ARRI’s ALEXA camera offers several recording options, including recording directly to SxS cards in Apple ProRes format. This is called the Direct-To-Edit (DTE) option, and it makes for a very simple workflow. ProRes has proven to be a high quality and robust video format that is widely used in the industry today. The ALEXA has an uncompressed video output, but I believe many productions will choose to record in ProRes directly in the camera. Here is a 3 step guide for how to import ALEXA footage into Final Cut Pro.

…continue reading Simple ALEXA Workflow with Final Cut Pro

Sony recently announced the SRW-5800/2, an HDCAM SR studio recorder that builds on the quality and flexibility of the original SRW-5800 VTR. The SRW-5800/2 uses the latest version of the HDCAM SR MPEG4 Simple Studio Profile codec ASIC, which provides support for higher sampling resolutions, including 2K. Support for RGB 4:4:4 SQ comes standard, meaning the additional HKSR-5803SQ board is no longer necessary.

Other features include:

– MXF SStP file transfer
– SR-Lite MXF file support
– Double speed record & playback for 4:2:2 and 4:4:4 SQ modes
– RGB 3D record & playback for 4:4:4 SQ mode
– Real-time 2K formats: (2048×1080 RGB 10 bit, 2048×1080 XYZ 12 bit)
– Support for 96 KHz audio sampling

An optional upgrade kit (HKSR-58UK) will be available so that the SRW-5800/1 can be made into a 5800/2. Older SRW-5800 decks that have not been upgraded to /1 can also use the HKSR-58UK, but will require an additional HIF-56 board.

Singular Software has announced DualEyes, a stand-alone program for those of you recording dual-system sound. Similar to the popular PluralEyes, DualEyes can actually replace the audio track on your video files with the audio from an external recorder, such as the Zoom H4N. This should make editing much easier, since you can now drag and drop your clips from your bin to your sequence without having to make a separate “PluralEyes” sequence.

Singular has posted a video tutorial online, which you can find here. A free beta of DualEyes is available (currently Windows only) and can be downloaded here.

A new plugin from Canon is available for Final Cut Pro and is free to download. Final Cut Pro users (versions 6.0.3 – current 7.0) will be able to ingest footage from the 1D Mark IV, 5D Mark II and 7D through “Log and Transfer”. This is a huge step forward for HDSLR shooters, because it greatly improves the workflow in FCP. Here is some basic info on what the plugin allows:

• Clips ingested using “Log & Transfer”
• Archiving
• Timecode Generation
• Auto File Import
• Auto Transcode
• Auto Data Input
• Selectable ProRes formats in FCP7
• Selectable ProRes formats in FCP6

Download the E-1 plugin on Canon’s site here.

Many of you may remember the Panasonic AJ-PCS060G, the P2 reader with a built in 60 GB hard drive. It was a great device at the time, but the 60GB hard drive doesn’t do much for customers with 32GB & 64GB P2 cards. So Panasonic has come up with a new device for downloading P2 cards in the field. The AG-MSU10 or P2 Media Storage Unit. The MSU10 has two slots, one is a P2 card slot and the other accepts a hard drive enclosure from Panasonic (the AG-MBX10). The enclosure has USB and eSATA connections on it and can be filled with any 2.5″ SATA drive, including solid state drives. The P2 Media Storage Unit features a 3.2” LCD screen that displays a P2 thumbnail screen and supports master-quality 10 bit AVC-Intra (100/50) and DVCPRO HD, DVCPRO50, DVCPRO and DV recording formats. With a single touch, AVC-Intra 100 or DVCPRO HD content can be transferred from a P2 card to the solid-state drive at four times real-time (faster at lower data rates). The MSU10 is battery-operated. We are looking forward to seeing the device, which will sell for under $2500. The hard disk is not included, but can be easily be purchased at any retail store. See the full press release here. 

A couple months ago, I wrote about Panasonic’s mention of a single card reader to come. Well the official announcement is finally here. It’s called the AJ-PCD2, and it will sell for less than $350. So many of our P2 clients have been asking for this type of product for years, and we are happy to see it here. The PCD2 comes with two USB 2.0 cables, which power the device (2 USB connections equals twice the power) and connects it to a PC or Mac. This makes it a very portable device for field use, which is exactly what we’ve been asking for. The device will be fully compatible with PC & Mac and will be available in April. Read the full press release here.

AJA has just released firmware version 1.1 for the Ki Pro, and going up .1 turns out to be a major upgrade. Here is a list of the improvements :

- ProRes 422 LT and Proxy recording has been added. These formats are supported in Final Cut Pro 7, and allow for longer recording times at minimal quality loss.

- 720P variable frame rate support has now been added as well. This is great for VariCam users that want 720p24 (23.98), 720p25 and 720p30 (29.97) native recording.

- 1080p support has also been improved by enabling the auto-detection of 1080p 23.98, 1080p 24, 1080p 25 and 1080p 29.97 signals. This, along with PsF playback, gives the Ki Pro more functionality for high end users.

These updates, as well as a couple other new features, make for one big update. See the full release notes here, including a list of updates still planned for the future. Download Ki Pro Firmware 1.1 here.