Landscape, vertical and square: which video formats a fashion brand actually needs.
Updated
Most fashion brands do not need ten versions of a film. They need a few, planned before the edit starts. The website wants a wide frame, Reels and Stories want a tall one, a paid feed sometimes wants a square, and a screen in a shop has its own shape. This is a practical checklist: where each format lives, how one edit becomes several versions, and what to ask a studio to hand over. We work with Ai, but none of this depends on how the footage is made. It depends on planning the shapes first.
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Three shapes cover almost everything
Landscape is 16:9, the shape of a laptop screen and a television, usually 1920 by 1080 pixels. Vertical is 9:16, the shape of a phone held upright, usually 1080 by 1920. Square is 1:1, and its close cousin 4:5 is slightly taller. Both are usually 1080 wide.
That is the whole list for most brands. Everything else is a variation of these shapes or a special case, such as a shop screen.
Where each one lives
The shape follows the place where people will see the film.
- Website hero and product pages: landscape for the hero film, because desktop screens are wide. On product pages, a short vertical or square clip often sits better beside the photos, especially on mobile.
- Reels, Stories and other full screen social video: vertical 9:16, always. A wide film shrunk into a tall frame leaves black bars and a tiny product.
- Paid social: 4:5 and 1:1 take more room in a feed than a wide film, while 9:16 suits full screen placements. Check which placements the campaign will use before asking for versions.
- In store screens: ask for the exact orientation and resolution of the screen first. Many are portrait, some are wide, a few are very long strips.
How one edit becomes several versions
The simplest way to get several formats is to plan them before the first shot. Each shot is composed so the product sits near the centre of the frame, with room around it. Then the same edit can be reframed wide and tall without losing the product.
Reframing is not just cropping. A tall version often needs a different order, a closer shot in place of a wide one, and the product shown earlier. In our studio the landscape film for the website and the vertical film for social come from the same edit, shaped separately.
Lengths follow the same logic, in general terms. A website hero is a short, quiet loop. A campaign film usually runs 15 to 30 seconds with 7 to 13 shots. Cutdowns for social are shorter still, with the product in the first seconds. Shorter versions are cut, not sped up.
Captions and safe areas
Many people watch with the sound off, so a film should make sense without it. If it carries words, keep them short and large, a few at a time.
Every platform puts its own buttons, names and captions over the top and bottom of a vertical frame. The safe area is the middle of the frame, away from those edges. Keep the product and any text inside it, and always test the vertical version on a real phone before it goes out.
What to ask a studio to deliver
Agree the list before the work starts, so nothing is a surprise at the end.
- The master film in landscape 16:9, in the highest quality
- The vertical 9:16 version from the same edit
- Square 1:1 or 4:5 only if paid placements need it
- Shorter cutdowns, with their lengths named in the brief
- A clean version without captions or end card, next to the captioned one
- Files made to the exact size of any in store screen
- Confirmation that the product was checked frame by frame in every version
Key takeaways
- Most fashion brands need three shapes: landscape 16:9, vertical 9:16 and, sometimes, square 1:1 or 4:5.
- Choose formats by where people will see the film: website, social, paid feed or shop screen.
- Plan the shapes before the first shot, with the product kept near the centre.
- Keep text short and inside the safe area, and test the vertical version on a phone.
- Agree the delivery list with the studio before the work starts.
Questions
Which video format does a fashion website need?
Landscape 16:9 for the hero film, usually 1920 by 1080 pixels. On product pages, a short vertical or square clip can sit well beside the photos.
Do I need a different film for every platform?
No. One edit can be reframed into landscape and vertical versions, plus square if paid placements need it. Each version is shaped separately but tells the same story.
How long should the versions be?
A campaign film usually runs 15 to 30 seconds. Social cutdowns are shorter, and the product should appear in the first seconds.
What is a safe area?
The middle of a vertical frame, away from the top and bottom where platform buttons and captions sit. Keep the product and any text inside it.
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