You’ve probably seen the iPhone’s montage sequences, with titles like “At the Beach,” or “Five Years Ago Today.” A bunch of old photos AND videos from your photo library, with some subtle moves and music.

I have several hundred images from my wife’s Peace Corps friends, and would like to put together some thematic montage sequences for an…

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Thank you so much for the comprehensive reply! I appreciate that this is a very fast-moving train, and so I am going to assemble all the video that I want to upscale from SD, and then ask your opinion again.

Through this forum I just re-discovered Topaz Video AI. The examples on their website are impressive. They sell via subscription, which is a turn-off, but it’s still tempting at their Black Friday pricing. I have some irreplaceable footage in SD that I’d like to include in a new video, as seamlessly as possible. And some marginal footage in HD…

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Thanks for the thoughts. Some reactions:

1. Agree that there are many wonderful AI-aided innovations which automate tedious manual tasks; Resolve 20 has several of them.

2. Mediocre human-created edits will definitely lose out to mediocre AI, if only because AI will be faster and FAR less expensive.

3. For field production, I am looking forward to…

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Thanks Brie and Mads. See, these are the kinds of responses that set the COW apart.

I very much appreciate the COW’s humanity, honesty, and capacity for nuance. It’s not a “Shouting Place,” as so much social media has become.

Bob

In the past, I supported the COW’s policy to require real names from posters. For one thing, knowing that my friends, virtual and IRL, would see my query, made me phrase my questions much more carefully. Often, by the time I refined my query, I figured out the answer and didn’t have to post anyway.

I used to wish all social media sites would…

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Devrim, yes, I posted this in hopes that I could be persuaded I was agree. And I agree with you about the importance of creativity. But you have to see this AI stuff to believe it. The AI software “read” the script, provided audio for the voice-over, looked over the images, and edited the images to the script. Then it said, in effect, “I can…

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I’m consolidating an archive, mainly of photographs and video files. There are many duplicates or near-duplicates.

Can you recommend any file deduplicating software for the Mac?

I take your point, and if I were talking about something less fundamental, I’d leave it at that.

But this exposure to AI feels like something very different. We’re talking about a radical transformation of editing as we know it. We’re the taxicab drivers looking at driverless cars.

A client wanted a short video, based on PowerPoint slides. He showed me a one-minute video that another producer created in 15 minutes, based on these slides. It wasn’t “great,” but it added animation and related graphics in the spirit of the original slides, and it was far fancier than I could have created in the same time.

Then the same…

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That sounds ridiculous. I’m so sorry. True Customs story: Ahead of me in line was a young family who were watching as the customs officials literally tore into their suitcases to look for ??? while their toddlers squirmed in their parents’ arms. Customs started quizzing me about the camera equipment I was bringing back to the U.S. I said,…

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I need to repair or replace my old reference monitor, and I am trying to decide which way to go.

My Flanders Scientific (LM1760W) has been very useful and color-accurate, though the image is relatively small at 17.3″. Its internal power board has stopped working.

I am using a Mac Studio, with a Blackmagic UltraStudio HD Mini, whose SDI-out fed…

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I’m working with very old 8mm footage, quite jumpy. Resolve’s built in “Stabilization” effect has been helpful, but I would appreciate any advice on how to decide which options to use. I’ve just been trying each option and watching the results, but I’m curious as to whether there is some method to each parameter.

Thanks.

Bob C

I’ve asked this question on this forum before, but ask for your indulgence to pose it again, in case there have been any changes.

For a low-budget non-profit client, I have to record interviews over the internet. I’ve used Zoom, but the quality has been mediocre. Can you recommend any software that would give me higher quality?

The interviewees…

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Two more questions:

1. Is there an alternative to Topaz which you can recommend? I just ran across “HitPaw Video Enhancer,” and the free preview looks pretty good.

2. We’re using Zoom simply because the interviewees are comfortable with it. Is there an alternative to Zoom, for people who have no inclination to load software on their end?

Thanks again!

I have Zoom recordings for interviews, for a super-low-budget video. The images are of course very soft.

Of Resolve Studio’s three filters, “Sharpen and Soften” looks the best, but it is still pretty crude.

Has anyone used Topaz for this kind of very low-res source material?

Thanks.

Bob C.

I forgot to update: Hector was absolutely right. Thank you Hector!!!

Thanks Hector!

Is anyone happy with their color printer? I want to print my photographs, and have not yet found “my” photo printer.

Issues: error messages; expensive cartridges that need replacement whether I use the printer or not; photo quality; great discrepancy between what looks right on-screen and what comes out on paper.

I thought I’d found “the one”…

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<<hoping the latest Mac Studio can cut it. Pardon the pun 🙂>>

Or will it just fade out?

Welcome to Resolve, Sergey. I think dissolve markers will be more to your liking if you get rid of video thumbnails in the video track. Click on Timeline Options/Video View Options on upper left of timeline window. Good video about this here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcCnn_ITYbg

I am looking for some real-world advice on whether to upgrade my Mac Studio with M1 Max to a Studio M2 Max or M2 Ultra. My most demanding projects are multi-layer 4k MXF files.

Thanks!

When you told him you wouldn’t need his services, you were giving him feedback. Most clients simply “ghost” an unsatisfactory vendor; you took the trouble to say “Go away.”

If his plight bothers you, you may look for a way to give him a more direct critique. You could ask him how it’s going. If he says “Great,” you can relax; if not, you could…

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Interesting post.

I’ve rarely noticed this problem in many years of interviewing. Maybe you are more aware of it than I. Simply adjusting the levels during the edit works for me.

I’d be very curious, though, how other people have handled this during the actual interview. Modeling a quiet tone of voice might help. Or simply telling the…

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Moving from Premiere to Resolve: Easy, even joyful.

Moving from After Effects to Resolve/Fusion: Harder, but worth the pain. (And when Fusion’s nodes are kicking your butt, you can always revert to layers in Resolve’s Edit Page.)

Moving from Photoshop to Affinity Photo: Hardest. (Extremely, for me anyway.)

I keep a legacy version of Photoshop on an…

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How’s it going, Sam? Are you discovering that you need a more powerful computer?

Bob C

This is a good topic, and not just for teleprompting or for people with sensitive eyes.

I like to sit in the subject’s chair and look toward the camera, to see how I can make the setting more comfortable for them. 2 tips for that:

(1) Use a light to brighten the room BEHIND the camera, so that the key light doesn’t seem so bright.

(2) Put a big…

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Matthew, regarding the limitations of the free version of Resolve: I have used both, and haven’t noticed that much difference. I only got the Studio version because it came free with the Speed Editor for awhile. The basic version would definitely give you a good sense of the paid Resolve.

Agree with every single comment about YouTube. It is the…

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I’ve lived, and I still live, in both Mac and PC worlds. It’s no wonder you’re having cold feet – Mac is going to be uncomfortable at first. But if you bought a Mac Studio and use Resolve, I believe you will ultimately be happy. Get an external SSD for your data, connect via USB-3/Thunderbolt 4, and fly through your edits.

But you are right; the…

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Thanks Mads and Michael,

Michael, Mads, both of you make great points. I use YouTube tutorials too, mainly for DaVinci Resolve.

Mads: Try Resolve. It is simply delightful. Being able to jump from editing (2 modes!) to color correction, audio fixes, motion graphics — and back to editing, with all your changes automatically in the timeline… so…

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Maybe it’s just me, but I used to enjoy the Creativecow forums a lot more than I have in the last couple of years. Not only were they incredibly helpful, but they were often amusing, and often gave me a sense of camaraderie.

Maybe it’s generational. It seemed a lot more people used to be like me: self-employed, with decades of experience,…

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Hey Chris,

I assume you’re asking Karl about the format. I’m not capturing to anything yet! Fortunately I have time before I have to tackle this stack of old tapes.

But I will probably capture to ProRes, SD.

Bob

Hello back Bob. I’m very curious as to how you read CalDigit’s non-support of Matt Dunne’s purchase. In this thread, on Dec. 10 2020, you noted, “the world is changing” and asked, regarding non-availability of top-notch, market-leading RAIDs, “what does that tell you?”

I respect your opinion enough to grovel a bit and ask you directly, “What…

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I’m on the Mac side, but I still found your story ingenious and impressive. Well done.

Thanks.

Bob C

Hi Matt,

I really feel bad for you. That is absolutely miserable behavior and has altered my opinion of CalDigit. I was getting ready to buy their TS4 connection box but (1) it is listed as “temporarily out of stock” on B&H; and (2) their non-support of their (very nice) T4 RAID indicates they don’t care enough about their customers.

Thanks for…

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Joseph, what’s your hardware? I don’t want to bother with remote control – happy to just hit “record” and then hit play on the analog deck.

Thanks!

Pygmy pony?

bob

I haven’t touched analog videotapes for many years but now I have to, from three sources: Betacam (either the BVW70 or the UVW1800); VHS (from a deck with RCA outputs); and HDV (HDMI, component, composite outs).

I own a Blackmagic Video Assist 4k, and am running Resolve 18 on a Mac Studio. I also have a couple of older PCs available, so I could…

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Thank you Brie. I was looking for Resolve Fusion so I totally missed the Blackmagic Design forum. I appreciate your setting me straight.

Bob C

I keyed a man from V2, on the Color Page.

On the Edit Page, I repositioned that keyed image -211 in the Y axis. Unfortunately, when I did that, the BG image on V1 got cut off, exactly where the original image’s top would have been. A series of photos is attached. (Please scroll to see 3 images.)

I tried various compositing modes for V2, some of…

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Is there any prospect of a Fusion Forum on the COW? I’ve tried the Blackmagic forum, and although I can post a question, it doesn’t show up on the forum itself.

Bob C

Thanks. Bought a refurbished low-end Mac Studio and a 2TB SSD for media, and my initial impression is that this relatively simple and inexpensive solution will work well. Looking forward to an answer to John’s question about configuring a Flanders Scientific monitor.

Bob C

Getting a new Mac, and thinking of downgrading my current (mid-2014) MBP so that I can run my bought-and-paid-for copy of Adobe CS5.1.

Does anyone know what is the latest Mac OSX that can run CS5.1?

Thanks.

Bob Cole

Please forgive these basic questions. It’s been at least 6 years since I’ve looked into these issues.

Whatever I buy in the way of a computer, I need to address the RAID as well. My CalDigit T4 has been discontinued, & I would like to have something with current support and supply.

For editing HD and 4K, with moderate CC, what sort of external…

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Thank you Joseph. I feel your pain regarding Apple’s indifference to obsolescence. And I love the 4 liters of milk analogy, though I hold onto my computers so long that I should probably think of cheese or wine.

A related question: I have an old (but great) CalDigit 4-drive RAID, and I wonder whether I will need to replace it if I venture into…

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Trying to decide which configuration of the Studio Max/Ultra to buy for Resolve. My application is mainly HD editing, with some 4K footage, color correction, keying, movement on still images, and moderate effects.

If you’ve taken the plunge and have observations (or even if you haven’t, but could give an educated guess), I’d appreciate hearing…

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Fastest solutions, in order:

1. Restart computer. If that doesn’t work,

2. Change font. If that doesn’t work,

3. Move credit material into new project, and if it works there, render out a lossless file and import into original project. If that doesn’t work, and you’re on deadline,

4. Just add a lot more red dots all over the screen and sit back to…

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Thank you Michael. Your tip motivated me to dig into the Tracking window, which I’d been avoiding because I assumed it would be as cumbersome as other tracking tools I’ve used… and I’m glad to report that I was wrong; it is excellent.

In the “Window” window, just to the left of the Tracking window, the only way I’ve found to add a keyframe is to…

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How do you set a keyframe in Color? I’m trying to KF a mask to eliminate bad parts of a chroma key BG, in order to keep the keying as mild as possible. I see that I need to switch from Clip to Frame but I don’t see how to do that.

Thanks!

Bob C

Resolve 17.latest, OSX latest