Notes On Video

The following press release was sent out by Blackmagic. I've seen some footage and write-ups about Rush and it sounds like it could be a pretty good movie... Blackmagic Design today announced that Company 3 in London has used DaVinci Resolve for color grading Ron Howard’s F1 racing biographical action film “Rush.” “Rush” portrays the exhilarating true story of two of the greatest rivals the sport has ever witnessed, drivers James Hunt and Niki Lauda. Set against the sexy and glamorous golden age of F1 racing, "Rush" follows the two drivers as they push themselves to the breaking point of physical and psychological endurance, where there is no shortcut to victory and no margin for error. After a catastrophic crash during the 1976 German GP at the Nürburgring, which could have killed Lauda, he returns to face rival Hunt in their pursuit of the World Championship. Anthony Dod Mantle was the film’s cinematographer, and he presented Company 3’s senior colorist Adam ...

Perfect lenses are coming soon - but would we want them? | RedShark News And now, we are starting to see things that really did look like magic a few years ago, and one of them is the subject of this article: digitally correcting lens aberrations so that you end up with a better image that you could expect through optics alone. A day in the life of a 3D artist | CreativeBlog Actually no, the life of a freelancer is fraught with the dangers of missed deadlines, angry clients, an ever increasing workload and non payments. So why do it? Why not remove the stress from your working life and go corporate. The Camera's Cusp: Alfonso Cuarón Takes Filmmaking to a New Extreme With Gravity | Vulture “We are not editing our life. It’s only when we remember our life that we edit it. Alfonso is interested in this point of view where the audience’s point of view integrates with the characters’ point of view in a way that there are no interpretations. It’s more pure.” KEEP YOUR E...

MXL FR-500WK Wireless Mic for Videographers I wasn't even aware that MXL, who makes a variety of inexpensive mics, had a wireless mic system available specifically designed for videographers. But here's the MXL FR-500WK and at $399.95 , it's $99 cheaper than Sony UWP-V1, which is $499 . I haven't used the MXL, but I love the Sony UWP-V1; I've had it for a few years, an it just keeps working with little problems (except when the battery leaked a couple of weeks ago!) Would I buy the MXL instead of the Sony? I might, though having one unit I'd probably buy the same again just because I'm familiar with it. I did notice that the FR-500WK receiver has a built-in speaker...I personally don't think monitoring at the receiver is a good idea - better to monitor what the camera is actually recording - but that might be useful for DSLR users who can't monitor from their camera and are trying to diagnose issues during setup. You can read a short review...

GoPro has announced new models of their Hero line that are smaller and offer improved image quality, though rumors of 4K at 30fps proved incorrect; the new Black model goes to 15fps (up from 12fps on the current Black model.) Most people will probably want to shoot in the Black's 2,7K mode. GoPro also announced new accessories including a new LCD Touch BacPac, new Battery BacPac, and a variety of new mounts. Availability is quoted as "limited" at the moment. Features: HERO3+ is 20% smaller than the HERO3 and it features a lighter housing that's waterproof to 131' SuperView video mode allows you to capture an immersive wide angle perspective Auto Low Light mode intelligently adjusts frame rate for improved low light performance The HERO3+ features 33% improved image sharpness and reduced distortion The HERO3+ features faster built-in Wi-Fi for enhanced connectivity to the included Wi-Fi Remote and downloadable GoPro App The HERO3+ provides 25%...

Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera Review – Part 1 – Worth the hype? | EOSHD So the big companies will need to catch up with the Pocket Rocket or lose us. Even Panasonic who are not so shy of implementing useful features for filmmakers on the GH2, GH3, need to up their game when it comes to image quality because the Pocket Cinema Camera with ProRes (let alone raw video) is simply far superior to 8bit compressed footage from a stills sensor that has to throw a lot away in the downscaling process. Back focus, focus, and the Blackmagic Cinema Camera with EF mount | MKE Productions When Blackmagic designed the BMCC, they designed it to match with Canon’s cinema lenses.  These lenses are pricey, and made to much more exact measurements than Canon’s photo lenses, even their L series.  Most of the high-end lenses with EF mounts have very precise focus marks on the barrel.  They stop at exactly infinity.  Then, they released it to the public, and realized that certain ...

I attended part of the Hacking Arts conference at MIT over the weekend. It was an interesting series of presentations, a lot of them focusing on creating - and taking advantage of - social media audiences. There was also an interesting panel on film distribution via the internet. More on that later. Digital Bolex was also there. The following is a short presentation that Elle Schneider , Creative Director at Digital Bolex gave. An interview I did with her should be posted to Filmmaker Magazine later today.

I'm at the MIT Hacker Arts event, and there's been several presenters who have used the term self-curation for letting users choose (and be presented with) only the stuff they are interested in. But that's not curation, that's filtering. To me, Curation suggests going out and finding things that are linked together and presented to present a theme or message. It doesn't mean just picking things you like. Using curation to mean seeing only the things you like is a cheapening of the word.

Julian Smirke , First Assistant Editor on Star Trek Into Darkness was the guest at last night’s Boston Creative Pro User Group . He talked about being a first assistant editor, the process of editing a movie, and how scenes are developed. He also showed example clips from the movie. The following are my notes from the meeting: Julian opens with “I'm a first assistant editor, most of you are probably wondering what that means.” As an assistant editor, his task was primarily to assist one of the two film editors, Maryann Brandon. “It's a constant learning experience learning how to shape a performance, shape a story.” He shows a picture of his workspace at Bad Robot; he likes to work standing up at an elevated desk, though he also has a high chair to sit on for breaks. They worked on Avid Media Composer - he said most large Hollywood movies edit on Avid. “There was a period of time five or six years ago when there was a push to Final Cut, and they both have pluses a...

Taking The Movies Out of The Movies | proLost I wasn't a fan of The Hobbit, but I thought that was because I felt like I'd already seen the movie. Evidently, other's didn't like it because of the high frame-rates? So apparently, what we’d be “fools if we didn’t learn from The Hobbit” is that we can charge more money for stuff people don’t actually like. 10 Tips for Building Your Video Production or Editing Business on Twitter | PremiumBeat Having a clear plan.  Build a crowd of followers who might like a product when it’s launched.  Build a network of other professionals in your city.  Have an online presence with the goal of ‘industry recognition’ and ‘brand awareness’.  All of these are valid reasons to use Twitter.  Without a targeted goal you are aimless. Canon EOS C300 Digital Cinema Camera Provides Artistic Liberty for Shooting Commercials | Broadcast Engineering “The latitude test was shot on a backlit-latitude chart. I had 13 shots of det...

"More and more, I want to do less and less with the camera. Sometimes, well, we do too much." - Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC (American Cinematographer Oct. '13) Why We're Shutting Off Our Comments | Popular Science It would appear that comments are making us dumber - of course, anyone who's used YouTube could tell you that: In the civil group, those who initially did or did not support the technology — whom we identified with preliminary survey questions — continued to feel the same way after reading the comments. Those exposed to rude comments, however, ended up with a much more polarized understanding of the risks connected with the technology. Simply including an ad hominem attack in a reader comment was enough to make study participants think the downside of the reported technology was greater than they'd previously thought. The Illusion of Choice | MovieScope Why more isn't necessarily better: This all sounds like great news for the consumer...

Feedback using the BMPCC on a professional shoot | Olly P | EOSHD Forum Detailed user post on the new Pocket camera expresses some reservations for Pro work: For professional use, the fact you cant see how much recording time you have left or even format a card is a completely ludicrous omission and causes issues. Issues that take more time, more work, more stress, more stuff you shouldn't have to deal with in a camera. Blackmagic need to sort this out, it cant be difficult.  Blackmagic Cinema Camera Post Work-Flow | Brian Hallett | ProVideoCoalition Sub-titled: "How to process 2.5K when you have a crap computer" My computer is a 2011 MacBook Pro.  It was the first to have Thunderbolt.  4 GB of ram.  2.0 quad core.  It easily runs Avid Media composer, Motion, and just enough GPU to run Resolve.  When I say “just enough” the software plays the 2.5K at the blazing speed of 1 fps.  Not exactly the editing powerhouse, but it gets the job done......

I have to admit, I've wanted to get a quadcopter and fly a video camera for the last couple of years, but the cost - and the thought that I'd probably make a mess of it and just waste the money - caused me to hold back. A couple of weeks ago they went and dropped the price of the DJI Phantom by $200 , and when a friend said they were going to get one, well, I had to jump on it. Adding the prop-guard (an optional accessory) First things first, the box says "ready to fly" and yes, you don't have to do a lot of construction, but we did find that there was no manual in the box, and there's some confusing bits and pieces you have to do before starting. Even attaching the battery to the charger was a little more complicated than expected; partly because there's two attachment cables, and one of the connections was very tight! When you go to the website there's a bunch of manuals and instruction videos, and it's a bit overwhelming. Where are you ...

Dueling Reviews I was intrigued when the news of Sony's sensor/lens add-on for your smart phone, the DSC-QX10/B Smartphone Attachable 4.45-44.5mm Lens-Style Camera  ($248), first appeared. But, after thinking about it for a bit, I decided it would be something I'd carry around for a while, and then just leave at home. Then I got interested again; maybe it would be useful if it wasn't that expensive, and the pictures were better than I get with my iPhone camera. But now the reviews are coming in, and I'm not too sure what to think, as you can see from these two reviews that seem to come to different conclusions. Note that this is the review of the lower-end model. There is the DSC-QX100 Lens-style Camera  as well, but at $499, I'm not sure I'd be tempted to get that. I think I'll just continue to drag along the Sony NEX-5RK  when I need - much - better pictures. Sony Cyber-shot QX10 review: a WiFi 'lens camera' that mounts directly on your sm...

I was visiting friends, and I had the Sony ActionCam, the HDR-AS15  with me (currently $178 but now replaced by the HDR-AS30V , which is $298), and it was suggested that we try and fly it. The only problem was that the kite we had available was a dual line parafoil stunt kite, which is a fun kite to fly, but not really the kind of thing you want to fly for cinematic shots - it does best moving back and forth in the sky, especially when there's not a whole lot of wind. And secondly, we didn't have any sort of rig to attach the camera to the kite's rig. So we duct tapped it to the surface of the kite! I made a simple cardboard "stand" to help keep it vertical, and I also put some bubble wrap over the top of it to provide some added protection. And tapped it all down. And then we went and flew it. On the first attempt there wasn't enough wind and the kite spent most of the time hitting the ground. Also, we had the camera pointing forward; which mean...

Oh, this explains the Merlin 2 price drop ... I was wondering the other day why Steadicam had dropped the price on the Merlin 2 to $399, and here's a video from News Shooter.com at IBC on the answer: the Steadicam Solo which was previewed at NAB, and should be shipping in November for.....$499. Watch this interview Dan Chung of News Shooter has with  Robin Thwaites of Tiffen/Steadicam. This is interesting because: 1) You can see Dan is itching to ask some questions like " why is this is a lot cheaper than your usual gear? " and " are you worried about brushless gimbals? " (both questions he actually gets to.) 2) Some discussion of brushless gimbals vs Steadicam. Ignoring price (I don't think any brushless gimbal system other than home-built ones are close to $499) the issues that are highlighted are: Problems with up and down motion while walking (a problem that can also apply to Steadicam's if you don't have the vest and arm) Pr...

Black Betty  Wednesday 9/18 Learning Lab @ Rule Boston Camera Don't miss this Wed's 9/18 Learning Lab from 10am to 11am with Adam Van Voorhis and Mike Szegedi on the story behind Black Betty and how they built this DIY custom camera housing that combines a Silicon Imaging SI-2K Mini Camera Head and an Apple Mac Mini resulting in a cohesive, portable camera system! See more details on our website and RSVP to events@rule.com. This event is free. Documenting the Life of George Plimpton: Interview with Luke Poling and Tom Bean Part I | Michael Murie |  Filmmaker Magazine George Plimpton led an eclectic life as a journalist, writer, editor, sportsman and actor, though he was perhaps most widely known for his exploits as a participatory journalist. When filmmakers Luke Poling and Tom Bean set out to make their first documentary, Plimpton! Starring George Plimpton as Himself, they were faced with enough material to make several documentaries.  ONE MICROPHONE EVER...

News From IBC Taredek and News Shooter.com has been producing a live broadcast and reports from the show floor. You can catch up with most things through the Live Feed through September 18, and also at News Shooter . Here's some high-lights: SONY TALK 4K AND THE NEW FDR-AX1 AND PXW-Z100 – THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES | NewsShooter Interesting discussion about the new 4k cameras and where they fit into the mix. Also, talk of the new NEX-FS700 models, and a suggestion that they will be slightly cheaper than the current model. Two of the more interesting new cameras at IBC this year are the Sony FDR-AX1 and PXW-Z100, which both shoot 4K. On this episode of the Teradek/Newshooter.com live show Sony’s Bill Drummond tells us about the camera’s advantages, and also its limitations when compared to the company’s other handheld cameras like the PMW-200. ARRI’S STEPHAN SCHENK AND RODNEY CHARTERS TALK IN DETAIL ABOUT THE ARRI AMIRA | NewsShooter I know this camera is go...

Definition Magazine (Download PDF) Special IBC Edition Arri AMIRA (AMIRA) 200fps Documentary Style Pick up and Shoot Professional Grade Video Camera | CreativeVideo UK ARRI AMIRA unveiled | ARRI Cheaper ARRI...but I can't find a price anywhere... ARRI proudly presents AMIRA, a versatile documentary-style camera that combines exceptionalimage quality and affordable CFast 2.0 workflows with an ergonomic design optimized for singleoperatoruse and extended shoulder-mounted operation. Ready to pick up and shoot straight out ofthe camera bag, AMIRA is hardy enough to take anywhere and features in-camera grading withpre-loaded 3D LUTs, as well as 200 fps slow motion. ARRI/ZEISS Master Anamorphic Lens Series Shipping Dates | Cinescopophila ARRI have published shipping dates for all seven of their focal lengths in the ARRI/ZEISS Master Anamorphic lens series. The MA35, 50 and 75 were released in August this year and have started shipping, with the MA100 to follow in Oct...