Saturday, December 20, 2008

ColorBurst Video Store: Camcorders, Digital Cameras, Digital SLRs

Just at the last minute for Christmas shopping, we wanted to try out something new with a link to an online store co-branded with ColorBurst Video and Amazon.com.Amazon.com

Shop through these links or any of the other ads on this page and you are helping to support this blog. You are also getting high quality products through a trusted online retailer. Go check out the new ColorBurst Video Store.

Monday, December 08, 2008

Working for Free?

Nobody likes the idea of working as a photographer for free. But perhaps it may give you something that you don't have that you really do want. Read Strobist: Four Reasons to Consider Working for Free.

George Lucas in Love-- All Over Again

I've mentioned it before, but George Lucas in Love is one of those short but epic masterpieces of comedy gold that bears mentioning again. If you haven't seen it in a while (or at all) enjoy.

I ran into this again recently on Shamus Young's blog, where even he admits that it has been linked to hell and back, but sometimes you have to resurrect those old simple favorites. Shamus also links to his own 2006 script treatment of what Star Wars would have likely looked like had it come out in this decade rather than the '70s. The main point being that movie executives would take the script and try and 'sexy' it up a bit to make it the smash blockbuster that they really want. It's worth four and a half laughs.

It's arguable by some that the Star Wars films severely changed the movie industry and created the "blockbuster-or-bust" attitude prevalent today. Thereby making Shamus' joke all the more cyclical --and profound.

Tuesday, December 02, 2008

Happy Accident Opens Door to Higher-Resolution Cameras

They won't be available in time for Christmas this year, but check out this photo gallery and story about how an accident could mean cheaper, higher-resolution cameras coming from a lab at UCLA.

Monday, November 24, 2008

A Bubble Level For Your DSLR - CrunchGear.com

Most tripods I've seen have a level on them of some sort. But when you are untethered from your rig, wouldn't it be better to have one attached directly to your digital camera? Check out the pics on CrunchGear.

Monday, September 29, 2008

Photoshop for Photographers Seminar Tour

Today we are "Photoshop for Photographers" tour in St Louis. Ben Wilmore is the presenter to about 240 PS enthusiasts.

Remember that, not only do most Photoshop techniques work well in After Effects. But also you can use PS to tweak your video!

More later.

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Saturday, September 06, 2008

PS World - All good things must....

Photoshop World 2008 has now ended and I am about to board the plane for home. More later.

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PS World - Saturday

I am sitting in Copango's "Power of Color" enthralled by the fantastic images projected on the 30-foot screens around the room.

As usual, each hour has seven different learning opportunities to choose from. At 1pm, I'll join Scott Kelby for his "7-Point System.". "Mastering Color Curves" is my choice for the 2pm session. Then it's off to the airport for home and family.

If you are into imaging in any way, this is the place to be.

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Friday, September 05, 2008

Nice Editing - Video (Metacafe.com)

This is a good quick demonstration of what is possible and a reminder that what you see is not always the truth.

Nice Editing - More amazing video clips are a click away.

PS World - Friday Late Afternoon

Outside, the Vegas temperature has 3-digits, but inside the Mandallay Bay convention center Photoshop World is cool and very busy.

Amazing is the term that comes to mind as I sit in the 2nd of 3 of Harlan's session on Photoshop for video. These sessions alone were worth the trip for me.

Another pass through vendor exhibits enlarged the blisters on my feet and revealed several "cool tools" I missed yesterday. (For instance, for the price of a 'basic transportation' used car, you can own a laser that etches any image you could print into wood, leather, plastic, whatever.....)

I'm off to the next of Harlan's sessions.

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PS World - Friday Morning

Each time slot this morning has at least 7 different sessions to choose from. I picked David Ziser's How to Flash, an Extended Video session, and one on Color Correction.

I'll keep you posted on this afternoon's choices.

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Thursday, September 04, 2008

PS World Update

Late Thursday...

Vendor exhibits: Nikon was showing a broad line of cameras and lenses, .and Epson showcased some gorgeous large printers. Drobo was there with an interesting harddrive storage technology. And I wore a hole in my shoes cruising the booths of maybe another 60 or more vendors. B and H even provided discounts to attendees.

A full slate of evening sessions are now in full swing; Deke McClelland's tutorial on output sharpening being one of the moe popular.

More later.

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Photoshop World

This is being sent via blackberry direct from the floor of Photoshop World so it will be brief.

Photoshop World 2008 on Flickr

A highly creative opening featured Scott Kelby piloting the Starship Luminousity, plus expected announcements by Adobe of Creative Suite 4.... errr.... CS Next later this month. Faster and more integrated were the buzzwords.

This afternoon, miles of vendor exhibits are sure to tax my tootsies.

..More from Mandallay Bay in (hot) Las Vegas later.... Jim

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Wednesday, September 03, 2008

In A World With No Don LaFontaine…

YouTube - Dan LaFontaine

You most likely wouldn't recognize this man's name or face. However, it's possible that with modern movie advertising, he has one of the most recognized VOICES in the world. Dan LaFontaine was the voice-over guy for almost every movie trailer I've ever seen in my entire life. He has a powerful deep voice with a unique character. On Tuesday of this week he died due to complications and illness. The movie trailers will never be the same.

Don LaFontaine Passes Away

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Death Star over San Francisco // Current

This is one belongs under the "That's-No-Moon-That's-A-Space-Station" folder. As everyone knows, I like Star Wars quite a bit. But even I was a little bug-eyed to see these fan-made clips.

I'm sorry. You need to update your flash player to load this content.

In case you can't tell, these are most likely your standard shots collected from home movies around San Francisco. But the effects have been seamlessly and pretty flawlessly added in. Check out the full video of the Death Star over San Francisco on Current.

Monday, July 21, 2008

Tilt Shift Photoshop Tutorial


Lil raft
Originally uploaded by markus941
Do you like this miniature scene? Wouldn't you think it took a long time to create these small boats and the realistic (but not realistic) looking water? What about the effort to get the backdrop painting just right?

Yeah, well, none of that was done. This is a real photo with some minor alteration that you can learn to do too.

See the Tilt Shift Photoshop Tutorial.

15 Second DIY Adjustable Snoot!

I wasn't even sure what a "snoot" was until I clicked through to this post. But essentially, it's a homemade tool for adjusting your flash's aim. Check out how to make a homemade one at F/1.0.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Two Quick Movie Mentions: Iron Man and Indiana Jones

I wanted to quickly note that I've seen two really great films this summer and I wanted to mention my reactions briefly.

IRON MAN

IRON MAN Movie PosterYeah, this one was surprisingly awesome and I think a lot of people reacted that way. Fans of Marvel Comics have had some ups and downs in the last several years with some good movies and some bad ones. From what I hear, the good has been outweighing the bad with their latest ventures because the powers that be in Hollywood finally decided to let Marvel have total control of their own films. Imagine that!

INDIANA JONES

INDIANA JONES Movie PosterDo I have to actually come out and say this one was great? Can't it just be a given? Some spectacular work went into this picture. It's not a hindrance to the plot at all that our beloved Indy is now much older. Nor is it a problem that we haven't known his whereabouts for nearly 20 years. In fact, it makes for some interesting character exposition how much he has aged and the fact that much of his adventuring life is supposedly behind him. Also, in the first 20 minutes enough hints are dropped about the intervening time period that you think Of course that's what he's been up to! There are a few surprises too and at the end of the first act there is a special effect BANG that you don't want to miss.

See these quickly before they leave the theaters!

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

PhotoshopDisasters: Washington Post: Unlikely

Okay, first read this description from PhotoshopDisasters.

Have you seen a truly awful piece of Photoshop work? Clumsy manipulation, senseless comping, lazy cloning and thoughtless retouching are our bread and butter. And yes, deep down, we love Photoshop.

I know that a lot of the visitors here will be familiar with Photoshop, and might even have some experience in what should be done and what mistakes should be avoided. But hopefully, none of you will ever be this sloppy. Read the latest post called Washington Post: Unlikely.

Wired.com - Coolest Movie Metamorphoses

Here's a quick post about a cool article that came to me on Wired.com about the 12 greatest movie transformations in all time. Check out the full list along with shots of each creature in the Coolest Movie Metamorphoses, From Wolf Man to Hulk.

Thursday, May 15, 2008

The Day There Was No News

This video is striking. To quote the description...

"Today there was no news. And here is the proof."

Thursday, May 08, 2008

THE CUTTING EDGE: the magic of movie editing (pt1)

This is "Part 1 of a fantastic documentary about movie editing." The other parts of this are also possibly available on YouTube. This documentary gives the history of and an emphasis on the importance of EDITING as an art form and an important piece of any film-making.

Monday, April 21, 2008

Fiftieth Post!

Doing some maintenance on the site earlier and I noted that the post earlier this month on Video on Flickr was this site's FIFTIETH PUBLISHED POST. There are a variety of drafts in progress that will be dated earlier than today, but I wanted to announce this fact briefly with some --albeit humble-- self-congratulatory nods.

Please stay tuned and keep the cameras rolling.

Wednesday, April 09, 2008

Video on Flickr! « Flickr Blog

If you haven't heard of Flickr yet, it's one of the best photo community sites available right now that is actually taken seriously by professionals. Certainly there are competitors out there (like Photobucket) but they are usually frequented by MySpace teens.

However, Flickr has not had the technology or infrastructure in place to allow video uploads and sharing, something that their competitors have had a head start with. But that has just changed! You can now upload videos albeit in a slightly limited fashion. Read more about it at the announcement on Flickr Blog.

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Watch Higher Quality YouTube Videos

Do you like YouTube, but would like to see the videos in a higher quality? The answer is at Wired How-To Wiki. The news and reference stuff here is really of big importance to those videophiles who upload their videos to the site.

Saturday, February 16, 2008

TRAILER - Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

I posted previously about Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. A new trailer has become available over the last week and I felt it needed to be shared.

Are you excited? Keep your eyes on this countdown timer or head to the link below to get it for your site.