[Adam Fischer]

Well what does one do after discovering their Premiere Pro is haunted with phantom tracks?? I guess I’ll just copy/paste to new sequences and act like nothing happened…just like families in horror movies that don’t leave haunted houses.

[Adam Fischer]

Thank you to Team Kevin for a couple great ideas! I’m playing around with both right now.

One issue I’m having is recreating the path. I tried to copy the path data from my original shape layer and apply that to a null or a new mask to try your ideas, but when I do that the path shape is correct but it’s not in the right place in 3D space. I tried messing around with position and anchor points to try and eyeball it, but I’m just screwing things up more. Is there a better way to copy a path and apply it to another layer in 3D? I’ve done it in the past with no issues on 2D layers but not sure what I’m doing wrong now. I know I can just start over and make a new one, but when I come across a situation like this I’d like to learn what I’m doing wrong so I can get better at this stuff next time!

This client is pretty particular in what they want so I’m trying to make this process as easy to edit as possible if they want to change the path or colors, etc.

Here’s a screenshot to illustrate what happens when I copy/paste the path info to a null. THANKS AGAIN!

[Adam Fischer]

I feel like I should be paying a consultation fee with these quick responses! By editing, I meant all things video, so compositing, etc. Good to know that this card is A-Okay.

Thanks for all the other detailed responses. I’ll consider all of that as I make my final decision.

Thanks again, this such a helpful community!

[Adam Fischer]

Shane, thanks again for the response. I was looking at all three on B&H and it seems that the AJA and Matrox are getting the best reviews. I like the idea that I can use the Matrox on my laptop if necessary. Since the price isn’t much more that seems like it might be the way to go if all other things are equal. You said the AJA was eaiser to use though. Would you still recommend it over the Matrox even with the portability of the Matrox?

Do you know if any of these cards provide any performance acceleration for FCP or Adobe?

Do you have a recommendation for a video card to go along with these? I have the ATI Radeon HD 5770 that came with the machine now, but I didn’t know if there was anything out there better suited for editing.

Thanks!

[Adam Fischer]

Thanks Shane, I appreciate the detailed response!

[Adam Fischer]

Thanks to everyone for the great input. I see a lot of responses saying I’m too low with the $9-$10 range but only a couple who offered some alternatives. Anyone want to share what they paid people starting out?

I don’t really have a good frame of reference for that number. I have a kid who’s still in school now that is sort of interning for the summer and I’m paying him $8.50 but he mainly want the experience so the money isn’t an issue. He’s living at home and he’d probably work for free.

I tried salary calculators online and got numbers all over the place from $8-$35. I initially thought $10 was too low but then I started second guessing that, thinking that a kid fresh out of school might work that cheap for the experience…but like many of you said, I can’t expect them to stick around at that price.

I pay freelancers prices from $20 and hour up to around $100 an hour depending on what they’re doing and their level of experience. So what do you think I should pay a full-time-knows-the-basics-but-not-much-else-eager-to-learn first employee?

Thanks again for all the advice, it’s been great!

[Adam Fischer]

Steve! Just the man I wanted to talk to about this…It’ll be the best money I’ve ever spent on a lunch/career counseling!

[Adam Fischer]

Thanks Bill, that’s very interesting advice. One of the reasons I’ve been thinking it’s time to hire is actually because I’m NOT enjoying what I do as much anymore. I spend so much time just trying to meet deadlines that I don’t have time to really enjoy my craft like I used to. So I was thinking it’s time for more help on a daily basis, not just freelancers that come and go. I’ll consider your thoughts carefully though. Thanks!

[Adam Fischer]

Thanks very much for the info. I tried contacting BMI and ASCAP and couldn’t find a phone number on their website. All of their contact pages were email. I emailed them and they simply told me to get a sync license. I appreciate your help, I’ll follow those leads.

[Adam Fischer]

Thanks Steve. I should have remembered that you are all-knowing!