DSLR Workflow for Filmmakers

The new crop of DSLR cameras from Nikon and Canon are blurring the line between stills and video. But are you up to the task of working with the HD video these new machines can produce?

Here’s a helpful video overview of the workflow involved with transcoding raw video from your DSLR to Final Cut Pro. Similar techniques will also work for Sony Vegas, Premeire Pro or Avid.

DSLR Workflow for Filmmakers


Digital Cameras at B&H Photo

Best of the Worst Movies

Here’s a wonderful concept for a book- great movies you’ve never heard of.

It’s a shame that movies are judged good or bad based on their commercial success. Film critic, Leonard Maltin, has assembled 151 of his favorite “flops” in a new book titled 151 Best Movies You’ve Never Seen. Some of my favorite films were commercial flops, and pretty obscure. So I couldn’t wait to see how many of my favorites made the cut!


Scanning the table of contents I was pleasantly surprised- I really haven’t seen most of these! There were a few familiar titles that also top my list: The Devil’s Backbone, Owning Mahowny, Thumbsucker and The Tao of Steve. But I was surprised to see The Maltese Falcon and The World’s Fastest Indian on this list. Nobody saw these films?

The list is assembled in alphabetical order, so there’s no Top 10 List or Best of the Worst award. For each title Maltin provides the basic specs- cast, director, year of production- then offers a few paragraphs about the movie and why he likes it. It’s a quick and handy reference to assist with your Netflix queue or you those late-night trips to the video store.

Oversights? Sure. Here’s a couple of films worth watching that didn’t make the list: Madison, Living in Oblivion and the Hudsucker Proxy.

Best and Worst of Superbowl 44

Congratulations to the New Orleans Saints. Now to the important stuff…

I thought the Superbowl ads this year were pretty mediocre overall. I missed the “controversial” pro-whatever ad, but there were a few spots that did catch my eye. For better or for worse. We’ll start with better…

Google
I don’t typically think of “cute” when I think of Google. But their Google Goes to Paris spot was clever and effective. Okay, it was cute. The entire spot was a series of searches on the oh-so-familiar Google search box with various manipulations of the suggested results. It goes through a series of searches about traveling to Paris, falling in love, moving to Paris, then ending with a search for baby crib assembly instructions. What they must have saved on production costs!

Carmax
Appealing to the fairer sex, or more accurately- fans of Cute Overload, this Carmax spot played up on the pets-with-a-dramatic-look phenom. Kudos also go to Carmax for daring to show a woman posing as a car saleperson. Who knew?

And then there’s the worst spots.

Daring Dodge
You’re whipped so you rebel and buy the car you want. Yawn. Reminds me of the Simpson’s where Homer buys the snowplow. But a Dodge Charger is faster than a snowplow. Yeah maybe, but they’re still fugly.

Audi’s Green Police
I thought this ad was somewhat funny. But I wasn’t sure who Audi was attempting to alienate. Their iClone design-conscious customer base or greenies that might be interested in a low-smoke diesel. Has anyone in Germany heard about this red state/blue state thing?

And finally, while not a commercial, the halftime show is such a short concert it’s kinda’ like a spot.

Townshend’s Shirt Tail
Somebody do something about these wardrobe malfunctions. Please. Half the guitar solo was spent untangling his coat from the guitar. C’mon Pete- you can afford to buy a new shirt.

Until next year.

We’re Big on Roku

A few weeks ago I set up an account on Blip.TV for the Two Wheel Oklahoma TV show. By uploading to one single source my programming can automatically find it’s way to iTunes, Flickr, Vimeo, Facebook and yes- even YouTube. What I did not know at the time was Blip can also distribute my viddy to viewers who own a Roku.

What’s a Roku?
We’re longtime Netflix junkies so I was familiar with the Roku Player. It’s a device that allows you to watch certain Netflix selections on your TV. No waiting for a DVD to arrive in the mail. Over the years they have expanded the choices to include Amazon Video-On-Demand and the Major League Baseball channel.What I did not know at the time was a new feature, introduced in November, allowed people to watch T.W.O. on their television.

Roku Channels
With the introduction of Roku Channels the little box can deliver a wide variety of videos and music from providers like Revision3, Blip.TV and Pandora. These are all free and will soon be reviewed in detail.

Soon after the Roku HD Player I just ordered arrives.

Watch Two Wheel Oklahoma on….