Bill Davis
Forum Replies Created
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None that I know of.
This is largely why virtually no pro shooters EVER use auto-iris.
If the iris is “hunting” constantly, you will have random changes over time – and there’s no reliable way I’ve ever seen to “auto ramp and clamp” those changes back to a steady overall brightness.
It makes sense when you think about it, because no “auto” system can tell whether random increases and decreases in overall brightness is coming from something you don’t want (the action of the iris) rather than something natural in the frame you do want – like moving toward and across a window or doorway, or the reveal and hiding of a white shirt moving across the frame.
This is why we pay competent shooters. They understand that manually adjusting something from a fixed state is always WAY easier than adjusting it from a variable one.
FWIW.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
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Bill Davis
November 5, 2011 at 2:54 am in reply to: AVI importing, editing and compressing….. Why such an issue?So after a little bit of digging i discover FCPX does not support AVI files (seriously????!! is this MAC arrogance gone mad?).
Unfortunately, “AVI” isn’t actually a “thing” itself. It’s a container shell for video. The video inside it can be any of a thousand variations of video and audio encodes featuring any of scores of codecs, data rates, compression schemes and variations thereof. So your idea that FCP-X should “support” AVI is unreasonable.
Microsoft designed AVI in precisely the same way Apple designed QuickTime. As a general purpose wrapper.
So if it’s MAC arrogance gone mad – then AVI is Microsoft arrogance gone equally mad.
Video inside FCP-X is now optimized to use CoreAV services. Generally that supports a lot of useful video encoding “standards – but certainly not all. Many are patented by other entities and Apple can’t build in support without violating IP laws.
Apple holds patent rights for some (ProRes comes to mind) Has access to others via partnership or consortium membership (H-264, etc.) but has to keep away from using others directly (Flash and Windows Media 9 or Silverlight, etc.) simply because without IP agreements in place they’d be violating others patents to do so.
So sorry, but the problem here isn’t Apple “arrogance” at all . Its largely that you don’t understand the real issues around video playback technology in a modern NLE.
Sorry.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
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Bill Davis
November 4, 2011 at 9:27 pm in reply to: Thinking about moving to Windows??? Think again…Interesting, but it begs the question of overall corporate needs.
Most business functions for computers have little to do with creativity or choice.
Display the numbers, handle the email, manage the schedule.
Necessary functions, but relatively simple and tool agnostic.
It’s only as the user gets more responsibility for not just managing data, but actually creating content, that you need anything beyond the cheapest, most basic box that can get the job done.
In jobs where raw information access is critical, the iPad form is making incredible strides since it does that so elegantly – and with so little training or operational overhead due to the simplicity of the touch interface.
But I doubt any “premium” choice will ever supplant the most basic box you can stick on a desk for most computer users in the corporate world.
FWIW.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
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How can one pick a “winner” based on ideas generated by PR professionals?
That’s all we have today on either of these cameras.
I suppose we might be able to “sniff out” the early reactions to published feature sets – but does that tell us anything about the utility and staying power of these products over time?
Personaly, I’ll start paying more attention when I can hold them in my hands, and shoot something under conditions that are close to what I face when I have to produce work for money, and see the footage for myself.
Until that point, too much smoke and mirrors, and not enough real facts to choose from, IMO.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
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Franz,
I’m not “looking” for complaints. Just wondering why the general tone of so much of our discourse in the country is being reflected towards what I consider to be un-realistic expectations.
I think the Louis CK video was precisely on point. We do seem to want everything. We want it immediately. And we want it dirt cheap, please. Nothing else will do. And it’s incredibly easy to ignore the value of what we’re given if it’s not “ideal” to our thinking.
Like most excellent comedy, it’s funny precisely because it’s so rooted in the truth.
And it’s the blogospheres tendency to value “snap judgements” over thoughtful consideration – something I’m as guilty of as the next guy, but something I’m trying to suppress and wean myself off of so that the permanent record of my personal “thinking in public” here can be something I can be proud of, rather than just a compendium of emotional reactions to stuff that’s annoyed me.
For what it’s worth.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
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[Herb Sevush] “have no argument with most of your post, but this line is not true. X cannot color correct accurately since there is no video out and you cannot print to tape for broadcast delivery.”
A. Tens of thousands of videos are finished daily that were shot properly (which is dimply defined as “to the standards of their producers) and so need NO color correction step whatsoever. I’d argue that the VAST majority of videos fall into this category even if *I* might feel that they could benefit from a CC step.
B. I have output Quicktime files from FCP-X that were subsequently sent to stations for broadcast.
It may require something other than a single button push which might be “inconvenient” to you. But that’s not the same thing as your way overly broad “you cannot print to tape for broadcast delivery.” That’s another fine example of anit-X hyperbole. If one can “print” a QT file out of X (and anyone can) and put that on media – and distribute it. That’s the essential function anyone needs and X does that just like any other NLE.Raise something “video editing mission critical” that it actually “can’t” do, not something it can do perfectly well, just not the way you want it to – and I’ll be happy to listen.
So sorry, Herb. I’m not buying your line of reasoning at all.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
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[Oliver Peters] “[Shawn Miller] “There are millions of folks doing 3D, motion graphics and compositing work… Blender alone claims to have over 2 million downloads a year. I can’t even begin to guess how big After Effects’ user base is, but I would be willing to believe that it dwarfs the FCP user base.”
And by default the majority of those folks are on PCs.”
But that’s a different kettle of fish all together. An open source program like Blender encourages people who’s core interest is programming and code manipulation to “try their hand” at these skill sets. Yes, some high level artists use them as well, but it’s not equivalent to plopping down $1000 plus to purchase a personal work tool.
I’m all for open source concepts like this. But I thought that in this group, the central angst was coming from “the pros” who see FCP as falling to the wishes of the great unwashed “consumers” rather than being a better protected to serve the needs of the priest class.
Like FCP, Photoshop, and many other “pro” programs, AE appears on a VERY wide range of users computers. Heck, the guy who fixes my Macs has FCP, CS4 and AE installed and has paid for all of them over the years. AND he owns a really nice DSLR. But barely uses any of that hardware or software in a meaningful professional way. They are affordable toys to him. Nothing more.
This is totally true of all software, and has been since the early days of commercial programs. There are likely more “INACTIVE” seats of all successful software out there than “active” ones – and more on point, there are probably far FEWER seats in the class of “professionals who depend day to day” on any particular software than we’d guess.
I note this because after my recent update to Lion, I started playing with LaunchPad – and was kinda shocked to see the rows and rows and rows of icons for programs I had long forgotten I’d installed and used over the years. (Some of them l hadn’t opened in maybe a decade! I clearly need to spend more time cleaning up during OS migrations!)
Kinda shocking, really.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
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Bill Davis
November 2, 2011 at 11:10 pm in reply to: Marshall McLuhan on “Apple FCPX or Not: The Debate”Bravo, Michael.
Nailed it perfectly.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
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[Jerry Hofmann] “Still, that puts us all in a sort of limbo… FCP X, will be ready someday, but when? we don’t know. MacPro’s may well be in their last iteration, who knows. “
Jerry,
I’m sorry, but I’ve got to point out that your opinion above a great example of the main problem here.
You say “all of us” followed by “”FCP-X will be ready someday” but what you’re actually saying is “will be ready for ME the way I work someday.” Which is fair and accurate.
But there IS a larger truth. That it’s ready for probably 80% of the functioning video editing market right this moment.
Period. No questions. It cuts fine.
It organizes assets MORE than fine. It does titles, incorporates graphics, allows you to rough out – fine tune – finalize – and even export and delivery in ways that are acceptable to the entire planet of video delivery RIGHT THIS SECOND.
All you have to know is how to use it. Just like any other NLE.
It’s the thinking embodied in that line above thats largely what’s confusing things, IMO. It’s constantly harping on the “ITS NOT READY YET” theme that’s barely fractionally true in the overall context of video editing as it;s practiced across our planet.
FCP-X is perfectly ready. Just not ready for everyone in absolutely all circumstances. That this particular board might be somewhat heavy with the people for whom it’s not yet adequate is no excuse not to understand that there are legions of eyeballs here who are looking for accurate information, and not being attuned to the context of a remark like yours above, it leaves the impression that it’s somehow incapable or nonfunctional.
And you can’t possibly mean that — because it simply isn’t true.
That’s the larger problem with the “haters.” I understand how and why they “hate” it – particularly since it might have supplanted something they were depending on to feed their families. But truth is truth, and opinion is opinion.
And that it’s “not ready for prime time” depends ENTIRELY on how you define prime time.
Simple as that.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
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Craig,
Yeah, it has 100gps in it’s roadmap. But don’t forget that top end is ALL optical. Unlike the first and 2nd generation schemes, which have copper involved – which means they pass POWER as well as data.
To get the highest possible bandwidth, manufacturers are going to have to find a way to move power around along with the data stream — that’s going to be at least a minor issue when every device you hang on the pipe needs it’s own separate source of operating power.
Particularly in mobile uses.
It’s probably trivial and the industry will settle on some form of standard “hybrid cable” that does optical and power in separate paths, but they’ll also probably stick us with cables priced according to the retail”monster cable” model.
Won’t THAT be fun!
(sigh)
FWIW.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor