Free tools: MediaInfo, Shutter Encoder, QCTools and HandBrake

By James Jones, founder of Granary Digital · Updated 5 November 2026

Between the camera card and the client, four free tools do most of the work a small crew needs. MediaInfo tells you what a file really is. Shutter Encoder converts it and makes proxies. QCTools checks a finished file for technical faults. HandBrake makes small copies for review and the web. All four are open source, and none costs anything to download.

The four at a glance

Download each from its own site. Third-party download pages for free converters can bundle extra software, so use the official ones.

MediaInfo: read the file before you trust it

MediaInfo gives a unified display of the technical and tag data in a video or audio file. For video it reports the codec, frame rate, aspect ratio, colour space and bit depth. For audio it reports codec, sample rate and channels. It also shows container details such as duration and bit rate, plus subtitle and chapter data.

Use it at the start and end of a job:

• On day one, open one clip from each camera and note the frame rate, codec and audio spec. If two cameras disagree, find out now, not in the edit. The page on frame rates and the 180 degree shutter rule explains why mismatched frame rates cause trouble.
• Before delivery, open the finished file and compare it with the client's specification line by line.

Shutter Encoder: convert, cut and make proxies

Shutter Encoder is a converter made by a video editor and built on FFmpeg. Its site lists editing codecs such as DNxHD, DNxHR and Apple ProRes, and delivery codecs such as H.264, H.265 and AV1. It can trim, and its "cut without re-encoding" option can work without loss with some codecs. It also embeds or burns in subtitles, imports .srt, .vtt and .ass files, and lists loudness and true peak analysis under its analysis tools.

On a shoot it has three jobs:

1. Proxies. Make lightweight copies of heavy camera originals so a modest laptop can edit them.
2. Re-wrapping and quick deliverables. Produce an editing or delivery codec from a master.
3. Loudness checks. Measure a mix before you send it. The dialogue loudness and delivery specs page covers the targets.

QCTools: look for faults in a finished file

QCTools was built by the Bay Area Video Coalition to help archivists, curators and preservationists find and assess errors in digitised video. It draws graphs from four FFmpeg-based filters, including YUV values, temporal outliers, broadcast range and per-frame PSNR and MSE, and it can show two views of the same clip at once. Reports export as gzipped ffprobe XML. A command line version, qcli, is also available.

That archive background shows in the interface, so expect a technical tool. For a producer or editor, its value is one question: does this master contain levels outside broadcast range or odd frames that I should look at before I deliver? A broadcaster's own checks still decide whether a file passes, so treat QCTools as a way to catch problems earlier.

HandBrake: small copies for review and the web

HandBrake converts video from almost any format to widely supported codecs. It is free and built by volunteers. Its documentation tells you to use constant quality unless you have a specific reason not to. For x264 and x265 the suggested ranges are RF 20 to 24 for 1080p and RF 22 to 28 for 4K, and a lower RF number gives higher quality. For SVT-AV1 the ranges are RF 25 to 35 for 1080p and RF 25 to 40 for 4K. It also warns that setting quality higher than recommended can lead to extremely large files.

Use HandBrake for the copy a client watches on a phone or a laptop. Make your master with a different tool or straight from the edit.

A worked example: one shoot day

1. Offload the cards, verify the copies and fill in the log. The data wrangling checklist and the offload log template cover that part.
2. Open one clip per camera in MediaInfo and note the frame rate, codec and audio settings.
3. Make proxies in Shutter Encoder and edit from them.
4. Export the master from your edit.
5. Open the master in QCTools and look for out-of-range levels and dropouts.
6. Make a 1080p review copy in HandBrake at constant quality and check its file size.
7. Open the delivered file in MediaInfo once more and compare it with the spec sheet.

Common mistakes

• Converting your only copy. Keep the camera originals untouched and verified, and convert from copies.
• Compressing a compressed file more than once. Each lossy pass loses quality, so make every delivery from the master.
• Skipping the specification. A file can play perfectly and still be the wrong frame rate or audio layout.
• Leaving a review copy unwatched. Watch each delivered file through once, with sound.
• Treating one tool as the whole job. None of these four is a substitute for checksums, a log or a second copy.

Sources

• MediaArea, MediaInfo, read 5 November 2026
• Shutter Encoder, home page, read 5 November 2026
• Bay Area Video Coalition, QCTools on GitHub, read 5 November 2026
• HandBrake, home page, read 5 November 2026
• HandBrake documentation, Adjust quality, read 5 November 2026

Related guides

• Data wrangling checklist: 3-2-1 backup and checksums
• Offload log template for camera cards
• All guides and tools