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Friday, July 26, 2013

Another copyright takedown, delivery dates and more

How often do companies try to suppress information using copyright takedown claims?
That's what I was wondering yesterday. Here's another example reported by Ars Technica; KTVU, who had that unfortunate incident with the pilot names on the Asiana Airlines crash attempted to suppress the video by posting take down claims on YouTube. It seems they gave up after a day or so...(you can't suppress the really big stuff.)



Kickstarter Project Canceled After Dude Spends All the Money | Gawker
This is interesting; guy makes $120,000 and blows it all on...well we're not too sure exactly on what, but he's given up on the project.

I thought this response way interesting. I wonder what the results are for Kickstarter projects:
Michael Scott ‏@DorkmanScott
I've backed 23, 22 of which succeeded; to date received rewards from 2. RT @E_MARSTON of the 4 i've donated to i've gotten one postcard.
Meanwhile, Backstreet Boy Nick Carter is raising money on IndieGoGo to make a horror movie.



Delivery Dates

Canon Announces New 70D Delivery Date | HDSLR Shooter
9/23/2013 (estimated)


Is Blackmagic going to ship their new cameras on time?
Andrew at EOSHD is reporting that the 4K camera won't trickle out until September, while the Pocket Camera will trickle out in the next 3-4 days, and ramp up in 2- 3 weeks. Maybe.

Andrew also thinks that "Blackmagic’s reputation cannot afford another BMCC 2012 situation." I'm not entirely sure that's true; as long as they do eventually ship the camera, and they continue to be well ahead of the competition, I suspect they'll still do okay.

Blackmagic updateOfficial statement from Blackmagic on new camera shipping | EOSHD


Other Stuff

Interested in the Sony FS700 and 4K recording?
Check these posts on shooting Raw, S-Log vs. CINE4 and firmware 3.0 at Too Much Information.


Woody Allen's Editor of 15 Years Alisa Lepselter Discusses Their Process and Their Latest Effort, 'Blue Jasmine' | Indiewire
He comes in and we review all the material, and start cutting from the beginning, from scene one, sequentially, which is also very helpful, because you understand what the tone is as you’re going along.


iPad Filmmaking On A Budget | Filmmaking Stuff
Filmmakers who have to have the latest stuff do this all the time. They are also the people who never get anything done, because they are always waiting for the next best thing. And the next best thing is SOOOOO much better than what they have. 

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Using a Copyright Infringement claim to shut down the opposition

Den Lennie has posted a story on Facebook about a short video review he posted on Vimeo getting taken down due to a Copyright Infringement claim from one of the manufacturers in the test.

What's disturbing is that in the thread of the post, a representative from the company actually seems to admit that they made the claim because they didn't like the results, not because of any copyright claim. In a first message they state "We just feel that the test was not fair or representative of our product," but in their second post they state:
You are completely right, we should have just contacted you directly to arrange the re-test rather than acted via Vimeo, please accept our sincere apologies for that. We of course have no issue at all with you posting the results of the re-test all we wanted was just to ensure the test was representative, there was nothing more to it than that.
This is, frankly, shocking.

While the internet is a sea of copyright infringement, and services like YouTube, Vimeo and Blogger are doing their best to remove offending material, their blind and automated processes can make it easy for infringement claims to be made, while making it difficult for those who have been labelled as infringers to clear the claim.

I had a DMCA complaint lodged against me for posting part of a press release; when I contacted the company that issued the press release they said they didn't even lodge the complaint! I was unable to find out who lodged the claim, or what the claim related to, in the end, I just removed the post (it was just a press release, after all, so I couldn't be bothered...)

Perhaps these companies should have policies for those who make frivolous claims of copyright infringement.


Update [Aug 1]: Rotolight Statement

The Musical Edition

Completely un-video related, I just ordered a Yamaha StagePas 400i. [We're getting the band back together-Ed] I was looking for something simple and light weight for vocals and guitar amplification. I nearly went with a mixer and powered speakers. Getting a dedicated mixer might have been the better choice if we had larger - or any - aspirations, but simplicity and lightness seemed the way to go.

The 400i is a new model; the previous models (the 300) were considered good for what they were, but the effects were criticized a lot. Yamaha re-engineered the effects in the 400i, so I'm hopeful they are useable. You don't get a lot of choice in effects, but again, we're looking for simplicity.


Back to the video stuff

Canon has a 50mm f/1.8 IS coming?
CanonRumors reports that maybe Canon has a 50mm f/1.8 IS coming. Canon currently has three 50mm lenses; the $125 f/1.8 II, the $399 f/1.4, and the $1,439 f/1.2L monster. CanonRumors wonder if it will replace the f/1.4.
Which raises the question; what is IS worth? If you're using the lens on a tripod, not much, but if you have it on a rig, then IS might be worth more than that extra stop or two.


CTRL+Console | FCP.co
Another iPad controller, this time for Final Cut Pro and Adobe Premiere Pro. The free controller works with QuickTime Player, then with in-app purchase you can get a basic controller for each app for $4.99, while the "full" editing interface is $29.99 (per app.)
Yeah, I'm not convinced I want to use my iPad as an interface either...


More on GenusTech's $99 GoPro Cage | News Shooter
Clinton Ham takes a quick look at the cage at the SMPTE show in Sydney. Still listed as "coming soon."


The latest NeedCreative Podcast features legendary author and now documentarian Christina Crawford.


Looking for free training in Adobe After Effects, Premiere, Apple Final Cut Pro X and Avid Media Composer & Symphony? Look no further than Rampant Design.


Read Scopes in Adobe Premiere Pro CS6 | YouTube
If you're just getting into color correction, this tutorial might be worth taking a look.


The best 5 DSLRS for Video....according to Noam Kroll.


Need to make a Digital Cinema Package (DCP)? We should all be so lucky. Danny Lacey explains how he did it himself.


VideoMaker takes a look at RĂ˜DE's IXY Stereo Microphone and Smartlav for the iPhone.
VideoMaker takes a quick look at these two iPhone accessories and offers a few observations and notes, though I don't really get a good sense of what these devices are good for, and whether they are really worth the money.
If you have either of these, I'd be interested to know what you think of them.


Beer Labels in Motion: Gif animations of different beer labels. I probably shouldn't enjoy these as much as I do...

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

News - The After Effects Edition

VFX Color Grading in After Effects - a quick tutorial for After Effects users showing how to create more dynamic images by adjusting multiple copies of the same video. You can do similar things in grading programs like Resolve, but if you have After Effects and just started playing with it, this could be a useful tutorial.




Animated Font - Franchise
This is sort of cool; an animated font. The Type Face was designed by one person, then animated by 110 animators in After Effects.

"The file contains all the keyframes, expressions and artwork from the artists. This makes it a great learning source for motion students and professionals."

Works for After Effects CS5 and up.
It's listed as "Free" but you must "pay" with a Tweet or a Post (to Facebook.)


Prolost Burns Preset for Adobe After Effects CS6
Stu Maschwitz has posted an After Effects preset that creates zooming/dissolving photo montages. It's $2.99. Or if you have a Mac, use the Ken Burns effect in iMovie ...


What Logic Pro X tells us about the future of Final Cut Pro X | Alex 4D
Alex Gollner thinks that Logic Pro X is an encouraging sign for Final Cut Pro X, and explains why:
This clue tells us that as well as supporting prosumers, the ‘Pro X’ apps are designed to be easier to use by post professionals who don’t spend all their time editing video (Final Cut) or making music (Logic). Perhaps Apple doesn’t believe in making apps hard to use so that only established pros in a discipline will want to use them.


Cleaning Your Lens | Vimeo
Jared Abrams at Wide Open Camera shows you how to clean your lens; with Dust-Off, Kimwipes and Pancro lens cleaning fluid...


Michael Cioni – Metadata owns future for digital filmmakers
| Producer's Pal Podcast
In this podcast Michael Cioni of Light Iron explains why metadata is the future.


EXTREME DOCUMENTARY: HOW VICE PUTS THE CANON C300 THROUGH ITS PACES | News Shooter
Cameraman Jerry Ricciotti and DP Jake Burghart travel the globe to film some of the biggest conflicts, most hostile environments and most hair-raising scenes for the HBO series Vice. I spoke to them about Vice’s style, shooting in extreme conditions and the team’s camera of choice, the Canon C300.


Panasonic G6 Review – the GH2 Redux | EOSHD
The G6 achieves a certain yin-and-yang. With the GH3 now occupying a higher position in the line, the G6 has moved up to occupy the position once taken by our much loved GH2. It shares the same sensor which of course was always pretty special for video, yet adds a lot of significant new features like 1080/60p, a faster processor, high resolution LCD and something the GH3 doesn’t even have – focus peaking.


Finally, Alister Chapman talks about the Sony F5 & F55 at Cine Gear 2013 | Vimeo
Note: For me, this video kept stopping, turning completely green and making popping noises. Jupm around, and it would come back...very annoying...

Cine Gear 2013 - F5 & F55 With Alister Chapman from Sony Professional USA on Vimeo.

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Just the news

The most interesting thing to come across the wires yesterday was this low-light comparison between the ARRI Alexa, Canon C300 and Sony F55 by Thomas Weber. The Alexa was rated the best picture below 800, while the F55 was the best at very high ISO's. The C300 did well in low light, and was no slouch considering it's considerably cheaper that the Alexa or F55.


Want to get into movie production? MovieScope offers two articles which paint a somewhat contradictory and confused picture of what's going on. In "The Film Release Slot Machine" distribution experts explain "how a decline in studio production bring opportunities for the independent sector," while in "Digital Distribution and the Invisibility Dilemma," "Industry analyst Michael Gubbins examines why the growth of digital cinema and on-demand platforms may see independent content disappearing…"
It's sort of like when matter and anti-matter come together...


But why worry about that? Sony want's to sell you a 4K camera, and has some information on 4K workflows which might help: 4K for Live Production.


Looking for a budget external digital recorder? The Blackmagic Design HyperDeck Shuttle is a bargain, though it might not offer all the options you need (there's no display screen) and attaching it to your camera might be a struggle. Matt Allard at News Shooter takes a look at a possible solution: the Geardear Cage for the HyperDeck Shuttle.


Popular Mechanics talks to Nick Woodman, founder and CEO of GoPro.
"Our goal was to create a celebration of inspired humans doing rad stuff around the world."


Final Cut Pro X Not For Complex Timelines?
Philip Johnston of HD Warrior explains problems he's had with a complex Final Cut Pro X timeline:
A common cause of this is over-use of compound clips, especially compound clips inside multiclips. I have seen this lead to multi-gigabyte project files, even though the timeline was only a few minutes long.


How Can Composers and Sound Designers Better Collaborate in Film? Sundance Institute and Skywalker Sound Have an Answer | IndieWire
"This idea of getting sound involved beginning with the script hasn't been taught in film schools. Our hope is that we're starting a movement that will take sound more seriously and integrate both of them more fully into the filmmaking process rather than their being the caboose at the end of the train,"

Monday, July 22, 2013

Cooler News

The weather has cooled down a bit here in Boston after several days of 90+ temps, so that's good news.

Unfortunately, the big studios didn't get a lot of good news this weekend, with R.I.P.D. and Turbo performing worse than expected (that's not exactly true, the word on R.I.P.D. has been bad for the last couple of weeks at least, so it probably lived up to low expectations.) According to the New York Times, Hollywood has now sustained six big-budget duds since May 1. Ouch.

Meanwhile, over at Slate, Peter Suderman has written about the book 'Save The Cat!" and blames it's adoption as a bible of screenwriting for many of the problems in modern movies. I was intrigued, as I was interviewing a scriptwriter a couple of weeks and he referenced this book (which I hadn't really come across before.)
...this book broke down the three-act structure into a detailed “beat sheet”: 15 key story “beats”—pivotal events that have to happen—and then gave each of those beats a name and a screenplay page number.


Paul Forte tweeted this picture of the "most bad-ass camera car I've ever seen." I have to agree. Unfortunately, there's no info of where this was taken.

Worried about the legal implications of trying to raise funds for your movie? The SEC has "finally published first rules that allow filmmakers and film startups to advertise their investment proposals to the public." Colin Brown talks about it on slated.com. And if you are starting out, here's "5 Mistakes Young Directors Make" and 12 Essential Elements Of Excellent Movie Trailers Shot On A Microbudget, including:
Lack of money equates to more preparation on your part for everything you do. Don’t count on good luck; rather prepare for Murphy’s Law.
Moviefone interviews the director of the new documentary "20 Feet from Stardom."

Lenses, lenses, lenses, if you're looking for some insight into how lenses are made, this article is interesting: Everything You Need to Know About Lens Quality:
The majority of lens elements have a curved surface and are known as spherical, as they would fit within the surface of a sphere. Historically, these were relatively cheap and easy to manufacture using grinding, but the design allows for the distortion of light wavelengths and therefore results in imperfections within the image.

NewsShooter covers another GoPro cage, and they think that this one from Genustech might be the best one yet.

Shane Hurlbut has put together a piece on his Go To Lighting Package.


Here's a piece shot on the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera. They liked the stealth factor of the camera, though interestingly, they mainly shot using Canon L lenses and the Redrock LiveLens adapter:

Auckland In My Pocket - Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera from A Couple Of Night Owls on Vimeo.