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Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Quick Links

LumoLabs: Nikon D800 video function demystified | Falk Lumo | Blog
Everyone says you should be more concerned about the image; than how the image is created, but I'm always intrigued by the tech. Falk looked at the D800 and works out how it downsamples the data from the sensor to create the final image:
The big discs are constructed such that the 1080p Nyquist frequency emerges at its outer circle. The two center discs have their edge at twice this Nyquist frequency and the four tiny discs at four times this frequency. Therefore, the false color moiré disc emerges at (149px/258px x2) or 1.155x the 1080p Nyquist frequency (1247 px). This means that the Nikon D800 samples ~1247 horizontal lines from its sensor.


A dynamic range test between Alexa, RED MX and Super 16 | Daniel Freytag | Blog
Daniel posts stills from cinematographer John Brawley's test video comparing the dynamic range of the Alexa, RED MX and Super 16 cameras:
Alexa was shot in LOG mode, recorded to PRO RES 4:4:4.
RED MX processed via R3D's natively in Lustre.
Super 16 was transferred to 2K DPX via Spirit. First setup was KODAK 250D and subsequent setups were KODAK 500T. NO noise reduction was used (though this would normally be applied)


Sony NEX-FS100 & FS700 | Alphatron
Zunow has introduced a lens for Sony E-mount camcorders: the Super Wide Vari-Angle lens E 11-16mm F2.8:
11-16mm Focal Lenght
F2.8-22 IRIS
1.1 feet M.O.D.
85mm Diameter
945 gr. Weight
4K Ready


New Zeiss wide angle SLR Lenses – and how they stack up against their Canon EF counterparts | Vincent Laforet | Blog
Vincent looks at Zeiss lenses:
This is a general statement – but the Zeiss and Canon lenses tend to be pretty even when you look at the focal lengths from 85mm and longer. That being said, Zeiss lenses are generally sharper amongst the wide focal lengths. You’ll notice this pretty significantly when you look at the edges of your frame, and when you shoot wide open (when you compare the Zeiss and Canon lenses that is – see below for examples that illustrate this point.)


Professional workflow for finishing 8bit HDSLR footage and applying film grain
| Rgrain | Vimeo
A tutorial from Rgrain on using their film grain filters:
This tutorial demonstrates how to cleanup 8bit DSLR footage, render to a 10Bit codec for more freedom during color grading and how to apply film grain.
This workflow uses After Effects, Neat Video, Synthetic Aperture Color Finess, Colorista II and ProRes. You can adapt the workflow using your own tools and codecs, this technique is the one we used for all our examples.


Panasonic jumping into the world of 4K at NAB 2012? | Andrew Reid | EOSHD
Andrew thinks that Panasonic will be announcing a 4K camera at NAB, and several people on Twitter today have heard similar stories. There's also a rumor that Canon will show an even more expensive video camera (than the C300):
The AVC-Ultra cameras may consist of a AF100 replacement (circa $6k point) and is likely to be 1080p. Then I’m expecting two higher end offerings with 4K and 12bit 4-4-4 intra frame codecs between $10,000 and $16,000 to compete with the Sony offerings.


The Future Of Digital Cinema | Mike Sutton | Wide Open Camera
Mike has written a column for Wide Open Camera on what he thinks the future of digital video will, and should be. He says most people he knows want everything in 4K with frame rates from 1-2564fps and a workflow as simple as ProRes.
Reality is that regardless of image resolution what the majority people (I am generalizing) really want is a camera that takes great images, has decent dynamic range, is easy to use and most importantly has a stable and simple workflow. This is why the Arri Alexa, F3 and C300 are so popular. Obviously the latter of the two are also affordable by most professionals but they also require a bit of rigging to suit most needs.


T3i Showing up “Discontinued” | CanonRumors
It's probably not going to be a big surprise if Canon does announce a T4i; but will it's video be any better than the T3i?
A large retailer in the US is showing the Rebel T3i as “discontinued” in their stock system. Could the arrival of the T4i be around the corner?


Contour+ vs. GoPro HD Hero 2: through the desert and into the skies
| Brian Heater | Engadget
An interview with Tim and Brian [Brian wrote the article, right? but who is Tim? -Ed] about shooting with these two cameras:
Tim: I've actually used both of them on my helmet when riding my motorcycle. At high-speeds you can absolutely feel the difference between the two. Plus, with a GoPro stuck up on top of my helmet I always feel about 10 times more conspicuous. This is also true when snowboarding. The goggle strap mount from Contour is very discrete. And it's also a lot easier to use with gloves on, thanks to the big slider on top.


Final short film for Sony using the FS100 “Portrait of a boxer” | Philip Bloom
| Blog
Philip was hired by Sony Europe to produce a series of films with the NEX-FS100. This blog post explains the making of the last one, along with a lot of BTS stills:
The FS100 is a bit of funny camera. It shoots amazing pictures but is ergonomically awkward and the highlights have a tendency to go a bit yellow when blown out, but it’s the best camera for the money by far.


The Canon EOS 5D Mark III “light leak” exposure meter concern | PlanetMitch
| Planet5D
Mitch tries to come to grips with the light leak issue:
While I agree that Canon should (and is) investigate this issue, I haven’t yet found any video proof that there is a problem for either full sun or nighttime shooting. People say they see something, but without seeing the conditions, how are we to know if it is an accurate test? (And yes, I can see people saying the same thing about my tests since I didn’t take a camera… but I’m a busy man and didn’t want to take the extra time on editing and uploading).


YouTube Adds 3D Video Capability and Nobody Cares | Danny Greer
| Premiumbeat
YouTube has been supporting 3D video for some time - I didn't realize they were now adding 3D to 2D video:
We use a combination of video characteristics such as color, spatial layout and motion to estimate a depth map for each frame of a monoscopic video sequence. The generated depth map and the original monoscopic frame create a stereo 3D left-right pair.


Sony to cut 10,000 jobs and slash bonuses, says Japanese newspaper |Sharif Sakr
| Engadget
Bad news from Sony, if true:
...come an announcement on April 12th, Kaz Hirai will reveal plans to clear out 10,000 jobs by the end of this year -- that's six percent of his workforce.

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