February 2007 Archives
In Final Cut Pro you can now export a QuickTime movie with up to 24 embedded audio tracks. This is fantastic, especially if you need to send an audio mix to a sound designer. You can also use this as a method of transferring audio files to and from Avid ProTools.
Have you ever wondered how they make those great looking reflections of either text or an image? Well, I am here to let you know that not only is it simple but it will make you look at finished graphics in a whole new light. First all you need is your text or an image, I typed out Avid and filled it with an image, also very simple to do and you can brush up on this from my early entry. Next right click the layer in the layers palette and choose duplicate. Grab the top free transform handle and drag it down underneath the top image so that it looks like a mirror image.
Now all you need to do is turn down the opacity of the lower layer until you achieve the desired results. Once you have perfected this you can continue on by adding a top gradient layer and play around with the transfer modes to achieve a fading away look. Once you complete this you have a much different eye for finished graphics in the future.
Being able to capture from a non-timecode source is a very real part of an editors day to day routines. The source may be VHS, CD, DAT or some other source that has no timecode. To capture this material you need to capture on-the-fly.
To capture from a non-timecode source:
1. Click the deck button in the Capture tool.
2. Click once on the Tape Name box.
3. Either select an existing tape name or create a new one.
4. Choose an option from the Timecode Source Menu.
5. Play the material and click the record button.
6. Click the record button when you are done.
This is a very simple way to ingest any material you need to edit. Just remember you cannot recapture this material with the form of timecode you selected you must manually ingest the material again if you lose it.
If you were to add an HDV 1080i60 clip with upper-field dominance to a DV NTSC sequence with lower-field dominance, the clip would stutter and appear jerky during playback on an NTSC or PAL video monitor. The stuttering would be due to the fields in the 1080i60 clip playing in the wrong order but, when you add clips into a sequence, Final Cut Pro usually takes care of this problem for you with Automatic Field Dominance Correction.
If you should ever have to do this manually, the Shift Fields Filter's Direction Control will allow you to do so:
- If you need to match a clip with upper-field dominance to a sequence with lower field dominance, you would set the Direction Control to + 1
- To match a clip with lower-filed dominance to a sequence with upper-field dominance, the Direction Control should be set to -1.
The Shift Fields Filter is not necessary when editing clips and sequences with matching field dominance.
Introduced in 2004, the original G-RAID from G-Tech was revolutionary in its ability to support professional content creation applications via FireWire. G-RAID fundamentally changed the video storage industry by providing unprecedented performance, reliability and affordability in a simple and beautifully designed package.Guaranteed Performance Real-world performance within an application is the most important factor to consider when purchasing a RAID system. While benchmark numbers can be used to quantify the raw read/write performance of a storage system, they do not translate in to real-world performance. G-RAID2 is guaranteed to the support the simultaneous playback of multiple layers of video in real-time in Final Cut Pro, Premiere and Xpress as shown below. They stand behind this claim 100%.
Having shortcuts not only saves time but allows more time for you to be creative. When using the effect pallete shortcuts are a great way to navigate.
1.Tab-In Effect Editor, moves from one active slider to next
2. Shift + Right and Left Arrow keys-In Effect Editor, moves 10 units on a slider instead of 1
3. Alt + drag corner, side, or center of wire frame-Updates image as you drag, rather than moving only wire frame
4. Alt + drag keyframe- Allows you to move a keyframe
5. Ctrl + Alt + click on keyframe- Selects all keyframes when monitor is active
6.Ctrl + A- Selects all keyframes when monitor is active
7. Highlight segment + Backspace- Removes effect when Timeline is active
8. Highlight segments, then Alt + double-click an effect in the Effect Palette-Nests effect if effect is already present
9. Ctrl + click in monitor-Changes cursor to magnifying glass and zooms in on video image
10. Ctrl + Alt + click and drag in monitor- Changes cursor to hand and moves frame in monitor
11. Alt + Render button- Renders to last drive selected, avoiding dialog box
12. Press T while rendering- Opens a timer in the Render message box
13. Press P while rendering- Opens percentage rendered in the Render message box
14. Esc- Exits Effect mode
Hopefully some of these shortcuts will help speed up your life and workflow!
I stumbled across a great way to save yourself some time once you have made all of your trims in Avid. Now I must admit it has been in my face as every time I have performed a trim but I have never taken advantage of this time saving process. Once you are done trimming your two clips you can then add a quick transitions of your choice. Here’s how:
1. Click a transition in the Timeline while in Trim mode.
2. In the source monitor, or composer monitor depending how you have your Avid setup, your will see the transition button.
3. Click the Transition Effect Alignment button, and select the effect's position relative to the cut point.
This will save you a step of comig back later and adding your transitions! This is one more way to make your workflow more effective.
It is very common to fill type with a particular image. You can do this in Photoshop very quickly. Here are the steps you need to take to acheive these results:
1. Open the file containing the image you want to show through the text.
2. Select the Horizontal Type tool in the toolbox.
3. Click the Character tab to bring the Character palette to the front or, if the palette isn't open, choose Window > Character.
4. In the Character palette, select the font and other type attributes for the text. Large, bold, thick letters work best for this technique.
5. Click an insertion point in the document window and type the desired text. When you are satisfied with the text, press Ctrl + Enter (Windows) or Command + Return (Mac OS).
6. Click the Layers tab to bring the Layers palette to the front or, if the palette isn't open, choose Window > Layers.
7. In the Layers palette, drag the image layer so that it is immediately above the text layer.
With the image layer selected, choose Layer > Create Clipping Mask. The image displays within the text.
8. Select the Move tool , and then drag the image to adjust its placement within the text.
I notice an interesting occurance while working with Episode Pro 4.2.2 encoding H.264 real-time streaming videos with the .mp4 and .mov wrapper. The QuickTime and H.264 presets for 256kbps need to be adjusted to correctly deal with moving areas of interlaced video. Even if you have Automatic Detection choosen for Field Order and Complete Deinterlace, Deinterlace Interlaced Frames (automatic), or Deinterlace Moving Areas (automatic) interlaced frames still might show up in your H.264 real-time streaming output file.
If you have a DV source with motion and you run across this issue using Episode Pro with the 256kbps presets you need to navigate to the Video Tab in Episode Pro 4.2.2 and change the Field Order under the Deinterlace Filter. Automatic detection of the field order is selected by default but the application likes it if you provide the Field Order of your source. With a DV source the field order is Bottom Field, Even Field or Lower Field and all mean the same thing. Select the field order of Bottom in Episode Pro 4.2.2. Next you can select Complete Deinterlace, Deinterlace Interlaced Frames (automatic), or Deinterlace Moviing Areas (automatic). After encoding you should notice a smooth looking video output for you H.264 real-time streaming video.
What better way to acheive the audio effect you're looking for, than being able to tweak it in real-time as you're playing it!
Adjusting Audio Filters In Real-Time
1 Load the clip with the applied audio filter you want to adjust into the viewer window by double clicking it in the timeline.
2 Select the filter tab in the viewer window to manipulate the filter parameters.
3 Before you make a change to the filter parameters, move the playhead to the point in the clip where you want the change to begin.
4 Play the clip and begin manipulating the filter parameters and you will be able to hear your adjustments as the clip is playing.
With almost all productions these days you will end up using Adobe Photoshop for your prodject. Meeting the standards set by the FCC for broadcast is not only an important task but a requirment if you edit for television. All televisions today are built to meet these specifications. You need to make sure that your black levels are set to 16 or 7.5 IRE and the absolute white never exceeds 235 or 100 IRE. To make sure that you always are within specifications you need to go to the levels adjustment.
1. Go to Image in the top toolbar and navigate to Adjustments.
2. Navigate to Levels and open the Levels dialogue box.
3. At the bottom of the box you will see output levels and change them to 16 for the low and 235 for the high.
Just remember the 16 equals 7.5 IRE and 235 is equal to 100 IRE.
If you have ever wondered about what movies are created using Avid, then look no further then the latest Academy Award nominations. Babel, The Departed, Dreamgirls, Pan's Labyrinth are just a few in the long list. I have always been intrigued by what goes on behind the film almost more than the actual film itself so when you really look at the Academy Awards and the products used to make the best movies year after year Avid and Avid products are always on top! Check out the compete list of movies that are up for an award using Avid!
Final Cut Pro has a powerful feature that lets you map up to 9 favorite transitions or filters. By mapping customized transitions to your keyboard, you can save a lot of time when applying commonly used effects.
Do you have your Avid interface setup just the way you want but do not know how to save it so that you can return to it at any time? Or you may want to have multiple workspaces, for example, one for capturing, one for color correction, one for audio editing, etc. I have four separate workspaces that I use almost everyday. These workspaces not only make my interface easier to use but it also allows me to be more efficient at my job. Now isn’t that what we all want? Here is quick breakdown of how to save your favorite workspace:
Click the Settings tab in the Project Window.
1. Click the Settings tab in the Project Window.
The Settings scroll list appears.
2. Scroll to the bottom of the Settings scroll list and click Workspace.
Workspace is highlighted.
3. Select Edit > Duplicate.
A new Workspace setting appears in the Settings scroll list. If you are duplicating a previously named workspace setting, a .1 appears at the end of the new name.
4. Click to the left of the new workspace you want to set.
A check mark appears next to the workspace. workspace.
5. Assign a custom name to the new workspace:
a. In the column between Workspace and User, click until you see a text cursor and box. Make sure you click the Custom setting name column and not the Setting name.
b. Type a name for the new custom workspace, for example, Capturing.
c. Press Enter.
6. Open the windows and tools with which you want to associate the workspace. Resize and move the windows to the location where you want them to appear on the monitors.
7. Double-click the custom workspace setting.
The Workspace Settings dialog box opens.
8. Select options. For information about options, see Workspace Settings.
9. Click OK.
Would you like to be able to quickly export a QuickTime movie from your timeline or from a subclip? Well, look no further Avid Express Pro makes this task simple. There are a few simple steps to accomplishing this task so here is the quickest way to export a QuickTime file:
1. Mark an in and out around the area you want to make your movie from. Either in the source or record monitor.
2. Now right click on the desired monitor and select export. An export as dialogue box will open and you will need to select options in the lower right hand corner.
3. An export settings box will now open and you will have many choices for exporting your movie. For this example we will choose QuickTime movie.
4. You now need to decide the other elements you want to go along with your movie, for example Audio only, Video only or Video and Audio.
5. Make sure that Use Enabled tracks is selected in the upper right hand corner.
6. Depending on which color levels you are using RGB or 601/701 just make sure if you are going to import this into another program that the settings are the same.
7. I leave everything else the same unless you know specifically you need to change them. The same as source with Avid codec should be left on and the aspect ratio set at native dimensions.
8. If you will be using these settings over and over you can now save these settings at the bottom by selecting Save As. You can now give this a name that is relevant to the settings and access it any time from the Export dialogue box.
This should get you on you way to exporting a QuickTime movie and you can use this same technique for other exports.
All of the appications in the Final Cut Studio have right mouse click menus available. This may sound like an obvious tip, but I can assure you it isn't as obvious as you might think. It would be very easy to assume that there is no right button on a mighty mouse, or that you have to control click to get it. By default the right button is set to be a primary button the same as the left. To change it you need to go into the System preferences and select the keyboard and mouse option. You will see that both the right and left button are set to the primary button. Simply change the right button to secondary, and a whole world of menus.
It is extremely helpful to be able to customize your own presets in Final Cut Pro when the existing ones just won't cut it. Perhaps, on this project you will be using a device that does not posess device control capabilities, then you would need to re-confiigure for a Non-Contorllable Device.
Creating New Presets
1 Go to Final Cut Pro >Audio/Video Settings.
2 Select the tab for the type of preset you wish to create.
3 Choose a preset from the list that will be your starting point (examples: DV NTSC 48 KHz, DV PAL 48 KHz, DVC PRO HD-1080i-50, etc.) then choose duplicate.
4 Enter the name and description of your custom preset in the Preset Editor window, then select the settings you desire and click OK.
Vchange helps GolfSpan.com with their Flash Video launch by providing encoding and support services. The GolfSpan.com website provides web based training in Flash video format from a large number of intructors. Vchange provided the specs for the project and did the encoding for a pay and ad based service for 575 kbps and 750 kbps video bit rates. Windows Media encoding was encoded for pay per clip downloads of $1.99/clip. The content was injected into the Brightcove system and a full archive in AVI format was provided to GolfSpan.com for future transcoding.
Adding dissolves in Final Cut Pro can sometimes be a tricky situation. If you are getting the dreaded '1 frame dissolve' that you cannot adjust, here are two solutions to your problem.
Itiva Networks, the cost-effective video Content Delivery Network (vCDN), has entered into a reseller agreement with HomeTakes, a real estate promotions company of North Palm Beach, Florida. Targeting buyers and sellers of high end real estate, yachts and aircraft, HomeTakes utilizes high definition video to give customers a clear picture of available inventory without leaving their PC. Itiva was selected because of the high-quality viewing experience delivered.
"We're thrilled to provide HomeTakes with an HD/DVD quality experience," said Michel Billard, CEO of Itiva. "Technology is dominating every aspect of this rapidly growing market. We're happy to work closely with a company creating beautiful content, and look forward to providing proof that quality does matter."
Itiva offers a video content delivery network that supports both streaming and downloading of music, video, film and games. The company expects to offer a live broadcast network in 2007.
"HomeTakes offers outstanding marketing tools for today's hi-tech world," said Colin Forte, CEO and Founder of HomeTakes. "Only Itiva delivered the high definition we demand at a price that made our offering profitable. After an extensive search, we determined that Itiva has great potential to change the landscape of video delivery over the Internet, and we want to be a part of that."
HomeTakes' website showcases high definition video using Itiva technology. The parent company, which offers real estate through HomeTakes.com, will soon offer services to the marine and aircraft industries through YachtTakes.com and JetTakes.com.
The sync lock feature allows you to maintain sync among several tracks while adding, moving, trimming, or removing frames in a sequence. For example, if you insert an edit into one track that is sync locked to a second track, the system automatically inserts filler in the second track to maintain sync between the two.
You activate sync locking by clicking the Sync Lock button in the Track Selector panel to display the Sync Lock icon. You can also switch all sync locks on or off by clicking the Sync Lock All button.
Here are some of the things you need to be aware of when using the sync lock feature:
1. Edits performed in editing, Segment, or Effect mode override sync-locked tracks.
2. Sync locking applies to single-roller trims only because dual-roller trims do not break sync.
3. You can sync lock any number of tracks in any combination. The tracks do not require matching timecode or common sources, and can include multiple video tracks as well as audio tracks.
4. Sync locking affects entire tracks. This means that parallel segments in other sync-locked tracks are affected when you add, move, trim, or remove material anywhere in the sequence.
I use sync lock in all of my editing and is it very important to utilize it once you have a completed sequence.
If you have ever experienced the dreaded corrupt file then you know first hand how it can ruin a good day of editing. You will not be able to continue until you seek out this demon of a file and kill it! Avid has just posted a way to Divide and Conquer this type of file. This is method that I have used ever since I began editing and you will, more than likely have to use some time in your future. The divide and conquer technique is a process of locating the corrupt file through the process of elimination. It is truly pain staking but the only way that works. Read the complete technique!
The number one thing every editor needs to avoid is the flash frame. It is normally undetected until you play out your final show. Avid has a great tool to help you detect these mistakes in your sequence. The Find Flash Frames command helps you quickly find parts of your sequence that you might want to delete from the final sequence. Flash frames are clips that have an extremely short duration, for example, less than 30 frames.
To find flash frames:
You first need to set up your parameters:
1. Check or set the maximum frame length that you want the system to detect:
a. Click the Settings tab in the Project window.
b. Double-click Timeline.
c. Click the Edit tab.
d. In the option "Find Flash Frames Shorter Than n frames," indicate the maximum number of frames you want the system to detect. The default is 10, which tells the system to detect clips with 9 frames or fewer.
e . Click OK.
Now you can search with your parameters set:
2. Click the Timeline window to activate it.
3. Select the tracks you want to search.
4. Place the position indicator at the beginning of the sequence or before the part of the sequence you want to search.
5. Right-click in the Timeline, and select Find Flash Frames.
The position indicator moves to the first flash frame.
To find the next flash frame:
Right-click in the Timeline, and select Find Flash Frames again.
These steps will keep you from making the dreaded flash frame mistake!
Telestream, the provider of award-winning Flip4Mac digital media tools for Macintosh users, announced availability of Version 2.1 software for its Flip4Mac XDCAM Component. Until now, the component enabled editors to ingest IMX, DV and HDV content directly from Sony's XDCAM Professional Disc production system into Apple's Final Cut Pro 5 application for editing. Version 2.1 software adds the ability to also export IMX 30/40/50 media across the entire XDCAM family.
Flip4Mac XDCAM Component expands Final Cut Pro workflows to enable greater functionality for video professionals using Sony's XDCAM system. The ability to access file-based XDCAM content either as low-res proxy or at full bandwidth, in SD or HD formats, and move MXF media between Apple's Final Cut Pro real-time editing software and XDCAM devices greatly enhances the user's workflow options.
"This enhancement represents an important step forward in rounding out our XDCAM-compatible solutions for Final Cut Pro users," said Barbara DeHart, VP Flip4Mac Products. "We are pleased to expand Flip4Mac capabilities to provide import and export of MXF media, enabling greater workflow efficiency for Sony XDCAM users as well as our Apple Final Cut Pro customers."
Flip4Mac XDCAM Component Version 2.1 and all other Flip4Mac products are being demonstrated in Telestream Booth SL-9214 at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Convention April 16-19 in Las Vegas.
If you have been using Final Cut Pro for only a brief amount of time, there is no doubt that you have become aware that there are more than just one way to do everything within this robust app. The advantages of flexibility in workflow and execution are a strong selling point for any NLE, but never the less, when you are in the process of learning the app, all of the choices and key commands present a daunting task in brute memorization. If you read more techinical and user manuals than you do novels in a year, then you'll probably have no problem bouncing between the manual and a standard keyboard until you've remembered the shortcuts but, a Final Cut Pro editors keyboard is a great learning instrument that can greatly reduce the degree of that learning curve. If you are just beginning your editing career or are a seanoned veteran, you can improve your efficiency and save time when you need it the most, like when have a client over your shoulder!
You can purchase this Final Cut Pro editing keyboard here. Read about the specifications.
Almost all of your productions should start off with some kind of black at the start if you are rolling off to tape or if you need a clean fade from black. Avid Xpress Pro and Media composer have a fast and effective way to add black to the start of all your sequences. It is called Add Filler at start. The best way to access this is to right-click in the Timeline and choose Add Filler at start. This will give you an automatic 30frame black header. If you need more repeat the steps and every time you do you will gain an additional 30 frames.
Using locators in the editing process in one of the most valuable tools you have in perfecting you edits. The reason and how to use them is endless and I will cover them at another time. If you are already using them you can benefit from the various uses of the Avid locator. One great practice you can use when applying your locators is that you can put them on different video or audio lines. By default the locator will stick to the upper most track that is enabled. If you want to put one on A2 all you need to do is turn off every line but A2. Now apply your locator and it will stick to A2. The great thing about this is you can apply a locator on A2 to fix an audio issue, one on V1 to make a color correction and then maybe one back down on A1 for a volume adjustment. This is only touching the surface of the possibilities of what you can do, so just remember to locators can be one of your greatest assets.
Envivio Inc. and GlobeCast announce that they have reached a deal with Orange to deliver high-quality MPEG-4 television broadcasts to its mobile TV subscribers in France.
The new solution, based at GlobeCast's Paris technical operations center, features the Envivio mobile TV headend - comprised of the 4Caster M2 encoders, winner of the Frost & Sullivan Product Innovation Award, and the 4Manager network management system. By deploying the H.263/H.264 Envivio mobile TV headend, GlobeCast will be able to provide Orange with the highest quality live television and radio services to any mobile device, from GPRS to HSDPA, in its subscriber network.
For GlobeCast, this represents an essential upgrade of its Orange-dedicated headend, which will allow the 61 television and 16 radio channels currently delivered by GlobeCast, to be distributed in a very high-quality, low-bit rate format. Subscribers to Orange's mobile TV services will benefit from a clear improvement in picture quality and quality of service. The Envivio mobile TV headend features the world's first and only multi-rate, multi-resolution and multi-standard encoder that outputs eight simultaneous profiles from a single video input. For Orange, this means a much greater interoperability among a wide variety of handsets, with multiple profiles generated from one input.
The Avid Dupe Detection is a great tool to use to see if you have used the same media twice in your sequence. This can either be a huge mistake that you will want to correct before final output or you may have done it on purpose. Avid has a great tool to help you avoid such kind of mistake, Dupe Detection. Dupe detection will keep track of the frames in your timeline and locate every instance that a frame is duplicated on any of the video tracks. You can also use dupe detection to make sure you have certain duplicated elements in your timeline that you want to have repeat. All you have to do is turn dupe detection on in your timeline. Navigate to your fast menu in the bottom left corner of your timeline and when the fly out menu opens select Dupe Detection. Now you can rest assured you won’t have to worry about this mistake or make sure that your duplications are in the right place.
The latest version of Democracy Player has been released.
What's new in this version:
Refined interface.Simpler, smoother, easier to use.
Share menu. New 'share' menu on each item lets you email a video or post to Video Bomb, del.icio.us, Digg, or Reddit.
VLC 0.8.6 on Windows. The version of VLC that powers Democracy Player for Windows has been upgraded. This version has much better flash video support for sites like YouTube.
Videos stored in folders by channel.Videos that you download from video feeds will now be stored in a folder with the name of the channel. This should keep things much more organized.
Pause / Resume downloads.You can now pause and resume any download or all downloads.
Better BitTorrent support. BitTorrent performance is significantly improved.
Show seeding on torrents. In the downloading tab, you can see all the torrents you are currently seeding and you can stop them if you choose to.
Drop-down for auto-download. There's a new drop-down menu on each channel that let's you set the Auto-Download mode without going into the channel settings.
Avid Xpress and Media Composer include a 'plasma wipes' effect category that allow you to perform some interesting wipes. What many Avid users may not know is that you can create your own plasma wipes that will show up in the effect's palette.
You'll need one additional piece of software, preferrably Photoshop in order to create your own plasma wipes. This is because the plasma wipes are created from .raw images.
You can create your own plasma wipes to create dynamic transitions such as:
-Paint on effects
-Burning Film
-Dynamic Wipe Patterns
There is no limit to the number of Avid effects that you can create by making your own plasma wipe effects.
If you have worked with very many lavalier mics then you know how much of a real pain they can be. For starters they are hard to conceal and get the best sound, they always seem to have a scratching noise as the subject moves around, and wire tends to break after nominal use. I feel not only does the sound quality go up with the use of a lavalier but it is much easier to isolate each subject. Today was the first day I have been able to listen to the results from our new Tram TR50 lavalier mic. I must say the results were outstanding. I had virtually no rubbing noise, it had great pickup regardless of the head movement, and it was very easy to conceal. Our TR50 is mated to a Sennheiser Evolution G2 100. This is our third manufacture of wireless mics and this combination, so far, appears to be a winner.
BH Photo has this lavalier either as an accessory or you can purchase in a package with the Sennheiser.
TR50 Lavalier Mic Features:
1. Miniature Electret Condenser Microphone
2. Minimum sound coloration for universal use
3. Easily combined with boom microphones
4. Tiny, lightweight and compact; easily concealed
5. Extensive range of mounting accessories
6. Wide frequency response
7. Very low rubbing noise
8. Detachable 250 Q power supply
9. Available in 4 colors: black, gray, white, tan
10. Large range of connectors for direct use on a wireless transmitter
11. Strong, durable and reliable
12. One-year warranty
If you are building a monstrous timeline deep with layers, scrolling up and down to find the layers that you are currently working on can be quite a task. Creating a static region in your timeline will allow you to always keep the tracks that you are working on in front of you, regardless of where you are in the timeline.
Creating A Static Region
1 Click and hold on the upper thumb tab located within the scroll bar, as you drag upward to create a static area for as many video tracks you would like to have appear in the middle.
2 Click and hold on the lower thumb tab located within the scroll bar, as you drag downward to create a static area for as many audio tracks you would like to have appear in the middle.
In DVD Studio Pro you do not have to use the "Simulate" button on the tool bar to simulate your project. If you want to see how a particular menu is going to look, and don’t want to have to navigate to it, you can simulate from any position in a project. From the graphical view, menu view, or the track itself all you need to do is highlight what you want the simulator to start at, and right click. The bottom selection in all of these scenarios is the simulate function, and will simulate from that point.
One thing to keep in mind when using the simulator is that you do not have the fast forward functionality, but it will be available once you burn the disc.
If you ever receive a project where you need a special hyphen or international charater, then you need to look no further than the upper right hand corner of your Mac OS. The character palette is an icon that is in the shape of a flag and is home to many exotic characters that can be used in Final Cut Pro Projects.
- Choose a text generator in FCP then go to the control tab in the viewer and click in the text field.
- Highlight the character you want in the character Palette, then press the insert tab at the bottom.
One very practical effect, is to create a moving filmstrip. Moving filmstrips can be a variety of sizes and speeds. They are practical in portraying several images in a limited amount of time.
Once you master the moving filmstrip effect, you'll be able to apply your skills to other advanced effects that contain many of the skills learned in this exercise.
*If you are an Avid Xpress or Media Composer user you can find the same steps for creating the moving filmstrip for Avid.
Here is an excellent tutorial that will teach you many of the basic compositing techniques available in Avid Xpress or Media Composer. Once you've mastered this technique, you can use the same skills to build moving walls, spinning 3D worlds, story-books, and a variety of other effects.
*Don't Worry if your a Final Cut Pro user, you can find the same steps for building a moving filmstrip with Final Cut Pro.
Here is what the finished sequence should look like when you are finished with this tutorial.
The DV Show, one of the most popular Podcasts goes Skypecast! The show will which answers Digital Video questions will continue to have weekly Podcasts but they've entered a new dimensions allowing those familiar with the show to listen using Skype's technology. Now listeners will also have the option to listen live every Sunday night from 8-9 p.m. EST and Tuesday nights from 6-7 p.m. EST This will allows listeners the ability to interact and get questions answered or listen and learn in real time!
The Skypecasts are 30 minute shows packed with tips, suggestions, product reviews and of course connecting with you to get your problems solved right on the spot.
Anyone can join in and and it's all for free!
To interact live with the DV Show go to http://www.skype.com and download the free software, and go out and purchase a USB headset.
Here is a fantastic tutorial on how to use all your favorite Photoshop filters for video.
This training lesson is invaluable for anyone who uses Photoshop. We'll show you how to create a droplet that will process a set of actions so Photoshop will automatically do all the processing for you.
The great thing about being an editor is having the ability to learn something new everyday. I discovered a new feature in Avid that I think you'll find very useful. It's called Loop Selected Clips. An important part of the editing process is the ability to review footage and, more importantly, to compare takes in order to use the best shot, angle, or performance for the edit. Loop Selected Clips allows you to do just that. Here is a quick overview of how it works.
Select the clips in the bin that you wish to review. Then go the bin menu at the bottom left corner of the bin and select Loop Selected Clips. This function can also be mapped to a button or keyboard if needed. Once selected, the clips play back in order, one right after the other, in the source monitor and on the client monitor. If "in-out marks" are present in the source clip, the play back will be restricted to just that range. This is great for selecting a preferred reading or action for a given span across multiple takes.
Each clip will play in turn when the end of the clip or the Mark Out point has been reached. The user can also use the TAB key to advance to the next clip before the end of play or use SHIFT TAB to go back to a previous clip. This enables easy navigation and clip selection for finding that perfect shot among multiple sources.
When you want to use the same clip, photo, or image in Motion there is a right way and a wrong way to go about it. You do not want to reimport the same media more than once, because it will slow you down, and fill up the RAM. Instead you should simply duplicate the item, which will reference the same source media as the original. By highlighting the item in the layers tab of the project pane, all you need to do is press apple D to duplicate it. If you are going to be adding behaviors and or filters, you can wait until you have done so before you duplicate, so you won't have to do it twice.
Streaming Media East, the premiere conference and exhibition for streaming media will take place in New York this May. The conference always boasts some exciting developments related to streaming tools, technology and services. Those that will be close to New York City should look to make the trek to the conference as the conference always yields exciting information and hands-on experiences from companies and organizations in the trenches in regards to streaming media.
Here are some of the Pre-Conference Workshops for Streaming Media East 2007:
*Hands-on Guide to Webcasting
*Comparing Streaming Formats and Encoding tools
*Planning, Building, and Launching a Successful Podcast
*Video Production for Streaming
There are a host of other conference sessions which include topics such as:
*Making Video Secure
*Performance Metrics for Online Video Advertsing
*HOW TO: High Volume, Rapid Turnaround Video Production
*Mobile Streaming: Development, Deployment, and Distribution
*Making VideoConferencing More Valuable with Streaming Applications
*The Real ROI for Podcasting
*Making the Case for Streaming Media in High Education
*HOW TO: Flash Video Crash Course
*Turning Sounds into Words: Captioning Web-Based Media
*Broadband Video: What's the Formula for Content Success?
There have been plenty complaints in the DV discussion groups about audio that slowly moves out of sync as the playhead progresses down the timeline. For all of you Final Cut Pro users out there who are shooting your own footage, before you hit the record button, make sure that you are aware if you are recording audio at 12 or 16 bit. You'll have to go into the camera menu to determine this. Just in case you were wondering, 16 bit is where you want to be for the highest quality and dvd compliant audio. Now, after your camera has been set, its time to make Final Cut Pro aware of the specific sample rate by which you have recorded audio.
The major cause for a timeline that slowly slips out of sync is the fact that the editor does not keep his sample rates consistant across the board while working in FCP. Capture settings as well as sequence settings should all be uniform. 48k will allow for the best audio. Save yourself some time and make sure that you and the people who are shooting for you are capturing audio at 16bit in-camera and that FCP is configured to handle 48k. Remember, anything other than 48k is not DVD compliant and if you set the audio playback quality to high under the user preferences, while playing back audio that is not 48k, the conversion alone could cripple a less than robust machine.
In DVD Studio Pro you have the ability to set the destination of the Menu and Title buttons for the entire disc. To set the button destinations for the disc, open the Outline view and highlight the disc. Next go to the Inspector and set the destinations of the buttons.
There is an extremely informative on-demand audio webcast available from the StreamingMedia.com website that goes over the best practices for encoding Windows Media. The session was recorded at the Streaming Media West Conference for 2006 and can be found under past shows. The presenter is Ben Waggoner who is the Program Manager for Video Encoding for Microsoft's Professional Content Group. This streaming audio presentation in Windows Media format is definitely worth checking out. Many should listen to this webcast over and over again. The new features available in the latest version of Windows Media are amazingly cool! If you want to know all the new features and capabilities for Windows Media take and listen to the webcast which is accompanied by a downloadable .pdf file.
The presentation covers:
-Information about Flip4Mac and Windows Media
-Intelligent Streaming
-Enhancements for Windows Media
-Chroma Search
-B-frames
-Loop Filter
-Lookahead
-Optimum Settings for On-demand and Webcasting
Another way to manipulate where a transition occurs between two clips is to open the Transition Editor and move the transition with the Roll Tool. For the sake of this lesson, If you do not have a transition aleady made, just Control-Click and choose to add the default transition to an edit point in your sequence. To see how to set a defualt transition, click here.
1 After you have placed a transition over an edit point in your sequence, double click on the transition to open the Transition Editor in the Viewer.
2 When you place the cursor over the transition in the editor, it will automatically turn into the Roll tool. If you look at the graphic above, you will see the absence of a cursor or a Roll tool This is due to the nature of the screen shot. The cursor will not show, but just in case you were wondering, the Roll tool looks like this 
.
3 Drag the transition to a new location.
Now here is a true success story in the video production business. Captured light studio is a company that competes in the global medical market, producing CDs, DVDs, streaming media, and satellite telecasts that train physicians on the newest surgical tools and techniques. It has grown to a full-time staff of five (including an Avid editor, a Flash programmer, two writers/producers, and an office manager) supported by a dedicated team of freelance cameramen, animators, and lighting directors. Collectively, the staff has captured more than 5,000 surgical procedures on video and has worked with more than 1,000 surgeons worldwide - and Avid systems continue to support their work. The company offlines and finishes each project on its Windows XP-based Avid editing systems. These include an Avid Media Composer Adrenaline system equipped with the Avid DNxcel card (for future editing in HD); the powerful yet affordable Avid Xpress Studio Complete with an integrated set of audio and video editing, effects, animation, and DVD authoring tools; and the portable Avid Xpress Pro software for laptop use. The company plans to add a second Avid Media Composer Adrenaline system, along with an Avid Unity LANshare system for shared storage and networking, in the near future. Check out the complete story!
To get started in your future production career or to become better in your craft sign up for one of Genius DV's up and coming classes!
Using the Make Particles function in Apple Motion can be a creative way to add a transitional element to your productions. Taking something as simple as a graphic of a basketball, you can create a motion graphic that enhances a simple wipe transition.
Current owners of Autodesk's Cleaner can get a sweet deal if they switch from Autodesk Cleaner to the faster, more powerful Episode Series desktop encoders. The deal is good for those that purchase Episode before before February 28th. For those that want to purchase Episode they can purchase the application for $195 which is $200 of the price of the software. For those that desire to purchase Episode Pro they can receive the product for $495 which is $400 dollars off the regular price of the compression tool. Users will have to have a Cleaner proof of purchase to get the Special trade-in offer for Cleaner customers.
Now the benefit of the Episode desktop solution over Cleaner for speed is tremendous as the Episode tool has lightning fast compression with support for multiple processors and it can divide up the encoding processes for 1 video file over multiple nodes.
Sometimes after upgrading to the latest version of Avid Express Pro HD you may have found that you can no longer control your deck and the capture controls do not work. This happened to me with the latest version of Avid Express Pro HD 5.2. It appears to that this only happens with HD versions of the software.
When trying to capture directly to the CPU from a deck/transcoder/camera via firewire, you may notice that there the deck is not recognized or communicating to the software.
Although, this problem is specific to communicating from the CPU directly to the capture device, there have been cases when this method has rectified capture issues with a DNA device (Mojo or Adrenaline) as well.
This can be resolved by registering the DVBuffers. (this file is a part of the DIO Runtime, which is installed with the Avid software, and is essential for Avid's communication with external capture devices).
To register the buffers:
1.Click Start, then click Run
2.In the command line, type : regsvr32 DVBuffers.ax
If you typed this line correctly, a popup window will display a message "DLLRegisterServer in DVBuffers.ax succeeded" (the message may vary from version to version) If the line was typed incorrectly, the message will report that the registration failed.
Setting up your first play movie and main menu on the same track is a seamless way to set up the start of the authoring process with DVD Studio Pro. You can have a creative transition from your first play movie to your main menu that doesn't have the hesitation that occurs with end jumps. Instead of having your first play end jump to the main menu you simply set them up together during editing. When Setting up your project in DVD Studio Pro, you will tell it to play the entire file and then loop the portion you have designated for the menu.
Once you have imported the video and audio file into DVD Studio Pro you need to place them onto a menu. You can drag them over the menu in the graphical view and simply drop them in. If you add them in the menu view, you will need to make sure you get the 'Set Background and Audio' option when the popup menu appears.
Some of the most creative projects that I have done have come from stopping at the end of an edited sequence, just when I thought I had exactly what I wanted, and tried something completely different! Granted, it doesn't work every time, like being d