When shooting video with a GoPro camera or a DJI drone, you’re faced with many settings: frame rate, codec, bitrate, resolution, etc. These parameters are critical factors that significantly impact the video quality and file size.
In this post, let’s focus on frame rate and explain its impact on video quality. Whether you’re a filmmaker, a content creator, or a video enthusiast, understanding this helps you make better decisions when shooting, editing, or streaming content.
What Is Frame Rate
A video is essentially a sequence of still images recorded in order. When these pictures are viewed at a specific speed, they create the illusion of movement. Each image in this series is called a frame.
So, frame rate refers to the number of individual images (frames) displayed in one second of the video. In other words, it measures how quickly consecutive images are shown in a video, measured in frames per second (FPS).
People often ask what the best video frame rate is. Actually, there is no absolute answer. The types of your content decide the frame rate you should choose. Common frame rates used in video production include:
- 24fps: The standard for movies, TV shows, and cinematic films.
- 30fps: Commonly used in Live TV broadcasts and online videos.
- 60fps: Generally considered the ideal frame rate for 4K videos and also used for sports, gaming, and high-motion content.
- 120fps and higher: Used for ultra-smooth slow-motion footage.
![3 Best Methods to Convert Video to 120FPS [Desktop & Online]](https://images.minitool.com/moviemaker.minitool.com/images/uploads/2024/12/convert-video-to-120fps-thumbnail.jpg)
How Does Frame Rate Affect Video Quality
Frame rate does matter in the style and viewing experience of a video. How does frame rate affect video quality? In this section, let’s uncover the effect of frame rate on video quality from the following aspects:
#1. Motion Smoothness
The most important effect of frame rate is how smooth or choppy the motion appears.
A higher frame rate means that each second of the video shows more frames, generating smoother motion, while a low frame rate can achieve a classic cinematic look or sometimes result in choppy playback.
For instance, high frame rates, such as 60fps and 120fps, provide smooth motion and are ideal for fast-paced action, sports, and video games. Lower frame rates (24fps, 30fps) offer more natural motion blur.
Therefore, when you select a frame rate, consider the movement of your video. If it has many, record at a high frame rate to ensure the smoothness of the final result, which ensures capturing higher-level details in the action. Higher frame rates also provide greater flexibility in video editing.
On the contrary, if the video does not include many movements, and you want to create a realistic cinematic effect, a low frame rate is perfect.
#2. Realism & Clarity
As we mentioned above, frame rate has a huge impact on how it looks and feels. In other words, it determines the realism of the video, which affects how our eyes see the world.
Among the common video frame rates, 24fps creates the motion smoothness most similar to the way human eyes see motion in real life. The motion blur generated by 24fps looks natural, as it can make moving objects less sharp but more realistic.
In the real world, the moment a bullet passes through the glass cannot be perceived by human eyes. Due to the slow-motion photography, this process can be shown in film and television.
Other Factors That Decide Video Quality
The frame rate significantly influences video quality, as it determines the smoothness and clarity of motion. But it is not the only thing that affects the viewing experience of a video. Video quality also mainly depends on the following factors.
Resolution
Video resolution refers to the total number of pixels in a video frame, expressed as width x height. For example, 1920 x 1080 pixels (1080P) means each frame of the video has 1920 pixels horizontally and 1080 pixels vertically.
Higher resolution means more pixels, which can produce clearer and more detailed images compared to lower resolution. Therefore, resolution is also a key factor in determining details and clarity, and thus affecting video quality.
Bitrate
Bitrate refers to the amount of data transferred per second of a video. In general, higher bitrates mean better quality because more data is represented per frame of the video, which also results in larger file sizes.
All in all, video quality is mainly determined by frame rate, resolution, and bitrate. Additionally, it’s influenced by the camera quality, compression method, lighting conditions, and recording environment.
Conclusion
Frame rate plays a crucial role in video quality, as it greatly affects motion smoothness and realism. When you choose a frame rate, consider your content type and desired effect to achieve the best viewing experience.
About The Author
Position: Columnist
Cora works as an editor at MiniTool for many years, writing articles about video editing, video conversion, and screen recording. She also writes articles about Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Snapchat, and Twitter. During her spare time, Cora loves reading, traveling, and watching movies.
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