Editing is really three jobs — getting footage in, cutting it, and getting it out — and each stage has its own format preferences. Source footage arrives as MXF, M2TS, or MOV; your timeline wants something it can scrub smoothly; and delivery depends on where the video is going. Here's how to think about formats across the whole pipeline.
Ingest: what your camera and sources hand you
Professional cameras deliver MXF, camcorders deliver M2TS/MTS, and cinema and mirrorless bodies often deliver MOV or MP4. MXF and M2TS are robust for recording but awkward on a timeline — they can cause choppy playback and sync issues. The reliable move is to convert these sources to a clean editing format before you start cutting.
Format by stage
Ingest → convert
MXF and M2TS are recording formats. Convert to MP4 or MOV so they scrub and import cleanly.
Edit → smooth playback
MP4 (H.264) works everywhere; MOV suits Final Cut. Use proxies for heavy 4K projects.
Deliver → match the target
MP4/H.264 for web and clients; MOV for Apple pipelines; MKV to keep multiple audio tracks.
Editing: keep the timeline responsive
Editors handle standard MP4 and MOV far better than transport-stream sources like M2TS. If footage stutters or drops frames on the timeline, converting it first almost always fixes it. For demanding 4K or multicam projects, generate lightweight proxies to edit against and relink to the full-resolution files at export.
The fix for choppy or out-of-sync footage
Choppy playback and audio drift usually trace back to an editor mishandling a variable-frame-rate or transport-stream source. Converting the source to a constant-frame-rate MP4 before importing resolves both — it's the single most common fix for 'my footage won't edit properly.'
Delivery: match the destination
For clients and the web, deliver MP4 (H.264) — universal and efficient. For Apple-based pipelines and Final Cut round-trips, MOV is the natural fit. When a deliverable needs multiple audio tracks (languages, stems), MKV preserves them. Keep your original masters archived regardless of what you deliver.
Big masters, big files
MXF masters and multicam footage are large. Converting to compact proxies or delivery MP4s keeps sharing and review manageable — and for the largest files, a higher file-size limit lets you process full masters in one pass.
L'essentiel
Think in stages: convert MXF and M2TS sources to MP4 or MOV for reliable ingest and editing, cut with proxies when projects are heavy, and deliver in the format your destination expects — MP4 for web and clients, MOV for Apple, MKV for multi-track. The right format at each stage is what keeps an edit smooth.
Prep your footage for editing
Convert MXF, M2TS, and other sources to editor-friendly MP4 or MOV — free and fast.
