This is a tutorial on how to increase the dynamic range of an SLR. SLRs and camcorders are pretty close in terms of dynamic ranges, so you might find it useful in your post-production of video as well. Keep in mind that “digital” has a significantly smaller range when compared to film, so every little bit helps.
How to increase the Canon 7D dynamic range (Tutorial) from Luka.
Michael Rubin, an author of books on Mac and editing, has decided to give away his Droidmaker book for free!
The book describes in detail the development of nonlinear editing (NLE) and computer graphics. The book is written from his perspective of working with Lucasfilm and Pixar.
I think this could be a valuable tool for independent filmmakers too, after all, the cost of doing computer effects has been falling steadily.
The Apple Gazette announced a number of key features for Final Cut Studio 2.
One key upgrade is its support for 4K video (4,096 x 2,160 pixels) and in effect support footage that originated from the RED camera (the RED camera stole NAB in 2006).
More info: FCS2 will cost $1,299, or $499 for an upgrade from FCS. FCP users can upgrade to FCS2 for only $699. Final Cut Studio 2 will be available next month.
Or is it? The North American HD DVD Promotional Group took advantage of CES to get out the following:
As of January 5th, the group estimates there were more than 175,000 HD DVD players sold in America, with an annualized attach rate of 28 movies per player. The group projects sales will reach 2.5 million players by the end of this year and more than $600 million worth of movie revenues. HD DVD buyers can look forward to more HDi enhanced titles, now featuring internet features that were demoed at the event, as well as more players hitting the market from manufacturers like Lite-On, Alco, Alpine, Meridian and Onkyo. Look for the trend of combo releases to continue, as the format’s backers see it as a viable way of introducing current DVD owners to the format and building a library prior to upgrading.
Numbers usually don’t lie. And the numbers here (at least in terms of players) are very much skewed in favor of the Blu-ray camp. The reason? One million Playstation 3 have been purchased and I bet this is just the beginning.
I don’t mean Sofia Coppola indies (Lost in Translation). I mean real indies that’ve been shot by a low/no budget filmmaker.
One example is Waterborne, an indie flick about bio terrorism. Apparently, the filmmakers behind it passed on a lucrative (?) offer of $125,000 for the theatrical distribution (North American market, I’d assume).
Instead they went with Google video and reportedly the movie got 25,000 views in its first two weeks of streaming. The “premiere attracted an “average of 1,000 page views and hundreds of paid downloads”, according to Ben Rekhi, Waterborne’s writer/director. There’s an video interview with the filmmaker – Filmmaker Ben Rekhi discusses “Waterborne,” pioneer Google Video feature film.
So far, so good. I still have to see the numbers before I can say I buy Google’s hype. The indications are pretty strong though. For example, Samaritan, an indie “feature” shot with HVX200 in 2 nights (81 setups) could find Google video as the only viable distribution outlet. Another must-see is Steve Ballmer’s Developers video.
Update: Google will be launching pay-per-click video ads – could they appear next to “regular” Google videos?
Update: I’ve been to Google Video again and it seems to me that most of the videos there are junk. Yet, occasionally you get to some original stuff: like the Mentos Coke video or Steve Ballmer’s Developers video. You can even get a fake Diablo 3 trailer (although Blizzard are sneaky about a Diablo 3 release).
A new breed of actors has emerged with Gollum, King Kong, and all the guys from Final Fantasy. That new breed is usually born and bred in Sillicon Graphic servers and released to the unsuspecting public. This pretty much means real actors are still a lot cheaper but of course, a lot less perfect.
If you do have the money, you could do some shopping for virtual actors using Exotique: the leading book title devoted to showcasing the finest character creations from digital artists worldwide. Here’s what you’ll find inside:
EXOTIQUE presents 228 examples of exceptional character artwork by 113 artists from 37 countries presented over 192 pages of the highest quality production. In addition to exhilarating character artwork, EXOTIQUE features the profiles of eight prominent character artists working within the digital arts community.
All “actors” are fully developed 3D model so at least in theory you could get them into the action relatively quickly. I bet most of the artists utilized the latest iMac G5 / PowerMac G5.
When I recently reviewed Apple’s new iMac G5, I was impressed with it’s performance. As a sort of disclaimer: I’m a PC-person really so although I love Macs, I’d rather have a more open system.
Naturally, I wanted to check out the beast inside Apple’s PowerMac Quad. It has two dual core PowerPC processors running at 2,5GHz. Here’s a benchmark test:
Definitely has the WOW effect in terms of Gigaflops but what’s the improvement for the applications you’ll be using:
All in all, the improvement over Apple’s PowerMac G4 is about 3.7 times. Considering the video coming out of the new Panasonic HVX200 is 100Mbps DVCPRO HD, you’ll definitely will need this additional horsepower.
Even if you stick to “regular” HDV cameras, you’ll find it a lot faster to edit on a dual core PowerMac G5. Most of us are no Walter Murch but if you spend 6 months working on the edit, you’ll be able to save substantial time if you upgrade to the new beast. Starts from just $1,999!
Update: Jonathan at VFCPUG Online has already ordered one, so I’m harassing him to do a review 