Jonathan Ziegler
Forum Replies Created
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Stephen, I was thinking more like is the font TrueType, Type 1, OpenType, etc. – I wasn’t very clear Also, when you view the font in Fontbook or another FontViewer, are there any corrupt letters? Can you try rasterizing the graphics in photoshop or do you need something to change?
Also, back to the graphic – 2000×2000 px is pretty small, but is this a layered photoshop file? Does it need to be layered or can you flatten this to PNG or JPEG file? I’m thinking the strobing may just be a memory issue on your machine which you may be able to fix by rasterizing everything – I always thought vectors ate up more ram than raster.
One other thing: are you moving the camera past the object or the object past the camera? Try switching. Maybe that will help? Try slowing down/speeding up the animation and adjusting the timing in FCP – shoot quickly at 60fps and then retime to 30fps – try some typical cinematography-type techniques.
Finally, can you do the same project in After Effects? I know you are a Motion user, but I like to have both just in case one isn’t working well.
I’m also making the assumption that this doesn’t happen in any other project, either. If it is, it might be time to clear out basics like prefs, caches, kill apps/procs running in the background (check Activity Monitor for stray processes), especially watch for anything taking up more than a few % of CPU time. Make sure to watch for quicktime procs and if you come across one you don’t recognize, try googling it to make sure it belongs. Make sure everything is at the current version(s) as well.
Hope this helps. -Jonathan
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
Hey there, saw your video and it looks good. There are some other apps to consider for your arsenal:
BoinxTV – designed as a home vlogging/podcasting deal. Has basic bells and whistles and isn’t really made for pros, but works great for some things. I got this super cheap from MacHeist which gathers together dozens of Mac apps for Mac and iPhone for a very low price (the last one was like $39 for over a dozen useful apps including iStopmotion, Kinemac, and BoinxTV, Wiretap Studio, and a host of others) and proceeds go to charity – I highly recommend their mailing list.
Kinemac – I also picked this one up via MacHeist. It really does 3D modelling in HD. Doing 3D text on this one is a BREEZE. Pick up a trial verson and give it a go.
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
Out of curiosity, what is the graphic in the background? The newspaper graphic. What is the file format and filesize? In this case, it makes sense to look at everything. Also, what is the font and what type of font is the “Eyeston…” font? Shouldn’t make a difference, but you never know. Maybe try a different graphic or font and see if it happens again.
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
I’m a fan of Strata 3D, too because it works as a plug-in to Photoshop CS3 and up for animation and stills.
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
Maybe convert to motion JPEG or maybe use the animation codec out of Motion. Can you post a short video? Would like to see it when it strobes and when it doesn’t.
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
For the money, I’m a huge fan of Direct Sound EX-25 headphones (or EX-29). These are passive isolation phones (no batteries) and I love these on set or in the studio – they wipe out all outside sound or noise and they don’t flavor the sound (like Bose and many others do). Here’s the site: https://www.extremeheadphones.com/ex-25.html – just search Amazon and you’ll find ’em. The EX-29 runs about $100. For a video – go here: https://www.purewaveaudio.com/product/DIS-EX25/Direct-Sound-EX-25.html (this is not my site) – there is a “Watch Video” link there where the owner talks a bit about them at NAMM.
Whatever you decide, skip the noise-canceling phones – they flavor the sound so you don’t get an accurate idea of what the final sounds like. Be wary of Bose – they flavor the sound a LOT – this mostly holds true for any consumer headphones. Skip the Monster Dr. Dre phones – absurdly expensive.
If you can afford it, consider the options from Ultrasone. I like the DJ1 for studio, but it runs about $200. Ultrasone are my favorites above Direct Sound.
The only other brand I like (and I’ve tried many of the ones in this thread) is Audio Technica for price and features, but I truly feel the Direct Sound offering is better.
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
I just picked up a really nice Vivitar Series 1 35-85mm f2.8 lens with a nikon mount (converted to EOS – they had this in an FD mount, but those don’t convert well to EOS so I went Nikon which does) on ebay for $150. Very, very happy with this lens – I can ZOOM NOW! I also have a 35mm f1.8, 50mm f2, and now a 105mm f2.8 – all prime nikon lenses I got off of eBay. Add that to a small, growing list of specialty lenses like Lensbaby, a couple “multipliers” I’m experimenting with to get wider, and a franken-lens I created from a dead canon lens and a super-8 zoom lens (it doesn’t work great, but it’s awesome for macro).
While I agree that the 60d looks like a better camera, the extra you’ll pay will mean fewer lenses. You will need to balance that out, figure out exactly what you’ll need and make the judgement call for yourself. Also, if you are not real cozy manually adjusting f-stops, don’t go with the manual lenses I talked about above. Instead, get cozy with the came-with-the-camera lens. Use the hell out of it. After you shoot absolutely everything for a month or more with the lousy lens that comes with the camera, you will know what lenses you really need and what you don’t. Example: you do a lot of closeups – get a portrait lens (85mm or 105mm) or you do a lot of low-light work – get a faster lens with a steady F-stop.
Dunno what you might want? Rent a couple lenses and see if you will actually use them and it’s a whole lot cheaper than buying one you never use.
Check this site out: https://nofilmschool.com/dslr/ – DSLR Cinematography Guide
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
I’m no sound expert, but I’ve used the H4n.
First, make sure you have the correct mic selected – You want input 1/2 if you are recording from a mic. I’m assuming you are recording using an XLR input and not a 1/4″ jack. If it’s a 1/4″ jack, it may not be well-powered and may need amplification.
Did you adjust the recording level on the side?
Did you set the “level” in the menu?
If you’ve set levels and gain and the mic is still really quiet, replace batteries in the mic (if the mic is self-powered) and the Zoom or plug in with the adapter. Also, make sure you have phantom power ON if the mic needs phantom power.
Don’t forget to check your COMP/LIMIT settings: You can try COMP2 for vocals and Limit1, too. Also, try auto-leveling. If the everything works fine with auto-leveling, you need to adjust your levels manually. If it still doesn’t work, it’s not the levels, it’s the mic or something outside the zoom.
Hope this helps!
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
Martin, if you want to get a quick read on DSLRs in general, check out the No Film School site: https://nofilmschool.com/dslr/ – they have a ton of info and they keep the site nicely updated (subscribe to their updates if you want to see).
I shoot DSLR, but I also come from a Super-8/16mm/photographer background. I’m comfy swapping lenses and fiddling with settings. I also use an HMC-150 which is a great, prosumer HD camcorder AND it operates a LOT like the DVX-100 (even looks the same!). If cost is a concern, you may want to reconsider a camera which has interchangeable lenses. Those lenses aren’t cheap.
On the Vixias – I agree with others: there are some really great things you can do with these cameras, but I don’t see them being TV commercial quality. I don’t care for the colors and low-light on this camera series, but that’s based on previous Vixia cameras and I haven’t used the M31.
Yes, you’ll need an external audio capture like a Zoom H4n or similar and a couple good mics for even a base-level DSLR setup. See how things start adding up? If you want to do pro-level work, consider a pro or prosumer camera before you go buy a DSLR. There are some really great cameras out there in the $3000 range that won’t require you to buy tons of extras and produce a superb HD image.
Finally, if you still have your DVX-100, USE IT! These are great cameras! I’ve shot a TON of stuff on this camera (https://www.crewingup.tv and a host of others). Also, if you are shooting for internet, you can’t go wrong with this camera – since most people view a small, 3″x4″ video on screen, they don’t care if its SD or HD. Also depends largely on what you shoot and how you shoot it.
Again, check this site first: https://nofilmschool.com/dslr/
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293 -
This is pretty close:
If you are a WGA member, it’s $10 to register a script; $20 for non-members.
Library of Congress does not have a registration service. If you click the link, it takes you to the US Copyright Office which is $35 to register a work for a US copyright.
For a script, you can have both WGA protection and US Copyright protection. There are pluses and minuses for both methods and having both is not a bad thing. Also, US Copyright protection is much longer (many decades after your death versus 5 years total with WGA).
There is no such thing as a poor man’s copyright (sending it to yourself in mail). If you are going to go through that trouble, spend the $35 with the copyright office or $20 with WGA to register the work.
If it’s worth money at any point down the road, it’s worth registering. Protecting intellectual property is getting to be some pretty serious business moving into the future and will continue to be serious business as the Internet makes more and more challenges to much older intellectual property laws and precedents. I shoulda been a lawyer… 😉
Jonathan Ziegler
https://www.electrictiger.com/
520-360-8293