Notes On Video

Panasonic Europe posted a short interview with Barry Green about the new camera. In case you didn't read his write-up about it on dvxuser, he loves it! (you can read his write-up about it at dvxuser here: hands on the Panasonic AF100 . [ I don't know what lighting/camera they were using to do the interview, but it's some pretty awful video; his forehead is badly blown-out! ] Pricing : The 4/3 Rumors site says 5,830 Euro ($7,390) including VAT: UPDATED: Panasonic AG-AF101 with 1080 60/50p and for 5.830 Euro (VAT included)!   [ See UPDATE Below ] Urbanfox.tv updated their post about the camera, with these comments about some video they saw shot with it: Someone from Panasonic in Germany shot a performance/theatre piece, with lots of nice shallow depth of field, and not a lot to trouble the codec. But, the pictures looked very filmic, there was no video harshness, the colours appeared to be very accurate. It was restrained, not flat, but not in your face. Product...

With the rumor that the Sony NEX-VG10 was shipping today from (some?) locations floating about, I stopped by the local Sony Style store to see if they knew anything about it. They didn't. There were none in the store. When I asked someone there if he knew when they'd have one, I got a roll of the eyes and a reply that was something akin to "Wouldn't we all like to know the answer to that one..." When pressed, he said "Maybe by the end of the month?" but framed it like a question, and didn't sound too positive. I wasn't sure if that was because he thought they might come sooner...or later. Interestingly, on the Sony Style website, the camera is listed as BACKORDERED .

Barry Green at dvxuser got his hands on the Panasonic AF10 0: I am sooo not disappointed. They have built pretty much exactly what I was hoping for. There are things I'd like to see added before it's released, obviously, and no we didn't get some of the wild things we were hoping for (like a new 50-megabit 4:2:2 AVC codec) but what we did get is pretty much exactly what we needed – better-than-DSLR imagery in a professional, proper video body, with all the conveniences and features that pro video shooters are used to. Sony 35mm Digital Motion Picture Camera Meanwhile, there will be an unveiling of Sony 's next generation 35mm Digital Motion Picture Camera at the New York HD Expo on September 21st at 7pm. R.S.V.P. as seats are limited.

Red Giant has released a video noise removal plug-in called Denoiser . It sells for $99 and works with Adobe After Effects CS5, CS4, CS3 and Apple Final Cut Pro 7, 6.0.2. There's a trial version available. I already have Neat Video 's plug-in, but was curious to see how the Red Giant filter compared. I compared them both on a really noisy clip (you can also use these to remove subtle noise, but particularly with video re-compressed and uploaded on the web, those subtle effects are often lost anyway.) This quick test revealed similar results, but with a couple of important differences. Denoiser produced very good results by just adding the filter to the video. To get similar results with Neat , I had to go in and produce a profile for the video: to produce a profile you have to select part of the video frame that is - ideally - a single contiguous color region, the larger the better. Producing a profile isn't too difficult and doesn't take long at all; providing ...

IBC , a big media show in Amsterdam, starts today, and week after next is Photokina (typically still camera show) so there should be a few interesting developments over the next couple of weeks. Panasonic AF100 As expected, the AF100 / AF101 large sensor video camera from Panasonic is being shown. Urbanfox blog has some pics and information. Lots of people are repeating the 4,000 pound price, (that's about $6,000 USD), and many think this could be the DSLR killer (i.e. it provides the large sensor, shallow depth of field that DSLR sensors provide, but in the form factor/feature set of a video camera.) It may also have lower aliasing and less rolling shutter... All wild speculation at the moment, and the price is a consideration too; I think a percentage of DSLR buyers are attracted to the DSLR's by the comparatively low price, and don't think about the money they'll end up spending on lenses and accessories... Sony has announced Vegas Pro 10 , featuring native...

According to the bio at IMDB, "Rugged, hirsutely handsome Corbin Bernsen blazed to TV stardom in 1986 on "L.A. Law" (1986) as opportunistic divorce lawyer Arnie Becker." I was probably more familiar with his appearance in Major League , and his role as the father of the main character, Shawn Spencer, in the TV show Psych . But Bernsen is also intensely interested in independent film, having produced several including Carpool Guy , and 25 Hill which is about the All-American Soap Box Derby and is currently in post-production. Bernsen's speech at the Canon Expo was perhaps the most unexpected one I attended; he may not know the details of the technology, but he's madly excited about what it makes possible. As he says; he just get's his kids to explain the technology to him. He's also a bit of a wheeler-dealer; always looking for ways to fund movies, whether that means thinking about target markets while writing the script, working on cross-promot...

Bruce Dorn has been a director and cameraman since 1980. He thought he'd retired from motion picture work a few years ago, but then, in his own words "along came the Canon 5D Mark II with this incredible HD functionality." He's a C anon Explorer of Light and travels throughout the country lecturing and teaching workshops, as well as shooting various projects that interest him. His company, iDC Photo Video, is now selling some rigs and follow-focus units he developed. The following comments are from his talk at the recent Canon Expo : ON FOCUSING It really is quite a challenge to do this z-axis focus pulling, but you know what? Skill is the new black, we’re back to learning how to do manual stuff again. Manual focus is how we control the viewers attention. The trick on manual focus is; don’t over correct. You go until it feels sharp and then leave it. The last thing you want to do is rock and roll. Indecisiveness is not rewarding. It’s a challenge to work with extr...

NOTE : In case you hadn't guessed, I'm a B & H affiliate B & H has released an HDSLR Guide . Click the big START button below and ignore the exploded diagram of the HDSLR rig (that just takes you to a search for different gear on their website.) Click on the " Free in-depth Interactive Guide - READ NOW " button. This pops up a separate window with the Guide. The guide itself is divided into sections (just like a book!) with chapters on The Camera, Lenses, Filters, Matte Boxes, Focus Control, Monitoring, Camera Supports, Remote Operation, Recording Media, Audio, Post Production, Technique, and Video Basics. Although I've only skimmed through it, there seems to be a lot of content there (the lens section even covers "Focus Breathing" so it goes into quite some detail.) It may, of course, be too much detail for the newbie, and just end up confusing them (sometimes when starting out it's easier to just be told "do this and this...

Dennis Radeke of Adobe highlights the new Adobe Creative Suite 5 Production Premium software. Time: 10am - 12noon Where: Rule Boston, 395 Western Ave Boston MA R.S.V.P. events@rule.com

Tantalizingly, Rule Boston advertises a Learning Lab event for Sep 15 with the following: Kaori Uno, Sony Product Manager for XDCAM EX, will discuss new workflow techniques as well as new products introduced at IBC Expo 2010 Will this be something major, or just minor upgrades to existing products? Rule: Events Page

The Canon XF105 was on display at the Canon Expo, and though it and the XF100 aren't going to be available until early next year, they had functioning units to look at, and were able to demonstrate the features. However pricing and final functionality are still being nailed down. Pricing and Positioning It seems that Canon will be pitching these as the " cheapest 50Mbps camcorders that support 4:2:2. " They are also being billed as " smaller brothers to the XF300 " series, and the 3D capabilities are being pitched as well. Pricing is a concern though. At the show I heard the XF100 quoted as being $4,000, while the XF105 would be $5,000. Previously, street prices of $2,999 and $3,999 were quoted (on a forum) that were reportedly from a Canon source. But what will these be compared to? The Panasonic AG-HMC40 (~$2,000) or the AG-HMC150 (~$3,250) or the JVC GY-HM100U (~$2,800) or the Sony HXR-NX5U ($4,000)? Or will they be compared to something else? W...

Jared Abrahms at Cinema5D pronounced the Canon Expo in New York a complete waste of time. Stu Maschwitz at ProLost said of the 4K concept camera they showed; "There’s so much wrong with this prototype “concept camera” [...] that I hardly know where to begin. It’s an atrocity of aesthetics and ergonomics." Clearly the show wasn't a big hit with everyone. Okay, if you just went there looking for " The latest and greatest " DSLR equipment and filmmaking technology, you might have been disappointed, especially if you were hoping for a 5D Mark III. But if you were interested in video, technology, or Canon's current DSLR range, there was a lot to see. The new Canon lenses that had just been announced; the 70-300mm f/4 zoom and the 8-15mm fisheye zoom were there. In the latter case, there were two of them and the guy said they were the only ones in the country. That lens is crazy useful if you put it on the 5D as it goes from a fisheye 180 degrees to a regul...

An abbreviated post from my iPhone about the Canon Expo. I'll just list the highlights and try and do a more in-depth report next week. 1. Coming down I read a couple of Tweets from another blogger that described it as "corporate" and rather lame. Maybe I was expecting the worst, or had my expectations lowered, but I'm pretty amazed. They have ice skaters!!! 2. Vincent Laforet looks like the guy from C.S.I. 3. New York is humid and crowded. 4. The 4k camera is amazing as a demo, even if they didn't really have many details. 5. Ice skaters! 6. Daniel Berube from the Boston Final Cut User Group may get drummed out of the group; he was demoing Adobe Premiere! 7. They have an amazing print-on-demand machine...for those interested in that kind of thing. 8. I was surprised by the best speaker of the day; Corbin Bernsen. He's pationate about indie film making. I may not agree with all his ideas, but he has a lot if them! Well worth hearing. [ UPDA...

Steve Jobs rolled out the expected new version of the Apple TV that's 1/4 the size, and geared towards streaming and rentals of TV shows/movies (it has no internal storage.) You can still stream from your computer, so I assume you'll still be able to buy TV shows and movies using your computer if you want to. In the past, Steve somewhat dismissively said that Apple TV was a hobby, and they even riffed on that at the beginning when he said "One More Thing" and the screen changed to "One More Hobby." I was a bit surprised that the interface seemed almost identical to the current Apple TV; it had been rumored that it would use iOS, but when introducing it, Steve listed things they'd learned from the original Apple TV , and one of them was that people " don't want a computer. " The Apple TV will retail for $99 and be available in four weeks. It has HDMI output only (which is a problem for my old component only TV.) Steve also demoe...

Today Apple is doing a press announcement, and everyone seems to think that they will announce a new iPod Touch , and a $99 Apple TV . The latter will be a new version that runs the iOS (like that used in the iPhone and iPad ) and they'll also have rentable TV shows for 99 cents, and maybe other streaming deals (Netflix?) I'm wondering if my old Apple TV will now become irrelevant. Announcements start at 1pm, and Apple themselves are streaming the event. That in itself, might be a hint at what's to come, as they haven't been streaming their events for some time. Does this mean they think there will be a smaller audience than for iPhone rollouts, so they can handle it okay?; Or is it so there won't be so many bloggers live blogging the event and ruining Steve's wifi/cell access? Or does it mean they have a much bigger streaming service online to handle the demand? Guess we have to wait and see. I'm really hoping they'll either announce the avail...

According to an article on Canon Europe's site: The XF models use a new 1/3-type, 2.07 Megapixel Canon CMOS sensor, adapted from the 3CMOS sensor system employed in XF300-series models , captures Full HD video at native 1920x1080 resolution. The XF100-series has a new Infrared (IR) shooting mode that’s activated via a switch on the front of the camcorder, beneath the lens. With a built-in IR lamp, both green and white light shooting options. A single manual lens ring provides control over focus, zoom and iris, with a side-mounted switch allowing the user to switch instantly between modes. A new Face-Only AF mode limits autofocusing to detected faces only. Two CF slots for continuous (relay) recording. SD card slot for stills. PRICING According to a post at the dvinfo.net forum, the pricing of the cameras will be as follows: The Estimated Street Price for the XF100 is $2999 and the Estimated Street Price for the XF105 is $3999. However, Canon has made a corporate decision ...

XF100 I'm still getting over the announcement of the XF100 today....okay, it's not like the world completely changed, but in this day of rumors and leaks, it's a little shocking to see something like this appear without any prior hint. So what are the XF100 and XF105, and how do they compare with the XF300 and XF305? There's some information still missing (i.e. price) but comparing the available specs, you can see that the XF100/XF105 models are quite a bit smaller in size and probably lighter, with a shorter zoom (10x instead of 18x.) The cameras appear to use similar CMOS chips (at least the resolution is identical) with an approximate total number of pixels on the chip of .37 megapixels (2044 x 1160 pixels.) Obviously only 1920 x 1080 are actually used. The other significant difference is that the XF100 & XF105 have a single sensor, while the XF300 & XF305 have three. Sensitivity seems a little lower too, though this could be due to the slightly slower...

Well this came out of left field! Everyone was so focused on the 60D , that there wasn't even a hint of this announcement: two new "compact" camcorders that fit under the XF300/305 range, but look pretty "pro" anyway; 4:2:2 color! No prices and aren't scheduled for availability until first quarter 2011. PRESS RELEASE LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y., August 31, 2010 – Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging, today announces the new Canon XF105 and XF100 Professional Camcorders for mobile HD video capture in a compact form factor. Canon's smallest professional camcorders, the new XF105 and XF100 utilize the same Canon XF Codec featured in the Canon XF305 and XF300, introduced earlier this year. The Canon XF Codec is an MPEG-2 4:2:2 50Mbps codec used for exceptional high-definition image quality, full non-linear editing (NLE) systems compatibility and efficient, robust workflow. These camcorders include in-camera features enabling the easy set-up and capture ...

Jason Levine: DSLR Video Editing for Photographers Jason Levine has posted part 1 of DSLR Video Editing for Photographers . It's centered around Adobe Premiere CS5 . Jason Levine : DSLR Video Editing for Photographers Canon 60D lacks AF microadjustment Heavens! I didn't even know what AF Microadjustment was until I saw this posted at the Canonfumors forum, but it appears the 60D lacks this feature. Petitions will soon be happening! This article at Northlight Images explains how to do it (on cameras that have that function), though I'm trying to figure out if I even want to begin doing this... : Camera AF Microadjustment - for free Canonrumors.com : The 60D Needs AF Microadjustment Manfrotto’s 504HD Fluid Head overview Ian McCausland at CineTechnica takes a look at the new 504HD Fluid Head in this two minute video. It's an overview of the features, not a review of the head itself. CineTechnica : Manfrotto’s 504HD Fluid Head overview

A couple of months ago the B-17 Liberty Belle visited a small airfield north of Boston, and I went out to shoot some video of it. It was mostly a learning exercise as it was one of the first time's I used the Canon 7D to do an extended shoot. The weather was awful; during all of the time you could get close to the aircraft it was pouring rain, and the sky was totally white with clouds. I did a rough cut, and was somewhat happy with it, and then I went to the Philip Bloom workshop - it's never a good idea to do something like that in the middle of a project; you end up hating everything you've done - and decided the rough cut was too rough. There wasn't anything I could do about re-shooting, but I could do some visual effects. I ended up adding cloud effects using Apple Motion , which got rid of the boring white skies, and some zoom and panning to give the thing more life. Fortunately, all of the middle sequences were shot on a tripod, which - luckily - made addin...