Gary Hazen
Forum Replies Created
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If your project has a a little extra cash in the budget you might have a look at Knoll Light Factory. KNF has the ability the set obscuration layers, which provides the functionality you’re looking for. You could download the demo to see if it’s worth the money.
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There’s a lot of misinformation in this thread regarding the stability Avid. This is from users that either have never actually used an Avid or haven’t used an Avid since the Adrenaline days. Avid’s Adrenaline systems were slow to respond and often buggy. Because of all the problems with Adrenaline Avid made it a top priority to fix these problems with the next release, MC 3.0 which they rolled out about a year ago. I’ve cut on Avid’s for over a decade and I must say that Avid has succeeded making MC a rock solid editor again. The current MC is as stable as the Meridiens and as responsive if not more so.
I use both systems. The Oliver Peters article that Robert posted does a good job spelling out the various strengths and weaknesses of each system. I think the right choice of a NLE is dependent on the type of work done and the scale of the facility. Setting up shop at home or a small boutique cutting docs I would choose FCP. In a broadcast environment I would choose Avid every time.
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Try posting in the After Effects Expressions forum. Dan Ebberts can point you in the right direction.
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If you have AE you could try data animator.
https://www.redgiantsoftware.com/products/all/datamator/
Disclaimer: I’ve never used this plug. Try the demo first.
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“all broadcast standard def wide screen video is by it’s nature ANAMORPHIC” – Nate
Correct
“standard def is really anamorphic video with a raster of 720×480 pixels” – Nate
Correct for DV output. But… For broadcast the raster size is actually 720 x 486.
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If you do it right parenting works like a champ and doesn’t degrade the video image.
I realize I left something out of the original post. Again, park the CTI on the frame where the logo zoom is nearly complete. Drop the video in the timeline beneath the logo, scaled to 100%. Now split the video layer by hitting command+shift+D (Mac) or ctrl+shift+D (PC). Select the bottom video layer and parent it to the logo layer. When you scrub the timeline back toward the beginning of the comp this parented video layer will scale down accordingly. Since you split the layer the top most video layer will never exceed 100%. Meaning the video will not be degraded from over scaling. Once you have the movement working add a simple mask to the bottom video layer.
The good thing about parenting the layer is that if you change your mind and move the starting position of the logo the video layer will move with it. You won’t need to waste time tweaking the animation for the video layer all over again.
Regarding the quality of the logo itself I’ll leave that one alone since Martin didn’t express any problems with the logo degrading. The only thing he mentioned was that it is a psd file. For all we know it’s a 6000 x 4000 pixel psd file.
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If your parent the video layer to the logo layer you won’t need to bother with rotoscoping every frame. Place the video layer under the logo layer. Find the point in timeline where the O completely fills the frame. Parent the video layer to the logo layer. Scrub the timeline and the minor tweaks you need to make should be self evident.
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“Fundamental rookie question: does a 1080i broadcast get cropped on the viewer’s end?” – PM
The first step is to get the answer to this question from your broadcaster. I don’t know that there’s a standard for downconverting HD. From watching TV I’ve noticed both letterboxed and center cut downconverts. Oftentimes you’ll see material that was clearly intended to be letterboxed and the broadcaster decided to crop off the sides instead – it’s ugly and I’m sure the advertisers aren’t real happy about how their spot looked on the air.
If the material is going to be letterboxed then you need to respect safe title on the left and right edges. The top and bottom of the frame don’t matter as much because they will be tightened up after scaling.
If the material is going to be center cut then you need to set up you guides accordingly. Avid has an guide overlay that shows a 4:3 guide inside a 16:9 space – it’s a handy tool. If FCP doesn’t have this type of a guide make your own in PS or AE.
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Wacom is the industry standard. The Bamboo tablet is under your budget. Otherwise you might check eBay for a used Intuos.