May 2006 Archives
Popwire announces a new and more versatile offering of it's server based media compression software, Compression Engine. With the introduction of Compression Engine version 4, Popwire is acknowledging requests from customers for increased options of choice.
Here are details about the new options for Compression Engine:
Compression Engine 4.0 Lite is the ideal choice for entry-level customers that produce content for web distribution and have one server that does media coding for a smaller workgroup. Compression Engine 4.0 Lite is the ideal companion to both Final Cut Pro and web-tv production with the support of formats such as DV, MP3, Flash, WMV-9, MPEG-4 and H.264 Base Line.
Compression Engine 4.0 Standard is the number one choice for customers who work with DVD authoring and production. Compression Engine 4.0 Standard adds capacity for Event Action scripts for system integration and automation. The number of formats supported in the Standard edition is greater than in Compression Engine 4.0 Lite. with support for formats such as DVCPro 25/50/100, BlackMagic, Cinewave, 3GPP, 3GPP2, and MPEG-2.
Compression Engine 4.0 Pro is the ultimate server based media coding solution. With functionality to build large clusters of servers coding massive numbers of media files, the Popwire Split&Stitch technology provides customers with a distributed media coding solution. With an unprecedented format support for standards such as 3GPP multi bitrate, transport streams for H.264 High Profile and MPEG-2, Sorenson Video, GXF, MXF and IMX and support for high availability make this the only choice for the true professional with professional demands.
Get additional details about Compression Engine 4.0 Lite, Standard and Pro
Akamai is one of the streaming media leaders and is setting a positive example for students and companies. The Akamai Foundation recently announced a commitment to fund significant programs of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA), including a national college scholarship program for high school students.
The Akamai Foundation, established in 2000 by Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: AKAM) and funded solely through donations from Akamai employees and individuals outside the company, promotes mathematics education in grades K-12 and the pursuit of excellence in mathematics to encourage America's next generation of technology innovators.
At the U.S.A. Mathematics Olympiad awards ceremony in Washington D.C., the Akamai Foundation presented Akamai Scholarships to the top three winners of this year's competition, the most prestigious math competition in the country for high school students. Brian Lawrence will receive $20,000, Alex Zhai will receive $15,000, and Yufei Zhao will receive $10,000. These top three scorers are among the country's most talented high school mathematicians. By awarding Akamai Scholarships, the Foundation hopes to encourage these and other students to continue their pursuit of mathematics education.
Akamai is a global leader in distributed computing solutions and services, helping organizations grow their online businesses without growing their IT infrastructures. The company created the world's largest and most widely used on-demand distributed computing platform, with more than 18,000 servers in nearly 1,000 networks in 70 countries.
Learn more about Akamai and their technology for improving streaming media delivery
The well recognized Streaming Media conferences that regularly take place in the U.S. on the West and East Coast will take center stage in Europe. The conferences provide an opportunity for participants to ask questions and get feedback from key individuals in the Streaming Media space. The can also attend panel discussions and find out about the latest tools and technology surrounding Streaming Media. Streaming Media East and West IS the place to be for Streaming Media. Now that the Streaming Media conference is heading to the Copthorne Tara Hotel in London in the form of Streaming Media Europe, the UK is in for a treat.
The conference includes 6 tracks:
- Industry Trends and Development
- Tools and Technology
- Enterprise Streaming in Practice
- Streaming for Corporate Communications
- Streaming in Government, News and Education
- Exploring the Potential
The event is perfect for CIOs, Intranet Managers, IS Managers, Government officials, Broadcast media executives, Streaming media industry professionals and others.
Get more information about Streaming Media Europe October 12-13, 2006 in London, UK
For all of you Avid and Final Cut Pro users, you'll be pleased to know that Panasonic is offering a free PDF packed full of operational information on their new HD wonder, the Panasonic HVX200. If you have never owned a camera of this grade before or if you are planning to buy this cam, you might seriously want to consider taking the time to read through this material. It's an amazingly powerful tool once you learn how to wield it. The PDF is sixty eight pages long and if Panasonic hasn't sold you on this camera yet, the information in this packet just might do the trick. You can choose from an NTSC or PAL manual by simply selecting your language preference and click on the center blue guide icon that is at the bottom of the webpage. HVX PDF
This set of 136 filters, transitions and generators support 24p, 25p 30p and are all designed to render at the subpixel level for smooth movement. A series of Final Cut Pro workshops and 68 softwipe patterns are also included in the package. Here's a taste of what you will find in CGM DVE Complete:
Filters: Morph, Clone Area, Bezier Matte, Text, Countdown, De-interlace, Highlights, Lows, Cube 3D, Squick, Star Effects
Transitions: Dip to Color Dissolve, Double Flip, Explode, Laser, Liquid Movie FX, MultiSlide, MultiSpin, PixelStorm
Itiva Digital Media, developers of high definition Internet video delivery technologies, has appointed Derek Lownsbrough to the post of Vice President, Engineering. Lownsbrough, whose experience includes six years at Packeteer, will lead the company's efforts in taking Itiva's Quantum Transport to commercial release.
"We're thrilled to add Derek and his expertise in Enterprise-class software to our team," said Itiva President Michel Billard. "His experience at Packeteer provides not only a strong understanding of Internet data flow but also a robust knowledge of best-in-class processes. We're delighted he's decided to apply his vast knowledge to the digital video delivery market, and specifically Itiva's team."
Derek Lownsbrough is an experienced Engineering Manager with more than 11 years building software and managing R&D teams. Prior to joining Itiva, Derek recently served as Software Development Manager with Packeteer. He holds a patent, System and Method for Efficiently Forwarding Client Requests from a Proxy Server, with additional patents pending.
"Itiva's unique in that it approaches video delivery as an opportunity to alleviate the bandwidth problem that online video delivery creates," said Mr. Lownsbrough. "I'm excited to be leading the team that brings to market Itiva's innovative solutions for rich media delivery to mass audiences over the Internet."
Itiva is in Beta with several companies, including HIP Digital and EMI Music Canada for music videos. Designed to help content providers deliver fast, high-quality, full-screen video over the Internet, Quantum Transport sets a new standard for affordability by combining the power of server-based and edge computing for a multicast effect.
For those that did not not get a chance to attend the Advanced Video Services: From Broadband to Wireless sessions at NAB, the MPEG Industry Forum now has the Powerpoint presentations available for those that are interested in viewing the data. The event was sponsored by the Internet Streaming Media Alliance and the MPEG Industry Forum.
The following presentations are available for download:
- Set Top Boxes: Past, Present, and Future
- Introduction to the MediaHub Solutions Network
- Declassifying Content Security
- MPEGIF Standards Update
- ISMA Update
- Home Choice
- The IPTV Ecosystem: Delivering A New Content Experience
Get details about upcoming events and activities as it relates to the MPEG Forum and their members
Network Foundation Technologies, LLC (NFT), a leading developer of Internet streaming technologies, announced that William J. Macdonald, co-creator and executive producer of the Golden Globes nominated HBO series "Rome" will advise NFT as it propels Internet broadcasting into mainstream entertainment.
"We are honored to have Bill Macdonald join NFT, and we will immediately benefit from Bill's talent for turning unique ideas into entertainment blockbusters that reward viewers and investors alike," said Marcus Morton, president and co-founder of NFT. "Bill shares our belief that NFT's Internet broadcasting technology will spark the next wave of entertainment innovation - simple, low-cost distribution of audio and video content, not just from the studios and networks, but from amateur entertainers and content providers as well. With NFT's platform, it's a brand new ball game for entertainers, content providers, advertisers and viewers.
Macdonald, co-founder of London-based Templar Entertainment, has produced a host of hits including, "The Saint," "One Man's Hero," "Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders," "Molly," "Jade," and he co-produced the blockbuster, "Sliver." Macdonald's films have featured Hollywood stars Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, Harvey Keitel, Sharon Stone, Jodi Foster, and Val Kilmer, to name a few.
"NFT's impact will be similar to that of color TV - it so profoundly enhances the way we receive and enjoy entertainment that demand for online programming and content should skyrocket," Macdonald said. "The goal of everyone in entertainment, whether professional or amateur, is to have our creations seen by as many people as possible. With Internet broadcasting from NFT, millions of viewers can be brought together with the click of a mouse, which is a significant opportunity for the entertainment industry."
The Consolidate feature allows you to create and save copies of the sequence's media files to a selected drive. This makes it relatively simple to move source files with you when you work on a different system. Using the Consolidate feature has the advantage of copying only the amount of media necessary; you save only the sequences and clips used in the project. For example, it does not copy an entire 1-hour audio file to consolidate a single 10-second clip.
Sequences: When you consolidate a sequence, the system copies only the portions of media files edited into the sequence, and creates new master clips for each clip in the sequence. The file name extension .new is attached to the master clips, along with incremental numbering beginning with .01. The sequence is not renamed but is automatically relinked to the new media files.
Subclips: When you consolidate a subclip or group of subclips, the system copies only the portion of the media files represented in the subclip, and creates a new master clip that is the duration of the subclip and a new subclip. The file name extension .new is attached, along with incremental numbering beginning with .01.
Master clips: When you consolidate a master clip, the system creates exact copies of the media files. If you link the original master clip to the new files, the system creates a master clip with the file name extension .old that remains linked to the old files. If you maintain the link between the original master clip and the old media files, the system creates a new master clip with the file name extension .new that is linked to the new files. The new clips are also numbered incrementally beginning with .01. Consolidating master clips does not save storage space because the system copies the same amount of media for each clip.
The most frequently asked question out their by Final Cut Pro and Avid Xpress Pro artists has to be "How do I make my DV footage appear more filmic?" If you're already shooting in true 24p, have a firm grip on 3 point lighting, and have access to a jib, then you are well on your way. Digital Film Tools offers plug ins that can help you tweak the dramatic feel you're looking for with: Digtial Film Lab, Composite Suite, 55mm and zMatte. Digtial Film Tools gives you the ability to mimic some very popular film looks by simulating glass filter effects and specialized lenses.
eline Technologies now has VideoClix Enabled tradeshow coverage available from NAB 2006. Viewers can watch the video at www.videoclix.com. The VideoClix enabled video is created in QuickTime 7 format and includes clickable Hot Spots in the video to get more information about various products and tools featured at the 2006 NAB Show.
Other VideoClix enabled videos are available for MacWorld 2006 and the Paris Auto Show 2005 on their website.
Get More Information about VideoClix for Creating Clickable Hot Spot Video
Arbitron has released their latest free Research Study on the Internet and Multimedia and it is available from their website at Arbitron.com. The study is titled "Internet and Multimedia 2006: On-Demand Media Explodes."
Here are some of the findings from the Arbitron Study:
81% of Americans have Internet access from any location
58% of home Internet users with Internet access have Broadband
71% of home Internet users have software to block pop-up advertising
27 million of Americans have listened to a podcast
The study includes more information about Internet Usage Trends, Digital Radio, Internet Video and Traditional Media.
Note: When you visit the Arbitron website click on the link that says Ad Agencies, then click Free Studies and Reports, followed by Internet Usage.
Download the full Arbitron 2006 Study on Internet and Multimedia.
The Mobile DTV Alliance is an open industry consortium that focuses on promoting the best practices and open standards to deliver premium-quality broadcast television to mobile devices and accelerate DVB-H development and deployment in North America. The alliance includes leading companies from across the mobile business system and entertainment value chain. Members of the Mobile DTV Alliance include Motorola, Modeo, Intel, Microsoft, Texas Instruments, Nokia and PacketVideo Corp.
DVB-H is an open industry standard that has become the predominant technology used to deploy mobile TV services around the world. DVB-H has over 100 companies developing or deploying services, components and devices based on the standard. Through this large ecosystem, DVB-H has a competitive environment which fosters lower costs and spurs innovation.
The DVB-H standard delivers rapid, cost-effective deployments by leveraging existing infrastructure in North America. In addition, DVB-H provides a living room TV viewing experience in the palm of your hand with an average 1.5 second channel changing time readily achievable and demonstrable with the existing standard, 30+ channels of live TV programming, audio content and pod casts, a long battery life of 3.5+ hours and up to 30 frames per second delivery speed.
Learn more about the Mobile DTV Alliance and details about Mobile TV
Darim's Forward Streaming kit for Web-casting to VC-1 and for encoding to professional and broadcast applications to AVC provide hardware optimized for real-time video encoding/streaming. The streaming kit provides de-interlacing of input video and an adaptive 3D video noise reduction filter.
The Forward Streaming kit delivers video to VC-1 and AVC and features:
Windows Media 9 and VC1 (WM9/VC1) encoding/streaming for web-casting to any number of users over the Internet
The WM9/VC1 package achieves good quality encoding and streaming at multiple simultaneous bitrates
H.264 or Advanced Video Coding (H.264/AVC) for professional and broadcast applications requiring high quality video and audio transmission over satellite channels or terrestrial uplinks with limited bandwidth
The Forward Streaming kit comes with convenient WM9 or H.264 encoding and scheduling software which provides:
Manual and scheduled encoding
Intuitive ways to configure video and audio inputs, compression and streaming parameters
Customizable session profiles
Capture to hard disk
Get more information about Darim's Forward Streaming Kit for VC-1 and AVC formats
Vitalstream has a fourth generation Media Console for hosting On-demand and Live Flash streaming content. Vitalstream co-developed the software with Adobe to manage the distribution of Flash Video streaming. MediaConsole 4.0 includes a media manager, a reporting dashboard, MediaOps software development kit and pre-built video skins. MediaConsole for Flash provides a complete toolset for managing, packaging, reporting on and delivering Flash Video. The MediaConsole comes as part of Vitalstream's Flash Streaming Service.
The biggest benefit of using Vitalstream's MediaConsole is that it makes getting Flash streaming video on-line extremely easy. You can be a novice and use their service if you are able to compress your content to the FLV format. You can use tools such as Compression Master (Mac), Flix Pro (PC and MAC), Sorenson Squeeze (PC and MAC), and Flash Video Studio (PC) to create your FLV streaming files to use with Vitalstream's MediaConsole for Flash.
Learn more about Vitalstream's MediaConsole and their Flash Video Streaming Service
Avid Technology is currently providing a free Avid Marquee training session available on their learning portal 'ALEX'. Right now, it is free to register.
A full training module on Avid's popular real-time 3D open GL title tool 'Marquee' is available for preview. The 'ALEX' learning portal only works with Internet Explorer and is currently incompatible with Safari or Firefox.
Eventually Avid technology plans to make many of it's popular certified training courses available on the 'ALEX' system to cater to those who are to far from a certified training center. Users will be able to become Avid certified users by completing all the required courses.
If you find yourself having to perform many cut outs in Adobe Photoshop, Fluid Mask may have just made your job much easier. Fluid Mask is an advanced cut-out tool that will allow you to select, group and mask image objects for clean cut outs.
Here are some of the features:
- The edge Overlay view will allow you to Identify Edges before you begin masking
- Click-and-cut select objects
- Enables you to define those not so distinct edges
- Test render tool will allow you to review your work in progress
- Performs masking and blending simultaneously while makin the distinction between hard and soft edges
Fluid Mask requires that you have Adobe Photoshop 7.0 or higher and runs on both Windows and Mac systems.
Envivio Inc. announced its 4Caster HD3 real time high definition (HD) encoding system is shipping. HD3 provides the highest quality video at a flexible range of target bit rates between 6 and 12 Mbps.
The real time system compresses content for immediate distribution to air or can save files to an onboard hard drive for VOD content creation. With better quality levels than MPEG-2 at less than half the bit rates, HD3 is ideal for use in both live and on-demand IPTV and broadcast distribution applications.
The system will be on display from June 5-7, 2006 at GLOBALCOMM in the Envivio booth
#47091. A Quad Play demonstration highlights the encoding efficiency of the HD3 system and how it enhances an IPTV headend for HD service delivery to a consumer set-top box. The HD3 is also paired with a 4View D5 professional decoder for a broadcast demonstration.
With the implementation of advanced MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 features, the HD3 provides
outstanding HD picture quality at bit rates that were previously unattainable. This enables telcos to deploy HDTV on their existing network infrastructure. The constant bit rate (CBR) implementation maintains the steady stream rates required for efficient video delivery over IPTV networks. The system also provides capped variable bit rate (VBR) encoding for multi-channel broadcast applications.
Developed with high quality, low data rate multi-media applications in mind, 4Caster
HD3 supports Pure IP transport mechanism, which is rapidly becoming the infrastructure of choice for video over IP applications. Offering operators a choice of transport mechanisms, the HD3 also supports MPEG-2 Transport Stream (TS) over IP for easy integration with traditional infrastructures. Features such as a space saving one rack unit (1RU) form factor, remote web-based system control, and compression support for 720p and 1080i broadcast content have created a backlog of
requests for the system.
Get more information about Envivios Encoding tools for MPEG-4 delivery
VitalStream Media Player for Flash, a dedicated application that makes viewing Flash video (FLV) content as simple as double-clicking an FLV file.
Previously, developers had to create a Media Player within the Flash Development environment to view FLV content on their computer. Now, with full support for all FLV files including Flash 6, 7 and 8 encoded Flash video, the VitalStream Media Player for Flash saves valuable development time by eliminating cumbersome steps in creating Flash video projects.
Working hand-in-hand with Adobe to develop the Flash streaming platform, VitalStream leads the market as the first and most experienced Flash video streaming service provider.
Media Player Key features include:
- Standard media player controls like play, pause, volume controls and a video scrub bar
- At-a-glance data on file name, total running time (TRT), audio and video data rate
- Zoom in and out functions for viewing video at 100% or 200%
- Access to a time code display
"VitalStream is a pioneer in the Flash video streaming market, and continues its leadership role by offering innovative products as solutions to existing industry needs," said Philip N. Kaplan, president and COO at VitalStream. "Media Player for Flash is the newest addition to our suite of development tools created to simplify the workflow of delivering media online."
Movie Logger 1.1, from Digital Heaven, is an easy to use text based logger for Quicktime Movies that streamlines the process of logging footage on a PC running Windows and placing it into a Final Cut Pro workflow. Simply set an in and an optional out point timecode, then type a detailed description. The logs can then be exported to FCP's XML file format or to RTF, Rich Text Format. You can import up to 16 movies per project and movies can be reviewed in either a 4:3 or 16:9 aspect ratio.
Digtial Heaven suggests that you download a demo to see if Movie Logger 1.1 is compatible with your system before you purchase it.
StreamingMedia East 2006 wrapped up today but you can watch a number of On-demand videos including a short conversation with Ben Waggoner, Program Manager for Video Encoding for Microsoft. He talks about the exciting latest Windows Media Developments and from Microsoft.
Topics covered:
Windows Media Encoder Studio Edition
Telestream's Flip4Mac support for Windows Media
Windows Media Player 11 beta
Digital Rights Management
There are many other available Webcasts on the StreamingMedia.com website for StreamingMedia East 2006. They feature key companies and individuals in the streaming media space. The website is where experts and novice go to stay on the cutting edge with streaming media.
Watch the On-demand Webcast with Ben Waggoner, Program Manager for Video Encoding for Microsoft.
Watch other streaming videos in the StreamingMedia East 2006 Webcast Archives.
On2 Technologies, Inc. announced that it has released version 8.5 of its popular On2 Flix Pro for Flash video production software. With this new release, On2 has added compelling new features to appeal to Flash developers and the growing community of Internet video-shorts producers.
New features of On2 Flix Pro 8.5 include:
-Chroma color keying tools that enable users of any skill level to create stunning Hollywood-style "green screen" visual effects
-Advanced control of On2 video encoder settings such as buffer and quantizer control, encoder speed, and sharpness
-Support for video cue point insertion to facilitate bookmarking/chaptering within videos, closed captioning, and event triggers.
"On2 Flix Pro paved the way for high quality video for Flash Player 8 and has become an influential force behind the online shift from text and pictures to Internet video. Today, we're helping these customers take their creative visions even further by providing them the caliber of special effects tools and encoding controls once only available to professional editors in the broadcast arena," said Eric Ameres, Chief Technical Officer at On2.
On2 Flix Pro is a leading solution for creating high-quality video for playback with the Flash Player 8. Macromedia selected On2 Video in 2003 as the advanced compression technology for their Macromedia Flash 8 family of products.
On2 Flix Pro 8.5 is available immediately for Windows and Macintosh.
Get more information about Flix Pro 8.5 for encoding Flash streaming content.
The Viewcast Interactive Video Network helps companies and organizations manage video resources. From video-based digital signage to two-way video communication and conferencing, the presence of video is growing and inn response to the growth of video, many devices and systems have been developed utilizing separate infrastructures and user interfaces to streamline the delivery of video. However, these solutions offer little or no integration with legacy technologies until now. All of the video resources you need can work as one integrated system with the ViewCast Interactive Video Network (IVN).
IVN brings virtually every video application possible together in a streamlined way to satisfy the needs of all its users in a single user friendly interface. This unique system seamlessly integrates technologies that source, switch, distribute, and manage live and stored video in a variety of applications. Applications include video conferencing, video distribution, distance learning, video resource sharing, surveillance, and personal video communication. With IVN, you can deliver original quality video wherever and whenever it is needed to a wide variety of users.
See how Gaston County Courthouse is using Viewcast's Interactive Video Network
NBC affiliate, KPRC Houston, is using Telestream's Launch media delivery software to improve the way news is delivered to the station from remote locations. Launch is a file-based media delivery software solution. When combined with non-linear video editing software on standard laptop computers, Launch provides a portable, all-in-one solution for editing and transmitting news clips via standard or wireless Internet to the station.
"Telestream's Launch fulfills a key role in our news coverage process for crews traveling out of town," said Vince Moreno, News Technical Manager for KPRC. "Launch provides important portability and reliability, as well as an effective media submission alternative. The bottom line for us is greater workflow efficiency."
Prior to Launch, KPRC spent a lot of time coordinating out-of-town transmission logistics with local stations. They either contacted the stations in advance or knocked on the doors of on-site trucks to request the use of local facilities. They also shipped a lot of gear out of town. Now, they simply send their news crew outfitted with a Sony XDCAM digital camcorder and a Dell laptop loaded with Grass Valley NewsEdit LT nonlinear news editing software and Launch IP media delivery software.
Digital Heaven has just made two of its popular plug-ins for Final Cut Pro absolutely free and ready for download: DH_Grid and DH_Guides.
DH_Grid is a generator that will display a grid of up to ten divisions in horizontal and vertical divisions that can be independently set over a predefined area in your project. This grid will help you line up objects on screen. You can also change the line width and color of the grid.
DH_Guide is another generator that displays guides from left, right, top and bottom. You can choose to make the lines a color or dim inside or dim outside guidelines and it allows for the manipulation of distance between guides.
Check out the other Digital Heaven plug-ins for Final Cut Pro as they range from $20-$40 each.
Editiing a movie like The Da Vinci Code can be an overwhelming task. Mike Hill (Ron Howard’s Editor since 1982) and Dan Hanley used their talents to edit one of the most anticipated movies of 2006. As usual Avid products were used to edit this gigantic project. They used five Film Composer XLs on a Unity system plus Avid Express Pro to check the dallies. To keep pace with the sheer volume of editorial tasks including logging one million feet of film and handling approximately 700 visual effects shots - and to ensure a flawless on-time delivery, the editing team relied on a totally integrated digital editing setup. The Da Vinci Code opened on 23.000 screens on May 19th. Get the full story on the Da Vinci Code and how Avid was there every step of the way!
If you have Final Cut Pro Version 5 or later, Digital Heaven announced yesterday the release of their new standalone application "BigTime." Big Time is a resizable floating timecode display that depicts sequence or source clip timecode enabling you and the client to more easily pinpoint key moments in time without having to squint your eyes. This timecode display is BIG and works very much like the timecode window you would find in Avid. There is a demo version of this ware on the Digital Heaven site, so give your eyes a rest and see how it works for you.
BigTime will let you change the text and background color to suit your needs and is now shipping for $49.00 USD.
After Effects 7.0 gives you a great new way to add a keyframe. In the past is was always confusion on how to add a keyframe at any random point in the timeline. Well, After Effects 7.0 has a great fix for this. It is called add or remove keyframe at current time. This button is located next to the arrows on your keyframe navigators in the timeline. Just click the diamond and a keyframe will be added or if you are on a current keyframe that keyframe will be deleted. This is a new great way to add keyframes easily and quickly without hassle
The Apple Store, Fifth Avenue in Manahattan, New York is now open and serving the public 24/7. There is some great time lapse footage of the first 24 hours of the store opening you should check out. I guess this location will be the place to be on the eve before a new release of Final Cut Studio. Just stand in line until Midnight.
As part of the Grand Opening Celebration, Apple gave away a new Macbook every hour for 24 hours at their new flagship store. The only bad news about that is the fact that you had to actually be there to be eligible.
The new store officially opened on Friday, May 19, at 6:00 pm.
For all of you Final Cut Pro and Avid Xpress Pro users out there who either own or are planning to buy a Panasonic HVX200 camera, Century Optics offers some great lens accessories that will allow you more flexibility with a fixed lens. Here are some of the addons that are available for this incredible camera:
- .6X Wide Angle Adapter: Achieve wider angles with extremely low distortion.
- .75X Wide Angle Converter: Grab high resolution images and a wider angle of view while maintain full zoom capability.
- Super Fisheye Adapter: You've seen what this one can do in many national TV spots. This adapter will allow you to achieve a wider angle of view and an attractive barrel distortion effect free of vingnetting.
- 1.6x Tele-Converter: The outdoor sportman should take a good look at this one! if you are producing a fish and wildlife type show, then you know that sometimes you may have to take a shot from long distances. This converter will allow you greater telephoto reach when physically getting closer is not an option.
- Achromateic diopters: If your job calls for you to shoot miniatures, these Macro Zoom attachments will allow you maximum magnification and image clarity.
Many of the Century Optics adapters and converters attach by way of bayonet mount. Take a look for yourself.
This set of 136 filters, transitions and generators support 24p, 25p 30p and are all designed to render at the subpixel level for smooth movement. A series of Final Cut Pro workshops and 68 softwipe patterns are also included in the package. Here's a taste of what you will find in CGM DVE Complete:
Filters: Morph, Clone Area, Bezier Matte, Text, Countdown, De-interlace, Highlights, Lows, Cube 3D, Squick, Star Effects
Transitions: Dip to Color Dissolve, Double Flip, Explode, Laser, Liquid Movie FX, MultiSlide, MultiSpin, PixelStorm
Apple's latest version of Final Cut Express HD is hitting the shelves with full keyframe effects control and dynamic RT for Real-time Previews. This version also ships with Live Type 2, which features 60 new effects for dynamic type creation and Soundtrack 1.5 for custom made music.
Capture HD or HDV with Express 3.5 and give depth to your project by compositing imagery such as video, multi-layered Photoshop files, and photos.
Here's a list of some of the features:
- Full Keyframe Effects Control
- Dynamic RT for Real-time Previews
- DV and HDV Editing
- Composite Easily In-Canvas
- Intergrate Mult-Layered Photoshop Files
- Perform Advanced Color Correction
- Grow Your iMovie Project
Take a look at the new an improved Final Cut Express HD 3.5.
5 minutes of DV footage equals approximates 1 gigabyte of storage. Digital Heaven has a free widget, VideoSpace v1.0, For OSX Tiger that will allow you to calculate how much disk space your Final Cut Pro or Avid Xpress video project will require before you begin. It's as simple as selecting the Codec that you will be using from a drop down menu of 17 options, selecting the framerate, and typing in the projected length of the program in HHMMSS format and Video Space will calculate the size of the file.
It can also work in reverse allowing you to enter in the storage capacity of optical storage media such as a DVD or CD and calculate the amount of video it can hold. Check out and Download Digital Heaven's VideoSPace right here.
I had chance to test out Itiva's Streaming Media Technology with an older PC laptop connected to a DSL internet connection and was overwhelmed by the quality of the experience. I was able to view the HI-DEF movie trailers available on the Itiva website after waiting a short while for buffering and downloading. Once the videos played the quality was incredible. There were some frames that skipped here and there but when I watched the movie trailers back the second time the experience was aweseome. Most users with faster computers will have a better experience with Itiva's streaming technology. If you consider that the laptop I used for testing the Itiva Quantum streaming had a slower processor, small amount of RAM and that the file I was viewing was anywhere from 1500 kbps to 1900 kbps, the experience was impressive. Truly Amazing Technology!
If you have a PC running Microsoft Windows XP, Windows Media Player 10, and a high speed Internet connection you can watch the on-line demo of the Quantum technology for streaming. You will need to also allow Itiva's QMesh to be installed on your computer. Try it for yourself!
When I first entered the industry, may I add before their was any such thing called Final Cut Pro, a Silicon Graphics box was the de facto standard hardware to have if you were serious about 3D graphics and animation. The former hardware giant, Silicon Graphics Incorporated, filed for chapter 11 this month in attempt to crawl out from underneath a mountain of debt. This isn't the first time SGI has had to try something new. In 2000, SGI switched from making supercomputers to focusing on much more tightly niched markets only to find their standing with investors in a steady decline. SGI plans on being reorganized and out of bankruptcy protection in six months.
MPEGIF's Logo Qualification Program is available to all industry participants and is no longer limited to products supplied by members of MPEGIF. The program is being operated to ensure interoperability among products and technology using MPEG-4. The program is designed such that participant's products undergo testing against standardized bitstreams and qualified products to confirm they
work together under specific MPEG profiles and levels.
Qualified products have the right to display the distinctive MP4
Qualification Mark and may list their documentation, literature,
qualification test results and advertising on the MP4 Logo Program website .
Using this site, Qualified products can be selected or have their status confirmed by browsing the Product Directory area. This is great for those that want to get a better understanding of products with supported profiles and levels. The MPEGIF's internet presence counts millions of hits per month and is one of the most frequented resources devoted to MPEG technologies.
"It took many years for interoperability to be the norm as MPEG-2
emerged, the work of the forum in MPEG-4 interoperability is essential
to the success of our industry", said David Price, Vice President of
MPEGIF. "As a result the "MP4" Logo will become the mark of excellence
for next generation video technology."
During NAB 2006, visual effects innovator, Noise Industries debuted the first ware that will give Final Cut Pro and Motion artists the freedom to create their own dedicated effect plug-ins based on the Apple FXPlug-in architecture. That's right, FXFactory will allow you to create and apply your own unique plug-ins when no off the shelf ware can get the job done. You can access the plug-ins through the native interface of FCP or Motion. Here are some of the features of FXFactory for Final Cut Studio:
- Comes standard with a comprehensive library of effects
- Access to online visual effects library, the Effects Market
- Create or download an unlimited number of new effects.
- Open GL acceleration and real-time image processing based on Core Image and Quartz Composer
FXFactory is projected to ship in the summer of 2006.
Webex provides webcasting solutions and to the ability to interact on-line. Webex is a provider of on-demand collaborative business applications an is etremely popular for creating interactive webcast and meetings on-line. Webex provides a customized player when viewing a webcast. By shuffling through the Webex Media Player users can advance the various slides of the presentation so audio and presentation slides are in sync.
Webex also provides web meetings and webcasts via a pay per use pricing structure. This is a great feature because you can get a estimated cost figure to do a webast or web meeting. Webex interactive meetings also allow the the ability to share documents as well as control the level of features for attendees.
Take a tour of the Webex webcasting and web meeting solutions
The MPEG Industry Forum (MPEGIF) announced that several leading companies have joined the
organization. The companies join the ranks of leading suppliers and early adopters
of the latest standards based MPEG technology. Pick Hit NAB Award winner, Popwire, is also among those joining the ranks of MPEGIF.
Here's a list of the New members of the MPEG Industry Forum:
ARC International
ATI Technologies
Ceva DSP Ltd.
Chips & Media Inc.
Freescale Semiconductors
Harman Becker Automotive Systems
HiSilicone Technologies Co. Inc.
Human Monitoring Ltd.
NagraVision
Popwire
Miravid Inc.
Robert Gordon University
Vweb Corp.
Find out other news and information related to MPEG-4, H.264/AVC and other MPEG standards
If you are new to After Effects or a seasoned pro you know that managing your media is very important. Being able to locate you projects, media and renders is very critical to not only being efficient but also to simply find your work. I have found the best workflow is to set yourself up for success. The first thing I do before starting any project is make folders for each category. I make a project folder, media folder, and a renders folder. Then I put these folders inside a folder named after the project. So, for example, if I am working on a Crestliner Boat commercial, I would name the top folder Crestliner and then put my three other folders inside. This makes it real nice and tidy and very easy to retrieve my work at anytime. To learn great tips like this one and many more sign up for one of our up and coming After Effects classes.
I am always checking the Avid Web Site for the latest news or downloads from Avid. Well if you find yourself in the same predicament then Stop searching! Get the latest Avid news, headlines, customer stories, and more sent directly to your desktop with this handy RSS reader. Tap into your favorite Avid forums and stay connected to the hot topics, the latest tips and tricks, and the professional communtiy. Its fast, its free, and it runs on Mac and Windows systems. Check it out today and never miss the latest Avid news!
For all of you Avid Xpress and Final Cut Pro artists out there who utilize After Effects, Trapcode has released a new version of there powerful After Effects 3D particle system plugin, Particular. You can truly create some amazing visual effects with this ware. The new features in Version 1.5 are:
- Depth of Field creates the appearance of a real camera view by imitating the inability of a camera to maintain focus in all depths of an image. Now, those particles flying by will look realistic.
- Motion Path lets you control the path of particles after they have been born
- Particle Count allows you to monitor the current number of particles in a given simulation from the Info Window.
See Particular in action right here!
This one may be a little strange but it is still classic motion graphics. Back in '01 Pleix Films released an abstract music video for Bleip called No. The animation was driven by the music (which was also produced by Pleix) and the majority of the work was done in none other than Adobe After Effects. You gotta love that! The video consists of a variety of stuttering cut outs and key words that convey a message that I've been trying decipher for the last five years.
Check Out: BLEIP - NO
Pleix films provide some of the best creative motion graphic inspiration on the web; so while you're in the viewing strange imagery mood also check out: Pleix Films Official Website
If you do not have a preview monitor on which to preview your work, you can use one of your computer monitors to see a full screen preview.
1 Simply go to View > Video Playback > Digital Cinema Desktop Preview-Full Screen.
2 Go to View > External Video > All Frames so that FCP knows to send the information found in your project frame by frame to the external monitor.
May I point out that you may already posses the hardware to preview to an external monitor. Do you have an inexpensive Mini-DV camera with firewire and and S-Video ports? I'm talking about the type of Mini-DV camera that you would commonly take on a vacation. Do you have a television set with an S-Video in? If you do, then you're in luck!
1 Run the firewire cable from your computer to the Mini-DV Camera.
2 Run an S-Video Cable from the Mini-DV camera to the television set. Make sure your camera is in VTR mode and not in Camera mode.
3 Go to View > External Video > All Frames
4 Go to View > Video Playback > Apple Firewire NTSC (720x480).
Your audio source will have to be connected to the Mini-DV Camera for you to be able to monitor the audio. Now, you have a relatively inexpensive VTR!
The Firestore DR-HD100-80 is an 80GB DV and Pro HD disk recorder with Direct To Edit (DTE) capability. Video, timecode and control information passes through a single firewire connection between the recorder and HD100 camcorder. When a tape is loaded, each time you press the record button, then stop on your camcorder, the DR-HD100 with create an individual clip on disk. These files can be used directly in Adobe, Apple, Avid Canopus and Pinnacle apps. You also have the ability to monitor timecode and disk space through the viewfinder and preview clips by using the playback mode on the DR-HD100.
The DR-HD100 also has a little brother, the DR-HD100-40, a 40GB DV and Pro HD disk recorder.
Perusing through the May '06 issue of Creative Cow Magazine I came across an article which spoke about a useful Adobe After Fx plug-in appropriately named Lensfeed. Created by a company known as Frishluft, Lensfeed allows After Effects to receive a live preview from just about any video camera. This is a great utility for those of you who find yourselves doing a lot of Keying work and need to see the results of your lighting on the fly.
For more info check out: http://www.frischluft.com
On May eleventh In Osaka Japan, Panasonic and Sony Corporation announced AVCHD, a new format that allows for recording and playback of high resolution digital HD images by way of 8cm DVD media. This new format will allow for the recording of 1080i and 720p signals onto 8cm DVD media. The MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 codec will be used for video compression and Dolby Digital (AC-3) for sound.
Stay tuned!
Ultravox, another format for streaming video, is a specification that is under development by the Internet Streaming Media Alliance (ISMA) and is expected to be coming out. There's no word yet on the exact time of the release of the specification.
"It's another format for streaming video. It's been the most widely used format for streaming video on the internet. It was something put together by AOL. AOL wanted to make it an open standard", said Dr. Yuval Fisher, Chief Scientist and Founder of Envivio. Dr. Fisher also serves of the Board for ISMA.
For anyone that has experienced AOL videos on the internet they have already used the specification because the standard is based on AOL's proprietary technology. Now, AOL's format for streaming video will be an open standard exposing the quality of experience to a wider range of viewers.
Ultravox is an HTTP-based streaming (or progressive download) protocol. It augments HTTP by allowing status, informative, and other messages to be included in the response. It is the basis for shoutcast audio/video and is the most widely deployed streaming protocol on the internet today. Developed by AOL, Ultravox is now maintained by the ISMA, with a specification for carriage of AVC in the final process of standardization.
View details of current streaming media specifications under development by ISMA
The Ultimate Fighter 3 promo was created by award winning design director Anders Schroder. Enhancing phenomenally edited film with impressive motion graphics this promotional spot is incredible to say the least. Shroder has been doing motion graphics for over eight years and has worked with some of the biggest clients in the industry.
View: The Ultimate Fighter 3 Promo
Schroder's skills in Adobe After Effects are without a shadow of a doubt irrefutable but his 3D work is...is...Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!
Don't believe me? Check Out: Anders Schroder's Show Reel
For those of you riding the bleeding edge of entertainment technology as we do here at GeniusDV, Blu-ray and HD DVD authoring are on the move! Sonic Solutions offers a high-end solution for next-gen DVDs. Take a look at some of the features as seen on sonic.com:
- Blu-ray Disk Support : Author fully featured Blue Disk titles
- HD DVD Support: Standard and Advanced Content HD DVD title creation
- SD DVD Support
- Advanced Interactivity: Seamless menus over video composited contextual menus, synchronized picture-in-picture bonus content, and built-in internet connectivity.
- Hands on Control: Scenarist's direct, non-abstraction-based cell-level authoring lets you take charge of the details with complete cell-level control over every aspect of your Blu-ray Discs and HD DVD titles.
- Flexible Workgroup Productivity: Perform multiple tasks at a single workstation or spread your process over several stations.
At NAB 2006, Popwire introduced Ingest Engine 1.0, a video capture solution for moving tape based content to the digital workflow.
Ingest Engine 1.0 is a client/server solution. This means that several clients can work with importing and storing the media on one central server that is also hooked up to the tape player (DV, Beta, etc.) and where the actual importing takes place. You only require one powerful server, one interface between the tape player and one tape player. Should the need of your workgroup increase, more servers with attached tape players can be added and controlled from the same client computers.
"Ingest Engine 1.0, integrates into any NLE system a customer is using. This makes it so much easier to move from tape to a 100% digital workflow which in return saves time and money without compromising on quality" says Anders Wannfors, CTO at Popwire AB
Ingest Engine 1.0 handles MPEG-2, DV, MPEG-4 Proxy, PBF or Uncompressed 4:2:2 and support VTR control via the standard RS-422 remote protocol. Each server can handle one video adapter, and Ingest Engine 1.0 currently supports the AJA Io series of video capture units.