Notes On Video

Overheard in the Control Room is a Facebook group where people post things heard in television control rooms. Some of them are quite funny! "Didn't we tell you that you couldn't wear green because of the chroma key?" "But this is LIME green!" It was the night that the producer of the James Bond movies, Albert Broccoli, died. The producer ordered a graphic of Broccoli but guess what, it was the vegetable broccoli. The graphic dissolved into an OTS over the anchor's shoulder and the entire studio and control room dissolved in hysterics Working an NFL game the director says to a camera op..."Giving me nothing would be a great improvement over the cr$% you are giving me" Director: " Give me a closeup of the whole group" Back before the days of non-linear editing, an editor friend of mine told me how he once had a client who spent hours analog editing a TV commercial with him and when they were done, the client said, "OK,

Tonklemoose , the Twitter account for Creativevideo.co.uk, would like to remind all those of the European persuasion that the EU duty on camcorders will increase by 1.5% (to 14%) on February 1st, 2010. The interesting thing about the EU tax on camcorders (for those outside the EU) is that it is the reason Canon restricts their 7D and 5D Mark II to 29:59 minutes of recording maximum, in Standard Definition mode. With that limitation, the cameras are not classified as camcorders, and don't get hit with the duty.

I see that the waterproof case for the ContourHD camera is now available on Amazon....but with an expected ship date of 1 to 2 months! They also list the price at $45.84, though VholdR's own website says the list price is $39.99. (I've seen this happen before with items listed above expected price on Amazon's site prior to them actually becoming available, so hopefully things will get sorted out in the next few days/weeks.) No sign of the Handle Bar Mount yet.

Over on Gizmodo , Frank Beacham tells a charming story about Orson Welles, the early days of Sony Betacam, and dreams that might have been. Whenever I see a tiny new camcorder introduced, or see Apple upgrade a revolutionary application like iMovie, I think of Orson. Oh, how excited he'd be. The pure magic of it all! If he were alive today, he'd be making his movies without regard to raising huge amounts of money. That, for both Orson and his audience, would be an achievement that we'll never be able to enjoy. It’s really worth reading: Orson Welles and His Brief Passionate Betacam Love Affair ...and connects nicely with the story of Fede Alvarez, who made a $300 video and landed himself a $30 million contract with Ghost House Pictures .

Tonklemoose [ really?! -Ed] the Twitter account for UK video equipment retailer creativevideo.co.uk reports that the Sony NXCAM model will be called the HXR-NX5, and that it will be available in January (probably after CES ?)

Camcorderinfo.com takes a bash at reviewing the Canon 7D’s video performance . They don’t do a full review, but then you can find that at Digitalcamerainfo.com ; the two sites have actually created a combined review with Camorderinfo doing the video aspects, and Digitalcamerainfo.com doing the still camera functionality. The Camcorderinfo page sums up most aspects of video performance. They found that color accuracy was no better than the competition, they were “fairly impressed” by the motion performance, and it did better than the others in low light, but for sharpness it was found to be weaker than the Panasonic GH1 and Canon 5D Mark II. Make sure you go to the linked pages at Digitalcamerainfo.com that go into more details, as they  also compare the performance relative to some video camcorders as well. While the Canon 7D's sharpness numbers aren't that bad, they definitely are lower than some consumer HD camcorders are capable—specifically in bright light. The Canon HF

Overheating continues to be an issue for some users of the Canon 7D, with lots of theories about what is causing it, or how to avoid it. There are some things we know for certain, and many things that are the subject of wild speculation. Here’s what’s known: Reports of the 7D overheating seem to be more prevalent than they were/are for the 5D, though there have been reports of the 5D overheating, so it's not entirely unique to the 7D. The camera continues to operate (most of the time) with the thermal warning on, and most people don’t really notice a degradation in the image quality, though one user reported a glowing pixel in the dark areas of later footage. Most people are encountering the problem after an extended period of operation (i.e. into the second hour of non-stop usage.) Some cameras seem to display the warning earlier than others (though it’s unclear whether this is due to differences in operation, or actual differences in the way cameras are calibrated.) Here’s some c

Film director Werner Herzog was interviewed on the radio program onpointradio today. He talks about his new movie The Bad Lieutenant , his book - diary really - about the making of Fitzcarraldo , and mostly just about movie making. The book Conquest of the Useless: Reflections from the Making of Fitzcarraldo is currently available in hardcover: Originally published in the noted director's native Germany in 2004, Herzog's diary, more prose poetry than journal entries, will appeal even to those unfamiliar with the extravagant 1982 film. From June 1979 to November 1981, Herzog recounted not only the particulars of shooting the difficult film about a fictional rubber baron—which included the famous sequence of a steamer ship being maneuvered over a hill from one river to another—but also the dreamlike quality of life in the Amazon. Perhaps more interestingly, he’s offering Werner Herzog’s Rogue Film School : In January 2010, Herzog is offering a series of weekend seminars to sel

I'm loath to write about this as I'm not a fan of "competitions" and "festivals" that have high entrance fees; I secretly suspect that they are just ways to make money from the entrants. At $40 per entry, the Can-Do Festival and Competition is enough to get me concerned because: 1) Though there's mention of a BluRay "projected at a major media event" there's little information about what the festival part actually is. 2) You'd be forgiven if you thought the event was sponsored by Canon: the Canon logo is the only graphic logo - in a fairly prominent place - on every page, there's a direct link from one tab to a Canon web page, and there's a reference to Canon Inc where it says "Canon Inc and RAWworks prizes", which can be taken to mean Canon Inc is involved, but could also simply be a reference to the make of the prizes. 3) Other than the judges, there's no information about who actually is organizing this event.

Tim Smith of Canon is back with more about the upcoming firmware update for the 5D Mark II, which will add 24fps, and now, it seems, support for 720p at 60fps as well. The Planet5D blog has posted the information , along with a short video taken at the Createasphere workshop. Tim also retells the story of the history of the camera , which he has repeated on more than one occasion. Great excitement for Canon 5D owners!

VholdR has just announced an underwater case for their Contour camera which costs $39.99 and should be available in December (though not yet, and it's not listed at Amazon!) It's looks good, with an operating depth up to 10 meters, and power and record switches. The only downer for me is I just spent $160 a month ago for an enclosure for my Sony camera . BUT, it's not all bad news as the Sony does give you - limited - viewing of the LCD screen, and an operational zoom button. Still if you have a Contour camera, the waterproof case looks like a good investment. They also have a new Handle Bar Mount for $29.99, and a Lens Kit for $29.99 which provides extra lens covers and a replacement Lens Ring. There's also a Lens Adaptor Ring that lets you add a standard 37mm lens filter to the camera. Check they're accessory page , though note that buying only a few of these can start adding considerably to the original cost of the camera.

I’ve had a Canon 7D for about a month now, and I have to say, it’s turning into a love/hate relationship. On the love side, it is a really nice DSLR. Of course, I would say that; my previous DSLR is the Canon 10D. A couple of notes about the 10D vs the 7D; it’s amazing how similar the two cameras are in size, shape and arrangement of controls. If you’re happy with the way Canon puts cameras together, it’s easy to go from one to the other. And the 7D is definitely a big improvement, though the two things I notice most frequently is the difference in focusing (the extra focus points and routines really change the way that works) and the much larger LCD screen, which makes it easier to review pictures on the fly. There’s lots of other tweaks along the way, and who can forget the difference in resolution, though frankly, I don’t need 18MP… But back to video. Where to start? Well, firstly, the good: It is really neat to be able to use your SLR to record video sequences, even if it’s just im

I'm not a RED expert, and if you want to get positively biased information about the RED Scarlet, then you should head straight to the source. I kind of ignore RED most of the time, because their $17,000 camera is well beyond my budget and needs. But a while back they announced a "budget" camera called Scarlet that the RED fans have been saying for most of the year will blow Canon DSLRs - and pretty much every other video camera under $10,000 - out of the water. I just bought a Canon 7D. RED's been dripping out information about the camera for some time now. It's kind of interesting because I have to admit that I've spent a lot of my time over the past year at canonrumors searching for news on new cameras, and appleinsider for news of an Apple Tablet. So I'm a rumors/news junky. But I have to say, hearing about something months and months prior to it's release is a bit frustrating; with that amount of lead time you have no real idea when the came

I mentioned the online Sony HD Expo and how there's a video introducing the NXCAM featuring Juan Martinez, SXZenior Product Manager for Sony Broadcast & Professional AV Products and Andy Munitz, National Training Manager . Previously, you had to register to get in to see it, but Sony has now posted that video - along with a teaser promotional video for the NXCAM - on their NXCAM webpage . It's about 10 minutes long, and if you're at all interested in the NXCAM, it's worth watching.

The iPhone storyboard application Hitchcock, which I reviewed a few weeks back , has changed it's name to Storyboard Composer . The update just appeared - for me - on iTunes , and it said that it added PDF Export, though the function seems to be the same as in the previous release. [ UPDATE ] Interestingly, while the application name is changed, and the exported PDF has a new product name/logo on it, the email you receive from their server when the uploaded storyboard is available still says " Cinemek Hitchcock " [ UPDATE 2 ] Turns out it was Export to PDF fixes .

There's been very little to write about this week. Apple released an update to Final Cut Server , and ahh.....well that's about it. Other than that, I've been checking the Black Friday deals at Amazon , and already bought a 7" monitor, so it's been good...or bad, if you're trying not to spend money. Have a happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Nigel Cooper at dvuser.co.uk got to spend some time with the NXCAM prototype, and his article adds some more information about the camera: NXCAM is a “brand” not a model name. The camera will get a model number when it is announced. The camera has an overcrank/undercrank feature, limited to 12 seconds A new “Super Steady Shot” system that sort of works like the stabilization filter in Final Cut (it reduces the image area slightly and figures out how to smooth movement of the frame around that extra "slop"). He says there’s some reduction in image quality, and it’s not perfect, but “ I found it to be more effective than the lens damped version that has been around for many years, but nobody is going to be putting Steadicam operators out of a job anytime soon ” Oh, he also seems to think that this won't replace the Z5 immediately, and Sony plans to keep selling HDV cameras while demand exists. I'd agree with that - they'll keep selling HDV cameras for a while -

Questions 1. How does it compare to the EX1? Does it replace the EX1? It probably doesn't replace the EX1, since the EX1 has 1/2 inch imagers instead of 1/3 inch. Also, they just updated the EX1 with the EX1R, so clearly it's not going away for a year or two. The EX1R sells for $6,299. 2. Does this replace the Z5U? Probably. It's essentially the same body, and HDV is dying. Given the pricing/features of the EX1, this gives us a good idea what the NXCAM will sell for (the Z5U sells for $4,095.) 2. AVCHD? Why not XDCAM EX? Since Sony owns XDCAM, it's probably not a licensing issue. AVCHD takes up less space (24 vs. XDCAM EX's 35 Mbps) and given recording to flash memory, size is probably a big consideration. Both are 8-bit, and 4:2:0. AVCHD gets a bum wrap because it's mostly been in consumer cameras, often at the lower bit rates (24 appears to be the maximum for the standard at the moment.) But it's also a more efficient compressor than MPEG2 (which can be a

For the past year it seemed that Sony was the lone tape supporter for pro-sumer, low-end professional cameras. JVC went tapeless and even embraced QuickTime with the GY-HM100U , while Panasonic has the AG- HMC150 . And even though Canon is still selling the XH-A1s HDV camera, they’ve been so preoccupied with the Canon 5D Mark II and 7D you can almost overlook the fact that they seem to be overlooking this market segment. Only Sony was still selling tape and telling people that was the way to go. Until the day before yesterday, when they announced the NXCAM , a camera based on the FX1/FX1000/Z5U body shape that replaces the HDV tape mechanism with AVCHD on Memory Stick recording. This is big news. November 18, 2009 may go down as the day tape died . At least for video acquisition. The camera also has an optional solid state recording module that -at least in the prototype- holds 128GB. According to Sony, the camera will automatically switch cards when one is full, and it can record to

Sony has an online HD Expo , which went live today. It runs live all day - there are Sony people hanging out in the chats, so there's some value to popping in today if you have questions! The demo videos etc., will evidently remain available until March. There's some interesting prerecorded lectures, including one on the just announced NXCAM: PDW-F800 and PMW-EX1: Battle Proven in Afghanistan (Run Time 16:45) Basics of Professional Blu-ray Encoding and Authoring: Part 1 (Run Time 54:21) Broadcast Fundamentals Part 1: Nomenclature, Basic Color Theory, the new xvYCC Color format, Film & Frame Rate Basics, Progressive vs. Interlaced Display (Run Time 44:02) Broadcast Fundamentals Part 4: Video Compression Basics (Run Time 45:53) Brooke Rudnick, Event Videographer, on Sony's UWP Microphone System (Run Time 10:31) Sneak Peek at Sony's NeXt Affordable Professional HD Camcorder (Run Time 9:13) Dusty EX1 Thierry Humeau, talks about documenting the war in Afghanistan with a

Rule Broadcast Systems has been hosting a series of lectures/workshops relating to video production. The Nov 11 workshop on sound featured sound mixer G. John Garrett . John started with an introduction to the human auditory physiology; the parts of the brain that receive and process sound, and noted that the bone surrounding the inner ear is the hardest bone in the body. He then asked, somewhat rhetorically; how do you know when the sound is right? Some one yelled out from the back; “ when the producer says there’s no money left. ” Getting down to specifics, John didn’t have many positive comments about on-camera audio hardware, noting about one camera “ What do you think they spent on the audio hardware? Probably $50? ” One audience member said she’s heard that the audio on the RED camera wasn’t that good, and he agreed, noting that the very first version didn’t even have audio, and that Sound Devices had tested the RED and found it to be closer to 12-bit sound than the claimed 16-

When I first saw the JVC Picsio I was interested in it because it was low priced, looked pretty and Engadget blasted it for falsely claiming it was HD. I’m not sure whether it’s my natural inclination to doubt Engadget , but I added the camera to my bookmarks, and sat back to wait for reviews. After a somewhat favorable review on Camcorderinfo , questions started to appear when the first review on Amazon was negative. But that’s one review. MacWorld was a little less flattering , when they touched it. But now it’s been blasted by Gizmondo , and the ratings on Amazon have turned abysmal: it has a rating of 3 ½ stars after 7 reviews. Worse yet, one of those five stars is from someone that doesn’t even own the camera, jumping to the defence of budget cameras. The other ratings one 2-stars, and four 1-Stars. I had the worst time trying to get good quality video out of this device. The build quality was cheap and flimsy, the controls were awkward and counterintuitive, the video was un

Engadget's video producer, Chad Mumm, provides his impressions of the Canon 7D for video work . He does a pretty good job of listing all the drawbacks (audio, 12 minute recording limitation, etc.,) and notes a concern about over-heating. There's nothing new here if you have been following the 7D, but I really like his summary, which is pretty much how I'd describe the camera to someone: We like to think of the 7D as another very specific tool in our arsenal. [...] there is a time and a place for this camera. If we're running around shooting a mile-a-minute, we're still going to reach for our trusty HD camcorder. Meanwhile, Gizmodo does a comparison of some low-budget cameras , and crowns the Flip Ultra HD the winner, the Flip Mino HD losing because of price and the "lousy touch controls." Most interesting of all, the recently released JVC Picsio GC-FM1 really scored low, with a rating of: sucked. It's spectacularly ugly (think Ed Hardy-inspired) and c

Engadget does a review of the GoPro HD Hero , and compares it to the ContourHD. There seems to be pros and cons for both, with the GoPro having a slightly better color rendition, while the ContourHD is easier to use. It's available for pre-order at Amazon, and supposed to be released on November 25th.

B&H is co-sponsoring a "virtual trade show." You register (now) and then log-in December 2-3 to "chat / attend virtual events / network." I'm not really sure what the advantage of this will be ( didn't we try this kind of thing 10 years ago? ) If you're interested, check out the PDN Photographers' Virtual Trade Show

I just got a Blu-ray player (finally) and was able to watch my first Blu-ray disc; the 50th Anniversary edition of North by Northwest . I have to say, the results were mixed (both for Blu-ray, and for this particular disc.) Resolution I have a 36” Sony tube HDTV which is getting on in years. One problem is that 36”, when you’re sitting across the room from it, isn’t really stretching the limits of DVD resolution. Yes, there was a noticeable difference up close; I could read quite easily body copy on a newspaper that was very blurry on the DVD. The resolution was there, but I really need either a bigger screen, or to sit right on top of the TV to see it. All those with 50” TV’s, run out and get Blu-ray. Color This edition is remastered, and from the get go the differences are very obvious; the hideous green of the MGM logo in the previous DVD release is replaced by a much more pleasing green in this new edition. Through the rest of the picture the colors are more vibrant, and there’s mu

The Sony Sportspack is an underwater enclosure for Sony brand camcorders. This is actually the third model, which works with most Sony camcorders made after 2006. The Sportspack provides protection from rain, snow and sand, and can be used underwater down to 17 feet. This is really a bit of a mashup between an unboxing and a First Look, as I have yet to do any serious testing of the Sportspack. The Sony Sportspack arrived at the end of a couple of very wet weeks, and immediately the weather improved. I was really hoping for some heavy rain to give it a test, but since then, we’ve had two very fine weeks, with a threat of a third, and I can’t help thinking that the camera gods are having a laugh at my expense. Anyway, it’s a very cool piece of gear; all clear acrylic and white plastic. It opens at the back, and there’s an O-ring that you are supposed to inspect and grease (and replace after a year.) The camera sits on a large plastic shoe, and several different shoes are included to mat

Just saw the Cohen brother's latest movie " A Serious Man ." I enjoyed it, though it's a black, black comedy, so I'm not sure I actually want to watch it again(!) What I found particularly interesting was the color work that had been done on a lot of the scene's; Cyan and Yellow have been removed so that it looks like aged film. This was done throughout the movie in varying degrees and it's particularly noticeable on some of the exterior scenes like the car crash below. But check the shot below. The flesh tones look as though they have been manipulated like much of the rest of the film, but the blue of the dress (and probably the wood behind) has not been altered. (You may want to click on it to look at the larger file.)

Carefully took my (still) camera to an event this morning and when I went to turn it on discovered there was no memory card in it - oops! Well, at least I had my iPhone.

In the third quarter : spending on home entertainment down 3.2% spending on DVDs down 13.9% spending on DVD rentals UP 10% I own quite a few DVDs, but my purchase rate has gone way down over the last few years, and I'm not sure it's the economy. A lot of the movies I bought in those early days were back-catalog items, not new releases. And to be honest, my purchases of new movies may have been goosed a bit by the fact I was buying quite a few movies regularly. But then I kind of fell out of the habit. And I'm not downloading them from the net, and my rental rate hasn't gone up that much either. I think it was just a new technology and a new availability which spurred me to buy things, but now that urge has mostly been satisfied. I'm resisting saying " they don't make good movies anymore ."

In Music industry bows to point-and-shoot cameras , Daniel Terdiman takes a look at where we are with cameras at concerts. At last month's huge U2 show at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., how could you tell the difference between the professional photographers and your average amateurs? Answer: the professionals were the ones whisked away after Bono and friends finished their third song, and the amateurs were still there, happily shooting to their heart's content. As the article points out, with everyone carrying cell phones with cameras, and the increasing quality and resolution of small cameras, it's both getting harder and harder to stop people from taking pictures, and the line between professional and amateur is getting smaller and smaller. I remember several years ago going to a concert at Radio City Music Hall where they made people check in their cameras. At the end of the show, we all lined up while they tried to find each persons camera; which took a long time a

Interestingly enough, right after camcorderinfo.com came out with it’s Select Awards 2009 , and gave the top award to the Panasonic HDC-TM300 over the Canon HF S11, Macworld came out today with their own review of the HDC-TM300 , and though they gave it four and a half mice (out of five) and praise it’s “impressive resolution, smooth motion, accurate color, and low noise” they actually rate it ½ a mouse below the Canon HF S10, saying that it’s image quality “slightly trailed” that of the Canon. Note: the HF S10 and HF S11 are essentially the same camera, with different storage options.

Camcorderinfo.com has come out with it’s Select Awards 2009 . To be honest, I’m a bit wary of reading too much into these; they don’t list how they decided to select the cameras - if it’s only the cameras that they have reviewed, then the pool isn’t a large one. They also don't describe how they went about making the decision. Despite those concerns, Camcorder of the year went to the Panasonic HDC-TM300: Not only is the video performance impressive in all lighting conditions, but it also offers a seamless and enjoyable operating experience—for novices and experienced users alike. Runner up is the Canon HF S11 with it’s improved optical stabilization and an edge in sharpness and motion. But they dinged it for lack of a viewfinder and poor performance in low light. JVC scored well in the overall competition, with a runner-up in Best Value, and a win in Mid-Range and Standard Definition. I was most interested in the video-enabled DSLR win that went to the Panasonic GH1, with the Canon

Seems there's an update to Apple TV 3.0 which fixes prevents "content from temporarily disappearing until it is resynced." To update to 3.0.1: Reboot your Apple TV (unplug the power cord and plug it back in) Select Settings > General from the main menu Select Update Software Select Download and Install

DPReview has posted it's review of the Canon 7D and they seem to love it. Admittedly, this site is a photography site, but it's still good to know that the camera scores highly as a still camera. The beginning of the conclusion sums it up: If you are looking at the pros and cons list above you could be forgiven for getting the impression that we somehow struggled to populate the cons list with a number of bullet points that comes at least close to what you can see in the pros department. You are not mistaken. The EOS 7D is an excellent addition to Canon's range of APS-C DSLRs that is, in terms of build quality, speed of operation, ergonomics and image quality, a cut above Canon's previous APS-C flagship, the EOS 50D.

Back at the end of October, ShedWorx released version 2.0 of their AVCHD converter, VoltaicHD . New features for this release: ShedWorx now has an AVCHD Previewer which gives you a live preview of your movies. Edit your AVCHD movies prior to conversion. You can now send your movies direct to YouTube, iPhone, iPod and AppleTV. Improved conversion processing gives you even better quality results. Improved inverse telecine process for getting the best results from your 24p footage. You can download a trial version. If you have a non-Intel Mac, or want to be able to reimport AVCHD files that are no longer in an AVCHD file structure (the only way you can import them into Final Cut Express and Pro ) then VoltaicHD is worth checking out.

Gizmodo says that the Apple TV sucks, even with the 3.0 update (and I have to agree; if you thought 2.0 sucked, then 3.0 isn't going to change that opinion.) They've posted a comparison review of the WD TV Live, Seagate FreeAgnet Theater+, Popcorn Hour C-200, Patriot Box Office and Netgear Digital Entertainer Live in: HD Media Player Battlemodo: Apple TV Killers Specs wise, the Popcorn Hour scores high, with the Patriot a close second, but in testing, the WD and Seagate were given the win (a tie.) The Popcorn does well with a third, but got dinged on price ($300 compared to the WD TV's $150.) I did find it amusing that though the first paragraph says "When Apple TV 3.0 came out, we were unimpressed" the third paragraph begins: This isn't about photos and music. Apple TV is better at both of those than any of this stuff I've said this before, but I've been tempted to get a WD TV or WD TV Live, because of it's ability to play video files without havi

Canon Tilt/Shit demo B& H Photo has a write up (and demo video) of the new Canon Tilt/Shift lenses . The 17mm looks like one fun piece of glass, but it’s $2,500! And as interesting as the article (and examples) are, I really wish that they explained the difference between the new models and the previous model(s) which are more than $1,000 cheaper. Unfortunately, the only reference to the other models is: The lenses' control wheels and lock mechanisms have also been improved over earlier Canon tilt-shift-series optics to provide smoother, more positive performance in both vertical and horizontal mode. And to help reduce ghosting and flare, the bulbous front lens element is coated with advanced SWC coatings. And who can afford to spend $1,200 just for smoother performance? The architecture photo example is rather old hat, but the examples using the lens to take some product shots were really interesting. Hands on with the Canon 7D David Flores has an article on the Canon 7D on Fi

Nothing much to report today. Time Lapse Came across an interesting post about shooting time-lapse sequences with a DSLR: 7D Timelapse Experiment in Dungeness . Blu-ray I’ve been saying for a couple of years that I wasn’t going to jump into Blu-ray until Apple shipped something for authoring. But that doesn’t seem to be happening anytime soon. On a related note; I just bought the new Blu-ray release of North by Northwest , one of my favorite Hitchcock movies. Only problem; I don’t actually have a Blu-ray player, so that problem will have to be solved sooner rather than later. And if I’m going to go down that road, then getting a Blu-ray burner sort of makes sense; particularly as Final Cut Pro ’s Compressor utility will output Blu-ray content....and you might even want to investigate Adobe's Encore for it's Blu-ray output options... And 25GB Blu-ray discs may make sense for video backup and archive; yes, pros talk about tape backup, but those are really expensive!! Sooo….I wa

Want to win a Canon 5D? Or maybe even a Canon 7D? The Kata bag company is sponsoring a bag design competition that runs from now until March 1st. Design a camera bag and submit the design to the Dream Bag Challenge website. 1st Price is a Canon 5D plus accessories, 2nd and 3rd prizes are Canon 7D’s plus accessories.

Colorist and Author Robbie Carman , has posted a couple of comments to the Cinema5D forum about grading DSLR footage, specifically the Canon 7D: … 7D footage does appear to have an initial contrast ratio that is less than the 5D. […] on my scopes the 7D does have an elevated trace of about 10-15%/IRE given the exact same exposure settings between cameras. […] The wild thing is that the difference appears to be only in the blacks in and midtones. This observation leads me to believe that the 7D is in fact applying a luma adjustment to midtones/blacks in camera, almost like a reversed S-Curve Both cameras suck when it comes to overall color latitude especially compared to RED native clips, but I guess that’s to be expected due to the 4:2:0 chroma subsampling. This has been especially frustrating for me getting good HSL keys for secondary corrections like skies, skin tone etc. But is no worse then HDV, XDCAM or HDCAM for that matter. He also felt that the sharpness of the two cameras was

Apple rolled out an update to the Apple TV software software. This features a major change in the top menu (which now lists your own content first in each media list, rather than last) and it also now supports Internet Radio. Apart from that, there’s no real new functionality. Unless you also count support for Apple’s LP format. I’d been curious about the iTunes LP format – kind of an interactive format for albums – since Apple had announced it, but had never gotten around to trying one out. With the Apple TV update, I thought it would be great to update my Apple TV and try out iTunes LP at the same time. I was wrong. Last night I updated the Apple TV software, and also downloaded the Dave Matthews Band album Big Whiskey and The Groo Grux King in iTunes LP format. Only problem was that after downloading it and going to the Apple TV, all I could find were the movies and the songs; no sign of the iTunes LP interface. In the end I wondered if I’d misunderstood, and that it just meant you