Media Processing Skill
Process video, audio, and images using FFmpeg and ImageMagick command-line tools for conversion, optimization, streaming, and manipulation tasks.
When to Use This Skill
Use when:
- Converting media formats (video, audio, images)
- Encoding video with codecs (H.264, H.265, VP9, AV1)
- Processing images (resize, crop, effects, watermarks)
- Extracting audio from video
- Creating streaming manifests (HLS/DASH)
- Generating thumbnails and previews
- Batch processing media files
- Optimizing file sizes and quality
- Applying filters and effects
- Creating composite images or videos
Tool Selection Guide
FFmpeg: Video/Audio Processing
Use FFmpeg for:
- Video encoding, conversion, transcoding
- Audio extraction, conversion, mixing
- Live streaming (RTMP, HLS, DASH)
- Video filters (scale, crop, rotate, overlay)
- Hardware-accelerated encoding
- Media file inspection (ffprobe)
- Frame extraction, concatenation
- Codec selection and optimization
ImageMagick: Image Processing
Use ImageMagick for:
- Image format conversion (PNG, JPEG, WebP, GIF)
- Resizing, cropping, transformations
- Batch image processing (mogrify)
- Visual effects (blur, sharpen, sepia)
- Text overlays and watermarks
- Image composition and montages
- Color adjustments, filters
- Thumbnail generation
Decision Matrix
| Task | Tool | Why |
|---|
| Video encoding | FFmpeg | Native video codec support |
| Audio extraction | FFmpeg | Direct stream manipulation |
| Image resize | ImageMagick | Optimized for still images |
| Batch images | ImageMagick | mogrify for in-place edits |
| Video thumbnails | FFmpeg | Frame extraction built-in |
| GIF creation | FFmpeg or ImageMagick | FFmpeg for video source, ImageMagick for images |
| Streaming | FFmpeg | Live streaming protocols |
| Image effects | ImageMagick | Rich filter library |
Installation
macOS
brew install ffmpeg imagemagick
Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt-get install ffmpeg imagemagick
Windows
# Using winget
winget install ffmpeg
winget install ImageMagick.ImageMagick
# Or download binaries
# FFmpeg: https://ffmpeg.org/download.html
# ImageMagick: https://imagemagick.org/script/download.php
Verify Installation
ffmpeg -version
ffprobe -version
magick -version
# or
convert -version
Quick Start Examples
Video Conversion
# Convert format (copy streams, fast)
ffmpeg -i input.mkv -c copy output.mp4
# Re-encode with H.264
ffmpeg -i input.avi -c:v libx264 -crf 22 -c:a aac output.mp4
# Resize video to 720p
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf scale=-1:720 -c:a copy output.mp4
Audio Extraction
# Extract audio (no re-encoding)
ffmpeg -i video.mp4 -vn -c:a copy audio.m4a
# Convert to MP3
ffmpeg -i video.mp4 -vn -q:a 0 audio.mp3
Image Processing
# Convert format
magick input.png output.jpg
# Resize maintaining aspect ratio
magick input.jpg -resize 800x600 output.jpg
# Create square thumbnail
magick input.jpg -resize 200x200^ -gravity center -extent 200x200 thumb.jpg
Batch Image Resize
# Resize all JPEGs to 800px width
mogrify -resize 800x -quality 85 *.jpg
# Output to separate directory
mogrify -path ./output -resize 800x600 *.jpg
Video Thumbnail
# Extract frame at 5 seconds
ffmpeg -ss 00:00:05 -i video.mp4 -vframes 1 -vf scale=320:-1 thumb.jpg
HLS Streaming
# Generate HLS playlist
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
-c:v libx264 -preset fast -crf 22 -g 48 \
-c:a aac -b:a 128k \
-f hls -hls_time 6 -hls_playlist_type vod \
playlist.m3u8
Image Watermark
# Add watermark to corner
magick input.jpg watermark.png -gravity southeast \
-geometry +10+10 -composite output.jpg
Common Workflows
Optimize Video for Web
# H.264 with good compression
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
-c:v libx264 -preset slow -crf 23 \
-c:a aac -b:a 128k \
-movflags +faststart \
output.mp4
Create Responsive Images
# Generate multiple sizes
for size in 320 640 1024 1920; do
magick input.jpg -resize ${size}x -quality 85 "output-${size}w.jpg"
done
Extract Video Segment
# From 1:30 to 3:00 (re-encode for precision)
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -ss 00:01:30 -to 00:03:00 \
-c:v libx264 -c:a aac output.mp4
Batch Image Optimization
# Convert PNG to optimized JPEG
mogrify -path ./optimized -format jpg -quality 85 -strip *.png
Video GIF Creation
# High quality GIF with palette
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "fps=15,scale=640:-1:flags=lanczos,split[s0][s1];[s0]palettegen[p];[s1][p]paletteuse" output.gif
Image Blur Effect
# Gaussian blur
magick input.jpg -gaussian-blur 0x8 output.jpg
Advanced Techniques
Multi-Pass Video Encoding
# Pass 1 (analysis)
ffmpeg -y -i input.mkv -c:v libx264 -b:v 2600k -pass 1 -an -f null /dev/null
# Pass 2 (encoding)
ffmpeg -i input.mkv -c:v libx264 -b:v 2600k -pass 2 -c:a aac output.mp4
Hardware-Accelerated Encoding
# NVIDIA NVENC
ffmpeg -hwaccel cuda -i input.mp4 -c:v h264_nvenc -preset fast -crf 22 output.mp4
# Intel QuickSync
ffmpeg -hwaccel qsv -c:v h264_qsv -i input.mp4 -c:v h264_qsv output.mp4
Complex Image Pipeline
# Resize, crop, border, adjust
magick input.jpg \
-resize 1000x1000^ \
-gravity center \
-crop 1000x1000+0+0 +repage \
-bordercolor black -border 5x5 \
-brightness-contrast 5x10 \
-quality 90 \
output.jpg
Video Filter Chains
# Scale, denoise, watermark
ffmpeg -i video.mp4 -i logo.png \
-filter_complex "[0:v]scale=1280:720,hqdn3d[v];[v][1:v]overlay=10:10" \
-c:a copy output.mp4
Animated GIF from Images
# Create with delay
magick -delay 100 -loop 0 frame*.png animated.gif
# Optimize size
magick animated.gif -fuzz 5% -layers Optimize optimized.gif
Media Analysis
Inspect Video Properties
# Detailed JSON output
ffprobe -v quiet -print_format json -show_format -show_streams input.mp4
# Get resolution
ffprobe -v error -select_streams v:0 \
-show_entries stream=width,height \
-of csv=s=x:p=0 input.mp4
Image Information
# Basic info
identify image.jpg
# Detailed format
identify -verbose image.jpg
# Custom format
identify -format "%f: %wx%h %b\n" image.jpg
Performance Tips
- Use CRF for quality control - Better than bitrate for video
- Copy streams when possible - Avoid re-encoding with
-c copy
- Hardware acceleration - GPU encoding 5-10x faster
- Appropriate presets - Balance speed vs compression
- Batch with mogrify - In-place image processing
- Strip metadata - Reduce file size with
-strip
- Progressive JPEG - Better web loading with
-interlace Plane
- Limit memory - Prevent crashes on large batches
- Test on samples - Verify settings before batch
- Parallel processing - Use GNU Parallel for multiple files
Reference Documentation
Detailed guides in references/:
- ffmpeg-encoding.md - Video/audio codecs, quality optimization, hardware acceleration
- ffmpeg-streaming.md - HLS/DASH, live streaming, adaptive bitrate
- ffmpeg-filters.md - Video/audio filters, complex filtergraphs
- imagemagick-editing.md - Format conversion, effects, transformations
- imagemagick-batch.md - Batch processing, mogrify, parallel operations
- format-compatibility.md - Format support, codec recommendations
Common Parameters
FFmpeg Video
-c:v - Video codec (libx264, libx265, libvpx-vp9)-crf - Quality (0-51, lower=better, 23=default)-preset - Speed/compression (ultrafast to veryslow)-b:v - Video bitrate (e.g., 2M, 2500k)-vf - Video filters
FFmpeg Audio
-c:a - Audio codec (aac, mp3, opus)-b:a - Audio bitrate (e.g., 128k, 192k)-ar - Sample rate (44100, 48000)
ImageMagick Geometry
800x600 - Fit within (maintains aspect)800x600! - Force exact size800x600^ - Fill (may crop)800x - Width onlyx600 - Height only50% - Scale percentage
Troubleshooting
FFmpeg "Unknown encoder"
# Check available encoders
ffmpeg -encoders | grep h264
# Install codec libraries
sudo apt-get install libx264-dev libx265-dev
ImageMagick "not authorized"
# Edit policy file
sudo nano /etc/ImageMagick-7/policy.xml
# Change <policy domain="coder" rights="none" pattern="PDF" />
# to <policy domain="coder" rights="read|write" pattern="PDF" />
Memory errors
# Limit memory usage
ffmpeg -threads 4 input.mp4 output.mp4
magick -limit memory 2GB -limit map 4GB input.jpg output.jpg
Resources
