Online Video Production Blog

Found this video today and thought I would share it here:

 

Interactive Video Object Manipulation from Dan Goldman on Vimeo.

 

One of the most commonly asked questions I find on twitter is a varient on the theme of "free software" for a variety of tasks. While I can throughly recomend the use of paid software I also know the thrill of performing a task at an advanced level and "sticking it up 'em" by not having to pay for the tools to perform the task.

When it comes to free editing of images for your videos you could try free online software as mentioned in my article, or if you require real grunt you cannot go past GIMP. This is a open source project, available for free for Windows and Mac and Linux.

I intend to provide some tips and pointers for using GIMP in future posta but in the meantime I found a great tutorial on How to Touch Up Portraits in GIMP . I hope you find this useful.

I monitor Twitter for various trends, I like the fact that "the cloud" as it were has so many answers and also so many questions to solve.  One of the most common complaints I hear from people in regards to video editin is why is the software so expensive, how can I get free video editing software?

I am not about to go into the hows and whys of why software cost so much or the morality of using downloaded/pirated software.  I will say that I do use legit software but have had the privellege to have been given a significant amount of free software by manufacturers to test and learn for training or sales roles I have held.  Personally at home I use Adobe Premiere, switching recently after about 4  years of Avid Liquid in all its various guises.  Ialso use and recceomend the "Studio" suite by Pinnacle, its is a low cost easy to use editor, I saw it being sold for $AU200 recently but I am sure you can get it better than that.  I have though recently found a free MPG/video editor for windows users.

A question I spotted on twitter:

"Stupid FCP Question Of The Day: Does the blinking look of interlaced DV footage on a computer monitor go away when played on a TV? " from @kennbell

My answer would definitely be, check, and check often.  Its hard to understand what you are talking about exactly but typically I would say, if the flicker looks bad on the computer monitor chances are it will look worse on a TV monitor.

Just finished reading this article about Microsofts plans for Windows 7, the update to Windows Vista due ......well whenever they get around to it.

Interesting the supported formats that the new windows will bring, it will hopefully simplfy the playback and encoding of video, removing the need for lots of individual programs like virtualdub, windows media encoder, quicktime pro etc etc.

It would also seem to be a bit of a snub to the movie industry that has always seemed to dictate Microsofts decisions on these matters. The movie industry HATES transcoding and Microsoft is going to make it easier.  Maybe with the release of Windows 7 my Mum will be able to copy videos on to her iPod without having to give me a call!!

When possible, always use still images that are at least as large as your project resolution. If you use smaller resolution images and then zoom in on them, they lose visual quality. Sort of like a digital zoom on a camcorder. You end up with blocky chunks.

When creating still images from scratch avoid using 1 or 3 pixel lines, these tend to flicker badly on a television monitor, you will not see them in the Source or Program Monitors. If you must use thin lines try using a motion blur to blur them a little.

Onscreen text helps tell your story. Using a location super (superimposed text) sets the scene and saves the narration for other relevant points. Displaying an interviewee's name and title at the bottom of the screen reminds viewers who this person is. Using onscreen bulleted points reinforces your message. Titling is essential to any video production.

The templates that come supplied with Adobe Premiere Pro can save hours of time, if you can find one that is exactly to your liking find one you like, change it, then save it as a template for later use.

Unlike its predecessors, Adobe Premiere Pro does not automatically change the size and aspect ratio of imported still images and graphics to match the project settings. Rather, Adobe Premiere Pro preserves those clips' original sizes and aspect ratios. This enables you to import large images then pan or zoom in on them.

Try to ensure that prior to importing any clips into Premiere Pro that they reside in a non-timecode directory to assist when backing up a finished project.  This relates to my topic on Adobe Premiere - Data Management This advice specifically relates to video and important files that will need to be backed up at the end of the project

Two fun and simple techniques: playing a clip backward and changing its speed. Consider the possibilities; Kids diving out of a pond, a bowler retrieving his delivery, and a reverse replay of an explosive building demolition. Combine that with slow motion, or speed things up and you can add drama or humor.

You also can use a freeze frame as an effective way to close a segment or an entire production. For instance freeze the final frame and then fade to black.

Adobe Premiere Pro ships with over 90 effects, and dozens more are available from third-party providers. Rarely will you use more than a few in any project and like transitional effects often "less is best". That said on many occasions I have completed a project where every clip has at least one effect applied but it is usually a subtle color correction or brightness and contrast control.

You apply video effects simply by dragging and dropping them to a clip on a sequence or in the Effect Controls window. You can add multiple video effects to a single clip. Doing so can produce surprising and unpredictable results; the order in which you apply effects can also greatly effect the end result. Effects interact differently when applied in a different order

When used sparingly or for "real" reasons transitional effects can be fantastic, avoid over using effects. "If you can't solve it, dissolve it." Is a news room phrase that basically says sometimes the easiest way to fix a jump cut or a "jarring" cut is to use a basic dissolve.

Adobe Premiere Pro ships with more than 70 transitions. Some are subtle, and some are "in your face." The more you experiment with them the more likely you are to use them well.

New to Adobe Premiere Pro is the ability to add transitions between two clips on any track in a sequence. This is a very useful improvement that saves several awkward steps needed to accomplish the same thing in previous versions of Adobe Premiere.

A short red, horizontal line will appear above any new transition. That red line means that this portion of the sequence must be rendered before you can record it back to tape or create a file of your finished project. Rendering happens automatically when you export your project, but you can choose to render selected portions of your sequence to make those sections display more smoothly on slower PCs.