Jonathan Ziegler
Forum Replies Created
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Sounds like you might be better off creating a video at the full resolution (4256×2832) and then drop that into your 1920×1080 timeline. You will need to crop no matter what because neither share the same proportions (unless you want pillarbars). In that case, just create the video from the original files in Quicktime, save to a self-contained movie and import into After Effects. You can also just make the video in AE, but I like Quicktime Pro better for image sequences made to video. I don’t have a technical explanation, but they just seem to work better. I also generally use ProRes422 (not HQ, but you can use it if you like). The files are huge, but there you go.
Now, you can crop and such in Photoshop first if you like, but I think you’ll have more overall versatility. If memory is a problem, consider making a low-res version for editing in Compressor as well.
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
I like the mirror idea. I also like the idea of using $20 worth of PVC and connecting it up that way. If you do, use 3/4″ schedule 40 PVC, good cement, and do it like a dual truss or scaffold.
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
Ah, don’t ask me, I build a lot of my own equipment. LEDs are really cheap and getting RGB ones and properly balancing them really isn’t that hard if you do a little research. You are mostly paying for the Lowell name and having equipment that looks way more professional than most of the stuff I make. Then again, I just like building stuff (my jib, my tripod, my teleprompter, my dollies, my many rigs, my lights, etc. – you get the idea). Put it this way: if you have the money and you feel its the right fit for you, I say go for it. Look through the many boards and get opinions from several people.
One quick thing on power: LEDs don’t run a lot of amps so make sure you have enough amp-hours in your batteries to survive as long as you plan to be on the trade room floor. Divide the amp usage – 1.25A in this case is peak – by the battery’s rated Amp-Hours to get the number of expected hours. Remember to divide milliamphours (mAH) by 1000 first. For example, the small, portable, 12V SLA batteries with the standard car cigarette plug are rated at 4-10AH – so you get 3-8 hours and maybe more depending on the setup. Conversely, many camera batteries are only good for up to 4AH at 9V or up to 3 hours or so max. Sealed lead-acid (SLA) batteries are heavier (I stick em in a backpack and run a cord through a hole).
that last bit was a bit extraneous, but don’t let a lack of power be the thing that keeps you from moving forward.
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
I tend to agree – if you were going to NAB, for example, you really don’t need a lot of extra light. Go with a bounce or maybe an LED light on the shoe. Keep it simple and portable. Spend the money on a good mic and audio system instead.
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
Well, I’m not sure what to tell you. There are literally hundreds (if not thousands) of books out there on the subject. I would start with searching for simple things like “lithography,” “offset lithography,” “spot colors” and “pantone” in Wikipedia and go through their bibliography (or references) at the end. Even a simple search online will yield practical results. Given that you are a photoshop user, look into “spot colors in photoshop” as well. Sorry to be kinda dodgy about it, but there are tons of references out there and you shouldn’t need to buy a book.
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
Forgot – overlapping spot colors are when you have one color over another – you can see the shadow of one color over another. Generally not desirable, but you see it used artfully from time to time. You see this in tshirt printing or screen printing in general. Since this will rapidly progress into a much larger topic and a discussion of how to do your bleeds and other printing terms. Sounds like you may need to pick up a graphic design 200 level book or look into a printing book.
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
The answer to that is a hair bigger that the question. Spot colors are premixed colors or formula colors outside of cmyk. Theyve been around longer than cmyk ever was. Spot colors today are colors you generally can get with the standard cmyk model. Often you see them used in packaging to get a particular shade of color or in art posters where they use 1,2, or 3 or more colors (Dave Matthews band has some of the nicest posters that use spot colors). Pantone is a great example of spot colors – these are heavily incorporated into photoshop by the way. I personally use them for 2 and 3 tone photos.
Do you have to use them? Of course not. Can you use cmyk instead of spot colors? Sure, BUT there are lots of colors you can’t duplicate with cmyk or rgb or even the hexachrome process. For example – metallic inks must be treated as a spot color. Look at a Pantone book, use photoshop to dup the colors, print via cmyk. Notice the colors don’t match? If you don’t have a Pantone book, look at the color swatches for many types of paint. In order to keep their colors unique from other brands, paint makers will use colors that don’t reproduce easily.
If you are a serious designer and you plan to do something like package design, posters, or any serious printing, pick up the Pantone’s Guide to Communicating with color. Now if you strictly do web work or digital work with no print, you won’t need them until Pantone makes a spot color monitor. 😉
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
Okay, I was thinking you were using the filters menu. I would set up a separate mask for the blur – use smart objects. You can run the operation as often as you like that way.
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
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I think that message comes up when you are trying to open a file that is not the same type as the file extension. Like when you save a tiff with a jpeg extension. Try opening the original file – if it works, something happened to between saving the work. Also, if it’s a video file, try opening in QuickTime pro and see if opens there – hit command-I and movie info to see what the codec says.
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293