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Saturday, June 30, 2012

Quick Links

Help documents for Creative Suite CS5, CS5.1, CS5.5, and CS6 applications (PDF and HTML) |Todd Kopriva | Adobe
The documentation for Creative Suite 6 apps (and CS5) is available online in PDF and HTML format:
This page includes links to the Help documents (user guides, manuals) for CS5, CS5.1, CS5.5, and CS6 applications.

These are just the English-language documents. I gave links to some documents in other languages here.


GPU acceleration in After Effects CS6: Which Mac does it better? | rob-ART morgan | Bare Feats
Several Macs are compared, results depend on the brand of GPU you have:
Every Mac with an NVIDIA GPU blew away the Macs with AMD GPUs. That's because the Ray-Traced 3D Render option requires CUDA support. Of our test units, the 6-core Mac Pro with Quadro 4000 was fastest at 41 minutes. The fastest laptop was the 2012 MacBook Pro "Retina" at 58 minutes. In both cases, the CPU was loafing along while the NVIDIA CUDA "aware" GPU was doing all the heavy lifting. This is due to the fact that the ray trace animation was made of solids with no external media or textures.


The Switch | Stephen vanVuuren | ProVideoCoalition
The article is sub-titled "Making the hardware leap, safely, from Mac to Windows," but you still end up on a different OS:
On the PC side, it’s a dizzying array of choices - “Hackintoshes”, DIY boxes and dozens of hardware manufacturers. But the vast majority of Mac owners will be happiest with a certified workstation with next-day, US warranty, 24/7 support like Hewlett Packard’s well reviewed new Z620. Unlike Apple, HP offers a full line of current processor choices for workstations from Core i3 all the way to the new Sandy-Bridge Xeon’s – none of them available in any Mac Pro.


Pixel Pushers: Bugger Off. Jonah Kessel Reviews The Canon 5D MKIII
| Jonah Kessel | DSLR News Shooter
Jonah thinks the Canon 5D Mark III is a definite improvement for documentary shooters:
There are certainly missing features I would have liked to see on the 5D mkIII, including 60 fps at 1080p. However, the benefits of the camera far outweigh the things I didn’t have anyway, and I can’t say I’m really missing a 36 MP sensor. For what I do, I don’t really need a 4K DSLR and shooting super slow motion doesn’t seem to be an option in the DSLR world (yet). And sure, it cost more than the 5D Mark II – but hey, it’s a better camera.


Blackmagic is Listening, Requested Feature Added to the Cinema Camera
| Joe Marine | No Film School
John Brawley has been working with the Blackmagic Cinema Camera prototypes, and offers some comments about improvements that have been made to the camera:
The other problem that many had noticed were the dead/hot pixels in the only test footage that has been released so far. According to Brawley, they have been working hard on the sensor calibration, and those dead/hot pixels are nowhere to be found. From a conversation I had with him on Twitter, it seems like hot pixels shouldn’t be a problem as they have been on DSLRs.


The 1DC | joachimhedenworkblog
A look at grading some footage from the Canon 1D C. It appears that transcoding the footage first gives better results when processing in DaVinci Resolve:
So, my subjective impression…? It feels that the footage (especially in the 4444 transcoded version) holds up really really well. This may not be the best test image, and It would be interesting to see some skin tones, and some darker flat areas, but, I’d say things are looking rather good. And, I have a feeling it may hold up even better if shot a little less flat and more to “the right”.


DaVinci Resolve Cross Processing Look | Color Grading Central | YouTube
A short tutorial that shows how to create the look of color slide film being processed in color negative chemicals:
Cross Processing
A photochemical technique where film is processed in the wrong type of chemicals that the film was intended for.


The complete guide to UK film distribution for indie filmmakers | Amir Bazrafshan | Chris Jones Blog
An extensive guide to indie film distribution options:
Digital/VOD – [...] something to consider at negotiation stages is how are they embracing digital; is it a key part of their strategy or an after thought? Also, many platforms do not deal direct with indie distributors, but go through an agent who will deal with sales, accounting and quality control. Again, like the sales agents for physical product, they have pre-existing contacts and take a similar commission.


Production Lessons from Our Creative Mornings Documentary (Part 2 of 3)
| Ron Dawson | Dare Dreamer
The second part in a series offering tips learned while shooting a production with the Canon C300:
3. Take Advantage of Opportunities
As an indie filmmaker, you’re always on the look out for opportunities to make the production better. While we were filming the scenes at Suwanee Creek Bicycles, we met a mother and daughter who were there getting gear. The daughter was part of the Frazier Cycling team. They asked what we were doing and once they found out, the mom invited us to come check out the team practice runs the following day.


In Hollywood, keeping Tinseltown's treasures safe forever | Daniel Terdiman
| C|Net
A look at where Hollywood saves copies of all their movies:
Deep inside a series of very cold vaults, surrounded by thick concrete and protected from fire and water damage, more than 76,000 movies sit on shelves, preserved for future generations to enjoy.
Welcome to the Academy Film Archive, the storage arm of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. On your right is a stack of cans containing several reels of the 1962 classic "Lawrence of Arabia." On your left are several cans comprising a copy of "2001: A Space Odyssey."




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