TIFF to MPEG-2 Converter

How to Convert TIFF to MPEG-2 Online

1. Upload Your TIFF Files: Drag and drop or click "+ Add Files" to load one or many .tif / .tiff frames. Batch uploads are supported, and files are sorted by filename — name your sequence frame_001.tif, frame_002.tif... so frames render in order.
2. Pick Merge Strategy and Duration: Choose Merge images to stitch every uploaded TIFF into one MPEG-2 video, or Video per image to produce one short clip per file. Set Duration per frame: 1/24s, 1/25s, or 1/30s for true motion playback, or 2–10 seconds per frame for slideshows and time-lapse stills.
3. Set Codec, Resolution, and Quality (Optional): Video Codec is locked to MPEG-2 for the .mpg/MPEG-2 container. Pick a Background Color (Black is the default for letterboxed frames), a Quality Preset (Very High recommended for DVD-grade output), and a Video Resolution — use 720x480 for NTSC DVD authoring, 720x576 for PAL, or 1920x1080 if the target is a Blu-ray or HDV deck.
4. Convert and Download: Click Convert. Files process server-side, no sign-up, no watermark, and the MPEG-2 elementary stream downloads as a .mpg ready for DVD authoring tools like DVDStyler, Adobe Encore archives, or hardware burners.

Why Convert TIFF to MPEG-2?

TIFF is the archival image format of choice for scanners, microscopy, GIS, and VFX pipelines — uncompressed or LZW/ZIP-compressed, often 16 bits per channel, and frequently >100 MB per frame. MPEG-2 (formally H.262 / ISO/IEC 13818-2, finalized in 1994) is the codec the DVD-Video and ATSC/DVB broadcast specs were built around, capped at 9.8 Mbit/s for DVD compliance. Going from a TIFF sequence to MPEG-2 is the standard handoff between "static frame archive" and "playable video for legacy hardware."

• DVD authoring from rendered frames — VFX, animation, and motion-graphics renders almost always export as numbered TIFFs (Maya, After Effects, Blender, Nuke). MPEG-2 at 720x480 NTSC or 720x576 PAL is the format DVDStyler, Adobe Encore, and most hardware authoring suites import.
• Broadcast and cable delivery — ATSC over-the-air TV in North America is MPEG-2 transport stream up to 19.39 Mbit/s; DVB-T/DVB-C in Europe and ISDB-T in Japan/Brazil also accept MPEG-2 video for legacy SD channels.
• Time-lapse and microscopy sequences — scientific cameras (Andor, Hamamatsu, FLIR) write TIFF stacks; converting to MPEG-2 produces a video that plays in PowerPoint 2016+, VLC, and standalone microscope-control PCs without extra codec installs.
• Long-term archival masters — MPEG-2 patents fully expired in the U.S. on February 23, 2018 (per the MPEG LA pool), so the codec is now royalty-free and supported by every operating system without third-party software, making it a safer choice than newer codecs for institutional archives.
• HDV camcorder restoration — HDV uses MPEG-2 at 1440x1080 (1080i) or 1280x720 (720p), so restoring scanned TIFF frames to an MPEG-2 transport stream lets you re-record onto vintage Sony/Canon HDV decks.

TIFF vs MPEG-2 — Format Comparison

MPEG-2 Resolution & Bitrate Quick Guide

Frequently Asked Questions

Why convert TIFF to MPEG-2 instead of MP4 (H.264)?

For modern playback — phones, browsers, streaming — MP4/H.264 is the right choice and will give you a much smaller file at the same visual quality (a one-hour 480p MPEG-2 is roughly 1 GB; the same content in H.264 is 300–500 MB). Pick MPEG-2 when the destination is a DVD authoring tool, an ATSC/DVB broadcast pipeline, an HDV deck, or a piece of legacy hardware that explicitly requires it. If you want MP4 instead, use the TIFF to MP4 converter.

What frame rate should I use for DVD authoring?

For NTSC-region DVDs (North America, Japan), use 29.97 fps at 720x480. For PAL (most of Europe, Australia, Latin America), use 25 fps at 720x576. Mixing region and frame rate (e.g., 25 fps at 720x480) will play on most software players but can refuse to author or play on hardware DVD players. The "Duration" dropdown on this page offers 1/30s (≈29.97 fps) and 1/25s presets that match these targets.

How should I name my TIFF files so they render in the right order?

Use zero-padded sequential filenames: frame_0001.tif, frame_0002.tif, … frame_9999.tif. The converter sorts uploads alphanumerically before encoding, so unpadded names (frame_1, frame_10, frame_2) will render in the wrong order. Adobe After Effects, Blender, Nuke, and Maya all export with zero-padded names by default — leave that setting on.

Will MPEG-2 keep my 16-bit-per-channel TIFF color depth?

No. MPEG-2 Main profile encodes at 8 bits per channel in YUV 4:2:0, so 16-bit medical, GIS, or HDR TIFFs are dithered to 8-bit during conversion. If you need to preserve high bit depth, MPEG-2 4:2:2 Profile @ Main Level supports 10-bit, but that's a broadcast contribution format not supported by consumer DVD or Blu-ray. For HDR-friendly delivery, encode to H.265/HEVC or AV1 in a TIFF to MP4 workflow instead.

Is MPEG-2 still patent-encumbered?

No — in most of the world. The MPEG LA patent pool's last U.S. MPEG-2 patent expired on February 23, 2018, and patents in nearly every other jurisdiction have expired since. Malaysia is the last holdout, with the final patent expected to expire around 2035. For practical purposes (software, hardware, DVD authoring) MPEG-2 is now royalty-free worldwide.

Can I burn the output .mpg straight to a DVD?

The MPEG-2 elementary stream this tool produces is the video portion — to make a playable DVD-Video disc you still need to wrap it with an audio track (MP2 or AC-3) and DVD navigation packets (.IFO, .BUP, .VOB). Free tools like DVDStyler (Windows/macOS/Linux) and ffmpeg's -f dvd muxer handle that step. If you only need a "data DVD" that plays in VLC or Windows Media Player from the file system, the raw .mpg will play directly off the disc.

Why is my MPEG-2 output huge compared to MP4?

MPEG-2 is a 1994-era codec that uses simpler motion estimation and fewer reference frames than H.264 (2003) or H.265 (2013). At equivalent visual quality, MPEG-2 typically needs 3–5x the bitrate of H.264. That trade-off is intentional: MPEG-2 decoders can be implemented in dedicated silicon cheaply, which is why every DVD player ever made supports it. For storage efficiency, convert your TIFFs to MP4 instead or use the Image to Video converter and choose a modern codec.

Can I add an audio track during conversion?

This converter encodes silent MPEG-2 video from your TIFF sequence. To add narration or a music bed, mux the output .mpg with an audio file using ffmpeg (ffmpeg -i video.mpg -i audio.mp3 -c:v copy -c:a mp2 -b:a 192k output.mpg) or open the .mpg plus your audio in DVDStyler, Adobe Encore, or any NLE. DVD-Video requires MP2 or AC-3 audio at 48 kHz.

Is there a related converter for PNG or JPG sequences?

Yes — the same MPEG-2 encoder handles PNG to MPEG-2 and JPG to MPEG-2. For a generic image-to-video workflow that accepts mixed formats (PNG, JPG, HEIC, TIF, RAW, BMP) and modern codecs (H.264, H.265, AV1, VP9), use the Image to Video tool and pick your output container in Advanced Options.