Notes On Video

Philosophy change... | Jim Jannard | REDUser RED has changed their policy about pre-announcing things [ Didn't they already change their policy about a year ago? ] We will only announce new things when they are done and ready to ship. That includes Scarlet and all other new products and accessories. We used to go by "always late but worth the wait". That will no longer be the case because we won't telegraph what we are planning anymore. There will be no possibility of us being late. No more "we expect this to be done by..." From now on it will only be "Here is is and we are ready to ship". Meanwhile, the first Epic-X was picked up yesterday: 1st X...... The RED Revolution | Matthew Fleischer | LA Times Magazine An interesting look at RED, it's history, and current place in the market: The Epic will make its feature debut in the latest Spider-Man reboot—a Sony film. Sony, if you haven’t heard, happens to make a camera or two itsel...

New EF Mount Video Camera in October? [CR1] | CanonRumors CanonRumors has a couple of very sketchy reports on an EF mount, APS-C sensor video camera that might be coming from Canon in October. I've also heard a couple of similar rumors in the last few weeks, so maybe it's true? It seems plausible too, given that: Canon's been expected to come out with a large sensor camera since before the XF300 series (and the XF100 after it) were announced. Surely they'll eventually get around to it? Canon has a habit of releasing new video camera technologies a year or so after Sony and others release theirs. They really need to do something about all those EF mount lens owners switching to Sony and Panasonic. It solves the 5D Mark III problem; all those video shooters expecting the Mark III to be a killer video machine must be giving the stills division fits trying to figure out how to package HD-SDI and other features into a stills camera, and keep the price and size...

Each week Adobe Press offers a $9.99 eBook deal of the week. This week it's Adobe After Effects CS5 Visual Effects and Compositing Studio Techniques by Mark Christiansen, which currently sells for $37.79 on Amazon , or $26.39 as a Kindle book: Adobe After Effects CS5 Visual Effects and Compositing Studio Techniques . I've been curious about buying and using a text book electronically. I've bought fiction and read it on my iPad , but I haven't bought and used a book like this. And since I've been wanting to get a little more acquainted with After Effects , and the price was right, I decided to jump in and try it... To get the deal, you go to the deal page and the click on the buy link:  eBook Deal of the Week . You then have to create an account and enter payment information. The deal of the day page Once you create an account, you get sent a link to the book that appears on your Adobe Press account page. Clicking the link downloads the PDF that has been cu...

Following on from the over $20,000 AG-3DA1 Integrated Twin-Lens 3D Camcorder [wow, now $15,999.95 !] Panasonic has now announced the HDC-Z10000 which, if nothing else, looks a little more "professional" than the AG-3DA1 , which had a very plastic-toy like appearance. No price for the HDC-Z10000 has been announced, but PCWorld's suggestion that it will be a higher-end rival to the Sony HDR-TD10 is a safe one. I suspect it will be closer to $10,000 than $1,500. Notable features: Fully compatible with the AVCHD 3D/Progressive standard. AVCHD 3D, which uses MVC (Multiview Video Coding) to record and playback 3D images via the Frame Sequential Method, and AVCHD Progressive for progressive formats. Recording modes from AVCHD 3D (1080/60i, 1080/24p, and 1080/30p*2), AVCHD Progressive (1080/60p), and AVCHD (1080/24p, 1080/30p*2 and 1080/60i PH/HA/HE mode). The closest 3D video macro setting for a twin-lens 3D camcorder at approximately 17.8 inches. A 1,152,000-dot, ...

Last night I saw the documentary Objectified , the latest movie from the maker of the film Helvetica : ...it’s about the manufactured objects we surround ourselves with, and the people who make them. On an average day, each of us uses hundreds of objects. (Don’t believe it? Start counting: alarm clock, light switch, faucet, shampoo bottle, toothbrush, razor…) Who makes all these things, and why do they look and feel the way they do? All of these objects are “designed,” but how can good design make them, and our lives, better? Years ago I read the book The Psychology Of Everyday Things  and it really was an eye opener for me. The message of " The Psychology Of Everyday Things " was that if the user has a problem using something, then it's the fault of the design, not the user. Objectified covers some of the same ground, starting with the idea that we don't even consider that common everyday things are designed. It then moves on to theories of design, before ending ...

First Amendment Rights: New Ruling on Recording Police | Jennifer O'Rourke | Videomaker Police in several states have been actively trying to prevent the public from recording them. In Massachusetts they have sometimes used a law against wire tapping to prevent this recording. Now the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts has ruled in favor of a man that was arrested while shooting an arrest: “In this interlocutory appeal, the defendant police officers challenge an order of the district court denying them qualified immunity on Glik’s constitutional claims. We conclude, based on the facts alleged, that Glik was exercising clearly established First Amendment rights in filming the officers in a public space, and that his clearly-established Fourth Amendment rights were violated by his arrest without probable cause. We therefore affirm.” DaVinci Resolve On The Mac For Video Editors | Filmmaking Webinars September 8, 2011 @ 10:00 AM PDT to 11:30 AM PDT ...

The SLT Mirror: Effects on Image Quality | Ray Lemieux | TheSyberSite Sony's new A77 features a translucent mirror, which splits some of the light to the viewfinder, while letting the rest travel through to the sensor. Which raises the question; can you get something for nothing? Ray did a test with his A55 (which also has a translucent mirror) by shooting with and without the mirror, and discovers that: 1. The mirror reduces the amount of light reaching the sensor by about 1/2 stop. 2. The mirror reduces image detail. Small but important Sony A77 Europe/US difference in video recording? | SonyAlphaRumors It was noted before the announcement, but it's now confirmed, that the European version of the A77 won't shoot in 24p, and the US version won't shoot in 25p. Known Issues | Adobe products on Mac OS 10.7 Lion | Adobe Issues for all products are listed, including Premiere Pro : In Adobe Premiere Pro CS5, the eyedropper tool (e.g., for the Ultra Key effect...

Rule Boston Camera 's ongoing educational programs: Wednesday SEP 14 | 10am - 12 noon CROSSOVER PRODUCTION SWITCHER SYSTEM Ross Video reviews the CrossOver Studio - a portable and affordable multi-definition production solution with 12 HD/SD inputs, internal multi-viewer, 4 channels of media store with 4 GB of RAM cache and more. Wednesday SEP 21 | 10am - 12 noon MAXIMIZING CINEDECK FOR PRODUCTION + POST Cinedeck CEO Alan Hoff brings breaking news from IBC along with an overview on how best to utilize Cinedeck Extreme with Sony F3 S-Log capture and uncompressed 4:4:4, Arri Alexa and RED Epic plus more Double Header: Thursday SEP 29 | 10am - 12noon LearningLab OR Thursday SEP 29 | 6pm - 8pm PUB NIGHT ARRI's Guenter Noesner provides the scoop from IBC along with updates on the ARRI ALEXA featuring the CODEX ARRIRAW recorder and an overview of the ARRI Look Creator. Rule Boston Camera 395 Western Avenue, Boston MA 02135 RSVP: events@rule.com

EditShare , the developers of Lightworks , the Open Source Video Editing Project, are promising a big announcement on September 8th at IBC in Amsterdam. We have a very big announcement to make, and we're going to do it at the IBC show in Amsderdam on September 8th. All registered users will be informed at the same time. We're sorry that you're going to have to wait just a bit longer, but please take it from us: it's worth waiting for. Put September 8th in your diary for some extremely exciting news. Hmmm....what could the big announcement be? Could they be announcing an iMovie -like Pro version? A free cross-grade for existing owners of Avid and Adobe Premiere ? 3D video editing support? Or maybe it's a Mac version? We shall have to wait and see... Lightworks video editor EditShare : Will you be at IBC in Amsterdam on September 8th? We'll be there, and with big news about Lightworks!

Blackmagic sent out a press release announcing that it's UltraStudio 3D is the "world’s first video product with Thunderbolt technology," and that it is now shipping. UltraStudio 3D allows portable capture and playback with full resolution dual stream 3D support, 10 bit hardware architecture, dual link 3 Gb/s SDI, support for up to 1080p60 in SDI and component analog and HDMI 1.4a connections, as well as full SD, HD and 2K support, is now shipping for only US$995. [B & H still lists it as available for pre-order, at $945.25 .] Dual stream 3D allows customers to use the UltraStudio 3D dual link SDI connections to capture and play back two streams, one for the left eye and one for the right eye. The two streams are recorded into two separate media files. UltraStudio 3D is also based on a new internal hardware design with support for 10 bit SDI video and full support for video rates up to 1080p60 via SDI, HDMI and analog component. Thunderbolt technology easil...

I have to admit that I'm more than a bit curious about the NEX-VG20 , mainly because I don't like shooting video with DSLRs (I don't like the form factor, and the need to add on a bunch of gadgets to make them useable) but also because it's half the price of the other alternatives; the Sony NEX-FS100 and the Panasonic AG-AF100 , so it's a big sensor video camera that's within my budget. When the NEX-VG10 appeared a year ago, there was a lot of interest in it because it almost seemed like Sony's answer to the DSLR video resolution. But it had a lot of limitations; 30p video (stored as a 60i file), no ND filters, limited controls, a slow, awkward lens, no manual audio controls... When I managed to spend a few minutes playing with one, I really didn't like the lens; it wasn't a zoom lens by any means, but a variable focal length lens that was rather sticky. And then a few months later, Sony started to roll out their professional grade cameras; t...

This'll be quick, incase I lose power, though it seems that at least here in Eastern Massachusetts, the storm has not been nearly as bad as it could have been. I hope everyone has made it through the storm okay. Sony NEX-5n to be in Stock tomorrow(!) in Canada (one week later in US) | SonyAlhpaRumors Looks like the Canadians get the NEX-5N first, and it will start shipping - at least from Sony - in the US next week. The NEX-5N looks like a great camera, and I'm hoping to get my hands on a review unit shortly. Amazon : Sony NEX-5N 16.1 MP Compact Interchangeable Lens Camera with Touchscreen - Body Only (Black) Amazon : Sony NEX-5N 16.1 MP Compact Interchangeable Lens Touchscreen Camera With 18-55mm Lens (Black) B&H : Alpha NEX-5N Digital Camera (Body Only) [$599.99] B & H : Alpha NEX-5N Digital Camera with 18-55mm Lens (Black) [$699.99] Sony FS100 Picture Profile & thoughts | James Miller | mmfilm James explains the picture profile he now uses wi...

Bore yourself senseless with this Lens Blog | Sam Morgan Moore | Dslr 4 Real Prompted by discussions about lenses between other DPs, Sam weighs in with his lens preferences in a stream-of-consiousness form. Sony NEX 50mm f/1.8 OSS Lens Sample Photos | ePHOTOzine Some sample pictures from the upcoming Sony NEX 50mm f/1.8 lens. This lens will sell for $299.99, but since it's not expected until around November, neither Amazon or B & H are taking pre-orders. Sony also offers a f1.8 Alpha lens, and there's a review of that at photozone using it with the LA-EA1 adapter and the NEX-5 (not the 5N .) They weren't that impressed with the build quality of that lens, or it's autofocus capabilities (though that lens sells for only $149.99). Hopefully this NEX lens will be a bit better. Photozone : Sony 50mm f/1.8 DT ( SAL-50F18 ) on Sony NEX - Lab Test / Review B & H : Sony 50mm F1.8mm E-MOUNT LENS [Notification only] B & H : SAL-50F18 50mm f/1.8 DT AF L...

Sony NEX-FS100 review | Sharif Sakr | Engadget Engadget has an indepth review of the NEX-FS100 . The camera may be a step above Engadget's usual "gadget" category, but this is a reasonably thorough review, touching most of the major issues. I'm not sure I agree with all of the explanations and interpretations, the prices are a bit off ( the body sells for $4,999 , not $5,900) and the kit lens is f/3.5-6.3 (not just f/3.5) but that's quibbling. [Note: the author is English and may be using UK prices .] There's an interesting note about using the camera in low-light and not believing that it will perform as well as it did: There wasn't a great deal of noise visible on the small LCD, but all our instincts shouted at us that this 18db footage would be speckled worse than a speckled hen when we got home and saw it on a large monitor. So we switched back to 12db and did our best to hunt out decent shots at that level of gain, which turned out to be missio...

Amazon US: The NEX-7 gets more preorders than the A77! | SonyAlphaRumors SonyAlphaRumors is shocked that as of yesterday, the NEX-7 had more pre-orders on Amazon than the A77 does. [ Best Sellers in Digital SLR Cameras ] Today the Sony NEX-7 Body Only [$1,199.99] and the Sony NEX-7 with 18-55mm Lens [$1,349.99] rank 6 and 10, while the A77 With 16-50mm F2.8 lens [$1,99.99] is at #15. Should we really be surprised, given the price difference? What really surprises me is that the Sony NEX-5N With 18-55mm Lens only makes an appearance at #16 [$699.99]. I thought it would be much higher than the NEX-7 , but maybe it has something to do with the fact that the NEX-5N is an upgrade of an existing camera, while the NEX-7 is "totally new" (so existing owners of the NEX-5 may be buying the NEX-7 ...) The NEX-VG20 is not yet available for pre-order (it's not supposed to ship until November) so doesn't appear in any lists yet! Which is best for low light? Sony NE...

An issue that's come up now and again about the Sony NEX-FS100 is it's reported support for 4:4:4 RGB output via it's HDMI port. Sony brochures mention it, but the interesting thing is that practically no video recorders seem to support 4:4:4 RGB, and I've spoken to representatives of AJA and Blackmagic, and they seem as unclear on what 4:4:4 RGB is as I am! But, 4:4:4 RGB is clearly better than 4:2:2 YCbCr (right?), so people have been very interested in this capability. Now comes Philip Johnston from HD Warrior , who has managed to get an actual reply from his contacts at Sony UK, and they have added new details to the story. The really important part is this: ...the data of the image created by the FS100/NX70 processor is just 4:2:2. Then it is lifted up to 4:4:4 in the HDMI processor if the connected device is 444 capable. That's right, even if you have a display device or a recorder that supported RGB 4:4:4, the signal you are getting from the NEX-FS100...

Panasonic announced the DMC-FZ150 , a 24x Super-Zoom Camera with Full HD Video (1080p) Recording, the DMC-FX90 point-and shoot with Wi-Fi connectivity, and two new Micro Four-Thirds lenses; a wide-angle and telephoto zoom that are small and offer improved performance. I'm going  to skip the cameras, but the lenses may be of interest to Panasonic GH2 or AG-AF100 owners. Unfortunately, while these lenses should appeal to still shooters, and will work with any Micro Four-Thirds camera, they probably won't appeal to the video shooter. The pancake lens particularly seems to be very small, and with it's electric powered operation, and "manual focus lever" I'm thinking it might be rather difficult to operate. The longer zoom may be less finicky, but it's also not a constant aperture lens. It's perhaps notable that they are calling these "premium" lenses, and not "professional" lenses, which is what I had thought they were going to be...

Sony UK Webchat Yesterday Sony UK had a live video webchat with Sony Rep Paul Genge . I only caught some of it, but here's my notes: He showed the LA-EA2 A-mount to E-mount adapter. It’s got a translucent mirror in it and the base houses the auto-focus module. It will be compatible with previous models he says, but the cameras will require a firmware upgrade. It’s coming in a couple of months and a firmware upgrade will come then too. Someone asked about overheating . He said that the overheating issue of the A55 was caused by the steadyshot mechanism moving the shift mechanism, contributing to the overheating. This caused a thermostat warning to appear quite quickly. If you turned off steadyshot you got the full 29 minutes of recording. They have reverted to an electronic image stabilization system to counteract the overheating. He noted that you can record for "the full" 29 minutes. An earlier article suggested that the 29 minute limit was technology related, b...

The great 'Get' mystery has been solved, it's now called Boris Soundbite | fcp.co AV3's phonetic search engine for Final Cut Pro , " Get " was recently discontinued, reportedly after Nexidia , the company that owns the technology, ended the relationship with AV3. Now the software has turned up as Boris Soundbite . Note that there's no mention of " Get " on Boris' website, and as fcp.co writes: We are pleased to see it back, it would have been a shame for this product to have slipped away and not returned. We cannot comment on the rumour that next year it will be called 'Grab" from Red Giant. Soundbite currently runs under Final Cut Pro 7 or 6.0.2, but the prodcut page says that a FCP X version will be available soon as a free upgrade. You can buy it now for $295 (discounted from $495), though whether Nexidia will end the agreement with Boris after a year, who knows. BorisFX : Soundbite DualEyes 2.0 now available | Singu...

To the Apple Board of Directors and the Apple Community: I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come. I hereby resign as CEO of Apple. I would like to serve, if the Board sees fit, as Chairman of the Board, director and Apple employee. As far as my successor goes, I strongly recommend that we execute our succession plan and name Tim Cook as CEO of Apple. I believe Apple’s brightest and most innovative days are ahead of it. And I look forward to watching and contributing to its success in a new role. I have made some of the best friends of my life at Apple, and I thank you all for the many years of being able to work alongside you. Steve Source : Apple