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Category Archives: Review
254 articles found
Review: Litepanels Sola ENG Lighting Kit
For the past five years LED camera lights, with their high brightness at short range and low power draw, have been all the rage. The earliest LED lights looked like a miniature bank of stadium lighting. The Sola ENG from Litepanels, however, takes the best that LED has to offer and puts it back in the form factor of a traditional on-camera light, making it ideal for many ENG shoots.
Review: Nexto DI Mobile Data Storage System
The advent of multiple file-based recording formats and camera systems necessitates a new generation of efficient data management tools like the Nexto DI, which can accommodate, off-load, and store a range of data protocols and media types. From Alexa and SxS to XDCAM EX and P2 today’s shooter/filmmaker working project to project and (often) from producer to producer may frequently use a variety of cameras from just as many manufacturers.
The biggest news for editors when Avid began shipping Media Composer 6 last November was the NLE's transformation into a very modern, 64-bit application. Along with that came other great updates, including the support of third-party hardware options (several of which I tested with this review). This is a big release in terms of the software's overall internal plumbing, though it may or may not be a big release for users in terms of overall functions, depending on what features they need. I still think it may be one of the most important releases of Media Composer ever, as 64-bit lays the foundation for every upgrade to come.
Review: Panasonic AG-HPX250 Camcorder
While the VariCam and the Alexa come closest to assuming the vaulted mantle of versatility and reliability film cameras once brought to productions, the full-size camera is often too much for the job - too awkward to manage and too conspicuous, given the need for speed and for shooting surreptitiously in public or sensitive locations. What itinerant shooters really need is a professional compact multiple frame-rate camcorder with a far-reaching zoom that all but eliminates the multiple cases, weight, and hassle of carting additional lenses.
Review: Imagineer Systems Mocha Pro
The sleight of hand we, as video editors, have to accomplish on a daily basis gets a little maddening at times. It's considered an easy day when all you have to do is blur out a copyrighted logo on someone's shirt who is moving in place slightly. No biggie. Then a couple of days before the deadline, the client calls and says legal can't clear a billboard and it needs to be removed. You know, that one behind his head... and a clump of trees... while the camera pans around them. That's when a good planar tracker comes in.
Review: Panasonic HDC-Z10000 3D Camera
The HDC-Z10000 is a compact, feature-laden 3D camera at an economical price that gives shooters optimal capability in a “normal” working range of six-to-eight feet. It should find ready acceptance among those working mostly interior scenes and interviews from 17 inches (.45m) out to 15 feet (3.5m).
First Look: Canon EOS C300 Cinema Camera
Amid the hype and hoopla leading up to the camera's introduction at Paramount Studios on November 3, one fact seemed inescapable: the Canon EOS C300 camera will usher in a new era of simple, versatile, high-performance tools for filmmakers.
When I took my first look at the feature details inside GenArts' new Sapphire Edge plug-in package, I admit my first reaction was to roll my eyes. Do we really need another set of canned looks/film damage filters? Throw a rock at a FCP plug-in maker and you're also bound to hit one that does film damage or lens flare. But as I started working with the quality effects in Edge I slowly changed my tune.
For the past five years, Autodesk has been busy developing Mudbox alongside its other well-known suites of animation and modeling software. As a result, Mudbox 2012 ships with an even better 3D paint system, better posing, new sculpting options, interface improvements, and critical performance updates.