Canon has released firmware update 1.2.1 today for the 5DMK3 which is one of the most comprehensive firmware feature additions ever seen for a Canon camera. You can download it HERE.
The headline feature is of course the uncompressed HDMI output, something which Canon shooters have been clamouring for since the launch of the old 5D Mk2. It is now possible to use the HDMI and the LCD simultaneously.
via Canon Releases Major Firmware Update for 5D MK3 by Dan Carr.
Edit multichannel audio faster than ever. A simple keystroke reveals separate audio channels when you need them and collapses them when you don’t — right in the timeline. Easily disable individual channels or select ranges for fine control of timing and volume. And access the Inspector to view details of any audio file, rename individual channels, or hide them in the timeline.
Use the new single-window interface to import from all sources, includingfile-based video cameras, DSLRs, external hard drives, and network locations. Choose the customizable List view to display a variety of clip metadata, or switch to Filmstrip view for a visual representation of all your footage. Even add commonly used locations to the Favorites sidebar for fast access.
Deliver your work faster than ever from Final Cut Pro. Choose from export presets optimized for a wide range of uses — including iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV. Or build custom settings in Compressor and easily access them in Final Cut Pro. Export an entire project, a single clip, or a selected range in your project or event. Bundle multiple destinations to deliver different versions of the same project in a single step. And add Chapter Markers right in Final Cut Pro to quickly move between sections within a QuickTime file, DVD, or Blu-ray disc.
Compare shots and match action by enabling a second viewer on demand, which displays the media you skim, select, and play in your Event Browser. You can choose to show video scopes for both viewers, making it easy to grade and match footage.
Import RED media directly into Final Cut Pro X and start editing right away with native support for .r3d files. Convert to either ProRes 4444 or ProRes Proxy in the background while you work, and use the optional RED ROCKET card to accelerate transcode, render, and playback. Even adjust essential debayer and color settings to get the look you need without leaving Final Cut Pro.
Simultaneously record REDCODE RAW and companion ProRes files using the direct-attach Meizler Module. Learn more
Work natively with MXF files using third-party plug-ins by developers including Hamburg Pro Media and Calibrated Software. Import MXF files from your media library, archive, or other video source and export directly from Final Cut Pro in the MXF format.
Easily copy and paste specific attributes between multiple clips. A new interface allows you to see the source clip and choose exactly which effects you want to transfer.
Control how Connected Clips respond to changes in your timeline. Choose to keep them connected to clips as you edit or — with a simple modifier key — have them remain in place when slipping, sliding, or moving clips in the Primary Storyline.
Enjoy richer integration when moving projects and media between applications. XML 1.2 includes new standard metadata fields such as Reel. And Final Cut Pro X XML now includes custom project and media metadata, so you can import from — and export to — third-party apps and media asset management systems.
Edit multicam projects faster than ever before with a collection of innovative features. Select videos and photos, then create a Multicam Clip by automatically syncing different angles based on time of day, timecode, markers, or audio waveforms. You can change, add, or delete camera angles at any time and work with different formats, frame sizes, and frame rates without conversion. When it’s time to cut your multicam project, simply click in the Angle Viewer or use keyboard shortcuts to switch between video and audio on the fly. You can even combine audio channels from multiple cameras with a click.
Speed up your workflow by creating, preserving, and exporting ranges in the Event Browser. You can even maintain multiple ranges on a single source clip.
Create a freeze frame from your timeline or from source media in your event and add it to your project with a single keystroke.
Add dimension to text and objects by applying a drop shadow right in Final Cut Pro. Use intuitive onscreen controls to adjust position, edge falloff, angle, and more. Or access the Inspector for a complete set of adjustments. A 3D-lighting model dynamically adjusts shadow orientation for a realistic perspective.
Compound Clips are now automatically saved to the Event Browser, making it easy to consolidate edits and reuse them in multiple projects. And Compound Clips work just like Multicam Clips, so changes you make in the Event Browser instantly appear wherever the clips are used.
Final Cut Pro X has been optimized to work beautifully on the MacBook Pro with Retina display. So on the 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display you can view your video in pixel-accurate 1080p HD and see your editing workspace onscreen at the same time. The processor, graphics, and memory in MacBook Pro with Retina display are built around an all-flash architecture — giving you unprecedented mobile video editing power in Final Cut Pro X. Smoothly edit multicam projects with up to nine streams of 1080p ProRes 422 (HQ) content or up to four streams of 1080p uncompressed 8-bit video, right from your internal flash storage.
Canon EOS 6D full-frame DSLR hands-on (video)
By Zach Honig posted Sep 17th 2012 8:45AM
Hands-On
Nikon just announced its D600, a $2,100 DSLR with a full-frame sensor. Now, just four days later, we have a similar (and identically priced) offering from Canon. Coincidence? Not likely. Industry backchannel conspiracies aside, however, it’s only to our advantage to have a choice — if you’re looking to upgrade your digital SLR without taking out a second mortgage, you can now pick Nikon’s model, or the EOS 6D from Canon. The latter flavor, which offers built-in WiFi (the D600 requires an adapter), packs a 20.2-megapixel CMOS sensor, and it’s 20 percent lighter than the 5D Mark III, which will remain on the market, targeting professional users. The camera features a sensitivity range of ISO 100 through 102,400, it can shoot 4.5 fps stills and offers 1080/30p video capture. It also has an optical viewfinder, paired with a 3.2-inch 1.04-million-dot LCD on the rear, which looks just as sharp as you might expect.
via Canon EOS 6D full-frame DSLR hands-on (video) — Engadget.
Milpitas, CA – July 22, 2011 – Blackmagic Design today announced DaVinci Resolve Lite, a new reduced feature version of DaVinci Resolve that includes many powerful color correction features in a downloadable software package available free of charge, is now shipping.
Download for free here.
To help promote the art of color correction, DaVinci Resolve Lite includes many powerful features found in the full version of DaVinci Resolve for an extremely powerful toolset that anyone will able to download. DaVinci Resolve Lite is based on DaVinci Resolve 8, and will run on the latest model iMac, 17inch MacBook Pro and Mac Pro computers.
DaVinci Resolve Lite includes all the same high quality processing of the full DaVinci Resolve, however limits projects to SD and HD resolutions, only two color correction nodes, a single processing GPU and a single RED Rocket card. Stereoscopic 3D features, noise reduction, power mastering, remote grading and sharing projects with an external database server are features only offered in the full DaVinci Resolve so are not included in this free DaVinci Resolve Lite edition. Customers who want to eliminate these restrictions can simply purchase the full DaVinci Resolve Software for only US$995.
Even with the restrictions of the free DaVinci Resolve Lite, image quality is never limited, and customers will see the incredible image processing quality of DaVinci Resolve. In addition, DaVinci Resolve Lite can still accept high resolution source footage in 2K and 4K from the latest digital cameras from RED and ARRI, so customers get a fantastic digital camera utility.
DaVinci Resolve Lite still includes high quality optical resizing, curve grading, XML import and export, 32 bit float processing, YRGB image processing, multi layer timelines, stabilization, window tracking, primary and secondary color correction, real time processing, capture and playback with deck control, compatibility with third party control panels and many more. With so many powerful features at absolutely no charge, customers will be able to experience the dramatic improvement to their work from using a professional color correction tool.
“We are very excited to be able to offer a free version of DaVinci Resolve, and we hope that many more people will be able to explore the art of color correction in their work”, said Grant Petty, CEO, Blackmagic Design. “We are so excited about what color correction can offer to the whole television and post production industry, that we think this no charge DaVinci Resolve Lite will create a revolution in visual design that will dramatically improve the production values of even the lowest budget work!”
About DaVinci Resolve
Blackmagic Design’s DaVinci Resolve is the world’s highest performance color correction solution for Mac OS X and Linux computers. DaVinci Resolve supports more real time color correction than any other system because it’s not limited by the performance of the computer it’s running on. DaVinci Resolve eliminates this performance barrier because it’s based on a cluster of high performance GPU cards, so all processing is always real time. DaVinci Resolve has the power of a true real time performance solution so handles complex color grades even when using dozens of primaries, secondaries, Power Windows™, multi point tracking, blurs, and more. DaVinci Resolve provides incredible performance in a low cost solution can then easily upgrade by adding extra GPU’s for supercomputer power to handle 4K resolutions, stereoscopic 3D and real time grading direct from raw camera files such as ARRI raw and RED raw R3D files can be handled with ease.
Availability and Price
DaVinci Resolve Lite is available immediately, free of charge from the Blackmagic Design web site.
Apple held a private Final Cut Pro X (FCP X) briefing for enterprise contracts in London on July 6th. One first hand report has been posted to the internet detailing what Apple discussed during the event. Alex4d summarizes tweets by @aPostEngineer which reveals the following points:
1. FCP XML in/out is coming via 3rd party soon…no FCP 6/7 support project support coming ever it seems…
2. Ability to buy FCP7 licenses for enterprise deployments coming in the next few weeks…
3. FCPX EDL import/export coming soon…
4. FCPX AJA plugins coming soon for tape capture and layback…capture straight into FCPX [events].
5. XSAN support for FCPX coming in the next few weeks…
6. FCPX Broadcast video output via #Blackmagic & @AJAVideo coming soon…
7. Additional codec support for FCPX via 3rd Parties coming soon…
8. Customizable sequence TC in FCPX for master exports coming soon…
9. Some FCPX updates will be free some will cost…
via Apple to Allow Additional FCP 7 Enterprise Licenses and More on FCP X [Update] – Mac Rumors.
MeFeedia reports that H.264 is currently the dominate native video format and continues to be broadly adopted.
H.264 continues to grow with the rise of modern browsers & the massive growth in mobile (mostly iOS & Android).
WebM currently accounts for < 2% of total videos in their index, however, this could change with YouTube recently announcing it was transcoding all of its index into WebM.
In case anyone is interested in my take on the release of Final Cut Pro X, here it is.
First, let me say this first article is just about the release, and not about the software itself. I promise that henceforth I will focus on the actual FCPX software and forget all the hullabaloo.
But this article is about Apple’s business strategy (or lack thereof), my industry perceptions, and looking back a bit to see if we can predict the future.
I am the guy with a lot of the FCP “firsts”. From what I know, I have been editing with FCP longer than anyone in the world. (Outside the original dev team, of course.) With my wife Michelle (the brains of the operation), I produced the first FCP training course, Final Cut Pro PowerStart. I was the first to demo FCP 1.0 in public, launched the first FCP website (fcp411.net), taught the first FCP workshops, presented first FCP free seminar tours, hosted the first FCP user group meeting (May 1, 1999), co-hosted the first Apple trade show hands-on classroom (with Randy Ubillos), produced the first FCP marketing CDs for Apple, and I’m pretty sure I was the one that got Apple to start putting cool-looking reflections under all their graphics (okay, that’s not really an FCP first.).
Remember, when FCP was released, Apple stock was at $11 and they were largely considered to be on their way out. FCP 1.0 was released only a little more than year after Michael Dell famously answered the question about what he would do were he in charge at Apple with, “What would I do? I’d shut it down and give the money back to the shareholders”. At that time, FCP 1.0 was not in any way a foregone conclusion. It could have come and gone faster than Avid Liquid.
In the first few years of FCP’s existence, through workshops, free seminars, disc-based courses, trade show seminars and our website, DVcreators.net (with huge help from Apple, of course) introduced well over a hundred thousand people to FCP, people from most cable channels, Hollywood movie studios, people from most major magazines and newspapers, most Fortune 500 companies, most major ad agencies, major universities and branches of government.
Many believe that the massive efforts of DVcreators.net, along with people like Michael Horton, Phillip Hodgetts, Lawrence Jordan and a few other pioneers, to make the first impression of FCP a hugely positive one to thousands of core media professionals, and support the early adopters with quality training and resources in the first 24 months after release served as a major “tipping point“– creating a viral buzz in the pivotal early years at helping FCP achieve critical mass and become the standard for editing software.
A brand new editing app has been released, called “Final Cut Pro X“.
Here are some points, keep in mind most of the below is just my speculation and opinion. Bring on the flames and kudos in the comments! (I reserve the right to moderate)
What I would have done [were I in charge], is continue to sell Final Cut Studio 3 and brand the new app simply as “Z”. A brand-new editing app. Think of the buzz! Think of the awesome logo!
Of course, people would immediately ask, “What’s the future of FCP7″, and “Will there be an FCP8″ and Apple’s position would be, “We might add minor, incremental features to FCP7, but we feel FCP7 is a stable, full-featured app, and is working well for millions of people, so don’t expect major changes or a major new version anytime soon (or maybe ever). FCP is the standard for professional editing. We are focusing on developing Z until it has feature parity with FCP7 and is ready for professional use, and at that time we recommend pros look into switching to it.” Pulling the plug on FCS3 prematurely was a bad move– all downside, and what’s the upside?
This positioning would have been a humble, honest approach to avoid the firestorm they should have known would ensue from releasing something called “Final Cut Pro” without even the ability to import the previous version’s projects. Major gaffe.
Maybe they thought they had to put the words “Final Cut” in the name for it to sell? Huh?!? Like a brand new app called “Z”, with a beautiful grey blue gradient glowing behind it, wouldn’t have attracted attention and buzz (you know, positive buzz)? Come on, Apple, like no one knows who you are? It’s not 1999 anymore, have some confidence! You invented the smartphone and tablet, two things no one knew they needed before, and you are taking over the world. A brand new app would have avoided all this hullabaloo, (and made for a cooler logo as well).
Pros would then look at the new app as a possible addition to their toolbox for certain projects, or not. At any rate, with my positioning strategy, how could anyone bash Z, it never promised anything! It’s brand new, and it is what it is. If you don’t like it, don’t buy it. By not EOLing FCS3, the pressure would be off Apple (see below) and they could take their time adding features into Z.
(Of course, I would have to figure out what to do about Motion 5. $49 is way too cheap for this app- should have been $299 as well. Maybe a baby iLife version would be $49. But I digress.)
[bc_group slug="final-cut-pro-x"]
Even beyond the missing workflow features, I understand the editors that feel betrayed. After years of anticipation of what new magical new Final Cut Pro would emerge from the sparkling Apple castle on the hill, being delivered to us by flying white-winged yaks surrounded by rainbows and 3D particle-system-generated pixie dust, an reaction of shock from users at a “Final Cut Pro”-branded app that threw 20 years of non-linear editing conventions out the window was inevitable.
Unfortunately, there is a growing, very vocal and influential group of “XFCP-ers”– this could have been mostly avoided. Articles like “Did Apple screw up with Final Cut Pro X?” and “The Final Cut Pro Backlash” are appearing by the hour. Even Fortune magazine has joined the fray, with “The Final Cut Pro X debacle“. Refunds are being processed as you read this sentence. At this writing, FCPX has a 2.5 star rating on the App Store, and even two days after release, even at $299, it’s not even the top Paid App, being beat by the .99 FaceTime.
At Apple, they may be thinking, this will all blow over, no worries, when we add some features, the natives will calm down. But if that’s what they’re thinking, they should be taking this initial reaction a little more seriously.
As Phillip Hodgetts has pointed out, FCPX has some not-insubstantial revenue potential for Apple, and as I added in the comments of that article, when you factor in the Mac Pros and MacBook Pros that Pro Apps sales drive, and let’s not forget that famous “halo effect” (how many FCP editors have you seen pulling out their iPhones in the middle of an edit session?), this has the potential to snowball into a real problem.
If they lose a few thousand influential, tweeting, blogging ditchers, that could then virally turn into ten thousand, then a few hundred thousand, and so forth, and pretty soon you’re talking real money. It’s no exaggeration to say that billions, not millions of dollars, over time, are at stake. Do the math.
Well, Apple may have a problem they haven’t thought of. Just adding in OMF/XML/multicam etc., at this point, may not put FCPX over the hump. At first glance, the footage organization and editing might look kinda similar to FCP7, but it’s not. When intelligent, experienced editors explore FCPX in depth, giving it a real, bona fide chance, and give up, you have a problem. Working with media, and editing, are as different from FCP7 and other editing apps as flying a helicopter is to driving a car. And FCPX is not as intuitive as FCP 1-7.
Imagine someone used to driving a car upgrading to a helicopter. You can read the helicopter manual. You can watch hours of manufacturer-certified training movies of people flying helicopters. But when you try to fly one yourself, you will most likely crash and burn before you master it. Apple can say helicopters are cooler than cars, but who cares if there’s no good way to learn how to fly the dang thing?
If most the people who download FCPX, whether professional, prosumer and consumer, have a frustrating first, second and third experience, give up and head back to FCP7 to cut that trailer, commercial, movie, industrial or kid’s birthday party, and Apple does not reverse course and put FCS3 back on sale (which I predict they won’t), it could mean trouble for the Pro Apps division. Think this is ridiculous? Maybe. It’s at least as ridiculous as saying Blockbuster’s dominance of video rentals will someday be over, or Tower Records will someday not be the place you go to buy records, or MySpace won’t be the cool place to connect with friends any more. Technology, and the way it’s introduced, has a funny way of radically changing the path of the future, and no one knows this better than Apple. As a company, Apple is fine. With the release of FCPX, the Pro Apps division is at a crucial juncture.
Are you a freelance video professional? Search for yourself here: http://www.dvcreators.net/members/
If you can’t find yourself, it’s time to update your DVcreators.network profile! Just click the “My Account” button in the top right of the header. Listing is free and takes just a few seconds.
It’s obvious to me that QC people inside Apple have been testing XML import into FCPX for a while, so the only reason they wouldn’t have enabled it in the 1.0 version is because there are so many problems importing FCP7 timelines with certain elements, like nested sequences, speed changes (especially reverse motion), embedded Motion projects and other oddities. They feared even more negative fallout from people screaming that their projects wouldn’t import than not including it at all. (With my “Z” strategy, they could have called it “limited” XML support, saying “Yeah, it will import FCP7 edits except for certain elements” and the pros would have said “cooool!”)
FCP7 PROJECT IMPORT UPDATE: A few items have surfaced regarding FCP7 import. One quickly extinguished ray of hope is a Brazilian MacMagazine article in which someone digging around in the code found a function called “importFinalCutXML“.
However, Apple’s answer to:
“Can I import projects from Final Cut Pro 7 into Final Cut Pro X?” is:
Final Cut Pro X includes an all-new project architecture structured around a trackless timeline and connected clips. In addition, Final Cut Pro X features new and redesigned audio effects, video effects, and color grading tools. Because of these changes, there is no way to “translate” or bring in old projects without changing or losing data. But if you’re already working with Final Cut Pro 7, you can continue to do so after installing Final Cut Pro X, and Final Cut Pro 7 will work with Mac OS X Lion. You can also import your media files from previous versions into Final Cut Pro X.
And, Randy Ubillos replied to a user email, saying:
“FCP7 projects do not have enough information in them to properly translate to FCPX (in FCP7 all of the clip connections live in the editor’s head, not in the timeline). We never expected anyone to switch editing software in the middle of a project, so project migration was not a priority.Final Cut Pro X 1.0 is the beginning of a road, not the end.”
So, it appears Apple tried, but could not get import to work, so my prediction is most likely wrong.
I have no “inside info” about these things, except that I’ve known Brian Meaney for 12 years and I can guarantee that he would not have stood idly by while a brand new app got built that did not have the ability to fit into the professional workflows he knows high end post houses require.
With FCP, he has always had the product positioning philosophy of “get Hollywood first, everyone else will follow” (A philosophy I do not completely share, I recommended in the early days that Apple forget Hollywood and focus on making it “the editing software for the rest of us” (the millions of emerging education/industrial/training/science/medicine/politics/religion/documentary/independent video producers) and let Avid keep the couple thousand hardcore high end editors). But I understand the Hollywood strategy, and Brian has done a great job making sure FCP added the necessary features and codec support that would ensure it became a mainstay in the big post houses– and help win some Oscars!).
Now, Brian, save me the sushi funds and make sure my predictions come true!
(*By the way, by “any ditcher” I mean “any one ditcher”– not all of them! Sheesh!)
People have called FCPX “iMovie Pro”. Not true. (Not exactly true.)
Randy Ubillos, creator of Premiere, KeyGrip (later renamed Final Cut Pro), Aperture and several other amazing programs, is brilliant, a visionary, and a true innovator. With the original Premiere, he added a new dimension to the editing timeline, allowing “vertical” (compositing) as well as horizontal (storytelling) editing. Key Grip took this further, with keyframes, blend modes and keying. Randy is on a short list of my all-time personal heroes, I’ve known him for 12 years, and taught alongside him daily at NAB. Though we’re not close friends, I have been privileged to talk with him on several occasions and I feel like I know how he thinks. (Like Randy, when I design software, I always start from a blank slate and let common sense and user experience drive the process without any influence from “this is the way things have always been done.”)
I remember one time, probably ten years ago, we were riding in the back seat of a car after a trade show and I told Randy that I envisioned Final Cut Pro moving towards more pre-production features, like scriptwriting and timeline storyboarding, where FCP would print out shotlists and a shooting script, and then after shooting, the actual takes would drop in and replace the storyboard placeholders. I remember he didn’t seem to like the idea much, so I’m sure this conversation had little or no influence on any future development, but at any rate, a few years later Randy came back from a diving vacation and going through his footage realized that the standard UI paradigm of Avid/Premiere/Final Cut/Vegas/Liquid/etc. (all somewhat similar in media management) were not an ideal environment for the very first step in post-production: organizing raw footage.
So Randy starting writing an app: “First Cut”, a professional-level “feeder” app for Final Cut Pro. You would launch First Cut, import all your raw footage, then quickly skim through, keywording, organizing, marking as good or rejecting, and finally building a rough edit.
Then you would “Export to Final Cut Pro”, and import the rough cut XML into Final Cut Pro to fine-tune edits, color grade, add titles and effects, composite, key, mix sound and do your final mastering. First Cut was born for one purpose only– to make plowing through and organizing mountains of footage efficient and even enjoyable.
I don’t know whether Randy decided to repurpose First Cut or His Steveness saw it and decided it should be the new iMovie, but somewhere along the line it was decided at One Infinite Loop that First Cut would become iMovie ’08. Other features were added, and iMovie was released– to decidedly mixed reviews.
David Pogue wrote a scathing review for the NY Times: “Apple Takes a Step Back With iMovie ’08″:
Most people are used to a product cycle that goes like this: Release a new version every year or two, each more capable than the last. Ensure that it’s backward-compatible with your existing documents.
IMovie ‘08, on the other hand, has been totally misnamed. It’s not iMovie at all. In fact, it’s nothing like its predecessor and contains none of the same code or design. It’s designed for an utterly different task, and a lot of people are screaming bloody murder… …iMovie ‘08 is an utter bafflement… …What the [bleep]! What was Apple thinking?
Sound familiar?
(Ironically, Dave seems to have done a 180º, and now he loves FCPX, for some of the same reasons he hated iMovie ’08. Ah well, journalists…)
The “Export to Final Cut Pro” option in iMovie ’08 bespoke of its roots, too bad only a few people used it in this way, I tried it and it worked great in this workflow. (Because people didn’t “get” the new paradigm, and there was no one to show them the way, due to public outcry Apple had to put a download link for iMovie 6 back on the iMovie page.)
Although FCPX was built from scratch, and not from the iMovie codebase, it’s clear that Randy’s vision for a revolutionary new way to manage media (and find the right clip), as well as edit video footage, is at the very foundation of Final Cut Pro X.
So, the people calling Final Cut Pro X “iMovie Pro” are wrong, like people who say humans are descended from monkeys. (We’re not, though we share a common ancestor.)
[This paragraph has been edited.] I will post a full review in an upcoming article.
Thanks for reading! Let the comments/flames begin!
Third-parties are prepping new Thunderbolt products ahead of the upcoming Final Cut Pro X release. Japanese site Macotakara.jp got a chance to play with Blackmagic Design’s UltraStudio 3D, a Thunderbolt-enabled 3D capture and playback for SD, HDMI and analog. Although BlackMagic’s site lists the device as having one Thunderbolt port, the unit on display has two ports. Engineers apparently haven’t yet made the final decision on that. The above clip shows a cool portable editing solution consisting of an early-2011 17-inch MacBook Pro, an UltraStudio 3D box, a Promise R6 Pegasus RAID and a Video-422 deck controller.
The rig works in perfect harmony, allowing for video recording to the Pegasus RAID with real-time previews on an external display and real-time video effects in 2K and 3D. The same site noted Tuesday that Final Cut Pro X would be available next week.
Adobe Premiere Pro CS5.5 is available, and you can get it now. You can also download a fully functional free 30-day trial version.
Here’s a link to the main Adobe Premiere Pro page and its whiz-bang summary of what’s new.
I haven’t (yet) listed every single tweak to the user interface, but this should be a virtually comprehensive list of changes beyond the top few listed above.
projects and sequences
importing and managing footage
editing
effects and compositing
rendering and exporting
keyboard shortcuts
via Adobe Premiere Pro CS5.5: What’s new and changed « Premiere Pro work area.
What was cool at NAB 2011? Sure, there was a lot of innovation and buzz, but what will I actually buy and use? A Sony F3 with S-log and Zeiss $30k Master primes? Probably not.
The things that got me really excited went largely unnoticed, but here’s some of my favorites:
Under tight NDA the night before NAB, a few of us were allowed to preview the Blackmagic goods. I was astonished at what I heard as I held a slim $995 piece of 19″ hardware. The ATEM Television Studio.
It’s an IO device with HDMI and HD-SDI ports. It can replace a traditional HD Mixer/Switcher/Keyer. If you’ve seen the traditional big video mixers with a gazillion lit buttons and T-bars, then you probably are familiar with the broadcast price point of $5-75k.
So where’s the rest of this device? How do you switch, there’s seeming no controls? Well, you could buy the external switcher for $5k. Or you can simply attach the ATEM via ethernet to your computer and switch via a virtual control panel.
Here’s what the app looks like on-screen (click to enlarge):
In use:
My friend John Herbert formerly of Reflecmedia and now with Blackmagic recorded a bit of “green screen” from the “studio” at the Reflecmedia booth on the NAB show Central Hall floor. He was then able to feed the footage in and live “key” the footage using the ATEM keyer. By the way, how did he record the footage?
Using another new Blackmagic product announced at the show called the HyperDeck Shuttle. This lil guy is $345 and records Uncompressed QuickTime movies to SSD drives. You simply connect your HDMI or HD-SDI cable into the device and hit “Record”. It’s basically a small HD deck with battery. The built-in battery will last about an hour, the 512GB SSD drives will set you back about $1200 and only record about 50 minutes. So, we then took the footage to the Blackmagic booth and used it as a source via HD-SDI into the IO box- the ATEM keyed it out very well for a live HD keyer. Although there are not as many controls for fine tuning the key like you would find in an $80k Ultimatte, the result was still very nice. I’m excited to try it out in our studio sort of like what we did with the Edirol in this video where I walk into the computer screen using real time chroma key:
I see all kinds of uses for inexpensive real time HD keying, including on the set pre-viz. Now your actors can have a large monitor to see the “world” that they’ll be in. This should make for some more interesting acting and lighting on set.
Where will a $995 HD switcher find a home? I see tons of uses in live sporting events, musical performances, house of worship, live tv/web shows, and live seminars. One more cool feature allows you to record an H.264 movie out of the switcher. Could you imagine finishing a live event and already having the encoded file ready to drop on the server?
I was able to get the Atomos Ninja before the NAB show and was hoping to be blown away with HDSLR recording. Unfortunately the Canon 5D Mark II and 7D do not have a “clean” output so I went and bought a Panasonic GH2 HDSLR to try out. The GH2 does indeed have an HDMI out with no overlays (superimposed on-screen images), however, the signal’s color isn’t as pristine as it should be and it requires a bit of a process to remove 3:2 pulldown so I wrote the GH2 HDSLR off as well. I have high hopes for a solution, though for now I’d recommend only using it with traditional video cameras. I’m using it with the Sony Z7U and the Panasonic AF100 – both HD cameras with HDMI output.
The beauty of the Ninja is in the workflow. How fast can you go from lens to post? It’s pretty amazing really. It’s kind of like a FireStore if you remember those, they recorded an HDV stream from the FireWire port. Not so with the Ninja, you’re recording up to 220mbps ProRes. Let’s think about that for a second, HDV is 35mbps and ProRes HQ is 220mbps. Do you think that the footage will be any better?
To the average person, not so much, however, being able to edit in the ProRes format with no “Log and Transfer” or “Log and Capture” step is huge. I can shoot, then simply drag the files from the drive into the timeline and start cutting. The Ninja uses standard off the shelf 2.5″ laptop drives. Around $50 for 500GB. At ProRes HQ thats 5 hours! The Ninja kit even includes two batteries so that you can actually record for 7 hours non-stop. Oh, and did I mention that the Ninja also has a 4.3-inch monitor so that you can view your footage as you’re rolling? There is a 1/4-20 thread on top and bottom.
Here you can see the Ninja mounted on our Panasonic AF100 with a Noga arm. Fully loaded with drive and two batteries weighed in at about 1.9lbs.
The Atomos Ninja is available in a kit with 2 Sony style batteries, dual charger, 2 master caddies and a Master Caddy dock. The dock allows you to slide the Master Caddy in and connect to your computer via USB 2.0, USB 3.0, or FireWire 800. Using a $50 Seagate Momentus 500GB 7200 RPM drive, I was able to drag and drop the files into FCP and begin editing immediately. The first thing I noticed is how much zippier the footage feels as opposed to long GOP HDV, and how much further I can push color correction. The acquired color via the HDMI port is 4:2:2, not the lossy 4:1:1 or 4:2:0. So there is less banding and jaggies in gradations.
One thing to note, the drives are not included, only the blank caddies. You must add your own drive. The Ninja is available by itself at $649 or at $999 with the complete kit, including hard case and accessories. Just add drives and an HDMI cable.
Sound Devices, known for their high quality mixers and recorders also announced two new HD Video Field recorders, the PIX 240 and 220. Also being shown on the show floor was the Cinedeck, Convergent Design’s Gemini, Blackmagic’s $345 Hyperdeck Shuttle and FFV’s Sidekick.
Each recorder has it’s unique pluses and minus. For example all of the models mentioned above will handle an HD-SDI source whereas the Atomos Ninja only handles HDMI input. A future model set to release this Summer and dubbed “Samurai” will include HD-SDI at the $1,495 price point. Let’s also not forget the two models which have been out in the field and record to compact flash, the AJA Ki Pro Mini, and the Convergent Design nanoFlash. The Ki Pro Mini has not begun shipping in high quantity and has built up quite the demand. Both the nanoFlash and Ki Pro mini record to Compact Flash cards, whereas most of the new recorders shown at NAB are recording to 2.5″ spinning disk or SSD. You’ll want to weigh in battery/power options and media costs if you’re looking at one of these recorders to breathe new life into your current camera.
LaCie showed offer four Thunderbolt enabled “Little Big Disk” drives raided together producing over 700MB/sec throughput. Very impressive, especially as these new file formats push the envelope. You’ll need something like this to edit uncompressed. Being able to take these small drives in the field and edit in a hotel is very cool. I would not take our 8 bay RAID on the road.
Lowel finally stepped into the LED world with two new offerings, the Studio 250 and the Studio 400 with CRI numbers hitting 91. Most of the inexpensive offerings on the market are more around the 87 range and tend to to produce a green tinge on skin tones when viewed on an accurate monitor. Sure you can gel green light with a bit of magenta to correct, but its still off. It’s great to see Lowel finally coming to market with a professional, accurate LED fixture with a true “flood” beam. These are dimmable fixtures offering the highest quality LEDs on the market. The Lowel Studio 250 is in the $1800 range while the Studio 400 is in the $2000-2200 range.
Matrox announced a $299 Thunderbolt adapter. This adapter allows the Matrox Mini line as well as the AJA IO Express to be hooked up to a Thunderbolt port on the new MacBooks. This summer both companies will be offering native Thunderbolt devices, however, existing customers may be interested in just buying one of these nifty adapters to use with legacy gear. Matrox showed the device working in their booth. I’m sure there are many 15-inch MacBook Pro users that are happy to have IO in the field. I didn’t mind the weight of the 17-inch with the Express34 slot for my IO, however Thunderbolt on all the new Macs is very cool. Now those that want to travel light can still just carry a small computer, and edit with a big HDMI or HD-SDI monitor out in the field or on-site.
The new Compact Primes are simply stunning. These are a filmmaker’s dream. When using the SLR style lenses from most manufacturers, you’ll notice it’s tough to rack focus. The CP.2 lenses make it easy and more “Cine style” by offering the focus control to be spread across a wider spinning range. Instead of having a short distance to spin from say 2 feet to 5 feet, you have a very long spin, thus allowing your focus puller a very finite level of control. The other nice thing is that the CP.2 lenses is that they offer manual aperture without hard “click stops”. I was informed at the show that there is a shop in LA that will take the less expensive line of Zeiss ZE SLR lenses and take out the hard click stops. The Compact Primes are in the $4-6k range each, while the SLR lenses are a bit more affordable in the $700-1000 range.
Manfrotto brought out the new 509HD tripod head, the Photo Movie head, some cool new “snake” arms, LANC zoom controllers, and LED lights. In case you didn’t know, Vitek owns Manfrotto and Litepanels, so these new lights are from the high quality Litepanels designers. The Photo Movie head may work well for those still folks venturing into video for the first time, however, long time videographers will quickly find the unit to be a very lateral flowing device. Unlike the full blown video heads from Manfrotto, this one is tough to perform a smooth “Z” test. It just wants to pan left/right and keep on going.
IKAN showed a new multicolor light called the Multi-K XL. It allows you to dial in any specific color with its RGB controls. There are also six presets between 2800 K – 6500 K. Output power is 1000 watts. Street price $2495. http://ikancorp.com/productInfo.php?id=311#
Matthews demonstrated a new slider they’re calling it the DC Slider.
Marshall demonstrated the V-LCD70XP-HDMIPT 7-inch LCD Monitor with HDMI loop through. This allows a second user the ability to take the signal to another monitor for client, director, focus puller, crew etc. You can view all the features of the Marshall including a video we produced at http://www.lcdracks.com/monitors/v-lcd70xp-hdmipt.html
MXL revealed a tiny shotgun mic called the FR-305 which looked surprisingly similar to the Sennheiser MKE400. We’ll have to see how this one sounds.
Panasonic introduced a new 3D camera AG-3DP1 and also the AG-HPX250 which shoots AVC-Intra 100 to P2 Cards. Read more http://www.panasonic.com/promos/nab/2011/
Sony FS100 and F3
These two cameras seemed to be everywhere on the show floor. That’s the great thing about NAB, being able to get your hands on very pricey equipment that your local reseller may not carry. Especially these two cameras which have the ability to interchange lenses. These two cameras are going to be popular with filmmakers, most all the cameras we saw had the Zeiss Compact Primes on, ready to roll. Some incredible footage was shot in Vegas by Next Level Pictures showing off the shear latitude that the F3 is capable of. It’s a pricey combo, sure, great to know that we’re getting closer and closer to film every year and the price just keep coming down.
Que Audio was on the show floor with their new mini shotgun. Looks like a field friendly design with the small form factor.
One cool NAB tip I learned this year: Wear different shoes each day! If you’re on your feet all day walking for miles, the worn part of the shoe is usually deteriorated because of the constant pressure you’re putting on the sole. Mix ‘em up!
Once again, another great show is down in history. Looking forward to NAB 2012!
Here’s some creative video of the event:
and a better video of the demo only:
The editing software has been rewritten from scratch, here are the high points:
For a play-by-play of the demo, click here.
Here are some handheld videos of the entire preso, shot on an iPad2:
Intro, Market Analysis and FCP X Overview, where its come from, industry user base and competition.
Ingest, Keywording and Magnetic Timeline
DEMO: Keywording and Magnetic Timeline
DEMO: Magnetic Timeline
DEMO: Color, Rendering, Auditioning
SAN JOSE, Calif. — April 11, 2011 — Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) today announced Adobe® Creative Suite® 5.5 Production Premium, the complete software solution for video and post-production that helps deliver content to virtually any screen. Breakthrough performance, workflow improvements, creative innovations, and powerful new audio editing capabilities build upon the huge customer momentum Production Premium is experiencing with broadcasters, filmmakers and video professionals worldwide. New versions receiving major updates include Adobe Premiere® Pro CS5.5, Adobe After Effects® CS5.5, Adobe Flash® Professional CS5.5, Adobe Flash Catalyst® CS5.5, Adobe Story, Adobe Media Encoder CS5.5, and Adobe Device Central CS5.5. New to Creative Suite 5.5 is Adobe Audition® CS5.5, bringing its audio-for-video multitrack editing environment to both Mac OS and Windows® for the first time.
Today also sees Adobe debut an affordable and flexible subscription-based pricing plan, attractive to customers that want to get current and stay current on Creative Suite products, have project-based needs, or try the software for the first time. New Subscription Editions ensure customers with active subscriptions are always working with the most up-to-date versions of the software, without the upfront cost of full pricing. Now customers can use Adobe Production Premium CS5.5 for as little as US$85 per month.
“Over the past year, we’ve received a phenomenal response to Adobe Creative Suite CS5 Production Premium for its performance, new features and expanded integration with hardware and camera manufacturers that makes metadata, collaboration and distribution a seamless workflow for video professionals,” said Jim Guerard, vice president and general manager for Professional Video, Adobe. “CS5.5 turbo-charges a product that has already taken the industry by storm and gives story-tellers new tools and features to continue to astonish audiences around the world.”
Even Greater Productivity
Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 Production Premium delivers massive productivity enhancements that enable video and audio professionals to dramatically accelerate their workflows. The powerful Adobe Mercury Playback Engine, introduced in Adobe Premiere Pro CS5, broadens its graphics processing unit (GPU) hardware support to include laptops and more supported cards, and allows users to open projects faster, get real-time feedback for more GPU-accelerated features, and work more smoothly at 4k and higher resolutions.
Adobe Premiere Pro CS5.5 boosts performance by providing a smoother editing workflow, enabled by new trimming and editing tools that provide more precision and control. Dual-system sound support from the new Merge Clips command in Adobe Premiere Pro CS5.5 lets users quickly sync video with high-quality audio recorded on separate devices like location recorders, ideal for DSLR or RED workflows. Leveraging an integrated workflow with Adobe Audition, Adobe Premiere Pro users can save time by sending individual clips or sequences, including reference videos, directly to Adobe Audition for audio editing and restoration. Adobe’s lead in file-based workflows widens in CS5.5 with enhanced support for RED and other tapeless cameras, including improved RED Source Settings dialog in Premiere Pro and After Effects CS5.5 and native support for up to 5k media from RED Epic cameras via an extension available on Adobe Labs. Providing a truly native editing solution, CS5.5 saves users time and eliminates the need to transcode or rewrap footage.
Building on Creative Suite Production Premium’s industry-leading multiscreen capabilities, the new 64-bit Adobe Media Encoder CS5.5 has been completely redesigned to deliver Adobe Premiere Pro video sequences, After Effects compositions, and Adobe Encore® projects to multiple screen formats quickly, while doing the encoding in the background. Adobe Media Encoder CS5.5 also introduces new format support such as AVC-Intra and DPX, and watch folders so users can encode a single clip to multiple destinations with a simple drag and drop.
“When you watch a film, it’s the larger experience that sticks with you, the combination of elements, not the individual details,” said Gareth Edwards, award winning filmmaker and the creative driving force behind the much-heralded 2010 independent film, Monsters. “That’s what I love about Adobe Creative Suite – all of the individual tools interlink seamlessly and blur the line between each part of the process so the focus is creating a cohesive work, not a bunch of different pieces. This interconnectivity coupled with the incredible speed of the Mercury Playback Engine makes for a powerful combination – if we had CS5.5 when we made Monsters, I know we would have finished two months earlier.”
Game-Changing Innovations
New innovations across the suite continue to help audio and video professionals push the boundaries of their creativity. After Effects CS5.5 introduces new features such as the Warp Stabilizer, Camera Lens Blur and Light Falloff to enable users to enhance footage in post-production. The breakthrough Warp Stabilizer eliminates unwanted camera movement by steadying shaky footage, making handheld footage appear as smooth as a camera mounted on a mechanical stabilizer. The Camera Lens Blur effect mimics the properties of physical lenses offering more realistic depth of field blurs. The Light Falloff effect enables users to simulate natural illumination falloff to mimic how light behaves in a 3D scene and can be used to create other light intensity effects.
Already well-adopted in the audio industry, video professionals can now harness the power of Adobe Audition in CS5.5 Production Premium – for both Mac and Windows platforms. The completely re-written audio engine in Audition offers a robust toolset to record, edit, mix, master, and sweeten audio. With its professional editing and multitrack mixing tools, powerful noise-reduction and effects options, audio and video professionals on both platforms can now benefit from Adobe Audition CS5.5 for handling a wide range of tasks quickly and efficiently.
Improved Collaboration
Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 Production Premium continues to drive innovation by enhancing how users collaborate with existing workflows, even if they use a variety of tools. Enhanced project exchange support for Final Cut Pro users provides maximum flexibility for video editors, while new or enhanced OMF support in Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe Audition makes it possible to export high-quality audio projects to Avid Pro Tools, facilitating more efficient collaboration between audio editors, remixers and sound designers.
Access to the new version of Adobe Story, an Adobe CS Live online service*†, improves collaboration between users with email notifications of new script edits and a faster method of tracking changes through script elements and filters. The ability to import Adobe Story script data directly into Adobe Premiere Pro further strengthens XML-based metadata support found throughout the Production Premium suite, which is critical for everything from file-based workflows to media asset management. This industry leadership around metadata-driven workflows, plus the ease and flexibility of communicating with Adobe applications with critical third party solutions from news management systems to playback servers, is the catalyst behind many broadcasters and other organizations around the world switching to Adobe Creative Suite Production Premium.
Pricing and Availability
Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 Production Premium is scheduled to ship within 30 days with availability through Adobe Authorized Resellers, the Adobe Store and Adobe Direct Sales. Estimated street price for Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 Production Premium is expected to be US$1,699. Upgrade pricing and volume licensing are available.
By subscribing to Creative Suite, customers can choose a one-year subscription plan for lower payments or a month-to-month subscription for greater flexibility. For more information about Subscription Editions, visit:www.adobe.com/go/cssubscription.
Pricing for the new Subscription Edition starts as low as US$39 per month for Adobe Premiere Pro and US$85 per month for Production Premium.
Education pricing for students, faculty and staff in K-12 and higher education is available from Adobe Authorized Education Resellers and the Adobe Education Store atwww.adobe.com/education/purchasing/education_pricing.htm. More information regarding education volume licensing for higher education and K-12 institutions can be viewed atwww.adobe.com/aboutadobe/volumelicensing/education.
For more detailed information about features, OS support, upgrade policies, pricing and International versions, please visit www.adobe.com/go/creativesuiteproduction.
PreNAB Editors’ Lounge 2011 Part 1 from Editors' Lounge on Vimeo.
The March 2011 Editors’ Lounge HTTP://editorslounge.com/ was the 8th year of our annual NAB discussion panel and featured guest speakers Steve Cohen, Terence Curren, Mark Raudonis, Michael Bravin and Lucas Wilson. Debra Kaufman moderated a lively discussion on post-production trends and predictions for NAB 2011.
Once the video is loaded you can jump to the subjects below:
3:00 The New Final Cut Pro, as seen by Mark Raudonis
10:16 What is a cord cutter?
11:05 The Future of content delivery
14:17 New hardware vs. user interface of NLEs
14:50 Support, Apple vs. Avid
17:09 The new Avid company
18:30 Apple’s media future
18:55 Speculation on FCP X
PreNAB Editors’ Lounge 2011 Part 2 from Editors' Lounge on Vimeo.
0:08 New GUI (Graphical User Interface) for NLEs
3:17 Lucas talks about new media
5:31 Storytelling, the basics of our craft
6:30 Oblong Industries, the “Minority Report” GUI
8:17 Adobe, Vegas, Lightworks
8:43 Avid Media Composer 5.5
9:58 Crowd-sourcing video editing
11:57 The commoditization of media creation
13:05 Demand Media, is it our future?
14:58 The new business model for editors, producers, etc.
16:19 We have to think beyond 1 screen
Please add a comment with a feature you predict will be in the next version of Final Cut Pro, and you’ll have a chance to win a the Final Cut Studio 4 upgrade!
Here are the contest rules:
9. Career: Film & Video Editor
Median Salary: $63,680
With YouTube now hosting more searches per day than any site save Google (GOOG), the need for film and video editors is clear. The California Labor Dept. expects the field to grow in 2011, as agencies, media firms, corporations, and institutions look to spread their messages via video—so don’t limit your search to one sector. This field requires specialized training, of course. It makes a great choice for creative types who want to expand their horizons or for photographers and filmmakers looking to boost their earning potential.
via Top 10 Careers for 2011: 9. Career: Film & Video Editor – BusinessWeek.
The conversation about the shift from “old” to “new” media usually goes something like this: 1) the media business has fundamentally changed; 2) media companies need to think in new ways due to the problems of fragmentation, the attention economy and a whole range of platforms; 3) those that adapt to the new will win; those that won’t, will fold – and they deserve it too.
So the advice from new media gurus is always the same: existing media companies – and indeed, even new media companies like Netflix – need to find a way to replicate their success, albeit with a new business model. With a few mergers, acquisitions and consolidation, there’s no reason a smart media company who makes all the right moves couldn’t remain a multi-billion dollar business with a great deal of clout.
But what if that never happens? And what if, instead of it being due to a lack of vision or leadership, it’s because no media company can ever be a massive economic and cultural success again?
Newspaper sites have overtaken broadcaster sites in the number of videos uploaded, according to a report by Brightcove and TubeMogul.
Its quarterly report, which analysed a sample of US-based and global Brightcove customers for Q3 2010, found that newspaper sites streamed 313m minutes of video in the quarter, compared with 290m minutes uploaded by broadcasters.
Newspapers saw 51% growth in video content, surpassing broadcasters for total minutes streamed for the first time, suggesting that newspapers are quickly adapting their once print-dominated businesses to multimedia production.
via Newspapers overtake broadcasters in video streaming | News | New Media Age.
TriCaster to deliver coverage of X Games to fans in the audience and online.
NewTek, a worldwide leader of video and 3D animation products, today announced that its signature streaming product, the award-winning TriCaster portable live production system, will be used to produce and live stream extensive coverage of the ESPN Winter X Games 15 from Aspen, CO, from January 27-30. Fans attending the X Games will be able to watch events on the in-venue video boards at various locations in Aspen—streamed exclusively with TriCaster. Fans at home and on-the-go will have access to the all the action, via the TriCaster-powered high definition (HD) live stream at Facebook.com/xgames.
Last July, at the summer X Games in Los Angeles, live video streams of the event were available at Facebook.com/xgames on the “X Cast” tab and the X Games live stream page, with content that featured the Skate and BMX Park/street practice, daily “Inside X” show, athlete chats and jumbotron feed. With TriCaster, ESPN produced some 446,398 streams that garnered 2,253,380 viewer minutes and 124,776 unique viewers.
With TriCaster, anyone can simultaneously produce, live stream, broadcast, project and record HD and SD network-style productions. A single operator or small team can switch between multiple cameras, virtual inputs and live virtual sets, while inserting clips, titles and motion graphics with multi-channel effects. In addition to the ESPN X Games, TriCaster is used by sports organizations, broadcasters, schools, houses of worship, government agencies and others to provide a new level of extended programming and content to their audiences.
The TriCaster family of products in NTSC is available in North America starting at US$4,995, and multi-standard internationally starting at US$5,995. Educational pricing is also available. For more information, visit www.newtek.com, or call NewTek Sales at 800-368-5441. International callers dial +1-210-370-8000.
via NewTek TriCaster to Produce Live Video Streams for Winter X Games 15.
Joshua Tree Under the Milky Way from Henry Jun Wah Lee on Vimeo.
We couldn’t be more impressed with the way the Gizmodo community has pushed their photography skills with Shooting Challenges. So today, we’re expanding the idea with a once-a-month expansion called the Video Challenge. Our first topic: time lapse.
So How Will This Work?
With the existing Shooting Challenge, you get a little under a week to email us your photos that we feature and judge. With Video Challenges, we’re giving you a lot more time, but we simply cannot handle the HD videos internally. So we’re using Vimeo. And to keep the projects reasonable, all clips must be 45 seconds or less and begin with content, not slates, credits, colorbars or countdowns. They”ll be due February 9th by 8am Eastern. Results will be posted on the 11th.
Become a member of our Vimeo group and add your video by the deadline. We’ll then go through the submissions and highlight our favorites on Gizmodo.
The Rules – READ THESE
1. Submissions need to be your own, and you must have rights to use all content within them.
2. Videos must be produced (shot and edited) since this contest was announced.
3. Explain, briefly, the equipment, settings, technique and story behind the clip.
4. Tag all vimeo clips “video challenge” and “time lapse”
5. All clips must be 45 seconds or less…
6. …and begin with content, not slates, credits, colorbars or countdowns.
7. Entries should be uploaded to our vimeo group by Feb 9th and 8am Eastern.
Thoughts on the Road Ahead for Creative Professionals
In recent years, I believe that technology has been a little reckless with creative professionals. In many ways, technology has (shockingly) been obstructing productive creative careers. Crowdsourcing spec contests, the lack of proper attribution for most creative talent displayed online, and inefficient services for career management – just to name a few.
But my team and I at Behance see the tide turning. We believe that technology and the latest shifts in creative industries will ultimately empower creative professionals.
Here are some of our predictions (and hopes) for the creative professional community in the near future [and full disclaimer: our inherent bias is that we think about this full-time and are developing Behance with these thoughts in mind!]:
1. The Era of “Distributed Creative Production” Is Upon Us
The advertising agency of the future will consist of account managers, administrative staff, and a tiny leadership team that provides creative direction. The creative production itself will be distributed to individuals and small teams around the globe who are at the top of their game. The same applies to corporate marketing departments and other creative firms.
In the past, resources for finding and managing top talent were extremely limited. Now, the rise of online networks, as well as project management and collaboration tools is empowering creative professionals and ushering in a new era of independence.
In the past, resources for finding and managing top talent were extremely limited.
Recently, I sat on a panel for NY Advertising Week called “The Shortage of Digital Talent.” My fellow panelists – all senior folks from large agencies – sought to explain what they saw as a “shortage of creative talent” in the digital space. I was the only one with the opposite perspective. There is remarkable talent emerging from all corners of the globe. But, I explained, “the only problem is that this talent doesn’t need to work for you anymore.”
In the new era of “distributed creative production,” top talent will be able to work on their own terms. The companies (and clients) that welcome this future will benefit from better creative output.
via Shaping the Future: 7 Predictions for the Creative Community :: Articles :: The 99 Percent.
The JustFilms initiative will invest $10 million a year in film, video and digital works “that show courageous people confronting difficult issues and actively pursuing a more just, secure and sustainable world.”
via Ford Foundation Commits $50 Million to Films With Social Purpose | Digital Media Wire.
You know what that means don’t you? Get out your gear. Swipe through your contact list, and collaborate with your creative friends and associates… Because there’s money to be made creating digital video. Most of us know somebody who does something extraordinary, courageous or socially conscious. Now you can help them with their cause, and get your film funded too!
Acclaimed South Korean film director Park Chan-wook is wielding a new cinematic tool: the iPhone.
Park, director of the internationally known “Old Boy,”"Lady Vengeance” and “Thirst,” said Monday that his new fantasy-horror film “Paranmanjang” was shot entirely on Apple Inc.’s iconic smartphone.
“The new technology creates strange effects because it is new and because it is a medium the audience is used to,” Park told reporters Monday.
Storage developer now offers drive capacities of 2.5TB and 3TB
by Lucas Mearian, Computerworld
Western Digital announced Tuesday it’s been shipping the industry’s first serial ATA (SATA) 3TB internal hard drive for about a week. The new drive passes the previous 2.19TB ceiling due to 4-kilobyte sector sizes.
The new offering, part of WD’s Caviar Green family of SATA hard drives, is availabile in 2.5TB and 3TB capacities utilizing 750GB platters and Advanced Format technology. Advanced Format refers to any drive using sector sizes that are larger than the traditional size of 512 bytes. The new drive’s 4K sectors allow more bits to be packed onto the surface of the platter.
via Western Digital ships highest capacity SATA hard drive | Storage & Backup | Macworld.
Special discount to Streaming Media West for DVcreators.network members!
Come see, learn and discuss what’s taking place with online video business models and technology at the Streaming Media West show, November 1 – 3rd at Hyatt Century Plaza in West Los Angeles.
With more than 100 speakers and 30 sessions, Streaming Media West is where content owners, viral video creators, online marketers, enterprise corporations, broadcast professionals, ad agencies, educators, and others all come to see and hear the latest in online video technology. Speakers and presenters include key people from Google, Adobe, Limelight Networks, Brightcove, Roku, the major broadcast networks and more.
Click here for more details on the event:
http://www.streamingmedia.com/Conferences/West2010/
DVcreators.network has arranged for some discounted pricing:
Use the priority code DVCN to receive these discounts.
Click here to register now!
The Apple TV is admittedly a better bargain at $99, but it still isn’t really whetting my appetite. There are a couple of rumored new additions that could help that change, however. According to some, Live TV and PVR capabilities are next in line for Apple’s favorite living room hobby.
A new licensing partnership between Apple and Rovi Corp, a company that makes interactive television guides, is the reason for speculation about live TV coming to the set-top device. Piper Jaffray’s resident Apple prognosticator, Gene Munster, predicts the arrival of more TV-like features to the Apple TV thanks to the new partnership.
Munster thinks this is another step towards an all-in-one Apple TV, according to Business Insider:
We believe this announcement is further evidence that Apple is developing live TV and DVR features for its Apple TV product, and will likely launch an all-in-one Apple Television in the next 2-4 years.
While I agree with Munster that there’s a good chance Apple will try to introduce live TV and PVR functions, owing primarily to the looming competition they face in the living room from Google’s TV efforts, I’m not entirely convinced that an all-in-one device is on the way.
It’s true that eventually people will be looking exclusively for connected TVs as their devices of choice. Having basic web capabilities and on-device storage are already popular options among manufacturers. But is it what consumers want?
I’d argue that a cheap, portable device compatible with any potential viewing screen is a much better option from a consumer standpoint. With the current Apple TV, I can conceivably take it with me wherever I go, plug it in and get watching. An all-in-one device loses that, and costs a significant amount more.
What do you see in Apple TV’s future? Would you buy an all-in-one if Apple did make it?
via Live TV and PVR Next on the Menu for Apple TV?: Apple «.
Hosted By: MacMall & PC Mall
Location: SLS Hotel at Beverly Hills
465 South La Cienega Blvd.,
Los Angeles, CA 90048
Start Time: 9/22/2010 9:30 AM
End Time: 9/22/2010 5:00 PM
Time Zone: Pacific
You are invited to witness the latest and greatest innovations in the Creative realm at one of LA’s top luxury hotels! Immerse yourself in presentations and exhibits with the biggest names in Photography, Graphics, Video, Audio, Web and everything you’ll need in unleashing your creativity and productivity. Learn about the newest products, interact face to face with industry experts from Apple, Adobe, Autodesk, HP (and many more) and win cool prizes!!!
First 100 attendees get a Pure Digital Flip Video camera worth $149.99 for FREE*!
Lunch and refreshments served. Awarding of gifts and Grand Prize raffle drawing to be held towards the end of the exhibit.
The 60D, Canon’s new midrange DSLR, is a whole lot like the Rebel T2i inside—still fantastic. It’s what’s outside that’s better, a flip-out swivel screen and more rugged body that tug the camera closer toward video DSLR nirvana.
The 60D replaces the horribly aged 50D, sitting between the pricier 7D ($1900) and T2i ($900) in terms of features and specs, but for $1100 (body only, or $1400 with an 18-135mm kit lens). It’s using an 18-megapixel image sensor with a 4-channel readout that’s closer to the T2i (vs. the 8-channel readout on the 7D) along with the T2i’s metering system, but the auto-focusing system uses nine cross-type points, so it’s more pro than T2i in that regard. ISO goes up to 6400 normally, and 12,800 on expanded range. It shooters faster than the T2i, too, at 5.3fps. But like an entry-level camera, it’s moved to SDXC cards instead of glorious old CF.
Video is the now-standard Canon package: 1080p at 24 and 30fps, 720p at 60fps, in H.264.
via Canon 60D Impressions: The Perfect Video DSLR Is Just a Little Bit Closer.
Engadget is reporting on some leaked images and specs from a new Dell monitor that is supposed to be released this fall. At 30-inches, 2560×1600 resolution, 1,000:1 contrast ratio, and 7ms response it bests the new 27-inch Cinema Display in a few areas. If you’re in the market for a 30-inch monitor, it might be good to wait to see how this one performs.
via Dell UltraSharp U3011 about to join 30-inch IPS monitor crew — Engadget.
Canon has recently released new firmware for their EOS 7D. From the Canon website, it fixes the following issues:
Firmware update Version 1.2.2 incorporates the following improvements and fixes:
1. Fixes a phenomenon in which the set aperture moves when shooting movies
in manual exposure mode using some lenses (such as macro lenses).
2. Fixes the AF point-selection behavior of the C.Fn III-7 (Manual AF pt.
selec. pattern) custom function when set to [1].
3. Fixes the AF point display for the viewfinder electronic level when
shooting in the vertical position.
4. Corrects misspellings in the Spanish and Thai menus for applicable products.
We highly recommend keeping up to date on these software patches. Link is below.
Ok, so digital isn’t quite at the level of real film just yet. But, it’s getting pretty darned close. Zacuto has put together a series to demonstrate some of the new HD-DSLRs and how they stack up against some beloved 35mm film. Their line up includes the 5D MKII, 7D, 1D, T2i, Nikon D3s, and Panasonic GH1 vs. Kodak and Fuji film scanned at both 2k and 4k. It’s easy to see the HD-DSLRs can’t compete in terms of resolution, and they won’t compete on this front until their sensors can capture at 2k and 4k. But in terms of straight color reproduction, wow.
Check out their whole series and see their full battery of tests:
The Great Camera Shootout 2010 – Film Vs DSLR Comparison | Zacuto.
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