Site Surveys Tutorial: The Reason We Do Site Surveys

March 21, 2013 in Business, Video

Watch more at http://www.lynda.com/Photography-Vide.... Learn the benefits of doing a site survey before a photo or video shoot. This tutorial is a single movie from the Effective Site Surveys for Video and Photo Projects course presented by lynda.com author Rich Harrington.

Introduction
1. The Importance of the Site Survey
2. The Purpose of a Site Survey
3. What to Plan for, Creatively
4. Location Scouting
5. Who Should Go on the Site Survey or Scout?
6. Gear to Bring on a Site Survey
7. What to Accomplish on a Site Survey
Conclusion

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A Great Read About Star Wars/Disney Deal

March 17, 2013 in Business

For a great article about the business behind the Star Wars/Disney deal take a look at the video and article from Bloomberg.
An inspired read for those working in the creative fields and interested in the value of intellectual property.
At first Lucas wouldn’t even turn over his rough sketches of the next three Star Wars films. When Disney executives asked to see them, he assured them they would be great and said they should just trust him. “Ultimately you have to say, ‘Look, I know what I’m doing. Buying my stories is part of what the deal is.’ I’ve worked at this for 40 years, and I’ve been pretty successful,” Lucas says. “I mean, I could have said, ‘Fine, well, I’ll just sell the company to somebody else.’ ”

And on a different note… a little humor as a reward.

Did Adobe Discontinue Creative Suite?

March 15, 2013 in Adobe, Business

Adobe_CC

There's been a lot of hullabaloo on the Internet about Adobe discontinuing the Creative Suite. Many sites are reporting that Adobe is getting rid of Creative Suite altogether.
Here's the official statement from Adobe's FAQ about the discontinuation of physical media (aka shiny discs).
Why is Adobe discontinuing boxed copies of Creative Suite and Acrobat?
As Adobe continues to focus on delivering world-class innovation through Creative Cloud and digital fulfillment, we will be phasing out shrink-wrapped, boxed versions of Creative Suite and Acrobat. Electronic downloads for Creative Suite products will continue to be available – as they are today – from both Adobe.com, as well as reseller and retail partners.

So the real deal is that physical media is being discontinued. Same thing Apple did to all of its software packages. The Creative Suite is not discontinued. This is a misunderstanding (and one that I personally verified with Scott Morris, the Senior Marketing Director, Creative Cloud & Creative Suite). Morris assured me that CS6 will continue to be sold with a perpetual license.

“Adobe is not discontinuing CS6. We are just discontinuing the shipment of physical boxes with physical DVDs, and will instead offer the products as ESD (electronic software download) only, or through Creative Cloud," said Morris. “This change does not affect the availability of Adobe's perpetual products, just the delivery medium – in the same way that most music is delivered online now, instead of via a physical CD.”
So there you have it... you can still buy Creative Suite... if you want to. Though I personally think the Creative Cloud is a much better deal.

Project Management Tutorial: Understanding Your Capabilities

March 08, 2013 in Business, Photography, Video

Watch more at http://www.lynda.com/Video-tutorials/.... This tutorial shows how to analyze your business to know what you can complete in-house versus with contractors or vendors, and how to achieve a competitive advantage.

This tutorial is a single movie from the Practical Project Management for Creative Projects course presented by lynda.com author Rich Harrington.

Introduction
1. The "Whats" and "Whys" of Project Management
2. Understanding Services Offered
3. Project Management Core Concepts
4. Scoping the Project
5. Estimating Time
6. Client Communication
7. Project Control Cycle
8. Managing Employees and Contractors
9. Effective Teams
10. Keeping Clients Happy
Conclusion

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Avid — Has the Ship Sailed (or Even Sunk)?

March 07, 2013 in Business, Video

avidsink

Mark my words… Avid will make a desperate announcement at this year's NAB (if not sooner). Their 'we're focussing on the pro market' strategy is too little and too late. The pros they want to keep are moving on in records numbers (let alone dwindling).

My favorite quote from a Boston Globe Article

"‎To fight back against Apple and Adobe, Avid spent more than $600 million buying two companies in 2004 and 2005 that sold audio and video editing products aimed at consumers. Instead, Avid wound up selling its consumer businesses last year for just $17 million."

Sounds a little desperate to me…..

A few "things" to keep in mind

The company has reported a net loss each year since 2006, from $198 million in 2008 to nearly $21 million in 2011.
Avid indefinitely delayed reporting its 2012 earnings and refuses to say when they will (a HUGE no no for a publicly traded company)
Stock prices are in a tail spin.
~~Avid has cut out all of the bundled software like Boris, leading you to essentially have to install Adobe's suite.~~ I'm hearing conflicting reports on this one… looking into. Latest info is that Boris Continuum Complete was only product pulled.
I can tell you a WHOLE lot of broadcast stations are switching to Adobe Premiere Pro.
Apple seems to actually be trying to woo back it's "pro" market as well. Both Apple and Adobe are rapidly starving Avid to death.

Articles you need to read

If you run your shops on Avid... it's time to start thinking about a transition strategy.

I'd like to be wrong… but encourage my fellow pros to start thinking critically if they run their businesses based on Avid workflows.

Project Management Tutorial: Managing a Project with Facebook

February 27, 2013 in Business, Photography, Video

Watch more at http://www.lynda.com/Video-tutorials/.... Discover how to use Facebook groups as a project management tool.

This tutorial is a single movie from the Practical Project Management for Creative Projects course presented by lynda.com author Rich Harrington.

Introduction
1. The "Whats" and "Whys" of Project Management
2. Understanding Services Offered
3. Project Management Core Concepts
4. Scoping the Project
5. Estimating Time
6. Client Communication
7. Project Control Cycle
8. Managing Employees and Contractors
9. Effective Teams
10. Keeping Clients Happy
Conclusion

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Creating Videos People Want to Watch

February 26, 2013 in Business, Digital Publishing, Video

There’s a lot to making a great video… one that connect with an audience and drives them to action. Of course video can be both expensive and time consuming. In this session, web video expert Rich Harrington shares practical advice that won’t break the bank.

You’ll learn industry secrets like:

What’s the right length to keep someone watching?
How can you ensure your audio doesn’t suck?
When should you use graphics to inform the viewer?
How do the pros create messages that stick in the viewer’s brain?
What role does music play in a successful video?

For more great content like this… come see me at the TAP!2013 conference in Las Vegas — www.TAP2013.com