Archive for March, 2010

Zoom H4n system version 1.70

- recording level of INPUT1 and 2 can be set individually

VLC media player

- excellent free multimedia player capable of reading most audio and video formats (MPEG-2, MPEG-4, H.264, DivX, MPEG-1, mp3, ogg, aac …) as well as DVDs, Audio CDs VCDs, and various streaming protocols.

MPEG Streamclip

- a powerful free video converter, player, editor for Mac and Windows. It can play many movie files, not only MPEGs; it can convert MPEG files between muxed/demuxed formats for authoring; it can encode movies to many formats, including iPod; it can cut, trim and join movies. MPEG Streamclip can also download videos from YouTube and Google by entering the page URL.

Calibrated{Q} XD Decode

- View and Use XDCAM HD/EX and HDV QuickTime Movies. Calibrated{Q} XD Decode is a multi-threaded QuickTime Codec (Decode Only) that enables you to view and use Apple XDCAM HD, XDCAM EX, and HDV QuickTime Movies(.MOV Files Only) in QuickTime Player and other 3rd party applications that support QuickTime.

(About $80 – Calibrated{Q} XD Decode will have the Calibrated{Q} XD Decode Logo as a watermark over the video when running in DEMO MODE. This is the ONLY DEMO LIMITATION – everything else is fully functional.)

Sony XDCAM EX firmware update | March 2010

- Firmware allows you to use new recording media: 32GB SxS-1 MEAD-MS01 & MEAD-SD01 adaptors to make use of readily available consumer Memory Stick & SD Card media respectively.

Sony XDCAM EX Clip Browser | March 2010

- Note: this link will take you to the Sony website. You will need to register there before downloading. Click the link on the Sony site to XDCAM EX Clip Browser, and you’ll be taken to registration

The XDCAM EX Clip Browsing Software allows you to work with clips created with XDCAM EX devices. After installing this application on your computer, you can use its intuitive graphical user interface to organise your clips by copying, moving and deleting them. You can also perform format conversions, preview the clips and view or add additional metadata.

You’ll also need the Sony SxS driver if you are importing to your Mac / PC / drive from Sony SxS cards.

In order to import and transcode XDCAM EX files,  Final Cut Pro editors also need the Final Cut Pro/XDCAM Transfer tool – you’ll find it also on the Sony XDCAM site.

JVC GY-HM100 | August 2009

- Firmware enables recording to SDHC Class 10 media, and includes minor bug fixes.

Canon EOS Movie Plugin-E1 for Final Cut Pro

- Allows EOS 550d (and others) files to be imported into FCP via Log and Transfer, transcodes them to ProRes.

UK EOS 550d users need to amend the code – easy, thanks to http://www.finalcutuser.com/?p=1829

For FCP Log and Transfer, the eos movs must be in the canon folder inside the DCIM folder – and preferences set to the flavour of ProRes you prefer.

For readers’ reference, here is our Worldwide TV Standards guide.

A question just received from one of our clients in Canada:

Hi Mark.

I have a question you might be able to answer for me.

I need to shoot some HD footage in Ontario and load it and some old footage
up to a tourism image bank.

The footage would be used mostly in North America but I would want it to be
able to be used in Europe as well.

If you downloaded a clip that was shot NTSC what would you or I need to do
so you can use it over there?

My reply:

Hi B,

Depends on what the final output / usage of the video is; if it’s for editing into a video that will only be seen online, then there is no need to do any ‘standards conversion’ (ie NTSC to PAL) because the difference between NTSC and PAL is only relevant for material that is seen on TV sets, not relevant for computer monitors.

But if the final programme containing your material WILL be seen on TV (ie via broadcast or DVD), either:

- you need to provide a standards-converted copy in PAL, or
- the editor using the footage can do this

… in software (never perfect) or hardware (eg hire an Alchemist standards converter – we offer this)

Hope that helps – you might want to subscribe to our free tips – helpful ideas on video production and marketing: http://eepurl.com/f0tN

Next question: Can you do PAL conversions with files rather than tapes?

Answer: There are software solutions eg Compressor, Episode on Mac, and Procoder on PC, in addition to edit programs themselves, but the result is never as good as the broadcast Alchemist converter.

Here is our Worldwide TV Standards guide.

A question received from a subscriber to our Top Tips :

“Hello Mark – Thanks for the video tips – they are most useful. Do you have advice on the best size for a short video to upload to a website – not the length – the recommended pixel dimensions and bit rate? Do you recommend mp4 or Flash?”

My answer:

Hi Suzi

Glad they’re useful – I will make the answer to your question a future Top Tip! And of course you can ask questions – the more the better!

Before I answer – I must recommend that you consider ‘proper’ streaming video hosting (which we offer, from £15 / month), which enables you to embed the video on your site, easily and quickly, while it is actually hosted on our server – or upload it to YouTube and embed the YouTube version in your site.

Here’s why: ( from http://www.creationvideo.co.uk/webtv )

CAN WE HOST THE VIDEOS ON OUR OWN SERVER, OR YOUTUBE?

If video is hosted on a normal – non-streaming – server, it will require bandwidth from the network; if you and your collegues are busy, video playback can suffer – particularly if you have concurrent viewers. The converse is true – video usage will make large bandwidth demands of a normal – non-streaming – server, and your connectivity will suffer.

To answer the original question – we encode to .flv at 500 – 750 kbps, size on our site is 480×270 for 16×9 videos. Our streaming server automatically detect user’s bandwidth and serves them the video playing at optimised bit rate.

Hope that helps.

revolutions from Mark Slocombe on Vimeo.

Canon EOS 550d
18-135 mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens

Handheld

music: Swan Lake
by Yuri Goldfuss / Asimbonanga

spring from Mark Slocombe on Vimeo.

Shot on new Canon EOS 550d, 18-55 mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens. Music: Dirk Markham – Rite of Spring, Psycho-Acoustic Sculptures Vol. 4

I established CreationVideo in 1993, and as a filmmaker I’ve always sought to achieve high production values, not only to give our clients best value, but also because I’m a perfectionist (I’m told!) and I love what I do.

Of course, there are no higher production values than those achieved in the movies, which are always shot on 35mm film. We all know that budgets for these are enormous, partly because 35mm stock, equipment and technical requirements are so expensive.

So the challenge has always been, how can we achieve the look of film in our productions (thereby setting our clients’ films apart from their competitors), on realistic budgets?

The key factor that differentiates the look of 35mm film from the look of video is the shallow depth of field achieved by its film camera lenses. Depth of field is the distance between the nearest and furthest parts of a subject that can be imaged with acceptably sharp detail at one focus setting of the lens.

So a shot with a shallow depth of field is one where the area that the lens is focused on, is smaller, and the rest of the shot is out of focus.

Watch any movie shot on film and you’ll see this. The effect of shallow depth of field is to concentrate the viewer’s attention on the subject in focus. And, compared to video, it looks gorgeous, because there’s an overall softening. Video is much more ‘hard’ or flat-looking, as much more of the shot is in focus.

This chart, from Letus, compares the depth of field of different cameras (click for bigger):

You can see that consumer cameras have the greatest DOF, and 35mm movie cameras the least. So, how can we achieve this prized shallow DOF with our professional video cameras?

The breakthrough came in 2007, with the arrival of affordable 35mm lens adapters – adapters for using 35mm photographic lenses on DV and HD cameras. These adapters, from manufacturers like Letus, are attached to the camera’s lens, and the 35mm lens goes on their other end. The image from the 35mm lens – with its shallow depth of field characteristics – is projected onto a screen in the adapter, and the camera’s lens is focused onto that screen’s other side, and records the image. For a fuller explanation, see Wikipedia here.

The 35mm photographic lenses are the key to the film look; it’s best use fast prime lenses that compensate for the fact that the adapter causes some light loss to the final image. Fast = having a wide maximum aperture, eg f1.2, f1.4 or f1.8 – allowing more light in. Prime = having a fixed focal length, ie non-zoom.

This video compares a sequence (on the left) filmed without a depth of field adapter, to the same sequence filmed with our Letus Elite 35mm adapter:

Two years later, I am still awestruck when I see the film-like quality of the HD images we are able to create using the 35mm adapter and Nikon lenses with our Sony XDCAM EX1; compared to the images from the high-end DVCAM cameras we were using previously, they have a gorgeous softness, an organic feel to them. Here are a couple of examples of films we’ve made with the Letus: Achieve Global and NHS Breast Screening.

So what are the latest developments for filmmakers seeking the film look? We need look no further than the latest DSLR cameras….. HD-DSLRs – but that’s another blog entry.

Drayton Bird just sent me a link to this article by Daniel Levis, that encourages copywriters to sharpen their video scriptwriting skills….. but take a look at the comment from the pet shop owner who tried a video on his website…..

Comment by Wes — March 3, 2010 @ 11:21 am

Howdy Daniel!

You… my friend… are absolutely… positively… 100%…

RIGHT!

How can I say that? Here’s why:

I own a ‘brick and mortars’ pet business.

And I’ve tested long copy vs. video… on my website.

And by far… the video gets my phone ringing much more!

Now, that could be because ‘Google’ (and the other search engines) like video.

So, maybe my video just gets me more ‘hits’.

However…

The video… also… gets me fewer “price shoppers”.

Maybe that’s because a video of me… the owner… is more personal and warm.

And when a prospect watches my video he feels “like he knows me”. And is less likely to tighten his wallet.

Either way… Daniel… you are dead-right about this.

And to anyone (especially those with a brick and mortars business) I HIGHLY recommend you get a video on your site — ASAP!

Just don’t do it if you’re my competitor!

Thanks for a great article!

EX1 + Letus 35mm adapter comparison from Mark Slocombe on Vimeo.

My latest short film “Elevenses and Lunch” is a side-by-side comparison of identical shots, taken on a Sony XDCAM PMW-EX1, with and without a Letus Elite 35mm adapter.

Hope this is useful to those who are exploring the possibilities of 35mm adapters – you’ll really see the shallow depth of field that is the essence of the film look.