Looking for world-class free online photography training by the best photographers in the business?
Quality online photography training and education is priceless in today’s competitive landscape. Shutter Magazine was created by photographers for photographers in order to help raise the bar of professional photography industry. This free online photography training and education resource is sure to help all professional and amateur photographers with how-to tips, including all the facets of being a photographer regardless of whether you are a professional or amateur.
Training topics will include photography lighting techniques, photography off-camera flash tips, photography posing guides, photography business concepts and marketing strategies, Facebook for photographers, boudoir and glamour photography training, high-school senior photography concepts, photography selling strategies, family photography, lightroom how-to, photoshop how-to, and much much more.
Our contributors include, Sal Cincotta, Sue Bryce, Lori Nordstrom, Jennifer Rozenbaum, Vanessa Joy, Jason Groupp, Skip Cohen, Taylor Cincotta, Laurin Thienes, and many others.
Photography training and education courses don’t have to cost an arm and a leg. Shutter Magazine is geared towards giving you the photography training and education you need in all aspects of your business. Best of all, its free!
How can we expect clients to shell out hundreds or even thousands of dollars on a product that doesn’t exist and can’t be seen yet? It seems like common sense…
Succeeding in a small business is all about bringing in new clients, and even more specifically, bringing in the right new clients. But marketing is scary. It often means putting…
Like most photographers, I hate being photographed. For someone so comfortable behind the lens, I am equally uncomfortable in front of it. Like most women, I am often too hard…
The following represents hard-won wisdom from many tears shed, chaotic moments, and wondering if my purpose in life is being fulfilled. My first and foremost job is that of mom…
“Screw it, I’ll fix it in Photoshop later.” Everyone I know (including myself) has been guilty of saying this, and I’m sure you’re probably no stranger to the phrase either.
Clients love to share the videos we create for them. Anywhere they are, they can whip out their smartphone, tablet, or other Wi-Fi- enabled device and show off my videos with…
You are still with me, great! Now we dig deeper. I mentioned in the first article that I have seen countless questions regarding sales tax come up in online forums.
Posing by today’s terms is way more difficult and involved than it used to be. There are several different elements that need to come together in order to pull off successful…
When the Blackmagic Camera stole the news at NAB in 2012, I knew right then and there that I had to get my hands on one. For the first time ever a camera was being offered with 12 bit RAW recording at a revolutionary price point of around $3,000 USD. And not only were you getting a 2.5K RAW recording camera but you were also getting the world class DaVinci Resolve color grading software with the purchase of the camera. High end production tools previously only available to the Hollywood elite, Blackmagic Design had bucked the industry and made these tools accessible to indie filmmakers like you and I.
So what was I to do? Well I immediately placed my pre-order, that’s for sure and waited for the shipment of my camera with agonizing anticipation. Yes there were some initial delays in fulfilling shipment, (I don’t know something to do with a sensor issue) but the Blackmagic company did it right and my hunger pains were finally over when my 2.5K Blackmagic Digital Cinema Camera arrived.
I of course didn’t know where to start when I first opened the packaging and examined this new pieces of hardware. How would it be powered? Where do I insert the SSD? What kind of support rig will I need? I know it records RAW in Adobe’s open file format CinemaDNG but how will I work with it, i.e. edit and grade natively in Resolve? I had all these questions and not one single answer to.
Excited with a challenge and loving to share my knowledge and insights with others I embarked on a journey to discover what this camera was all about, what it could do and all that it had to offer. I’m pleased to bring you my learning’s and discoveries of this camera in my brand NEW Blackmagic Camera Tutorials Series, a FREE learning experience for those just getting started with and wanting to take full advantage of the camera’s capabilities and RAW color grading workflow!
Sign Up for ACCESS to FREE DaVinci Resolve Training and RAW CinemaDNG Downloads from this series! Mr. Riddle also offers FCPX, Magic Bullet Looks and Resolve tutorials here.
You can energize a conversation with photographers in innumerable ways. You could, for example, try to build a case for Nikon over Canon, or perhaps argue that sensor size doesn’t really matter. Or you could advocate using protective filters on all of your lenses.I find the third topic intriguing, for both advanced shooters and newcomers alike. What filters, if any, do you need for your lens? Several appealing options in a range of prices are available.
Let’s start with the different types of filters. I recommend three to consider: protection, polarizer, and neutral density. In the world of protection filters, those commonly used are clear, UV, Skylight, and Haze. Here’s a quick overview.
UV—Typically, this filter is very pale yellow to virtually clear. In the past, UV filters helped protect your image from the negative effects of atmospheric ultraviolet radiation. But thanks to the improved high-tech coating on today’s lenses, these filters don’t have much impact on image quality at lower altitudes. Some effect may be noticeable at high altitudes, however. Their primary use today is to protect the lens itself.
Skylight—Light pinkish in color, this filter can help correct the slight blue cast from shooting outside under a blue sky. Some photographers see benefits for their landscape photography. I don’t recommend this filter for portraits because it can affect skin tones.
Haze—This is essentially another name for a UV filter.
The above filters were very popular in film camera lenses. But with digital cameras, we can now counteract the mild effects of UV light with the white balance settings in our cameras. So, even though UV and skylight filters do have some mild filtering effect, they are primarily used as protection filters.
I recommend that you use a high-quality, multi-coating glass filter if you want protection for your lens. You don’t really need UV or skylight under most outdoor lighting conditions.
This is something you don’t want to happen to your lens.
Specific protection filters
I typed the term protection filter into the search box at B&H Photo. Among the hundreds of results listed, here are a few good examples:
Tiffen 52mm UV Protection Filter ($5.20) This filter helps absorb ultraviolet light, reduces the bluish cast of daylight, and serves as a general protective filter.
Hoya 58mm EVO Clear Protector Filter ($57) This offers a clear filter for protection, a low profile, and a rigid, aluminum filter ring. The coating prevents surface reflections.
Heliopan 72mm Protection Filter ($780) A clear filter for protection, the SH-PMC provides a 16-layer multi-coating, brass ring construction, and high-quality Schott glass.
That’s quite a price spread among three filters of different sizes and different qualities. Generally, you don’t have to use a UV or skylight filter if all you’re after is protecting the lens. A clear filter is all you really need. Here are three things to consider when choosing this type of filter:
Multi-coated surface to help improve contrast and reduce reflections. For best results, the quality of the filter should be on a par with the quality of the glass in your lens.
Appropriate thickness for the type of lens you’re mounting the filter on. On my 16-35mm wide-angle zoom, I have a filter with a thin mount so it doesn’t cause vignetting when the lens is set to its widest field of view. For my long zoom lens, such as a 70-200mm, it doesn’t make any difference how thick the filter mount is.
Brass or aluminum for the mount. The theory is that brass mounts tend to be easier to unmount from the lens than their aluminum counterparts. Some photographers believe that they don’t “freeze up” as often, when they then require a filter wrench to remove. I don’t have any conclusive data on the superiority of a brass mount, but I will say that I like the feel of brass better.
The three basic types of filters relevant for digital photographers: Neutral density, protection, and polarizer.
Polarizer filters
The two main benefits of a polarizing filter are to reduce or eliminate reflections on some surfaces and to darken a blue sky. The most widely used type, the circular polarizer, has two glass elements. Depending on the angle of the light, you can increase or decrease the polarizing effect by rotating the front element.
Polarizers are effective for both color and black and white photography. They can add drama to a sky, clarity to an object in water, and saturation to foliage in a landscape. As with protection filters, look for multi-coated polarizers with high-quality mounts. Keep in mind that polarizers are dense and will usually absorb two stops of exposure.
Since polarizers tend to be relatively expensive—up to $250 for a 72mm mount—you may want to buy the size for your largest diameter lens, then purchase cheaper step-down rings to mount the filter on your other lenses. But I like to have a polarizer for each of my major zooms.
Sky enhanced with a polarizing filter.
Neutral Density filters
For photographers who like to shoot at wide apertures or use slow shutter speeds, even in normal daylight, neutral density filters are a valuable asset. They come in two basic types: single density and faders.
Single-density ND filters are commonly available in the following options:
ND.3 = 1 stop exposure adjustment
ND.6 = 2 stops exposure adjustment
ND.9 = 3 stops exposure adjustment
ND1.2 = 4 stops exposure adjustment
You can buy them individually or in a kit. Kits typically run $100 to $200.
The second type, variable neutral density filter, sometimes referred to as “fader ND filters,” are often seen in ranges of 2 to 8 stops of exposure adjustment. You choose the density by rotating the outer ring of the filter. I’ve seen faders as cheap as $35 and as expensive as $350.
What’s best for you?
Outdoor and event photographers should consider a high-quality protection filter when working in the field. If most of your work is in the comfy confines of a studio, adding an extra layer of glass shouldn’t be necessary.
Polarizing filters are particularly handy for landscape artists. I also like to have one in my camera bag to help me tame reflections when working in contrasty light.
And if you like to shoot at wide apertures for shallow depth of field, or want to slow the shutter for a soft, flowing-water effect, then ND filters are certainly worth the price. Videographers also are big fans of ND filters to help them control depth of field when working in bright conditions. In a pinch, you can use a polarizer to help reduce light to the sensor, since it absorbs two exposure stops too.
Six months ago, LinkedIn launched a new feature called Endorsements, which is located in the “Skills & Expertise” section near the bottom of your profile. Endorsements in LinkedIn
Endorsements let your connections vote up your skills and areas of expertise. Your skills are then ranked and re-ranked based on how many people have endorsed them, with their profile pictures appearing next to each skill. Your connections can also add new skills to your profile that they’d like to endorse.
In March, LinkedIn announced that more than 1 billion endorsements had been given to 58 million professionals.
“Skill endorsements are a great way to help build your professional brand. In fact, you’re four times more likely to be viewed on LinkedIn if you’ve been endorsed,” says Peter Rusev, associate product manager at LinkedIn.
But not all people agree that the feature is useful. Some say it can be a false representation of your skills, since connections you may not know well can vote up any skill and add new ones that you may not want on your profile. Some LinkedIn users have resorted to using the feature in jest.
Luckily, turning off LinkedIn Endorsements is easy. Here’s how to do it.
In the main menu under “Profile” select “Edit Profile.” Scroll to the Skills & Expertise section and click the pencil icon.
Here’s where to turn off Endorsements in LinkedIn
From the drop-down menu, choose “No, do not show my endorsements.” This will remove the Endorsements section from your profile. To turn them back on, navigate to the same drop-down menu and select the other option.
If you don’t want to turn off Endorsements, but want to edit the skills and expertise that appear, do so by clicking the pencil icon. An “X” will appear to each skill; click the X to remove the skill from your Endorsements.
Light Free! is a collection of beautifully crafted light leaks that can be used directly in Final Cut Pro 6, 7, X, Apple Motion, Avid Media Composer, Adobe Premiere and more.
This collection will allow you to sample light effects from 3 different packages.
- LightOrganicHD.
- Crystal Collection.
- StarTrek Collection
It’s simply a matter of picking the light leak you want to use, layering it above the footage and then selecting the composite mode necessary. 346mb of light leak footage in total!
Full HD
Light Free! comes as a set of 25fps 1080p ProRes422 clips.
Tips
Want a different colour? Tweak your light leak footage using a hue shift or colour correction tool.
Change the composite mode for different results (multiply looks especially cool).
Have fun and experiment to get the most out of your LightLeakLove package.
“It hasn’t been a totally smooth ride though. Craig has noticed that the performance of the software varies throughout the day.”
Click for article from Digital Edition
Apple’s Final Cut Pro ‘X’ edition has been the whipping boy of the professional editor’s world for the last couple of years. But there were supporters who were sure that Apple would re-instate the fundamental ingredients of their v7 software. Now their support has been justified as the BBC start cutting programmes with an ‘X’ on them.
Although there was an endless, and pointless, debate about whether Final Cut Pro X deserved the epithet ‘Pro’, it was clear on its launch that it was missing functions required by editors working in high-end TV and feature film production. Walter Murch, referring to the lack of EDL, OMF/AAF and XML support, famously gave it the report card, “Does not play well with others.”
Slowly but surely, however, Apple have been adding in the features that we need. First came multicam and XML – which, crucially, allowed third party software vendors to provide some of the missing inputs and outputs. Then we got external monitor support, separate ‘canvas’ and ‘viewer’ windows, persistent clip In and Out points, and so on. It seemed that most of the hurdles preventing FCP X’s use at the higher end had been removed.
That’s certainly the belief of Craig Slattery, a freelance editor who has become the first person to cut items for the BBC’s Culture Show on FCP X.
“I’ve been cutting features for the Culture Show on Final Cut since about version 4 or 5, so I bought a copy of FCP X pretty much as soon as it was released. Then, in October 2012, with the latest updates, I though it was time we tried it out on a real programme.”
Craig edits The Culture Show at the BBC’s Media Centre in White City which, like most large post-production organisations, has a huge, Fibre Channel based SAN, so that any production can be edited from any suite. For his first forays into FCP X, however, Craig is using a stand-alone suite, with storage provided by a Pegasus RAID. Culture Show specials, like the recent Danny Boyle feature, can have several TB of footage.
“We did the whole of the Danny Boyle special in FCP X, and we didn’t want to pick out clips from his films before the edit began, so we just captured all of his feature films, like Trainspotting, whole,” Craig explains. The interviews and presenter pieces-to-camera are also filmed using multi-camera setups, resulting in a lot of footage. “We usually have three or four cameras on a shoot, so we had to wait until FCP X got multi-cam, but we haven’t had any problems with the number of clips or the size of the files.” Indeed, Craig uses the flexibility of the multicam support to speed the edit. “I got the first couple of camera angles of Danny’s interview in early, so I cut the conversation from those, then went back and added the other two angles to the multicam group and cut them in.”
Culture Show shoots use a number of different camera systems, from Canon 5Ds to XDCAM. Although Craig’s edit suite isn’t connected to the SAN, all the footage is still transcoded to ProRes and to ProRes Proxy, and copied onto his RAID by the BBC’s post-production support group, the Production Village. Their support, and the support of the Culture Show’s producers, has been enthusiastic.
“I just said ‘Let’s give it a go’ and we haven’t looked back,” Craig explains. “When we were cutting using FCP 7, if you asked a producer which clip they meant by pointing to the timeline, they would just look at it – and you – blankly. After just a couple of hours with FCP X, the interface is so intuitive you almost have to keep them from grabbing hold of the mouse themselves.”
The edit suite consists of an iMac, running FCP X, with a second computer monitor. The iMac is coupled to a Blackmagic UltraStudio Mini Monitor Thunderbolt converter to provide an output to a broadcast quality video monitor, and a Pegasus Thunderbolt RAID. Interestingly, Craig found that this setup seemed noticeably faster than FCP X running on the multi-processor Mac Pros that the BBC usually uses.
Although it’s a stand-alone suite, in TV it’s rare for a programme to be started and finished on a single machine. Craig uses the third-party application X2Pro to generate AAF files from his edit, which then go off to sound post to be edited and mixed in ProTools.
“You just have to be sure to assign all the audio to appropriate ‘Roles’ before you generate the AAF,” he explains. “So I do this at the end of a cut – it takes me about 20 minutes just to go through the timeline and say this clip is dialogue, this is music, this is a sound effect, and so on.” Craig worked closely with the programme’s audio editors to make sure that he gave them the AAF that they needed and, after some initial issues were solved, they now have few problems importing X2Pro’s files into ProTools. Each Role generates a separate track in the ProTools session, so this process can be more accurate than with some undisciplined FCP 7/Avid editors, who tend to scatter audio around their timeline with abandon.
Grading is currently done in Apple’s discontinued Color – though the production intends to switch to DaVinci Resolve within a couple of months – a workflow that is pretty straightforward from FCP X. The graded footage for the whole show is then returned to FCP 7 for on-line (which Craig does himself), but Craig hopes soon to start finishing the complete programme in FCP X.
It hasn’t been a totally smooth ride though. Craig has noticed that the performance of the software varies throughout the day.
“It’s not really something you can put your finger on, but sometimes it just feels a little sluggish. Then, twenty minutes later, it seems to be really singing. It is still a bit buggy though – we get about a crash a day. It’s not too bad – you never lose anything – when you open up the project again, you’re right back where you were.”
Much of the BBC’s programming has now moved from White City to Broadcasting House, which doesn’t have enough in-house editing facilities, so many programmes are now post-produced in various locations in central London. Craig worries that this will kill some of the momentum that he has gained with FCP X, though he has been asked to talk to various executives in charge of planning and procurement at the Beeb.
“It’s really up to us – the editors,” he says. “There’s really no reason that FCP X won’t do the job now and, once you’ve got your head around it, it’s so much faster than FCP 7. To drive it forward, we really need to be asking our productions if we can use it.”
The 360Heros mount can hold six GoPro cameras to take fully spherical photos and videos
The models are made of flexible high-resolution nylon printed on a 3D printer
Each mount is durable and waterproof and snap-on domes mean the mounts can film underwater
Musician Beck recently record an immersive and interactive cover of David Bowie’s ‘Sound and Vision’ in Los Angeles using the 360Heros mount
A design team from New York has created a 3D-printed camera mount that can help photographers take fully interactive, 360-degree videos and photos.
The 360Heros Plug & Play mount weighs 1.5lbs (700g) and is made from ultra high-resolution craft-grade flexible nylon making it weatherproof and strong.
It can hold up to six GoPro cameras, which can be switched on and off by wireless remote control, and is one of the first projects capable of capturing full, spherical 360-degree images in high resolution.
The 360Heros camera mounts can hold up to six GoPro cameras. It records fully spherical, 360-degree video and photos. The cameras can be wirelessly controlled. There are varying models of 360Heros mounts, each one designed for a different environments including bad weather, concerts, underwater and more
This image is an example of a 360-degree shot taken using the 360Heros mount. It features inventor Michael Kitner. The mounts have fishhook holes that mean they can be suspended in midair and are able to capture unobstructed views
A close-up shot of the GoPro cameras attached to the H6 model 360Heros mount. Each holder can be attached to a tripod or similar using connectors and specially positioned holes in its nylon design
Because the Plug & Play models are printed using 3D printers and craft-grade nylon they come pre-assembled.
The cameras can be slotted in and out of the mount without any screws.
There are six models available and prices start at £259.
Although the GoPro cameras must be bought separately.
The H6 model can be used for all weather conditions and the cameras are protected making it possible to shoot 360-degree video in bad or harsh weather conditions.
The HC Pro6 uses a wireless remote to turn cameras on and off.
The HC Pro6N can be mounted on a helmet or flat surface like the top of a car.
The HC Pro7 and 7HD are just like the Pro 6N but additionally have a camera holder on the underneath, which allows users to create the full spherical view from a wider range of positions.
Most single cameras can only capture 170-degree views horizontally, and the majority of 360-degree cameras can only capture images up to 120-degrees on the vertical.
Because of the angles at which the cameras are mounted into the 360Heros holder, it can capture 180-degree on the vertical making the video and photos fully spherical and panoramic.
Amazing 360 degree video of scuba divers
Using snap-on domes, the 360Heros mounts can be made fully waterproof. This image was taken using the holder during a scuba diving expedition in Belize
This shot was taken using a third-person 360Heros mount during a skiing trip in Oregon
The 360Heros project has also developed a range of online tutorial videos.
Michael Kitner from Orlean, New York designed and built the 360Heros mount and has launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for the project.
The campaign is hoping to raise funds to finish the professional video tutorial series on creating video with all the different holders, and help Kitner and his team finish the manufacturing process of the 360 underwater solutions using the Plug & Play domes.
And this image shows the 360Heros mount carrying GoPro cameras being used to film one of the project’s team members riding the zip line in Fremont Street, Las Vegas
A single GoPro camera can only see 170 degrees on the horizontal whereas the six cameras mounted onto the 360Heros mount can capture a full 360 degrees
While the majority of 360-degree cameras can only capture 120-degrees in the vertical, the position of the cameras on the 360Heros mount mean it can capture 180-degrees in the vertical. This gives a full spherical view
HOW DOES THE 360 HERO WORK?
The 360 Hero is 3D-printed using ultra high-resolution craft-grade flexible nylon.
It has six slots that can each hold a GoPro camera.
When all the cameras are in place, the mount can capture a 360-degree horizontal and vertical view.
Cameras can be slid in and out of the flexible case and the mount has been designed to have no screws.
The cameras can then be switched on and off using a remote control.
Holes in the nylon mean the mount can be put on top of a tripod or suspended in the air.
These domes can be attached to the holders making it possible to use the 360-degree cameras safely underwater.
Kitner hopes to raise £492,000 ($75,000) before the campaign ends on 28 June.
Kitner said: ‘Using our new 360 Plug & Play holder it allows you to use GoPro cameras and produce amazing 360 interactive videos.
‘Our Plug & Play holders are 3D-printed in an ultra high-resolution craft-grade flexible nylon making it extremely strong.
‘Our unique designs give the ability to easily plug and play your GoPro cameras on the fly.’
Kitner said: ‘We don’t worry about each camera being absolutely synced at the point of recording.
Click the picture below to create your own interactive 360-degree photos online
Michael Kitner’s 360Heros Kickstarter campaign lets you create 360-degree photos in one click using a web application
‘This is because each camera has its own audio and when the video stream is stitched together in the post-processing stage, we can analyse the audio and sync the video at the time of stitching.
‘The real advantage of the 3D-printed holder is that you can easily change these cameras, or change the batteries, in a matter of seconds with no screws involved.
‘You just plug the cameras in and start shooting.
‘This is great for concerts or if you want to get closer to the camera because there’s less parallax between the lens.
Click the picture below to stitch together your own 360-degree videos
The Kickstarter campaign also lets you create your own 360-degree videos, stitch clips together and make other edits using the web application
‘With all these holders, the real advantage is all the different mounting points that let the holders attach to a tripod or similar.
‘Every one of them has a series of little tiny fishhook holes so you can actually suspend the mount in air.
‘And this really makes people wonder how you shot the 360 video or 360 photo because there’s no way to see how the camera was actually suspended.
VIDEO: See the 360Heros mount in action
‘Because you can see a full 360 and 180 all around you, and the camera only weighs a pound and a half (700g) and it doesn’t require a computer or external storage device, we’ve created a whole new paradigm around 360 media recording.
‘This is all possible because we’re using the most versatile camera on the planet today – the GoPro.
‘Its many features such as the wireless remote, resolutions as high as 4K, shooting in Pro-Tune or RAW allows us to create 360-degree video, and 1-click 360 panoramic photos with resolutions as high as 6,000×3,000 pixels and in full spherical view.’
Part of the 360Heros team went to California to do hang gliding. They filmed US National Hang Gliding Champion Zac Majors as he flew through the mountains of Santa Barbara, landing at East Beach
The 45 minute flight with hang gliding champion Zac Major produced a four-and-a-half-minute 360 journey through the mountains and town ending up right next to the surf in Santa Barbara, California
360HEROS MOUNT PRICES
H3Pro 6 and H3Pro6N costs £423 ($645)
H3 Pro7 and H3Pro7HD costs £489 ($745)
360H6 (with screws) £259 ($395)
Once someone buys a 360Heros mount there are online video tutorials to teach owners how to use the system.
The series shows how to set up the 360 content, how to create tours, manage camera files, use the different holders, stitch and sync a video and how to host the content online.
360Heros has also partnered with various companies to create mobile apps, to create interactive mobile viewing on an iPad or other tablet.
Kitner said: ‘This tool gives such an immersive experience and its amazing just to watch the joy and awe in people’s faces when they see 360 video for the first time on the web or mobile devices.’
360Heros has partnered with Company Aerial Technology International from Portland in Oregon. The camera mount can be suspended to its range of unmanned aerial vehicles to film 360-degree videos from the air
The 360Heros mount is made of one piece of 3D-printed nylon. This means it doesn’t have any screws or fittings and the cameras can be slotted in by bending the arms on each slot
Over the past three months, 360 Heros has been used in various projects including the filming of a Chris Milk gig, hand gliding over Santa Barbara with GPS tracking and Google Earth images.
The team have going skiing on volcanic slopes in Oregon, flew over landmarks and skate parks, rode the zip line down Fremont Street in Las Vegas and went scuba diving in Belize using underwater 360 video solution.
One of the most recent projects that 360Heros took part in was using the mounts to film a gig.
Musician Beck worked with director Chris Milk to create a groundbreaking new interactive site to let viewers see and hear a gig from his point of view.
The Hello, Again site lets you move your point of view so it feels as if you are standing anywhere in the room – whether it’s among the crowd, next to the band or even up on stage with Beck.
And thanks to a bank of specially designed microphones that were dotted around the venue, you hear the music in 3D surround sound, so it comes at you from the direction of the performers.
Click here to watch the song (may take some time to load) and scroll down to see how it was made
By using their more or even a webcam to move the point of view, viewers can see and hearwhat it really feels like to be on stage at a Beck gig
Organizers created a special 260 stage for the song, with Beck in the middle while 160 musicians are around the perimeter of the Los Angeles studio
The special gig was funded by car maker Lincoln as part of an advertising campaign.
‘Musicians have been covering, remaking, and remixing classic songs for as long as we’ve been listening,’ it said.
‘Yet what Beck is doing with David Bowie’s 1977 classic, Sound And Vision, is something well beyond a cover,’ the organizers claim.
Over 160 musicians took part in the recording, including an orchestra, a drum line, a row of electric guitarists, a musical saw, modular synthesizers, a Theremin player, a yodeler, 2 different choirs, a harpist, a range of percussionists from around the world, and the Dap-Kings.
Led by conductor David Campbell (Beck’s father), they backed the singer, who was at the center of the room on a small circular stage.
Three panoramic cameras were mounted around the venue on 360Heros mounts, along with specially built ‘heads’ to capture sound in 3D.
‘From the way we arranged the song down to the live performance, we were focused on the idea of immersing the live and online audiences’ audio senses by having the music come at them from every direction,’ said Beck.
The site also allows the viewer to see the choir and orchestra, and pan around complete with 360 sound to hear exactly what they would
Viewers can also take a wider view to see the gig from an audience member’s point of view
‘It’s difficult to re-create a live concert, but by using this 360-degree approach, it opens up an entirely new kind of experience that will surprise people.’
Working alongside concert production designer Willo Perron, Director Chris Milk transformed Stage 14 at Fox Studios in Los Angeles into a circular, rotating music hall in which the stage surrounds the audience.
As more than 160 different musicians fill the circular stage, they’ll literally rotate around the crowd, creating an immersive sound experience unlike any other.
There are three locations for 360 video and audio, and on the website you can select them and hear exactly what you’d hear if you were there
THE EAR-COVERED HEAD THAT CAN RECORD 360 DEGREE SOUND
This bizarre recording device – sculpted into the shape of a human head and surrounded by lifelike ears – captures sound in a 360-degree immersive style, the way a person would actually hear it if they were sitting in the performance space with the musicians.
Three of the heads were placed around the venue, including one on stage, so viewers could hear exactly what the musicians would.
One of the ‘heads’ created to record 360 degree sound for the gig
Organizers claim ‘The result is a track that actually captures a moment in time.
‘It’s not your typical compressed studio-recording, but an emotion-evoking, wave-your-hands-in-the-air, lighter-raising type of experience.’
Well before there was the Apple App Store, Noise Industries released FxFactory, a centralized hub for managing visual effects plug-ins from third party vendors. Since version 1.0 was released in 2006, I have thoroughly enjoyed the ease of use and ability to “try before I buy” backed by comprehensive documentation and (free) online training after purchase, if I needed.
When creative’s install the free software version of FxFactory, it functions as a central control point to purchase, license, manage and try an assortment of hundreds of visual effects, generators and transitions for legacy Final Cut Pro 7 and X, Motion 4 and 5, Adobe After Effects and now Premiere Pro CS6 from a nice variety of third party FX vendors. If you’re running multiple editing and effects applications, as I am, then you’ll appreciate that one price covers the plug-in installment for all of these hosts on your single system.
Simple Dashboard with Installed and Trial plug-ins. Note: upper left corner where you can choose effects within Final Cut Pro 7 and X, Motion 4 and 5, Adobe After Effects and now Premiere Pro CS6.
Noise Industries is eager to let pro’s try out plug-ins before they commit, so each has a free trial. A fully functional trial version lets you experiment with all the effects as well as the advanced features offered by the paid FxFactory Pro. There are even a dozen excellent free apps as an extra incentive to install FxFactory, in addition to links to online documentation and tutorials for each. Freebies include Andy’s Swish Transitions, Andy’s Better 3D, Random Text, Pipinator, a coverflow-style slideshow generator, Barcode simulator, Manifesto static title and title roll, and a Ken Burns Pan and Zoom animation style, to name a few. FxFactory enables users to activate or deactivate products with a simple and easy to use dashboard.
Each product ranges from $29 to $99 and will integrate nicely into the FxFactory interface with a simple install. The ability to only pick and choose filters that you want versus a pre-determined bundled package, so common in today’s digital FX world, will allow one to expand their inventory of effects as wallets permit. Users can see at a glance what they own, what is on trial, and pictorials that show what each effect is capable of…
Pictorials that show what each effect is capable of. Click on one to view more documentation and/or an online tutorial.
Since day one, as a working editor I have appreciated the free and simple plug-in management system that Noise Industries has created in FxFactory. They have taken into consideration that we creative pros usually don’t have a lot of time to spend wading through tedious software learning curves but, rather, they stay out of the way during the learning process allowing our creativeness to flow uninterrupted.
Just a follow-up to a real world example using Cinemagraphs related to my previous posts on the creative subject. Your thoughts? Cool or just outright weird?
Changes in film distribution technology now provides filmmakers with access to major online marketplaces such as Amazon and iTunes. While video on demand represents a easy way for independent filmmakers to enter mainstream marketplaces, this change in movie distribution represents new challenges. If you are looking to distribute and sell your movie, the following articles will help you.
We have all seen the gorgeous scrolling image carousel that iTunes and Finder uses. CoverFlux reproduces that slideshow effect for still images, producing movies & project files for Final Cut Pro 7, FCPX, Motion, Final Cut Express, Adobe Premiere CS6 & After Effects. (OSX) CoverFlux2 has been…
Got an infestation of zombies in your video? Diseased mutants? Someone you just don’t like? Ugly Box has you covered. Based on the award-winning Beauty Box skin retouching technology for video and photos, this plugin takes Beauty Box and flips it upside down. Allowing you to make your talent look…
For Intel-based Apple Macintosh systems running Final Cut Pro X, or Final Cut Pro 7 (part of Final Cut Studio), the RED Apple Workflow Installer v2.0 provides the RED FCP X plug-in (v1.1), RED QuickTime codec (v5.1), and Log and Transfer plug-in for FCP (v30.2) functionality to import REDCODE RAW clips…
Video Tutorials For Beginners-Advanced Using Final Cut Pro X (FCPX) This video shows you how to use FordeeTV’s Acid Trip Effect for Final Cut Pro X (FCPX). You can download this effect for free from our website at fordeetv.com/downloads This effect can be used to create a psychedelic look for your…
This Final Cut Pro X effect is an alternative way of adding a pixellation effect to a clip. It divides the clip into a grid and scales up each grid element. Apologies to Matt Davis for scrambling his face. EASY TO INSTALL It includes an installation script for Spherico’s Motion Template…
Video Tutorials For Beginners-Advanced Using Final Cut Pro X (FCPX) This video shows you how to use FordeeTV’s Ripped Scroll Title for Final Cut Pro X (FCPX). You can download this effect for free from our website at fordeetv.com/downloads The text in this lower 3rd title is editable. You can change…
Video Tutorials For Beginners-Advanced Using Final Cut Pro X (FCPX) This video shows you how to use FordeeTV’s Vintage Plus Effect for Final Cut Pro X (FCPX). You can download this effect for free from our website at http://www.fordeetv.com/downloads You can set different color film leaks and their…
Yep, they’re HD and yep, they’re completely free. You don’t have to create an account or give us your email. You can download these backgrounds right now and use them in your projects. FREE!!! However, by downloading them, you agree to our license agreement found here. It basically says that you have the right to use the video backgrounds royalty-free, but you can’t sell them and you can’t modify them and sell them as any sort of stock animation product. In other words; be nice.
To keep our bandwidth costs in check, these motion graphics are only available as high-quality .mp4 files. This also insures maximum compatibility with a wide range of video editing packages.
Do you want even more free video loops?
When you sign up for the 12 Inch Design newsletter, you’ll get INSTANT ACCESS to TEN of our best animated video background loops absolutely free! PLUS you’ll get access to our free video background of the month, tons of awesome tutorials, tips and tricks and other EXCLUSIVE content!
For Example…
Date Added: 9-8-2012
Resolution: 1080p HD
File Format: .mp4
FPS: 29.97 Size: 102 MB
Notes: This is some straight-up tech action right here. Blend it with other video or use it just like it is. Comes in a .zip file. Unzip to use in your editing software.
CLICK HERE to INSTANTLY download this HD background for FREE!
Date Added: 9-8-2012
Resolution: 1080p HD
File Format: .mp4
FPS: 29.97 Size: 59.6 MB
Notes: Brrrrr! This chilly little motion graphic is sure to give you shivers ’cause it’s so…. cool. Comes in a .zip file. Unzip to use in your editing system.
CLICK HERE to INSTANTLY download this HD background for FREE!
by Yahoo GamesYahoo! editors have selected this article as a favorite of 2012. It first ran in November, and was one of the most popular Yahoo! Games stories of the year. Users were entertained by this optical illusion, as can be seen by reactions in the comments section: “That is just too cool,” “Witchcraft!,” and “the rubicks cube finds new ways to make me feel stupid.”
Several nondescript objects sit on a desk. Couldn’t be simpler, right? Well, as the below video — the latest opus by Youtube illusion extraordinaire Brusspup — demonstrates, looks can be deceiving:
2-D versus 3-D…can you tell? The technique is called anamorphosis and dates back at least as far as the Renaissance. The image is distorted and elongated so that it appears natural only from a certain angle. (It’s a style often used on the sidewalk paintings of artists such as Julian Beever and Kurt Wenner.)
Brusspup heightens the illusion by placing the photo-realistic images alongside regular objects, and then using video to reveal the perspective change in real time. Very cool.
The Canon 50D doesn’t get a lot of love much anymore. The system is 5 years old, and was among one of the last DSLRs to come out without video capabilities. When searching through the firmware, it was later found that video functions existed for the 50D, but were disabled by Canon. Upon opening these features, EOSHD forum member Julian has found a beauty hidden in this old beast.
The sensor used in the 50D allows for some very clean and high detail RAW video footage to come out of the camera, far higher quality than you’d expect from a Rebel series. Also, the 50D was also known for its ability to handle low light with ease, a feature that inevitably moves to its new video functions as well. So good in fact, this screenshot of RAW video was taken at ISO 12,800 –
Aside from the excellent low light performance, what makes this great news for all video DSLR shooters is the price. The 50D, at 5 years old now, can be found on eBay and similar markets for around $400. That gives you a capable cropped body video camera with RAW functionality (thanks to Magic Lantern), with a UDMA 6 card slot, and all the bells and whistles Magic Lantern can unlock.
The cheapest next best thing for RAW video is the 5D Mark II with a custom firmware, which will still set you back over $1,000.
Check out eBay to find the latest prices on the Canon 50D.
When it comes to video marketing and creating social videos, Reel SEO is one of the major industry pros. As the Online Video Marketer’s Guide, they have page after page about how to enhance your marketing skills to create one-of-a-kind social videos for yourself or company. Review a few articles below and see for yourself!
Digital cinematography is changing so rapidly these days that a printed book on the subject will likely be outdated by the time it reaches store shelves; this is especially true when it comes to the rapid release cycle of DSLRs. Up-to-date information can be found on online forums, but forums lack the organizing principles of a book, and as a result it can take a ludicrously long time to piece together reliable information (I spent months forum-surfing to assemble my own camera package). Thus, this guide: I hope it saves readers money they would’ve otherwise spent on an out-of-date book, and I hope it saves forums from so many newbie — sorry, “n00b” — questions.
For the complete FREE online guide and all its 28 chapters, please click here and bookmark, as you’ll be referring to this guide again and again…
I find these days that most of us do more than one thing. That is, as creatives we have to be multi-hyphenates: we write, we direct, we shoot, we edit, we blog, we launch web sites… and with few exceptions, most of these creative pursuits are aided by software. While I’m usually working in Adobe or Apple’s pro applications, there are always some free applications in the toolkit as well. So I thought I’d share some free cross-platform applications that I’ve found handy, in case any of them are new to you. Here are several free programs useful for creatives:
When it comes to free screenwriting software, Celtx is your best bet. It’s not the best screenwriting software in the world, but you can’t beat the price, and it does offer a number of pre-production features like storyboard integration and scheduling. There’s also a mobile version for iPads and iPhones. Free on Mac, Windows, and Linux.
If you’re ripping a DVD these days, I doubt you’re outputting to a blank DVD — instead, you’re probably exporting to a file on your laptop, Apple TV, media server, or mobile device. Handbrake is your best bet for converting an old-fashioned disc into a high-quality (legal or illegal… ) copy. Also cross-platform (Mac, Windows, etc).
VLC is free video player. You know how sometimes if you try to open a video in Windows Media Player or Quicktime it won’t play? VLC handles many more formats than either of those default video players. As they say on the VLC site, “it plays everything!” Works pretty well on underpowered computers, as well. Free on all OSes.
GarageBand ships with every new Mac and is great for recording music. But if you’d like a simpler way to record audio for, say, a podcast or interview, Audacity is a free (and lighter) alternative. It records live audio from any source, imports and exports a variety of formats, and allows you to apply a variety of filters and edit multitrack audio. It’s cross-platform software that is available for Mac, PC and Linux.
Now that Quicktime Pro has gone the way of the dodo, Apple’s own native video application has gotten a bit over-simplified in its video-conversion abilities. MPEG Streamclip steps in as a great free transcoding app. It’s a great option for batch-conversion of files as well (as I mention in the free DSLR Guide). Mac and Windows.
If you have your own website you’re probably transferring files to and from the site using an FTP program. Cyberduck is an often-updated, free Mac FTP app.
Don’t have Photoshop or want something that loads a bit faster? Check out the free image editor GiMP, which is actually quite powerful in addition to being free. Available on Windows and Mac (for the latter, you’ll have to click through to the sister project GiMP on Mac OS X).
That’ll do it for now – hope you found some of those useful. If there are other good free programs that you use to create, let me know and I’ll add them to the list.
Final Cut Pro X is steadily gaining numbers among professional editors as Apple integrates more features in response to users’ needs. Unlike the previous iterations of Final Cut Studio - where everything was integrated into a bundle of Apple applications - FCP X relies more on an ecosystem of outside developers who have brought a number of useful tools to the table.
myFiles is a proof of concept application and available as a free utility which is part of the X-Files Pro project. myFiles a a free application that allows you to make an external list of all media that is involved in a Final Cut Pro X Event or Project.
myFiles will do a read-only query of any “fcpproject” of “fcpevent” type of file. This is non-destructive and totally safe.
It will show all media which are involved in an Event or Project. Not only that the file paths are displayed — myFiles will tell you whether the media are available or not on your current system setup.
It doesn’t matter where your “fcpproject” of “fcpevent” files are located, they even can be backup files FCP X created. Just open an Event or Project file or drag them onto the application’s icon or into the table view of the interface.
Clicking a table column header sorts the media list.
Saving Media Lists
The media list can be saved as a tab-text file. This allows to compare different versions of Events and/or Projects with applications like BBEdit. Or you can import these files into your favorite database application.
Literally thousands of people write screenplays every year, and for many of these writers, these screenplays are likely their very first efforts at screenwriting. For screenwriting newbies, several books exist that cover the basics of screenplay format and story structure, and more and more screenplays are available online for new writers to read and study. If you’re just getting started with screenwriting or if you have written one or two screenplays and want to hone your craft, a new online course from lynda.com, Screenwriting Fundamentals by Mark Tapio Kines, may be just want you need. And the best part is you can check it out for free (and any other lynda.com course) with a 7-day trial subscription.
Mark Tapio Kines is a screenwriter and director whose first film, Foreign Correspondents, was the first crowd-funded film back in 1997 according to the filmmaker. His second feature film, Claustrophobia, was distributed by Lionsgate and his 60-second short The Closest Thing to Time Travel won the Grand Prize at the 2006 Getty Images competition The Next Big Idea.
And here’s a sample of one of the course’s videos that focuses on the desire of your story’s characters to give you a sense of the overall course content.
Although Kines promotes this as a screenwriting course for all writers at all levels, the content is mainly geared toward people new to screenwriting as the title Screenwriting Fundamentals would suggest.
After reviewing the course in its entirety, I found a number of strengths:
The course covers the three-act structure of a screenplay in clear, concise terms with easy-to-follow examples.
Kines explains the importance of the various plot points throughout the screenplay structure in an effective manner.
The course does not overwhelm the audience with too many concepts. Instead, Kines repeats key concepts and builds upon them. Kines uses some of his own jargon, but most of it is plain English.
The course is broken into bite-sized videos which makes it a good reference tool as you work your way through a screenplay.
Kines does a good job setting up the basics of story and character from a screenwriting perspective before jumping into the specifics of how to structure each of the three acts of the screenplay.
As for weaknesses, I think this course has two. First, the chapter on formatting a screenplay leads new writers down the path of formatting a screenplay in Microsoft Word, not writing their story. Writing a screenplay in Microsoft Word is torture, and while Kines demonstrates that it’s possible, I think it’s a disservice to encourage new writers to use a tool ill-suited for the job. New writers would be wise to use a free screenwriting software package like Celtx or Trelby, or spend a little money on Slugline or any of the other screenwriting applications available for under $50. New screenwriters should definitely learn the formatting standards of a screenplay and follow them, but they should also take advantage of applications that handle the formatting for them so they can focus on writing their stories.
Second, because of the very nature of the course – an online course on Screenwriting Fundamentals – Kines doesn’t really dig into what good scenes look like on the page. This may be an unfair critique because the course isn’t really designed to go in-depth this way, but understanding basic screenwriting three-act structure and knowing how to write individual scenes to flesh out that structure are quite different. This course does a good job explaining how a story should be laid out as a screenplay, but really only scratches the surface of the “how-to” screenwriting at the scene-by-scene level.
Overall, I would recommend this course to filmmakers from different disciplines (camera, sound, editing, VFX, etc.) that have a great idea for a story, but haven’t really spent the time learning how to write a screenplay to tell that story. I would also recommend this course to screenwriting newbies with no previous film experience as it won’t bog them down in a lot of minutia as they embark on their first scripts.
Like Kines says, people who take this course should also get their hands on as many scripts as possible (hopefully some similar to their own story or style) to learn by reading screenplays. This course would also benefit from some additional reading. NFS readers can find some helpful books on story as well as screenplay format on our film school on a bookshelf.
lynda.com offers a 7-day free trial, which gives you access to all of its online video tutorials, including Screenwriting Fundamentals. If you want access to Screenwriting Fundamentals or other lynda.com tutorials after the 7-day trial, the website charges $25/month with no long-term commitments.
You can also check out a few more videos from Kines’ course without even subscribing to lynda.com, including:
Are you looking for an online screenwriting course to improve your storytelling abilities? Do you think this course would work for you? Share your thoughts with us in the Comments, below.
“It hasn’t been a totally smooth ride though. Craig has noticed that the performance of the software varies throughout the day.”
The 360Heros camera mounts can hold up to six GoPro cameras. It records fully spherical, 360-degree video and photos. The cameras can be wirelessly controlled. There are varying models of 360Heros mounts, each one designed for a different environments including bad weather, concerts, underwater and more
This image is an example of a 360-degree shot taken using the 360Heros mount. It features inventor Michael Kitner. The mounts have fishhook holes that mean they can be suspended in midair and are able to capture unobstructed views
A close-up shot of the GoPro cameras attached to the H6 model 360Heros mount. Each holder can be attached to a tripod or similar using connectors and specially positioned holes in its nylon design
Using snap-on domes, the 360Heros mounts can be made fully waterproof. This image was taken using the holder during a scuba diving expedition in Belize
This shot was taken using a third-person 360Heros mount during a skiing trip in Oregon
And this image shows the 360Heros mount carrying GoPro cameras being used to film one of the project’s team members riding the zip line in Fremont Street, Las Vegas
While the majority of 360-degree cameras can only capture 120-degrees in the vertical, the position of the cameras on the 360Heros mount mean it can capture 180-degrees in the vertical. This gives a full spherical view
Part of the 360Heros team went to California to do hang gliding. They filmed US National Hang Gliding Champion Zac Majors as he flew through the mountains of Santa Barbara, landing at East Beach
The 45 minute flight with hang gliding champion Zac Major produced a four-and-a-half-minute 360 journey through the mountains and town ending up right next to the surf in Santa Barbara, California
360Heros has partnered with Company Aerial Technology International from Portland in Oregon. The camera mount can be suspended to its range of unmanned aerial vehicles to film 360-degree videos from the air
The 360Heros mount is made of one piece of 3D-printed nylon. This means it doesn’t have any screws or fittings and the cameras can be slotted in by bending the arms on each slot
By using their more or even a webcam to move the point of view, viewers can see and hearwhat it really feels like to be on stage at a Beck gig
Organizers created a special 260 stage for the song, with Beck in the middle while 160 musicians are around the perimeter of the Los Angeles studio
The site also allows the viewer to see the choir and orchestra, and pan around complete with 360 sound to hear exactly what they would
Viewers can also take a wider view to see the gig from an audience member’s point of view
One of the ‘heads’ created to record 360 degree sound for the gig
