Stu at Prolost has a great article on pimping out After Effects, what settings he uses, and some must have scripts.On the scripts, BG Renderer is a must, at $29.99 it allows you to not only render in the background, but also to e-mail you when a render is done, so you can walk way, and know right when it is ready continue.And of course Stu’s own DV Rebel Tools are also another must have.
Scott Simmons from the Edit Blog at the Prod Video Coalition has a must have article on Media Composer 6. It is a must read for some of it’s gotchas on ProRES. While it can fast import ProRES footage like it can with DNxHD footage, it cannot then Consolidate ProRES footage, which means copying without recompressing, it can still only do that with Avid compressed footage. You have to Transcode ProRES footage, so it adds another layer of compression into the mix.
Apple has released an update to Final Cut Pro X 10.0.2. Here are the bug fixes:• Fixes an issue where a title may revert to the default font after restarting Final Cut Pro X• Resolves an issue that could cause files recorded with certain third-party mobile devices to play back incorrectly• Addresses a stability issue caused by changing the start time on a Compound ClipNo major new features, but at least they are doing bug fixes.
For anyone else who relies heavily on RSS feeds, and Google Reader to read them, this hint is a real help. Google recently updated reader with an awful new look, and made it incredibly slow. Well someone on the Google Forums has found a solution that returns the old speed.In either Chrome or Firefox Adblock add a new rule and enter the following text:||plusone.google.com/u/0/_/+1/fastbutton^This should return the old speed, but getting rid of the +1 button on other sites (like it gone from 500px). Not an ideal solution, but anything to get my speed back!And if you added a custom google plus feed to the Send To it still works.
This is really a must read for all switchers from Final Cut Pro 7 to Adobe Premiere Pro CS5.5, as it gives a full rundown of the similarities and differences in the 2 different timelines!
Walter Biscardi from Biscardi Creative, has a great article on beta testing AVID Media Composer 6 over at Creative Cow.It is most interesting because he was a die hard Final Cut Pro user, who only used AVID when it first came out, but now seems totally sold on AVID. And says it is more rock solid with an AJA Kona 3 than Final Cut Pro ever was, and way better with it than Adobe Premiere is.Way to go AVID! I just think they should permanently make the upgrade from FCP $1000 instead o $1500, but any which way they are going to slaughter the market, I just hope Adobe is up to making enough competition to keep the innovative, just like Apple did for them.
Thanks to Cinema 5D for pointing out that Canon has put up a website for Cinema EOS and the EOS 300D Camera.
Stu at prolost has a good article on the Canon EOS C300. It goes into their features as per their FAQ.As Stu says this will be interesting to see which turns out to be the better camera, the EOS or the less expensive Scarlet.
Mike Curtis from HD for Indies has a good article on the newly announced RED Scarlet. And it’s pros and cons. It is well worth a read.It does seem that the Scarlet is the better deal here, though the process is harder to shoot with, but the results should be better.The Canon lenses issue is the same with both Cameras, and could actually be solved with the new Canon EF Cine lenses they are releasing with the EOS C3800.I still think both cameras are a bit too expensive, and the Scarlet will have beta issues as it is s RED.
Mike Curtis from HD For Indies, has a good take on the C300 with good and bad. It looks like the Camera is aimed at the Sony F3, and not the red one.It has some better features, but some not as good.As I said elsewhere, why can the less expensive scarlet autofocus with Canon EF lenses, but the Canon cannot. It also cannot do 444 out, like the Sony can (with an expensive upgrade) which would bypass the Long GOP MPEG 2 compression, making the Sony seem the better choice, especially with it’s higher frame rate (1080p60 vs 24) and 444 capabilities (even if both are after a firmware upgrade to the F3.Personally I think Canon screwed the pooch a bit, as they missed the price point. At under $10,000 this would be huge, but at $16-20,000 it is too expensive, without enough high end features. And for film it seems that the Scarlet would be better, though of course it does have a much harder workflow.