[FFmpeg-user] ffmpeg output list question

[Carl Eugen Hoyos]

Am Mo., 16. Dez. 2019 um 12:01 Uhr schrieb Mark Filipak
<markfilipak.windows+ffmpeg at gmail.com>:
>
> On 12/16/2019 05:46 AM, Carl Eugen Hoyos wrote:
> > Am Mo., 16. Dez. 2019 um 09:03 Uhr schrieb Mark Filipak
> >> I knew that ffmpeg encoders output solely frames, but I assumed that,
> >
> > I may misunderstand but this is at least misleading, could be considered
> > wrong.
> >
> >> when an interlaced container was encountered, ffmpeg decoders (hence
> >> HandBrake) worked with fields.
> >
> > The FFmpeg infrastructure cannot work with fields which is the reason that
> > interlaced encodings of hevc and jpeg2000 are not supported correctly.
>
> If I correctly interpret what you write regarding "misleading", what
> about this?
>
> Source -> Decode (rawvideo) -> process pictures (or "frames" if you
> prefer) -> Encode -> Target file.
>
> HandBrake doesn't have any way to package Targets as interlaced fields

That is because for digital video, this wording makes little sense (but
HandBrake would not work any different if it supported an encoder that
does field encoding, I wouldn't rule out that it already supports such an
encoder - Nvidia hardware encoder).

> and I was led to believe that it was because ffmpeg always outputs
> frames. Is that not correct?

FFmpeg encoders imo do not output frames, only decoders do (this is just
a wording issue), and at least one encoder - iirc - does support field encoding.

Carl Eugen