The world of 3D animation has grown tremendously, both in terms of its applications and the technologies powering it. Whether it’s for film production, marketing, educational content, or simulations, the quality and delivery of 3D animation depend on two key factors: video resolution and file format. This article aims to clarify these aspects for a better understanding of how to use 3D animations effectively.

3d Animation video resolution

3D Animation video resolution standards:

Video resolution refers to the size of the video in terms of pixels. It’s usually expressed as the width x height, such as 1920×1080, commonly known as Full HD.

Common Resolutions

  1. Standard Definition – 480p (SD) – 640×480 –  Standard definition, DVD quality.
  2. High Definition –720p (HD) – 1280×720 – Higher definition, great for projectors or laptop screens.
  3. Full HD – 1080p (FHD) – 1920×1080 – Blu-Ray Players, HDTV)  High definition, BlueRay quality.
  4. 4K Ultra HD – 2160p (4K UHD) – 3840×2160 – 4K Players / Television –  4K Ultra high definition.
  5. 8K Ultra HD (8K UHD) – 7680×4320 – 8K Players / Television

The right resolution depends on the purpose of the 3D animation.

Considerations

  • File Size: Higher resolution means larger file sizes.
  • Rendering Time: Higher resolutions require more processing power and time.
  • Playback: Ensure the target device or platform supports the chosen resolution.

3D Animation video file formats

  1. MP4 (MPEG-4 Part 14): Widely used, supports compression, and retains reasonable quality.
  2. AVI (Audio Video Interleave): Older format, less compression, and generally larger file sizes.
  3. MOV (Apple QuickTime Movie): Common for Apple devices, supports high-quality videos.
  4. WMV (Windows Media Video): Developed by Microsoft, optimized for Windows Media Player.
  5. FLV (Flash Video Format): Once popular for web video, becoming obsolete.

Factors to Consider

  • Compatibility: Ensure the format is supported by the target platform or device.
  • Quality: Some formats are better at retaining quality during compression.
  • Editing: Some formats are more suited for post-production editing.

Specialized Formats

For professional animation and visual effects, specialized formats like Autodesk’s FBX or Alembic (.abc) might be used for preserving animation data, although these are not video formats per se.

 

HD Resolution 3D Animation Example (Enable in settings 4K resolution)