Tutorials

▷ How to rotate a video for Windows Media Player

We've all been through. Record a wonderful video with your phone or camera and download it to your computer, but you find out you have filmed in the wrong orientation.

There are several ways to approach this topic. As you can imagine, there are better ways to solve this problem than tilting your head or rotating your computer screen.

Unfortunately, there is no native way to rotate video in Windows Media Player. This is a bit strange considering the problem has been around for years with countless user complaints about Microsoft servers.. Despite this, Microsoft has not yet implemented a native way to rotate a video in Windows Media Player.

As a result, the only way to fix a video that was shot sideways in Windows is to use a third party solution. Fortunately, there are a variety of viable solutions, so we have taken the liberty of preparing a guide with selected methods that will work without problems. Follow the method that seems most accessible to you.

Method 1: uso de Windows Movie Maker

This method used to be the way to rotate a video for Windows Media Player. Involves the use of Windows Movie Maker (part of the Windows Essentials suite 2012).

Unfortunately, Microsoft ended support for the entire suite on 10 of January of 2010 Y, as a result, removed all official download links. Fortunately, Movie Maker enthusiasts can still use the software if it has already been downloaded to their system or if they manage to find an offline installer. This method is probably the easiest option of all, but it will take a while to set up Windows Movie Maker if you don't already have it installed.

If you want to edit the rotation of your video with Windows Movie Maker or you are looking for a way to recover the software, follow the steps below. But keep in mind that the whole process will take some time. The following guide will work on any version of Windows. This is what you should do:

Note: If you already have Windows Movie Maker installed, skip the first two steps.

Since there is no longer an official download link for the suite, we must download it from an external source. To prevent unwanted malware or spyware from being detected, we have obtained a copy of the web file from the download link that Microsoft previously provided. Descargue la suite Windows Essentials 2012 from this link (here).
Once the download is complete, open the installer and click Choose the programs you want to install. On the next screen, check the box next to Photo Gallery and Movie Maker and leave the other boxes unchecked. Click Install and wait for the process to complete.
Once Movie Maker has been successfully installed, go ahead and start it. The first is the first, drag the video you need to rotate to the Movie Maker window to import it.
Later, play the video for a couple of seconds to find out which way to rotate it. Once i have the plan, go to the Home ribbon and go to the Editing section. You will notice two buttons: “Turn left” Y “Turn right”. Each time you press the button, the video will rotate 90 degrees in advertised direction. Use them to put the video in the correct orientation.
Once the video is oriented correctly, we need to save the video. To do it, go to File> Save movie and then select from the large number of formats. If you are not sure which option to choose, click Recommended for this project.
Finally, open the video with Windows Media Player. It will open in the correct orientation.

Method 2: usar VLC Media Player

If you want to avoid the hassle of installing software that is no longer supported, you can test a solution developed outside of the Microsoft ecosystem. VLC is a free open source media player with a built-in codec that supports almost every video format you can find..

But if you watch movies on your PC, I probably already have it installed. Rotating a video in VLC is not as easy as it is in Movie Maker, but don't be discouraged, since you only have to do a couple of extra steps. Follow the steps below to rotate the video in VLC and prepare it for Windows Media Player:

Note: note that you may need to update your VLC version to access the rotation feature.

Download and install VLC Media Player from the official website (here).
Right-click on the video in question and choose Open With> VLC Media Player.
Once you have opened the video in VLC, go to Tools from the ribbon bar and click on Effects and Filters.
In the Settings and Effects window, select the Video Effects tab and then choose Geometry. Then, check the box next to Transform and use the drop-down menu below to select a preset that fixes the image. Press Close to save your selection.

Note: You can also do it manually by checking the Rotate box and using the slider to rotate the video.
The video is now oriented correctly, but the changes will not be permanent and we must make the change visible in Windows Media Player. To do this, go to Tools> Preferences and enable the All option in Show Settings.
Now that all the settings are shown, scroll down to the Sout stream header (in Transmission output) and click Transcode. Later, use the menu on the right to check the box under Rotate video filter. Press Save to confirm your modifications.
Then, open the Media tab of the ribbon bar and click Convert / Keep.
When you get to the Open Media window, click the Add button and select the video you just modified. Then use the drop down menu at the bottom right of the screen and set it to Convert.
In the Convert window, leave everything as is. The default conversion profile should work for the task at hand. Use the Browse button to set a destination path and then hit Start to start the conversion.

The video is finally ready. You can open the newly created movie file in any application, including Windows Media Player, and it should be in the correct orientation.

Method 3: use a video converter

If you didn't like the first two methods, you can also use a more focused solution. Almost all video conversion programs on the market are capable of redirecting poorly recorded videos.

You don't even have to spend money, since most of the video converters have an orientation change function in the free version. We use a popular free solution called Freemake Video Converter, but you can go to the other side and use another option.

Below is a step-by-step guide to rotate video for Windows Media Player using Freemake Video Converter. That is how:

Download and install the latest version of Freemake Video Converter from the official website (here). Pay attention and choose custom installation to prevent promotional plugins from installing on your system.
En Freemake Video Converter, go to File and choose Add Video. Then add the video you need the orientation to be changed.
Once the software loads the video, click the edit icon on the right side.
In the next menu, press the Rotate button until the desired orientation is achieved. Press the OK button to confirm your modifications.
Finally, select a conversion type from the menu at the bottom of the screen. You will be asked to set a path for the conversion. Once all the details have been set up, hit the Convert button and wait for the process to complete.
Open the newly created video with Windows Media Player. It will be in the correct orientation.

Method 4: Using the Rotator online

If you only want to rotate a video once in a while, downloading a full app may seem troublesome. Instead, you can use one of the many online rotators that can instantly rotate your video after uploading it to your website. These are some of the online converters:

Online video conversion

Convert online

Rotate the video

Rotate video

Just upload your file to the web page and select the Rotate option. After some processing, the modified video will be available for download.

Method 5: Using the Photos app

Microsoft released video editing software shortly after launching the Photos app on Windows. 10. This video editing app can rotate, trim, add text and perform other basic video editing actions. However, keep in mind that sometimes the application does not accept very large files (videos of more than 1 hour); but you can still try.

Press Windows + S, type »video editing» in the dialog box and open the corresponding application. Video editor – Windows
Once in the application, click New Video Project. New video project: photo app
Now, you need to navigate to the video you want to rotate using the Add button. Add video file: video editor on Windows
After selecting the video, drag and drop video from Project Library to Storyboard. Add video to storyboard – Video editor
After placing the video in the storyboard, all gray functions will be activated. Look for the rotation icon on the right side of the screen. Click on it once to rotate the video 90 degrees. Rotate Video – Video editing app
After making changes to the video, keep it in an accessible place.