Final Cut You Tube

YouTube is adding an integrated YouTube editing program but it feels more like a color correction feature.  You can stabilize hand-held footage, rotate videos and boost the colors and contrast.  The “I’m Feeling Lucky” feature will allow for one-click color correction.

YouTube’s team also collaborated with Picnik to provide new aesthetic effects. This makes it possible for you to add filters, such as black and white, lomo-ish and cartoon to your videos.  There’s even an option to swap out your audio for something else by choosing from a number of available tracks. And if you have a video with too much footage at the beginning or end, you’ll be able to trim some of that out as well.

Popular videos with more than 1,000 views and videos with third-party content will only be saved as new videos once edited.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=G-n9p28Yh8w

Canon FD to NEX Adapter

I'm close to pulling the trigger on a FS100 (I'm waiting to see the new 5D which supposedly will come out in October).

I have a few Canon FD lenses from my old still camera that I'd like to use on the FS100.  These lenses are fast, sharp and unlike the newer EF lenses, FD lenses have a physical f-stop ring.  As a bonus, Ducloss will de-click FD lenses for $60-100 bucks, depending on the lens.

B&H sells an adapter for a whopping $212 bucks and Amazon sells one at $30 but I found an adapter on ebay for $20 bucks.  On a still camera FD lenses are normally wide open for focusing and then change f-stop when the trigger is pushed.

These adapters allows you to change the iris manually for use on a video camera.  Now, I can't wait to see the lenses on the FS100...

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/737807-REG/Novoflex_NEX_CAN_Adapter_for_Canon_FD.html

http://www.amazon.com/Fotodiox-Adapter-mount-NEX-VG10-Original/dp/B003Y302CG

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=canon+fd+lens+to+NEX+adapter&_sacat=0&_odkw=canon+fd+lens+to+Sony+FS100+adapter&_osacat=0&_trksid=p3286.c0.m270.l1313

Canon EF to F3, FS100, AF100 Adapter

Philip Bloom was at IBC 2011 and saw the prototype of an adapter that allows the use of Canon EF lenses with the F3, FS100 and AF100.  The trick is being able to adjust the electronic iris in an EF lens.

The prototype control box is just a knob and display and can control the iris in 1/8th stop increments.   The cable that connects to the adapter is hard wired because there isn't room for a lemo in the adapter.

Another box to hang somewhere but it works.  Now, how much will it cost?

http://philipbloom.net/2011/09/09/ibc-2011-new-canon-ef-mount-that-controls-iris-for-f3-fs100-and-af100101/

Pre-Order Your Sony F-65

"Band Pro is now accepting pre-orders for the new Sony F65 digital cinema camera. With Sony's F65 Introductory Pack you can be one of the first to get their new 4K camera when it starts shipping in January 2012. And, with the full compliment of accessories that are included in the pack price of $85,000 you'll be ready to shoot 16-bit 4K footage out of the box.

The Sony F65 Introductory Pack* includes:

• Sony F65 Camera Body with Mechanical Rotary Shutter
• Sony HDVF-C35W Color Viewfinder
• Sony SR-R4 Digital Recorder
• 1x Sony 256MB SRMemory Card
• Sony SR-PC4 Data Transfer Unit

The Sony F65 camera utilizes an 8K digital sensor to generate a next generation 4K image."

Will the F65 give the Alexa a run for it's money?  $85,000 grand seems expensive until you remember the base price of the optical Alexa will be around $135,000.  14 stops of latitude is hard to beat but so is an 8K chip...

http://www.bandpro.com/products.html?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&category_id=75&product_id=189

Teradek HDMI WiFi Encoder

The Teradek Cube is a camera-top wireless HD video encoder that connects to a camera's HDMI out and streams video over WiFi.   This means that any device that receives WiFi, like a laptop, ipad, iphone, etc. can be a monitor.

The Cube looks like a solution to eliminate camera tethering on long dolly moves, running footage, steadicam shots, hand-held operation, jib-arms, and crane shots... or even just on sticks. 


Thanks to Robin Banando for the link!


www.filmtools.com/teradek-hdmi-encoder-wifi.html

Apple Makes FCP Studio Re-Available

I usually don't post 2 blogs in a day but Apple put Final Cut Studio back on sale and I'm guessing it's not because FCP X is such a winner.

FCP won't be available at the website or Apple store (which are more for regular consumers) but you can order it from the 800 number for $999, $899 for education users.  This would lead me to believe they'll still be supporting FCP7.

http://www.macrumors.com/2011/09/01/apple-puts-legacy-final-cut-pro-studio-back-on-sale/

World's Largest Stop Motion Animation

Here's the World's Largest Stop Motion Animation and I mean large.  That's a real person in the shot.   It really is amazing considering everything is full size.... and it was shot with a cell phone

Be sure to check out the making of which is more interesting than the actual video.

http://www.core77.com/blog/videos/worlds_largest_stop_motion_animation_video_20142.asp?utm_source=pulsenews&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+core77%2Fblog+%28Core77.com%27s+design+blog%29

Rays for Free

I'm always looking for cheap stuff for the blog and what's better than a free.  Well, free for 15 days.  DFT give you 15 days to test the software on your system before purchasing a license.  

Digital Film Tools has a  plug-in that adds "light rays" to any image.  One license costs $99 bucks but you can use that one license cross-program in FCP, Photoshop, Avidd, Lightroom, Aperature, etc.

And at $99 it's still cheaper than setting setting up parallels with a 12K and smoking the room or having a crew waiting for the sun to be right to get shafts of light...

http://www.digitalfilmtools.com/rays/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=G4N_H1DkgAo

Cheap LED Light Shootout

The Cheap Video LED Light Shootout compares 5 of the more popular small LED lights.

A couple of personal remarks about the shootout:  First, the prices are off.   It lists the NG 126 at 70 Euros or about $102. I bought a couple of these for $35 a piece on ebay.

Second, the article starts out by saying these LED's used to be a sad gimmick and showing up with these would hurt the reputation of any self-repecting DP.  I disagree, years ago Rodney Charters showed me how he was using cheap little LED's when I operated on 24.

Thanks for sending me this Robin!

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/61pXnz/frankglencairn.wordpress.com/2011/01/02/the-cheap-video-led-light-shootout/

"Gorgeous" Kinefinity KineRAW S35 2K Cine Camera

Here's the "Gorgeous" Kinefinity KineRAW S35 2K Cine Camera, a Chinese knock-off of the Alexa.    This 2K digital cinema camera with a Super35 CMOS sensor and PL mount can record "dual RAW" to a 12 bit DNG for CinemaDNG based workflows or GoPro-Cineform RAW on removable SSD drives.  Plus, it outputs just about everything for monitoring.

Here's the fun part, the price will be less than $8000 bucks.  Sure, people are worried about reliability but at $8000 you can buy a boat load of 'em for the price of one Epic or Alexa.  And all the connector labels are already in English.

Be sure to watch the video at http://vimeo.com/28233165  It's "gorgeous".  I shouldn't make fun of his choice of words, his English is much better than my Chinese...

http://www.kineraw.com/kineraw_s35_1.html

Why your eyes are terrible light meters

I've seen this optical illusion before but it's the first time I've seen video .  Here's the illusion as a still image.  The squares labeled A and B are exactly the same color (use the color-dropper tool in Photoshop if you don’t believe it).  I still don't believe it.

Watch the video, you'll think it's an effect:  http://www.petapixel.com/2011/08/17/amazing-optical-illusion-shows-that-our-eyes-are-horrible-light-meters/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+PetaPixel+%28PetaPixel%29

3D Basics

If you're going to the MCAI 3D Meeting tonight (see yesterday's blog) be sure and brush up on your 3D basics.  Here's some simple definitions to start you out:

Interocular distance is the distance between your eyes or the lenses (you're eyes are about 2 1/2" apart).
Zero parallax is where the screen is.
Positive Parallax is everything deeper than the screen.
Negative parallax is everything in front of the screen.
Convergence is how much your eyes cross.

The real trick is focus the camera on the convergence plane and hopefully that's not more than 20% into negative parallax.  Or just have a deep depth of field like most 3D films...

If you understood that you're good to go.  If not:
http://web.me.com/abeato/sd3dcalculator/Stereo_3D_Fundamentals.html
http://mcai-oc.org/

MCAI 3D Meeting, Wed. August 17th

This month's Media Communications Association International meeting brings you Alicia Reed from JVC and her special guests who will talk 3D, from cameras to workflow.  They promise you'll get the chance to play with the GY-HM100 ($2395) used by CNN as well as the shoulder mounted GY-HM790 ($8995).

Here's the details:
EVENT: HD & 3D UPDATE / Monthly MCAI Meeting
DATE: Wednesday Aug 17, 2011
TIME: Event starts at 6:00 PM with networking over refreshments and food. Program starts 7:00 PM
LOCATION: OC SOUND STAGE http://www.orangecountysoundstage.com/
17518 Von Karman, Irvine CA 92614
Just East of Main Street in the rear of the Von Karman Business Center
Free parking on site
COST: MEMBERS of MCAI  pay $5! All others pay $15 at the door or $12 if you pre-register online at OC New Media Meetup Group http://www.newmedia.meetup.com/82/

Wish I could be there but I have a prior commitment at the local.

http://mcai-oc.org/

ALEXA Simulators

Want to get you hands on a Alexa?  Now you virtually can with the Alexa Simulators for the Alexa and Alexa Plus.

The Alexa simulator was on my blog before but now they have the Plus simulator and you can play with the both yourself in the privacy of your own home...

http://arridigital.com/technical/simulator

Arri L7-C Fresnel

At the Alexa training I also had a chance to use an Arri L7-C.  If you were to see the light coming from this fresnel you wouldn't think it was coming from a LED light.  The light from the spot/flood is what you would expect from a fresnel but instead of a sled moving inside the light, the lens slides like an ellipsoid.

Unexpected was the weight or maybe I shouldn't have been too surprised because it's overbuilt like most Arri lights.  It's a little smaller but a little heavier than a baby 2K and puts out about 1K's worth of light but without the heat.  Those fins really work and it's very cool.  And very cool!

The L stands for LED, the 7 is the 7" fresnel and the L7 models are T for tungsten, D for daylight or C for controllable.  The C model has a built in dimmer plus you can control both the Tungsten to Daylight color temperature and green to minus green color correction.  All can all be controlled DMX.

Projected price is around $2300-3000.  It's costs a lot of money to be green but on the other hand you never have to buy another globe or worry about burn-outs.

http://www.arri.com/l-series/index.html

Video Resource's F3 & FS100 Event

Video Resources and VMI sponsored "Shooting Tips and Tricks with the Sony PMW-F3 and NEX-FS100 Large Sensor Cameras" yesterday at VR.  It was a great opportunity to test the cameras side by side without being in some convention hall.

The main presentation was given by Shahpour Nosrati-Fard,  a Sony Senior Sales Support Engineer who, as you might expect, really knew the finer details about both cameras.  The focus (no pun intended) was on the Sony F3.  Some of the things not printed on the front of the brochure are:

Sony finally agrees the little vf sucks and is coming out with a loupe for the side monitor.
S-log is only available 444 and that dual link upgrade will run you another $4500, plus external recorder.
The F3 only records 4:2:0 8 bit to the internal SxS cards
Sony has a SxS to SDHC card adapter that was designed for "emergency" use.


People are using the adapter to avoid buying the expensive SxS cards.  But with the SDHC cards there is no hot swapping, no salvage function and you can't record slo-mo even with the required Class 10 cards.

Trey Solberg, a DP who has been shooting with Blackstone Media's F3 also spoke on using the camera in the field.  They have the Sony K package primes but use the RED short zoom most of the time.  They also have the adapter to use Nikon glass and Trey is very happy with his Duclos'ed 80-200 f2.8.


I finally got a chance to test the glass that comes packaged with the FS-100.  This zoom is an amazing 18-200mm for only $600 bucks but you get what you pay for.  The f-stop at 18mm is f3.5 but at 200mm it's a whopping f6.3.  This f-stop change is very linear and you can watch the f-stop go up and down as you zoom in and out.  When you zoom it looks like you're turning the iris instead.

The FS100 has the same sensor as the F3 and also records 4:2:0 8 bit AVCHD but without the benefit of the F3's image processing (so says Shahpour).  A really cool thing I didn't know is the FS100 has a HDMI 1.4 that can output a RGB 444 8 bit signal.  The good news is most monitors are only 8 bit so that's great.  The bad news is there's no recorder on the market today that records this signal.


Very informative and thanks to all involved including Brad Hagen, Naomi Rivas and John O'Donovan...  especially for the tacos! 


http://pro.sony.com/bbsc/ssr/product-PMWF3L/
http://pro.sony.com/bbsc/ssr/cat-broadcastcameras/cat-nxcam/product-NEXFS100UK/

ALEXA Pocket Guide

Here's a link to the Arri Alexa Pocket Guide which has some great information.  Some of the highlights include:

Grey scale mapping.  Note how the 18% grey card never really changes.  What changes is how the latitude is shifted... the wrong way.  According to this chart you should shout 160 at night to get the most latitude in the blacks and 1600 during the day to protect the highlights.  That's crazy talk.

All the codecs available and almost all can be recorded straight to the SxS cards including 12 bit 444.  The only output that needs an outboard recorder is the uncompressed ArriRaw.  Did I mention it's uncompressed?  I don't think any other output of any camera is not compressed.

The Alexa uses false color for exposure.  I miss the option of have zebras.  You can frame and focus with zebras on but with false color on it would be near impossible to run and gun... which is exactly when you'd want to judge exposure through the viewfinder..

I couldn't find any images from the Alexa but the RED also has false color.  It's like some 60's psychedelic acid trip.  Here's the normal frame:

And here's the same frame in false color.  Yikes!

There's a lot more in the Alexa Pocket Guide at:
http://www.arridigital.com/sites/default/files/2011_04-21a_ALEXA_Pocket_Guide.pdf

ALEXA PLUS

Saturday I attended training for the Alexa Plus at Arri in Burbank through Local 600.

The training was very comprehensive, covering every switch and connector plus discussing every menu item.  And that's a lot of menus!  We covered things ranging from how to record ArriRaw using the Codex mag to how to field change the cooling fan... the only moving part in the camera.

It was interesting to hear why certain choices were made by the engineers.  Many people in the class use the Alexa on a daily basis and it was even more interesting to hear their experiences, feedback and questions.

So what's new with the Plus?  More connectors, a built-in position and motion sensor (important for visual efx) and built-in lens data system.  But the most obvious difference is the built-in remote control feature so an AC doesn't have to hang a bunch of RC boxes off the camera to remotely pull focus.

Here's a few of the things I learned in the class that aren't on the front page of the brochure:
1.  The built-in remote control is designed to be used with the Arri Wireless Remote System and won't work with a Preston.
2.  Although the Alexa carries two SxS cards the camera won't "span" the cards.  You might as well just have one card in the camera.
3.  It uses a whopping 85 watts power in standby... before you start powering accessories.
4.  It was designed as a 2K camera even though the sensor is 3K.  The sensor is 4x3 and the 3K will come into play only if you're shooting anamorphic.

So, what's the good news?  It's simple to use.  Record 444 straight to the SxS cards without any out-board recorder and the Pro Res loads straight into your NLE.

More importantly, it makes a great picture, especially in dark with 14 stops of latitude.  Why does it have so much more latitude than other cameras?  It takes two readings/images of each frame at different exposure levels.

Arri is careful to point out this isn't HDR, which is what the RED does.  HDR takes two sequential images which is fine for a still life but when you try to combine two moving images into one frame you get blur and ghosting.  The Alexa takes it's two images simultaneously so it is the exact same image, just at two different exposures.

Those are some of the main points.  I'll be covering false color and other Alexa tidbits all this week.

http://www.arridigital.com/alexaplus

Sony A77 DSLR

Sony is starting to leak images of it's new Sony A77 DSLR which should be officially announced next month.

The exciting news is the AVCHD 2 codec which is a robust 28mbps rather than the usual 24.

Said to be priced around $1000 bucks it's probably got the smaller sensor like the 7D so the 5D remains king of the full sized sensors.


http://philipbloom.net/2011/08/03/sony-enters-the-video-dslr-revolution-finally-a-bit-late-but-not-too-late/

Jita Cam

The JitaCam is called the "360 degree jib in the air".  This jib can be mounted in the grid/ceiling and can be remotely operated from a 1000 feet away.

This means the JitaCam can use zero floor space and be completely out of the way of both performers and audience.  It can also be mounted on the floor or on top of anything that will support the weight.  Because the operator doesn't have to physically be by the jib it can mounted to scaffolding without needing a place for the operator to walk when swinging the arm.

It also means let it snow because the arm operator and camera operator are nice and warm in the truck!

Check it out at http://www.jitacam.com/

The Great Camera Shootout 2011 Part 2

Here's the second part of Zacuto's Great Camera Shootout 2011 entitled "Sensors & Sensitivity".

Fair warning, it's techie but if you just want to see image comparisons here's the tests you want to see.  Go to:  6:45, 9:00 and 21:50.  Very interesting for anyone who uses cameras.

http://www.zacuto.com/the-great-camera-shootout-2011/episode-two

Color Grading in FCPX

16 free Color Grading Tutorials and how to do it in FCPX.

Even if you don't use FCPX some of the tutorials are good for explaining what is color grading and the correct order of steps.  

I was taught to always "Push and Pull".  When you push something in one direction you got to pull something else in another.  Push the blues, pull the skin tones.  Push the brightness, pull the contrast. 

http://vimeo.com/user6379404/videos

iPhone SLR Mount

At first I thought this was outlandish but an iphone SLR Mount may just be the future.  Who says the next DSLR's won't be as thin as a credit card?

Now, if they can do something about the inverted image...

http://photojojo.com/store/awesomeness/iphone-slr-mount/

Cameraman Boot Camp

Isn't this the way you learned to be a camera op?

FCPX Review From POP

Here's a Review of FCPX without the emotion.  Author Oliver Peters shows what's new, what's different and what's lost with the new FCP.

  I think my favorite line is the last, "FCP X is ready for prime time now, although Prime Time might not be ready for it!"


Thanks to Matthew Kendall for sending this.
http://www.2-pop.com/article/108832

Follow Focus Made of Legos

Want a follow focus but too expensive?  Got some of your kid's legos laying around?  Then, you can make yourself a Lego Follow Focus.

Check out the video at: http://www.petapixel.com/2011/02/12/follow-focus-made-entirely-with-lego/

Sony F35 Now 12-bit

Sony is offering a free 12-big upgrade for the F35.  It can record 12 bit to both the SRW-5800/2 deck and the SRMASTER field recorder which records 12-bit signals to solid state memory cards.

12 bit is over 68 million colors as opposed to over 1 million for 10 bit.  

http://pro.sony.com/bbsc/ssr/show-highend/resource.solutions.bbsccms-assets-show-highend-hdcamsr.shtml

ProMAX "FCP7 to AVID" Webinar

ProMAX is offering a "Switching from FCP to AVID" Webinar tomorrow, Thursday July 21 at 10-11a PST.

ProMAX is the place I bought by first FCP system (FCP1.4 on a Power Mac 4 tower) and now even they want you to switch.  What is the world coming to?

You have questions?  They have answers... maybe.  Log in at:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/195681994

"Plot Device" Red Giant Software Demo Reel

Red Giant software came up with a clever way to demo the various looks available using their software.

When the $10,000 video hit the web at the end of June, it started making the rounds at film studios and agencies, and calls started coming in.   27 year old director Seth Worly, who produces videos for a Christian Ministry, is planning an August trip to Los Angeles and has lined up meetings with CAA, UTA, WME, some management firms and producers.  Now, that's clever...


http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/hollywoods-hottest-short-film-plot-212275?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+thr%2Ffilm+%28The+Hollywood+Reporter+-+Movies%29

New NLE For DSLR's

Not happy with FCPX?  Want a new open source collaborative NLE that's designed for DSLR's and doubles as a distribution platform?

Maybe you want Novacut.  The trick is you have to Kickstart it...

http://www.definitionmagazine.com/journal/2011/7/4/hate-fcp-x-try-novacut-but-youll-need-to-kick-start-it.html

Crabby Cam

Caption A:  I've been working with this new operator but he's a little crabby.
or
Caption B:  These days, anyone with a camera thinks they are a DP... and will work for crap!

Please post your own caption and we'll see who's the funniest!

Patrick Fitch sent me this shot.