:9. Obviously, video in either native format would be too large for most computer monitors. A 16:9 standard video would be 640×360 and 320×180 would be the next size down. Remember that widescreen videos require different shooting techniques for this aspect ratio. The best way to understand these numbers is to look at how much area a video would consume on three popular monitor resolutions.

Monitor Resolutions.
Three popular monitor resolutions are 800×600 (small/ older), 1024×768 (standard), and 1920×1200 (large/widescreen). Video size is relative to the monitor resolution. The larger the monitor resolution coupled with a smaller video pixel size means the video will look small. Understanding a video’s area and how it relates to the monitor resolution is key. The chart below illustrates the percentage of area that a video would occupy for a given monitor resolution.
So, what size is right for your video, and does size matter? Aiming for a resolution of 1024×768 is probably better for mass distribution, as well as keeping your video in the 4:3 aspect ratio, but start planning for 16:9. I recommend a size that occupies no more than 20-25% of someone’s monitor space. Remember that most people have multiple applications open at the same time including, browsers, menu bars, etc., using their monitor space. So, this leaves 320×240 through 450×338 for the optimal video size. I would tend to go larger at this time due to online video’s rising popularity. Also remember that video sizes will increase as monitor resolution grows and bandwidth increases, so acquire your footage in the highest resolution possible and compress it down, knowing you can always resize your video later.

Your video is your expression to the web world, make it cool, make it big, and have fun creating it. We will enjoy it!