News From Here & There

Sony PMW-F3
Andy Shipsides at Abel CineTech has been conducting some sensitivity tests on the PMW-F3, and posted his initial results that 0 db = 800 ISO, and 18db = 6400 ISO. He says he will be posting a detailed report soon.
DVinfo: 63db S/N Accurate on F3?

Matthew Allard has posted a video to Vimeo that compares the F3 and the Canon 5D Mark II. At the same shutter speed, f-stop and ISO, the F3 is noticeably brighter than the Canon 5D. He adds that "at ISO 1600 and 3200 the F3 was too bright and had to be stopped down to f4."
Vimeo: Sony F3 vs Canon 5D Mark II Low Light Test

Choosing between PL and still lenses for the F3?  Ola Christoffersson compares the choices, concluding:
when it comes to ergonomics [...] PL-lenses win, hands down. But in a lot of situations you can come reasonably close with a good still lens.
kamratprod.blogspot: PL-glass or still lenses for Sony F3



The Future of QuickTime
The news of a forthcoming update to Final Cut Pro has provoked quite a bit of excitement, but few people have thought much about QuickTime, which has gotten even less attention from Apple in the past few years. Philip Hodgetts goes over the future of media handling on the Mac, including the QTKit Framework and the AV Foundation from iOS 4.
So, two conclusions. Clearly the features not already added to QTKit for Lion will never be part of QuickTime moving forward. In its place is a much more flexible and powerful technology called Quartz Composer, integrated at the System level.

My other conclusion. I would be very, very surprised if – in addition to FXPlug – Final Cut Pro 8 (or 2011) did not support native Quartz Compositions as filters and transitions.
philiphidgetts: What is Apple doing with QuickTime?



Bad Movie Tips
Filmmaker.com has compiled a list of things to avoid in student movies - or any movie for that matter - including:
  • The Tortured Artist Film
  • Dream Sequences
  • & Bad Audio
But hey! Dolly/Zoom is out of bounds?!
Filmmaker.com: D.U.M.P.S.: Directing Unsuccessful Motion Picture Shorts



One last Oscar item: Cinematography
Mike Eisenberg at ScreenRant discusses the nominees for best Cinematography. Of the winner, Inception, he writes:
Few question the fortitude of Inception‘s cinematography. It is fresh from a technical perspective, using the latest technology to give the audience an immersive visual experience without falling into the 3D revolution. As advanced as the execution may be, it still lacks the imagery that the Academy tends to favor. For instance, the hallway fight scene is a true testament to the film’s creativity, but many would be hard-pressed to compare the actual imagery to the film’s competition this year.
ScreenRant: Oscars 2011 Spotlight: Best Cinematography



Bits & Pieces

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sony GV-D200 review

Image
Sony GV-D200 I've been using a Sony GV-D200 deck to transfer old Video8 and Hi8 tapes. Some of these tapes are over twenty years old, and no longer having a Hi8 camcorder that worked I was concerned that if I didn't do something about transferring them to a more modern format soon, I might never be able to. While Sony no longer make camcorders that use these tapes - that I know of - Sony does still sell the GV-D200 deck (or Video Walkman, as it's sometimes labelled.) They also offer the GV-D800, which is almost identical but adds a small LCD screen for about $120 more. I didn't think I'd need a screen since I was using this to capture to the computer, but you will need an external monitor when you first set it up. Physically, the device is small. At 5 7/8" wide, 5 3/8" deep and 2" high, it's the smallest video deck I've encountered. I used to have a Video8 deck that I thought was small; and it was twice as deep and twice as high. The t...
Read more

Response: Which iPhone to Get?

Image
In response to my iPhone musings, I got the following reader email which actually sums up a lot of my second and third thoughts too: You might have a point about the fancier camera, but otherwise I would buy the smaller model. Its screen is about the same size as that of my Nexus 4, and I don't feel at all like it limits me with a too-small screen. But I do sometimes stretch to get my thumb the reach to the other corner of the screen. It is plenty big for a phone. A phone is a pocket thing. (Well, in my case it lives an ancient REI soft sunglasses case that I have on my belt.) Ubiquitous, handy, convenient, almost always with me. Small is crucial for all of that. Certainly a large screen is cool, but you need a place to put it: don't break a fundamental feature of a pocket phone by getting too big. That is what your small tablet is for. I have my phone with me almost always. I have my Nexus 7 tablet with me nearly as much. The bigger screen is great, yet it fits in some...
Read more

Should you buy the Sony NEX-FS100 Kit Lens?

Image
The Sony NEX-FS100 is available in two configurations: B & H : NEX-FS100U Camcorder only $4,999 B & H : NEX-FS100U (with 18-200mm lens) $5,599 But what does that extra $600 get you? It get's you this: Sony 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 Zoom Lens for NEX Camera This lens is also available separately for $799.99, so at $200 off you'd think everyone would be jumping on it. But not so fast... In his article about switching from the Canon 5D Mark II to the Sony NEX-FS100 , Paul Antico  at Need Creative says of the kit lens: 7) Its 18-200 F3.6-6.3 kit lens absolutely sucks and should be avoided (thankfully, you can order it without one) [ 1 ] But is it that bad? At B & H 's site, 43 reviews give it an average of 4.6 out of 5 stars. That's not a bad rating, though many of these people are using it for stills, and the most common complaint noted is how large and heavy it is. Of course this feeling of size would be exacerbated when you put it on a tiny camera ...
Read more