[Herb Sevush]

[Bill Davis] “To me, 25 angles is at LEAST 17 too many”

When I say a minimum of 25 cameras, it means you can do up to 25 cameras if you want to. You can also do only 2, 3 or 4. Right now Legacy can handle 16 cameras, which is OK but there are a lot of live concerts shot with up to 20 – 25 cameras. It’s up to the editor to define how many angles he wants to work with.

Most NLE’s right now can handle at least 8 angles, PPro is very disappointing in that currently it can handle only 4, but there are strong rumors that that’s about to change.

[Bill Davis] “Herb, this will NEVER be the monolithic “everything for everyone” software you are so clearly still pining for.”

Bill, what I outlined is not outrageous – Legacy can do it now (albeit 16 cameras instead of 25). If FCPX doesn’t want my business that’s fine, but Apple claims otherwise. What I laid out are the requirements for a serious multi-cam editor. It’s up to Apple to determine how serious they want to be. Like any old dog, I simply go where I am wanted.

Herb Sevush
Zebra Productions

nothin’ attached to nothin’

[Herb Sevush]

[Chris Harlan] “OR–and I bet you have NOT considered this–it is a multidimensional program that sits across the local multiverse and is only partially visible in our world, until Dec. 2012, when the doors between universes open and we have an ice cream party. At that point, you will be able to multicam across time and the boundary between alternate realities.”

You can explain this mathematically using string theory.

Herb Sevush
Zebra Productions

nothin’ attached to nothin’

[Herb Sevush]

I don’t know about Tim but i definitely need the ability to have nothin’ attached to nothin’ but with the ability to reattach at will.

I mentioned this months ago in one of the earlier go ’rounds that one of the first things I do after making an assembly is to de-link everything.

I want to treat my audio like it’s mag track on a moviola – sync code when I need it, but otherwise total freedom to move it around completely disconnected with the video. I never use J and L cuts because I never need them – free Audio, free from the tyranny of video, free at last, free at last, thank the big editor in the sky I’m free at … I think you get the idea.

When editing multi-cam this becomes a natural way of working.

Herb Sevush
Zebra Productions

[Herb Sevush]

[Jeremy Garchow] “That list, seems extremely doable in FCPX. The framework seems to be already there.”

And because of that, if they don’t do it, if they come up with some 4 camera sync to audio waveform crap, it will tell me everything I need to know about their market strategy.

Herb Sevush
Zebra Productions

[Herb Sevush]

Multi-Cam essentials

1) The ability to create a multi-clip with a minimum of 25 angles, no limit would be better.

Automating the creation of the clip would be a plus, this is where FCPX should shine. Allowing the individual angles to contain non continuous clips, something Legacy can’t do, would be a big plus.

2) The clips need to be able to sync to either timecode or some sort of marker.

3) The multi-clip needs to behave like any other clip in that you can load it in a viewer (browser), match back to it from the timeline; it should behave in a timeline like any other clip in terms of trimming, moving, j-cuts etc.(many multi-cam setups use a special layered timeline that can be edited or use markers to indicate cut points: these are all way to limited.)

4) The multi-clip needs to be able to assign whatever combination of video angle and audio channels you want to lay down on the timeline quickly and easily, and change it whenever desired.

5) You need to be able to change video angles and edit to the timeline “on the fly” as your viewing – the “live cut” simulation mode.

6) Once cut into the timeline you need to be able to change angles or video or audio or both, trim cut points, enter new cut points with a change of angle – all with a single keystroke. Similar to the on the fly mode, only this time using the timeline as your source.

7) On the timeline you need to be able to know when video and audio are in sync even when they are not from the same original source – audio 1 from camera A with video from camera B – as long as they are from the same multi-clip. If they are not in sync, you need to be able to slip back into sync with single keystroke, and need to be able to do this with either audio or video.

8) Need to be able to see an updating in-sync multi-clip whenever you play the timeline.

I think this covers it, if not somebody else should chime in.

Legacy can do this, Avid can do this. X has a chance to do this better than any other because, due to it’s relational database nature, it can create multi-clips that are both automated and non-continuous.

I’m most interested to see how it handles the need for a constant source viewer, audio independent of video, and showing sync relationships while letting the editor determine when to re-sync.

If Apple tries to make a “multi-cam for everyone” type of feature, it will suck for editors like me. If they try to make the best multi-cam editor on the market, they just might.

Herb Sevush
Zebra Productions

[Herb Sevush]

[Bill Davis] “In my experience, when they say 1 above they’re usually not talking about camera shake, which rubadub addresses, but focus issues, which would be FANTASTIC”

Take a look at this. They are talking about “focus” – in Photoshop for now, but I’ll bet it won’t take long to make it work for video.

https://tv.adobe.com/watch/max-2011-sneak-peeks/max-2011-sneak-peek-image-deblurring/

Herb Sevush
Zebra Productions

[Herb Sevush]

[Bill Davis] “FCP-X is constructed around a relational database that’s purpose driven to locate, extract, manipulate and display digital data related to video editing in a very flexible fashion.

So to enable EVERYTHING you’re asking for is simply a matter of code calls and interface construction choices.”

I agree that the relational database nature of FCPX makes it ideal for developing a world class multi-cam editor. That is why I am sticking around, waiting to see what they come up with. But there is nothing “simple” about it, as the devil, as always, is in the details. And the single viewer nature of X, along with it’s inability to display source timecode in the timeline are both design hurdles to overcome. Seeing how or whether they choose to overcome them will tell me a lot about Apple’s future intentions for X.

Herb Sevush
Zebra Productions

[Herb Sevush]

[Bill Davis] “I also applaud “openness” as a general way of doing business. And I admire Adobe for clearly putting a premium on this kind of R&D effort. It will clearly move the high dollar “feature film” oriented end of the industry forward.”

I don’t think the “rub-a-dub” is a high end feature. Imagine you’ve got a corporate spokesman delivering copy in a MS, it’s a great take but in the middle there’s a siren that goes off behind a few words. You go back and re-do it in CU, which is never a pretty cut. The second take is OK, but clearly the first is better. You can now take a phrase from the second take and drop it in to fix the phrase. Doing this manually is a PITA, now it’s automatic. It’s the audio equivalent of X’s ability to match color from one clip to the next.

As for the Photoshop fix blur feature, if they can do it in Photoshop they will be able to do it with video. The 2 things I most often get asked to do by clients that I can’t do is

1) make this shot less blurry and
2) get rid of the echo in the sound.

The possibility that I will be able to do #1 is fantastic, and it is definitely not a “high end” feature.

Herb Sevush
Zebra Productions

[Herb Sevush]

Gary –

I think the difference is we both started on Windows and then migrated to Macs. Apparently the reverse approach instills a bit of fear and loathing.

Herb Sevush
Zebra Productions

[Herb Sevush]

“What you don’t see is me doing is going on a Windows debate forum and asking windows users why “ls” is called “dir” at the windows command prompt knowing full well they represent the same function.”

If you woke up one day and Apple decided to EOL Mac OSX in favor of Windows, my guess is you’d have a lot more to say about the subject of “ls” vs “dir”.

ON the other hand, using Windows as a platform for a NLE is a lot less daunting then you make it. You don’t need to open the command line prompt to open PPro on a windows box. You just have to hold your hat on to keep it from being blown away by the unfamiliar speed.

Herb Sevush
Zebra Productions