Canon has a new HDSLR camera and a new Final Cut Pro plug-in. The EOS 550D (or Rebel T2i as it is also called) is their latest HDSLR camera, with an 18 MP APS-C size sensor and the ability to record full HD video. In terms of video, the specs are very similar to that of the 7D:

• 1080 recording at 24,25, and 30
• 720 recording at 50 & 60P
• Full Manual Video mode
• HDMI output
• Stereo Mic Input

The big differences from the 7D is a lower ISO range (100-6400), and it records to SDHC or SDXC cards instead of CF cards. The sensor is not exactly the same, so some comparison will have to be made, but the price is significantly different at under $1000. Read a full review of the new 550D at DPreview.

The other big news is that Canon is developing a plug-in for Final Cut Pro. It will allow importing of ‘EOS Movie’ footage into FCP through the Log and Transfer mode. The plug-in will convert the QuickTime movies created in Canon HDSLR cameras into Apple’s ProRes 422 codec at approximately twice the speed of Apple’s standard conversion. Additionally, users will also be able to add timecode, reel names and metadata to footage quickly and easily. This is great news for anyone working with Canon HDSLR cameras. A beta of the plug-in will be available in March.

This has been out for a while, but it doesn’t seem to have been widely circulated. Sony has a white paper on S-Log which describes the intended use of S-Log gamma, from production to post. Of particular interest to compositors and colorists are the formulas for translating between S-Log and Linear Light.

Download the S-Log White Paper here.

This week Convergent Design will be releasing a new firmware for their nanoFlash recorder (version 1.1.131), which contains some significant improvements. They have bumped up the data rate options once again to 180 Mbps LongGOP and 280 Mbps I-Frame. This is great for really pushing the premium video quality. But the new feature that excites me is not a new data rate, but a small change that makes the MXF files generated by the nanoFlash compatible with those on the XDCAM ProDisc. The nanoFlash utilizes the same Sony codec found in the PDW-700 and PDWF800, just at many different data rates. So CD and Sony worked together to make the two MXF files compatible. This means that material recorded in the nanoFlash at 50 Mbps LongGOP (the highest quality currently supported by the disc) can be put on a XDCAM ProDisc and played back on an XDCAM deck. This is a great option because, not only is the XDCAM disc a terrific format, but many television networks require it as a deliverable. On top of that, it makes for an excellent archiving solution. I decided to test out this new feature by combining the PMWEX1, nanoFlash, and PDW-U1 (inexpensive ProDisc reader/writer). Keep reading to see my process.

…continue reading How to Put nanoFlash Video on an XDCAM Disc

Sony recently released a new version of their XDCAM EX Clip Browser with a couple of great new features. If you aren’t familiar with the software, it is Sony’s free tool for working with XDCAM EX clips. It allows users to download, subclip and add metadata to clips. It’s the best tool out there for working with EX material…and it’s free.

In this latest release, Sony added a Flash Band correction function. This will scan your clips and look for banding created by flashes. It is very similar to what the Panasonic HPX300 does in-camera. This is an important function for anyone shooting live events, or anywhere where there’s flash photography.

…continue reading New Features in Sony’s EX Clip Browser 2.6

The recent v.675 release of the Phantom software from Vision Research modifies how the white balance is stored in the raw cine files. This rendered the files created with this version incompatible with all the existing third party products that read the Phantom files.

Fortunately, developers have been quick to update their tools. Version 2.0.12 of the GlueTools Phantom Cine toolkit now supports the new white balance system, and I just got word that Iridas has implemented support as well, and that updated builds of their products should be available soon.

So, if you’ve downloaded files with the latest Phantom software and you see images that look like this:

instead of this:

you know you need to update your post software.

Snow Leopard (Mac OS 10.6) has been causing problems for many of us, and P2 owners have also felt the pain. One of the most popular methods for downloading P2 cards onto a Mac is using the DuelAdapter from Duel Systems. The DuelAdapter adapts PCMCIA P2 cards to the ExpressCard/34 slot on MacBook Pros. Unfortunately this device just doesn’t work with Snow Leopard, and Duel Systems will not be producing future drivers. So Panasonic made a small announcement on their site:

• P2 card in a DuelAdapter is not recognized on Mac OS 10.6 (Snow Leopard), since there is no DuelAdapter driver software for Mac OS 10.6.
• Please use DuelAdapter on 10.5 (Leopard).
• When using a P2 card on Mac OS 10.6 (Snow Leopard) of MacBookPro, please use a P2 camera, P2 recoder or P2 drive equiped with USB2.
• Panasonic is developing a new 1 slot P2 drive which works on Mac OS 10.6 (Snow Leopard) and planning to launch it in the spring of 2010.

This is an annoying situation for sure, but the last line is what really caught my eye. Panasonic is making a single slot P2 card reader. There are many different P2 solutions out there, but most of our clients want a simple single card solution. There might still be an updated driver for the DuelAdapter, but the Panasonic reader is great news for all you P2 camera owners.

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I recently traveled to Chicago to shoot a music video on an Sony PMW-EX1 camera. Much of the shooting was on greenscreen so I brought along the nanoFlash from Convergent Design to increase the quality of my recording. While the EX1 records excellent quality video, I really needed the bitrate and color sampling improvements that the nanoFlash offers. I shot both to the EX1 in XDCAM EX at 35Mbps, and to the nanoFlash in XDCAM 422 at 160Mbps. The quality difference between the two versions was significant, and I found that the nanoFlash footage was very easy to key. Watch the video to see my review of the nanoFlash, and the difference between the XDCAM EX footage and what the nanoFlash recorded. Update: The latest firmware for the nanoFlash also offers 24P pull-down removal.