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Showing posts from September, 2014

Adobe Creative Cloud to Release Premiere Pro CC 2014.1

Adobe released an update to its subscription-based Creative Cloud called version "2014.1". The apps updated include Premiere Pro, After Effects, Prelude, SpeedGrade, Audition, Media Encoder and more. Here are some features that I find interesting. User Interface color can now be changed... though mostly shades of grey.  New codec support for GoPro Cineform and BlackMagic 4K Raw DNG... so if you are getting an Action Camera, it's nothing else but GoPro . Multi-colored tags and markers for Prelude, the video logging and ingesting tool... currently only one color. In Premiere Pro,  You can  pick a sequence from Media Browser and view it in the timeline... though its locked for safety (just for viewing and copy/pasting only). A favourite folder in Media Browser panel... for bookmarking frequently accessed folders. Consolidate and Transcode feature in Project Manager... so you can change multiple formats to one single format for speedy smoother editing ex

Adobe Premiere Elements 13 Replaces Version 12

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Adobe announced its new version of its basic video editing software. Premiere Elements 13 is the stripped down version of Premiere Pro. New features: "Shake Stabilizer” to smooth out shaky video footage. “Favorite Moments" to mark the best part of a clip, and hence save time on trimming and assembling footage. “Video in Titles” to add video footage into a title. “Effects Masking” to apply blur or other effects to parts of a scene. Elements Live, content by Adobe, with tips, tutorials and contests. Premiere Elements 13 is designed for people who wants to edit videos on their own but do not have the time or know-how.  Tools are developed to automate or guide the user through the process of video editing. Download  Adobe Premiere Elements 13  for Mac or PC. Priced at US$ 99.99 new or US$ 79.99 for upgrade. Is it worth the upgrade?  Personally, I have version 12, and the only thing new and that matters is the Shake Stabilizer.  So I would say for US$79.99, it

Nikon D750 for Pro Video Recording

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NIKON D750 FX-FORMAT DIGITAL SLR CAMERA W/ 24-120MM F/4G ED VR AF-S NIKKOR LENS On 12 September 2014, Nikon announced the release of Nikon D750 DSLR Camera. The Nikon D750 is a compact, lightweight and slim with full-scale pro specifications.  Nikon FX-format CMOS sensor, with an effective pixel count of 24.3 million pixels. Designed or active photo hobbyist, with performance nearly equal to high-end models. Movie recording mode… Outputs uncompressed video to external HDMI recorders, while simultaneously recording on memory card in the camera. Records high quality sound with Wind Noise Reduction and Frequency Response settings. Records Full High Definition HD 1920x1080 pixels 60/50/30/25/24p video Manually control ISO, shutter speed and aperture while recording. Power Aperture control for smooth iris transitions. Auto ISO for smooth exposure transitions. Highlight display with zebra stripes to confirm exposure. Apply Flat Picture Control for easier colour grading i

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ1000 vs a6000 / RX10 / RX100 / GH4 / FZ200 / AX100

VS Sony a6000 PANASONIC DMC-FZ1000 VS SONY ALPHA A6000 VS Sony RX10 HEAD-TO-HEAD: PANASONIC FZ1000 VS. SONY RX10 PANASONIC LUMIX FZ1000 VS SONY RX10 VS Sony RX100 PANASONIC FZ1000 + SONY RX100M3 = PERFECT TRAVEL COMPANIONS VS Panasonic GH4 PANASONIC FZ1000 VS GH4 LOWLIGHT COMPARISON TEST & MY THOUGHTS PANASONIC FZ1000 VS GH4 4K VIDEO COMPARISON TEST (NOT A REVIEW) PANASONIC LUMIX GH4 VS PANASONIC LUMIX FZ1000 4K VS Panasonic FZ200 PANASONIC LUMIX FZ1000 COMPARED WITH THE PANASONIC FZ200 VS Sony AX100 PANASONIC DMC-FZ1000 VS SONY FDR-AX100

What is the Best Video Export Setting for Wistia Upload

Wista recommends uploading video at 1280x720 pixels (at bitrate of 5000kbps), which is the largest resolution it will share. After uploading a video, Wistia encodes and compresses it to various sizes and formats like FLV and MP4, so viewers can have the best playback experience on any screen size, with any connection speed and on any device. The following derivatives are created: 1280px wide HD 2,000 kbps 960px wide MD 1,000 kbps 640px wide SD 700 kbps iPhone 800 kbps HD iPhone (for iPad3) 1,200 kbps The upload file size limit is up to 2GB per file. If you are using other platform that do not encode the video to various formats like what Wistia does, you may face 2 problems... Viewers with slow internet connection cannot play the video smoothly and to solve the problem, you give them smaller file size videos, which leads to the next problem... viewers with better screens and connection will see very low quality videos. My suggestion is to upload at the best quality an

Final Cut Pro X Poor Quality Pixelation on Render and Export to H.264 MP4

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I encountered a frustrating issue this morning while attempting to deliver a finished product to the client. Pixelation occurred on different parts of the exported video. They appear during some transitions, including on the first frame of straight cuts. They occur randomly at different transitions on every export. Troubleshoot - What did I do to solve the problem? Is it the Compressor custom H.264 settings? No.  Tweaked settings to higher quality. Is it the MacBook Pro GPU issue? No.  Turned GPU off. Is it the Render Format setting? Probably.   Turned off timeline background rendering and deleted generated event files.  Export still pixelate. Turned on timeline background rendering and pixelation observed occurring in timeline playback.  Changed Project Render Format from “Apple ProRes 422” to “Apple ProRes 422 HQ”.  Pixelation still occur in timeline playback. Background Render on Background Render off Deleted Generated Event Files.  Background R

How to Take A Screenshot on Windows 8.1 Tablet

Press and hold the physical Windows button in front. Press the Volume Down key on side. The screen will blink on the snap. Go to the Pictures folder and finder your screenshot inside the Screenshot subfolder. Adrian Lee Adriansjournal.BlogSpot.sg

How to Replace a Classical Guitar Lower E String

How to replace a guitar string. One end of the string is loose. The other end of the string is tight. Tie the tight end at the bottom. Insert through the hole in the bridge. Give about 3 inches of slack. Make 3 ties nice and tight. Tie the loose end at top. Insert through the hole in the tuning peg.   Give about 2.5 inches of slack. Make a tight loop instead of tying. Wind up and tighten it. I have an old basic starter guitar from Yamaha made in the 70s. Haven't used it for years. It needs cleaning and the lower E string is broken. Clean up the frets. Add bore oil on the frets. Clean the face of the guitar. Get a new set of strings. Use light oil to smoother tuning pegs. Guitar parts. Saddle. Positioned on the face. Higher side and lower side. Higher side for the thicker strings. Bridge. Neck. Tuning peg. Headstock. Video coming soon...

This Week in Videography: iPhone 6 Camera, IKEA Viral Video, Instagram H...

iPhone 6 Camera, IKEA Viral Video, Instagram Hyperlapse

Will I Get the New iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus

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Details that matter to me as a video maker, business person and a family man. Two new iPhones:  iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.   One new device: Apple Watch. (On sale next year) About the iPhone 6: 4.7 inches screen size.  (iPhone 5 is 4 inches and the Samsung S5 is 5.1 inches) 1334x750 pixels Retina HD screen resolution. (Samsung S5 has 1920x1080 full HD resolution) About the iPhone 6 Plus: 5.5 inches screen size.  (Samsung Note 4 is 5.7 inches) 1920x1080 pixels fill HD resolution. (Samsung Note 4 has 2560x1440 quad HD resolution) Both iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus: 8MP camera.  (16MP on S5 and Note 4) 1080p 60fps video recording. (4K on S5 and Note 4) Optical image stabilisation. 240 fps slow motion video. Nike fitness health app. Barometer to measure your altitude.   No improvement in battery life performance from iPhone 5, 10 hours.  On sale from October 2014. Memory available: 16GB, 64GB and 128GB. Conclusion: It looks like I am getting the Samsung No

Sony Action Cam Mini HDR-AZ1 - the GoPro Competitor?

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A smaller and lighter tiny action cam, the Sony  HDR-AZ1 . 170-degree field of view.   Image-stabilized Zeiss Tessar lens.   Records 1080p video at 60, 50, 30 and 25 fps.  (Both PAL and NTSC in one is the way to go because Videographers like me travel all over the world to film nowadays.)  Snaps still images up to 11.9-megapixels.  120 fps high-speed mode for slow-motion videos. At 720p.  IPX4 equivalent splashproof body.   (Supposed to stand up to showers, spray, and snow)  Includes Waterproof case up to 15 feet.  Built-in Wi-Fi for live broadcast via Ustream and a smartphone. Weighs 2.2 oz.  Costs $250.  Release date: October 2014.  Optional item: Sony's wristwatch-style Live View Remote RM-LVR2 .   Add $100.   Controls up to five  Action Cams including ability to adjust settings. (I imagine the possibility of 1-man crew event videography) Downside #1:  Short battery life.  Estimated 1 hour 15 minutes shooting 1080p.  ( previous model was 2+ hours.)  Downside #

Premiere vs Vegas vs Final Cut - Fast Timeline Navigation

When editing videos, I want to do it the fastest possible way.  One way is use move around or navigate the timeline quickly.  I realised the three popular video editing software  have their own way of operating efficiently.  I like to quickly zoom in and out of the timeline, split, delete, trim, insert clips and close gaps. Here are methods I found most useful for navigating the timeline on Adobe Premiere Pro, Sony Vegas Pro and Final Cut Pro... each using a distinct way. (I am referring to editing with a laptop where there is a trackpad.) Adobe Premiere Pro - Keyboard Shortcuts and TrackPad. The "-" and "+" keys are my favourite for zooming in and out of the timeline at where the playhead is.  Then the "I" and "O" keys to mark in and out a source clip, as well as the "," and "." to insert and overwrite clips onto the timeline.  The trackpad is used mostly to position the playhead and make group selections.  I don't

Ripple Delete Keyboard Shortcut for Premiere Pro CC 2014 on MacBook Pro

The actual ripple delete shortcut is shift + forward delete. MacBook Pro does not have a forward delete button. To forward delete on a MacBook Pro, press fn + delete. Hence the Ripple Delete keyboard shortcut on a MacBook Pro for Adobe Premiere Pro CC 2014 is... shift  +  fn  +  delete please share this