Ad

Saturday, November 16, 2013

Some News

Canon Suspends Downloading of New C300 Firmware | CanonRumors
We have suspended download services for Firmware Version 1.1.0.1.00 that was posted Tuesday November 12, 2013 at 8PM EST, because it has been determined that discrepancies in color balance can occur with footage captured by the EOS C300 and EOS C300PL running Firmware Version 1.1.0.1.00.
UPDATE: Paul Antico writes:
Just FYI, I did upgrade my cameras before the FW was pulled. I can't find anything wrong with the color; I shot for two full days afterwards with no issue and the footage looks fine in the edit. However, I used C-Log. Some are reporting the issue is with a green tint on Wide DR gamma in the C300, which I generally avoid.


Upcoming New England Events


SMPTE New England
4K is Here to Stay: Are You Ready? with Grass Valley & Blackmagic Design
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
Doors open at 6:30pm
Presentation at 7:00pm
Rule Broadcast Rule Broadcast Systems, 1284 Soldiers Field Road, Boston, MA 02135


BOSCPUG Meeting Featuring Alan Bell, A.C.E
Thursday, November 21
- A Conversation with Alan Edward Bell, A.C.E. (THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE)
- “Brother Sister” - A Feature Film Workflow: Noam Kroll
Film editor Alan Edward Bell A.C.E., is best known for his work on Little Manhattan, (500) Days of Summer, Water For Elephants, The Amazing Spiderman, and the soon to be released “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.” Alan’s resume spans over twenty four years of post-production experience and includes a long list of credits in editorial as well as visual effects. He resides in Los Angeles with his wife and two children and 16 chickens.


Another Massachusetts Production Coalition seminar is coming up:
SELF MARKETING & SOCIAL MEDIA
Saturday, December 7th @ High Output Studios
Coffee & Bagels 9:30 AM / Seminars 10:00 - 12:00 Noon

For our final seminar of the year we are pleased to be joined by a diverse group of panelists who utilize a range of platforms to distribute and promote their content, and market themselves. An emphasis on how the online environment and social media are used to engage audiences will be discussed, with insights from our panel on how they successfully distinguish and promote their work.

High Output Studios: 495 Turnpike Street Canton, MA 02021.
Admission: $40 for MPC Members, $50 General Admission.

Seminar Panel

  • Michelle Cove - Author / Filmmaker
  • Dave Cutler - Social Media & Community Manager, TIBCO Spotfire
  • Erica Derrickson - Hollywood East Actors Group
  • Ian McFarland - Director, McFarland & Pecci
  • Mike Pecci - Director, McFarland & Pecci



And finally, at Inter Bee Dan Chung of News Shooter has a rep from GoPro on to explain what's new in the GoPro Hero 3+

Friday, November 15, 2013

The News

4K Cameras: What’s the State of the Art in 2013? | StudioDaily
But 4K's early adopters remained on the cutting edge all year, without many new camera products to challenge them. At NAB, Blackmagic announced a 4K camera for June delivery but has struggled to get it out the door in 2013. JVC devised a more expensive alternative to its inexpensive GY-HMQ10 camera, but only put it on the market in Japan.


Freelance. To Incorporate Or Not | WideOpenCamera
I used My Corporation to set everything up. They are fairly inexpensive and will do everything for you. There are a few ways to save a few pennies by sending in some of the forms yourself but the entire process only cost me around five hundred smackers.


INTERBEE 2013 LIVE SHOW REPLAY: “5D MKII WAS A KINDA ACCIDENT FOR CANON” – CANON CINEMA EOS GLOBAL PRODUCT MANAGER YOSHINARI ONDA TALKS | News Shooter
Canon Cinema EOS global product manager Yoshinari Onda came onto our live show from the show floor. Mr Onda has been in charge of the cinema EOS line since its launch. He gives us some unique insights into what goes on at the company and how they are developing the C100,C300, C500 and 1D C cameras.



i'd draw the line at 32,000, and that's only if you are truly desperate for light, which should be a rare situation seeing as 12,800 and a fast lens can expose even a dark bar just fine. I'm sure some will find use with 80,000... certainly better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.


Scott Simmons on Crossing the 180 | Dare Dreamer
Can you imagine the ability to edit in just about every NLE known to man? Do you think you could jump back and forth from Premiere to Final Cut Pro X to Avid as easily as you change channels? Well this week on the show we have veteran editor and Video Coalition contributor Scott Simmons to talk about how he does that, and so much more.


I’ve Never Watched a Video That Couldn’t Benefit From Being Shorter | PhotoFocus
Can the video be split? If a topic runs too long, look to see if you can create shorter segments that stand alone.  This way the viewer can download Part 1 and start watching it while they’re waiting for the rest to download or be released. There’s nothing wrong with multiple parts.


Vincent Laforet Discusses Independent Film Future | Producers Pal
This week on the podcast, Vincent Laforet joins us to discuss his storied career a bit and ponder the direction and challenges ahead for all of us as independent filmmakers.


After Effects: Experiment Assignment 11 | MotionEffects
Watercolour on paper is a popular motion graphics style and I’ve turned to stock footage on more than one occasion for that look. It is possible though to create this look in After Effects, and for my latest experiment while playing with the Foam and Turbulent Displace effects I started zeroing in on a watercolour look, that while still rough is pretty convincing.




Light Iron takes you step by step through the progressive data management and color pipeline of Ender’s Game.


Thursday, November 14, 2013

The News

More Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera RAW footage

I decided to compare ProRes with the recently released RAW firmware from Blackmagic. I was very surprised by how much of a difference there was between the two. The 12-bit RAW looks alot better than some RED footage I've worked with, besides the ugly Moire which shows it's ugly head in this shot.



Detail seems nearly identical. The most apparent difference is how the raw responds to the LUT. In the second shot, you can see the raw retains the highlights better. The blacks are also more crushed in the prores clips. Overall the colors respond more willingly. Being able to dial in WB/EXP/Sharpness in post feels pretty nice too. No sharpness applied to these though.



CANON UPDATES FIRMWARE FOR CINEMA EOS CAMERAS – C300 GAINS AF AND OTHER FUNCTIONS | News Shooter
Today they delivered on their promise with firmware version 1.1.0.1.00 and added a raft of extra functions as well. The AF is similar to the original C100, but not the same as the speedier Dual Pixel AF CMOS that you get with the paid C100 upgrade that will be available soon. Continuous AF is possible when using one of the newer STM lenses.





Final Cut Pro X 10.1 revealed? | Alex4d
iMovie (2013) isn't an updated version of iMovie '11 (version 9), it is Final Cut Pro X with additional resources to implement the iMovie consumer editing interface.It looks like there are new features in this unreleased version of Final Cut Pro X that many professional editors have been looking forward to for a long time.


Red Epic vs. Canon C500 | Shane Hurlbut
The Red Epic did well with under exposing, but then fell short in the night driving scene where underexposure is everywhere. It had a very hard time with IR pollution and delivered across the board a more magenta image. The C500 delivered great skin tones, a very clean image with ND filtration without IR pollution and owned the night, but fell short in the over exposure area. More tests are on the way.


Sony's New OLED Monitors Lose Nearly Half Their Weight | Definition Magazine
Sony’s newest professional OLED monitors have lost nearly half of their weight and depth from the previous models. Just what mobile trucks wanted to hear. The loss has been achieved through re-engineering the design from the chassis to the OLED panel module’s structure to the signal processing board, material and parts.


ZDF Exec: No 4K In Germany for Five Years | Satellite Today
“If you look at Germany, we are not even really using the full two million pixels for full HD yet. So, in terms of 4K, I would say we need to broadcast in full HD first. This is the next logical step for us. With 4K, right now, there is no equipment on the market,”


Introducing 8K: The Final Frontier? | Filmmaker Magazine
The 8K resolution covers almost the entire range of vision (induced visual field) which influences the human grasp of spatial coordinates. The pixel structure remains invisible to the unassisted eye even when viewed across a horizontal angle. When using an ultra-high resolution tablet format, too, the picture can be viewed smoothly, that pixel structure cannot be seen.


INTERBEE 2013: KOWA UNVEIL MICRO 4/3 LENSES CINE LENSES INCLUDING 8.5MM F2.8 | News Shooter
The most interesting was the 8.5mm f2.8 corrected ultra-wide lens. Manual focus on the prototype was very smooth and the image quality looked good. The size, weight and feel of these lenses seemed just about right for me.


Creative Anarchy (With Paul Maibaum, DP of Sons of Anarchy) GCS016 | Go Creative
Today we speak with Paul Maibaum ASC, director of photography for the hit tv series “Sons of Anarchy” we discuss everything including, lighting techniques, paul’s camera choices, the impact of 4K and more. Plus we cover all the latest industry news including the Canon C100 autofocus update and the release of Ben’s first music video.


A Green Light for Red Giant in OSX Mavericks | Red Giant
Finally! All Red Giant products are good to go in OSX Mavericks. We have been releasing updates to our software since OSX Mavericks went live and we resolved any issues we found. In the end, there weren’t a ton of problems, but it takes a while to get all of our products tested thoroughly so we can say we have full confidence that our software is going to work 100%


Changing Zeiss CP.2 Lenses from EF to PL Mount | AbelCine
Changing between these mounts can seem a bit complicated, as it involves several screws and a Torx Torque Wrench (included with the kit). Zeiss has tried to make it as easy as possible though, and have put together a detailed video showing exactly how to change the EF mount on a CP.2 to a PL mount.

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

The Crash Reel at BU with Lucy Walker and Kevin Pearce


Thursday, November 14, 2013 Time 6:00pm until 9:00pm in EST

Directed by two-time Academy Award nominee Lucy Walker, this HBO documentary tells the story of an escalating rivalry between snowboarders Kevin Pearce and his nemesis Shaun White in the run-up to the 2010 Olympics that leaves Shaun on top of the Olympic podium and Kevin in a coma following a training accident in Park City, Utah. Kevin's tight-knit Vermont family flies to his side and helps him rebuild his life as a brain injury survivor. But when he insists he wants to return to the sport he still loves, his family intervenes with his eloquent brother David speaking for all of them when he says, “I just don’t want you to die.” Kevin’s doctors caution him that even a small blow to the head could be enough to kill him. Will Kevin defy them and insist on pursuing his passion? With his now impaired skills, what other options does he have? How much risk is too much?

Lucy Walker, Kevin Pearce, and Dan Daneshvar, a postdoctoral researcher in behavioral neuroscience at the BU School of Medicine, will be in attendance. They will hold a Q&A after the event fielding questions from the audience about the film, the experience, and BU's involvement in the strides that have been made in the Traumatic Brain Injury field.

Facebook

Presented by the Society for Professional Journalists.

The News


I've always wanted a Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 lens, but....
Now I find that Sony has an E-mount 70-200 f/4 lens coming that includes Optical Image stabilization. And even though I have a Canon DSLR, I'm using lenses on the NEX-EA50 more than on the Canon camera. [Note, the NEX-EA50 currently has a $600 mail-in rebate, costing $2,725.]

The new lens is expected to ship in April 2014 and cost between $1,300-$1,600.
SonyFE 70-200mm F4 G OSS SEL70200G
This compact, lightweight telephoto zoom lens is ideal for full-frame E-mount bodies, delivering superb G Lens image quality throughout the zoom range. AA (advanced aspherical) elements, Super ED and ED glass elements, the Sony Nano AR Coating, and a 9-blade circular aperture add up to refined rendering with smooth bokeh where desired. Maximum aperture is a constant F4, and the physical length of the lens does not change when zooming or focusing. Dual linear motors ensure fast, precise focusing. Focus hold, range limiter and other controls are located on the barrel for easy access. Optical SteadyShot image stabilization is built in.


Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera now does 12 bit raw | Red Shark News
The Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera uses the open standard lossless compressed version of CinemaDNG RAW. CinemaDNG RAW lossless compression works in a similar way as a ZIP file where the RAW files are compressed during recording without the loss of any part of the image, so all images retain the same quality when they are decompressed. That means customers get back the mathematically perfect high quality RAW file image that they recorded.

B & H has the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera in stock | $995

8 Cinema DNG shots from Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera raw | EOSHD
These are the new 2:1 Compressed raw frames from the Pocket Cinema Camera. This is the first look at how the compression may or may not affect the image. The only thing I have noticed is that compression breaks OSX’s ability to display the DNG frames in Finder. So far the image quality looks as it should… Lossless!






Canon EOS-1D C Meets EBU HD Tier 1 Imaging Requirements for Broadcast Production | Canon Rumors
It's still $12,000...
Canon Inc. today announced that the EOS-1D C digital SLR camera, part of the company’s Cinema EOS System lineup of digital cinematography products, has been independently tested in accordance with European Broadcasting Union (EBU)1 standards for HD content acquisition.2 The tests found that the EOS-1D C is the first digital SLR camera to satisfy the stringent testing criteria for HD production.


In depth coverage – Panasonic announce 4K video capable Micro Four Thirds sensor | EOSHD
The recent rumours surfacing of Panasonic releasing an AG-GH4 around the $3000 mark have been given a boost. Panasonic have now officially announced the existence of a 16MP Micro Four Thirds sensor which is capable of 4K video at up to 30fps, matching the rumoured specs of the GH4.


VIDEO EDITING TECHNIQUES - 5 THINGS TO TRY IN YOUR EDITING APP | VideoMaker
1) Color Correction & EffectsThere was a time not so long ago when video color correction was a luxury that was only accessible to top-of-the-totem pole television and video producers. Everyone else did their best to capture the best color they could in the camera. This meant setting the camera’s exposure properly for the scene, and occasionally shooting through physical lens filters to add color to a sunset or to simulate the darkness of night.


Will Its Mild Debut Comedy Series 'Alpha House' Make Enough of a Splash for Amazon Studios? | IndieWire
"Alpha House" isn't entirely success, but it's certainly watchable, and comedies tend to take more time to find their center than dramas. But Amazon's choice to kick off its originals with something so innocuous does underline the difference in its approach as compared to Netflix.


Epic Fail: How Blockbuster Could Have Owned Netflix | Variety
“But management and vision are two separate things,” said a former high-ranking Blockbuster exec at the time, recalling, “We had the option to buy Netflix for $50 million and we didn’t do it. They were losing money. They came around a few times.”


Roman Polanski on Rescuing 'Weekend of a Champion' From Obscurity and His Advice to Filmmakers | IndieWire
In light of the upcoming November 22 theatrical release of Roman Polanski's restored and re-cut 1972 documentary "Weekend of a Champion," last week's New York City screening paid tribute to the film's decades-long journey by following with a rare press conference that included Polanski himself via Skype as well as Jackie Stewart, the Formula 1 film's star subject, and producer Brett Ratner, both of whom were present in person. 


EXCLUSIVE: Behind the Scenes at Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki's Oscar-Contender 'The Wind Rises' (TRAILER) | IndieWire
Possibly the last film from Hayao Miyazaki, the Walt Disney of Japan, who won the animated Oscar for "Spirited Away," "The Wind Rises" is not aimed at young kids. It's a gorgeously drawn historical true story of the brilliant designer behind the Zero fighter plane that wrecked havoc in World War II. 


2013 WFA 48-Hour Film Challenge – $8k+ in Prizes! | Winter Film Awards
The Challenge gets underway on Friday, December 6 at 8pm.  A representative of each team must come to our offices to get your GENRE, TAGLINE and PROP. You then have two days to write, produce and edit a 4-7minute film in time to bring it to us at our offices on Sunday, December 8 by 8pm.



Tuesday, November 12, 2013

How to become a filmmaker


I recently interviewed Gez Medinger, the co-director of AfterDeath, a thriller/horror movie currently in post-production. You can read the interview, in three parts, at Filmmaker Magazine.

If you've dreamed about making a film, or you're in the process of trying to get your first film off the ground, you really have to read this story. Gez spent ten years intending to make a movie:
When we wrote our business plan back in early 2002, I remember writing, “We expect to be in production of our first feature film by 2004-2005,” and as it happened it was 2013 before we actually got there.
But after several false starts, and many years, he finally realized that he had to make it happen himself:
I realized that the only thing that stops me from making a film now is me. As soon as I had the realization that I had to take the power and control out of other people’s hands and put it into my own, I knew the only thing that would ever stop me from making a film was my own drive and ambition.
Personally, I think it's a pretty awesome story.


Finding the Right Story to Tell: The Making of AfterDeath (Part 1)
Script Development, Casting and Locations: The Making of AfterDeath (Part 2)
Co-Directing and the Exhaustion of the Indie Filmmaker: The Making of AfterDeath (Part 3)



B & H Photo Video

Special, limited time offer on the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM Lens.
1899.00 Reg. price $ 2499.00 Ltd Qty @ price
Proceed to checkout to recive $2199.00 price Mail in rebate $300.00 = $1899.00

Monday, November 11, 2013

The News

Listen Up, First Time Filmmakers! Why Low Budget Directors Shouldn't Be Their Own Producers | IndieWire
A good producer will handle problems on set while allowing you to do what you’re supposed to be there for – directing the film. And not only will they keep people from bugging you while you’re trying to direct, but they will also keep the day moving. It’s literally impossible to keep track of all of the moving elements on a film production yourself, and when you have a great producer on board, they will ensure that the train keeps moving and gets to where it needs to be on time.


The 5 Habits of Highly Successful Filmmakers | Raindance Film Festival
2. Use it or lose it.
One of the first film persons I met was Dov Simens of 2 Day Film School fame. Although he is neither a screenwriter or director, he writes every single day. He doesn’t write twelve page articles that are finely polished, or a script a day – all he does is flex his mind muscles – a bit like going to the health club.


Reminder: Pixar's 22 Rules of Story available as a PDF eBook | Stephen Vladimir Bugaj
This is just a check-in post to remind everyone that you can download the complete "Pixar's 22 Rules of Story" Analyzed series as a PDF eBook.
Rule 1.You admire a character for trying more thanfor their successes.In the main, the statement rings true. It’s goodfoundational advice, especially since many storytellers “gotoo easy on” their characters because they like them. Dramacomes from struggle, and empathy and admiration come fromseeing someone trying in the face of difficult odds.


THE SONY CBK-55F2K OPTICAL LOW PASS FILTER FOR THE F5 AND F55 TESTED | News Shooter
As far as Sony’s claimed “More organic look” goes it does have some merits. I found the F55 produces really nice imagery when coupled with the R5 raw recorder. The CBK-55F2K does take that image and soften it up even more and it does look quite nice to my eye. It is very easily sharpened up in post can see myself using it for certain situations or shoots, but I didn’t find it to be a piece of equipment that you absolutely had to use if you wanted to shoot 2K raw at HFR or 4K raw.


Luxi Light Meter Adapter for iPhone 5/5s Review | Photo.net
Well, first things first, the Luxi doesn’t come with a light metering app. Extrasensory Devices, the company behind the Luxi, claims they will have their own app out soon. But until then, you will have to head down to the app store and pick one of the existing ones. Thankfully, there are a number of free/cheap apps to choose from. I used the thrillingly named (but free) “Pocket Light Meter” app from Nuwaste studios.


12 Video Tips for Still Photographers | Pop Photo
3. Bring Your Neutral Density Filters:The great light sensitivity of a DSLR's sensor is perfect when conditions are dim, but even at the lowest ISO, bright sunlight may force you into using the smallest aperture, killing your dream of film-like shallow depth of field. Control it with an arsenal of overall ND filters.


Writing Bytes | New York Times
The Internet has changed (and keeps changing) how we live today — how we find love, make money, communicate with and mislead one another. Writers in a variety of genres tell us what these new technologies mean for storytelling.


Adobe Updates Creative Cloud Apps | Larry Jordan
For me, the more exciting news is at opposite ends of the post-production process: Prelude for ingest and Media Encoder for compression. I find Prelude be a very exciting concept. By separating transcoding and import from the editing system, this opens up the opportunity for teams of people to easily work on the same project.


Dear Hollywood VFX, It’s over. We lost. Prove me wrong | FIE
The VES can’t help.  You have to do it yourselves.  They have been unable to find a clear and concise message that stokes action.  But they need to be clear about their inability to act, to keep from becoming part of the problem.  That is the best service they could do at this point.


Larry’s Thoughts on the New MacPro | Larry Jordan
If money means nothing to you, then buy the system with all the bells and whistles. Then, sit back and smirk while the rest of us hate you. For most of us, buying hardware is a trade-off between what we want and what we can afford. In other words, if finding the balance between the best performance at the best price is important to you, this article is for you.

Videos



Sony PMW-F55 Slow-Motion Test Footage from Doug Jensen on Vimeo.
After the firmware update a couple of weeks ago that gave the F55 the ability to shoot 240fps, I decided to experiment and see what it looked like.




The equipment used to make this video included:
Canon 6d, Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 Canon 16-35mm f/2.8 Canon 24-70mm f/2.8 Emotimo TB3 Black