Two New Video Classes on Kelby Training

May 08, 2012 in Business, DSLR Video, Training Products, Video

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DSLR Video: Planning and Shooting

Join Rich Harrington, motion graphic artist, author, and trainer, on location at Kelby Media Studios as he takes you through every step in the process of creating a video product for a client. Learn everything involved in creating a professional quality video with your DSLR, from the initial client meeting to scouting locations, and from all the essential gear to how to conduct engaging interviews. Each step of the way Rich provides expert insights and killer tips to get you well on your way to adding video story telling to your bag of tricks.

DSLR Video: Post Processing

There’s still plenty of work to do after the cameras are stowed away. Join Rich Harrington, motion graphic artist, author, and trainer, as he guides you through the transition from post video capture to preparing for post production. The steps you take during this phase of the process, from backing up your data to gathering additional source material, are critical to the project’s overall completion and success, and are what separate the amateur from the professional.

Create a video project's scope and workflow

May 05, 2012 in Business, Video

A lynda.com tutorial describing how to clearly define and present a video project's potential scope and workflow to a client.

See the whole course on Lynda.com. http://www.lynda.com/course-tutorials/Budgeting-Video-Projects/96667-2.html

If you aren't a member, sign up for a free 7 day trial and watch the whole thing. www.lynda.com/trial/rharrington

Duplication vs. Replication for DVD and BD

March 12, 2012 in Business, Video

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Image by iStockphoto

When creating DVDs or BDs, you have two choices to manufacturer the optical discs. If you’re dealing with small quantities, you can use the optical burner or disc drive with your computer. These discs are easy to make, but may not be as compatible in all players.
If you need to produce discs in larger quantities, the use of replication is preferred. In this case a master disc image is created (often called the glass master). Discs can then be created using specialized hardware that can create the discs much faster and with greater accuracy to prevent errors. This process is typically used for orders above 500 discs.

This post sponsored by iStockphoto – Save 10% – Get a Free Audio Track

Watch Me Download an 8 Foot Wide Photo in 2 Seconds Over 3G

March 09, 2012 in Business, Photography

Piqsure - 3G Compatability from Piqsure on Vimeo.

The panoramic photo in this video is streaming over the net at 3G connection speeds. This is a secure file, loading dynamically on an iPad with no plug-ins.
The left screen shows what was happening on the iPad and the right shows my hands. If you're at Photoshop World, I'll show you face-to-face.

Name That Stage – Identifying the Progress of Your Edit

March 07, 2012 in Business, Video

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In a photography workflow, you may be used to selecting shots, then color correcting and post processing before layout occurs. With video editing, the process involves continuous improvement. It is standard to quickly assemble an initial edit, then get feedback from the team and client. Along the way, improvements are made as the video moves closer and close to a finished state.
The following stages are common for most video editing projects. Depending on budget, some projects may have additional stages added or deleted. For example a feature film goes through many more rounds of editing than a broadcast news story.

Assembly: The goal of the Assembly Edit is to simply strong the right clips the the right order. Initial selections are made and the goal is to quickly create an edit that can be watched. This may be called a “radio edit”, meaning that it is meant to be listened to more than actually watched. The objective is to get an idea of how long the video is running and get quick reactions from the stakeholders on how to approach the project.
Rough Cut: The rough cut is a stage at which many elements begin to get added. It is likely for example that music may be placed (even if it is a temporary track for reference) and supporting footage (called b-roll) is added. Many other pieces such as graphics and sound effects may be missing. The project also lacks refinements like color correction and audio mixing. The truth is that there are likely several rough cuts, and as the producer, director, and editor interact with the video, they will reach a point of confidence in which the project is shared with the client or stakeholders for feedback. When showing a rough cut, it is essential that you identify what is still missing from the piece.
Fine Cut: A fine cut is a video that is essentially complete. It is an attempt to achieve “picture lock” meaning that no more changes to the shot selection or the duration of the shots will be made. This version is done, but may lack some polish. The goal is to get the client to make any final requests while the editorial team begins final audio mixing and any tweaks to color correction and grading. Final graphics and other elements are generally placed. This is the cut that needs final change request made and the client’s last chance for budgeted change orders.
Final Cut: The Final Cut is also called the Approval copy. The goal here is that all changes and minor improvements to picture and sound have been made. It is the belief of the editorial team that this video is done. The client is merely asked to review that all changes that were requested have been made. This is not a chance to make new requests, and most professionals communicate in their contracts that changes made to the final cut are considered out of scope of their were not raised during the Fine Cut stage.

This post sponsored by iStockphoto – Save 10% – Get a Free Audio Track

More About Piqsure

March 03, 2012 in Business, Photography

Piqsure - 3G Compatability from Piqsure on Vimeo.

If you can't tell, I'm pretty excited about this tech. These are high resolution images streaming over a 3G connection.
The left image is a digital output of the iPad (it also works on computers and smartphones). The right shows the touch gestures controlling the image.
All images are totally secure.

Here's a news report – http://www.tuaw.com/2012/03/02/piqsure-to-provide-fast-full-resolution-browsing-of-images-on-mo/

Piqsure develops high resolution image publishing and viewing tools to enhance user’s web experience on mobile devices and web browsers. The Piqsure Viewer enables publishers, authors, and photographers the freedom to showcase their portfolio in full resolution and detail in a completely secure environment protecting against piracy. Publishers of magazines, ebooks and ecommerce sites now have the capability of universally distributing their content through all online platforms with Piqsure Reader.We will be demoing the Piqsure technology at Photoshop World in Washington D.C., March 24-26 Booth #560

Create a Form Letter with Apple Pages

March 02, 2012 in Apple, Business

Oftentimes in you’ll need to create a form letter to send to a group of people. If you’d like to personalize these letters, Pages makes it easy to insert data you’ve defined for contacts in Address Book. This can save you time because you can reuse a letter, envelope, or other document for multiple people. This feature is generally called a mail merge.

Several of Pages’ templates contain Address Book fields. Your contact data can be automatically inserted into these fields. Students can also use this Pages feature for letter writing campaigns if they are writing about issues.

Launch Pages. The Template Chooser opens.
Click the Word Processing category and choose Letters or Envelopes, then select a style, and click Choose. A new, untitled document opens.
Choose File > Save; name the file and store it on your local hard drive. The letter or envelope is ready to be modified to match the and needs for your classroom.
Pages has already inserted your information into the sender fields. Your name and contact information has already been entered. Pages fills sender fields using the Address Book card that’s designated My Card.
Write your letter and fill in all text information as needed. The text you see on-screen is placeholder text, simply click on an area and start to type. When ready, you’ll need to set up an address group for your targeted group.
Launch the Address Book application by clicking its icon in the Dock or your Applications folder.
Enter the contact information for your students’ families. Create one card for each address.
Create a new group for your classroom by choosing File > New Group.
Drag all of your classroom cards into the group.
Switch back to Pages. When ready, you can easily personalize your document for multiple recipients.
Choose Edit > Merge Address Book Cards.
Choose an Address Book group to merge from the pop-up menu.
Specify where to Merge Cards to: either a New Document or to Send to Printer.
Click OK. Pages generates multiple documents, one addressed to each recipient in the Address Book group.
Save your work by choosing File > Save.

Introducing Piqsure – A new way to view images online

March 01, 2012 in Business, Photography

I just wanted to share some new technology I discovered. It's called Piqsure and it changes the way images can be viewed online. You can upload high-resolution images, which then essentially dynamically load at whatever resolution you want. It's very fast and takes no plug-ins.

The guys behind it will be showing it at Photoshop World in Washington, DC (March 23–26).

Piqsure - Image Watermarking from Piqsure on Vimeo.

What do you think?