DV Expo West may be over but the reports keep rolling in, the latest comes from John Virata over at Audio-Video Producer who recaps some of the more interesting products from the show floor. One of the products highlighted is a new all in one camcorder which shoots VGA quality video, takes stills and plays MP3s. Certainly not for the serious shooter but could be a convenient gadget for someone looking to consolidate their gadget collection. Also included in the report is the CitiDISK hard drive capture device and Avid's new Liquid 7 editor. If you couldn’t make it to the show this year check out the article for a quick recap.More DV Expo West Recaps
DV Expo West may be over but the reports keep rolling in, the latest comes from John Virata over at Audio-Video Producer who recaps some of the more interesting products from the show floor. One of the products highlighted is a new all in one camcorder which shoots VGA quality video, takes stills and plays MP3s. Certainly not for the serious shooter but could be a convenient gadget for someone looking to consolidate their gadget collection. Also included in the report is the CitiDISK hard drive capture device and Avid's new Liquid 7 editor. If you couldn’t make it to the show this year check out the article for a quick recap.Rumor Mill: Apple Nixing FireWire?
While this is still a complete unconfirmed rumor, some websites are
reporting that the new x86-based Powerbooks will drop FireWire 400 in
favor of FireWire 800. Some people are saying that because Apple
has been showing some allegiance to USB (in the form of dropping support
for FireWire in iPods) and may be leaving the standard
altogether. I'm still saying I'll believe it when I see it.More than likely, I see FireWire becoming the 'Beta' of the connection world. It's no secret that FireWire (especially 800) is technically superior to USB, much like BetaMax to VHS. Beta became the standard in the professional world, much how I see FireWire becoming the standard in the professional world. Watch, if you're using USB 2.0, you'll be an amateur in 5 years.
Do you mind if FireWire dies? Personally, I do. USB can stay, but FireWire can't leave! What do you think?
[Via MyBroadband]
Do It Yourself: Super 8 Telecine
Damn good stuff, this article details how to capture your Super 8 into a digital format by using any DV camera. Even if you do not use 8mm, I'd highly suggest the read because it covers a lot of ground gracefully. The tutorial is hard and I do not expect many of us actually doing any of this but I am sure some of you still shooting on Super 8 or wish to will find the tutorial invaluable. I found this link through FresHDV who also has a lot of things to add. If you don't feel like doing all the work and prefer spending the money, then go here. There is also a French site, that is most likely the inspiration for the article, with some excellent diagrams and images and though I cannot understand the text, the images are self-explanatory.Monitor Talk For HVX200
Mike at HD For Indies answers a readers question: "Can the JVC DT-V1910CGU monitor handle the 24p output of the Panasonic HVX200 camera? The info on the JVC website says that the monitor can handle 1080/24psF, but would the DT-V1910CG also be able to support the 24p output of the HVX200 in 1080 and/or 720 modes?"The answer is yes and Mike's breaks it down: "The DVCPRO HD spec is built around video framerates like 23.976, 29.97, and 59.94, all of which are supported by that JVC 19" broadcast CRT I've been talking about. There may be other monitors worth considering, but this is what we bought and have been using at Color Cafe with good results." Check the article out for a more thorough answer.
Unpacking the XL H1
One of the people from a DV Group I subscribe to has their first impressions of Canon's XL H1. Some people value the tradition of unpacking, and this person went painstakingly through the process. The poster also noted a possible (probable) incompatibility with FCP HD (4.5,) as well as iMovie HD and FCE HD. According to Apple's website, FCE/FCP/iMovieHD of the last generation don't support the XL H1 when using Apple's intermediary codec. No worries with FCP5 though, their 'native HDV' support means no visable transcoding.
Anyone else get their XL H1 yet? Leave your impressions and comments!
Not Paying Rate Card
This article suggests that you haggle when renting film equipment. It goes on to say that it is almost expected and gives an excellent description of how to do it. "Get the dolly first, then start adding in the extras. You need dolly track. Pay for the curved pieces, and ask for the straight ones for free or half price. Go through the entire equipment list that way." I am always a big sucker for this stuff, I never ask for the deal and couple of months pass and someone mentions that they got a deal from the same company even if their budgets were bigger and their projects sucked. What? They did! Hopefully, you don't make the same mistakes, read the article.DV Expo Wrap Up
All's well that ends well, my mama always said, and now it's time to say "ta ta" to another DV Expo. The show was full of announcements, especially from the likes of Panasonic, who announced their HVX200 would ship this month. In addition, they also said they were working with Focus Enhancements to bring a version of Firestore to the HVX.We also had some good presence on the floor, Mike Burgoyne hit up the expo looking at the HVX200 vs the XL H1, and the CitiDisk HD.
For even more coverage, we've compilied some links after the jump.
Sanyo to Release HD Flash Camcorder
Looks like someone at Sanyo Portugal spilled the beans and inadvertently posted the page of an upcoming flash based HD model the Sanyo VPC-HD1EX. Thanks to some quick translations you can get a look some of the current specs of the device.- 1,280 X 720 Max Resolution
- 5.08 Million Pixels
- 2.2" OLED Display
- 10X Optical zoom
Should be interesting to see the frame rate in HD as well as the overall picture quality from such a tiny device.
[Via Camcorderinfo]
DVguru @ DV Expo, The CitiDISK HD
We have talked about the CitiDISK in the past and I've been meaning to check out there products in more detail, so today at DV Expo I stopped by their booth and was pleasantly surprised to find out that they have a new drive, the CitiDISK HD which is designed to work with the Panasonic HVX200. The first thing I noticed about the CitiDISK HD is that it is tiny, about half the size of the FireStore drive. The drive features a simple sleek design and runs for 90 minutes on its internal battery and another 3 hours with the external battery. With the current price and capacity of P2 cards an external hard drive storage solution is a good idea. The drive will be ready to ship when the HVX200 is released at the end of the month and comes in three sizes 80GB, 100GB, 120GB with the 100GB model running $1,160.DVguru @ DV Expo, The HVX200 and XL H1
Today I attended the 2005 DV Expo West and I must say I was quite impressed with all the new hardware. The show was clearly dominated by the two new cameras from Panasonic and Canon. The show was also packed with a number of smaller companies who where all pushing new HD compatible software and hardware. One notable absence from the show though, was Sony who was not where to be found. Read on for the full report.
DVD Business Cards
Disc-based
business cards will always hold a special place in my heart, as they're
where I first decided I wanted to do motion graphics as a career.
Traditionally, they've been done in Macromedia's Flash, and worked only
in computers. Now, with the widespread availability of both DVD
players, DVD burners and DVD Labelers (or inkjet printing on DVDs,)
would you think about making them as a side business? When I was
all wrapped up in CD-cards, I was a lowly student, and they didn't
really work out because of the whole computer thing. Now, I can
easily see myself giving them out as a copy of my demo reel, or even
making them for clients. What do you think, worth the effort to
make some extra bucks or not worth the hassle?Paying way too much for a DVD player
$20,000. For $20,000, you could get 10 of Sony's consumer-ish level HDV cam, the HDR-HC1, a much needed lens
for your camera, a new car, but for $20,000, you can be the lucky
purchaser of a DVD player from Meridian Audio. What do you get
for $20,000? The company says you get the best possible audio
money can buy, but I doubt all that great audio can help you sleep at
night when you realize you spent 20-Gs on a STANDARD DEFINITION DVD
PLAYER. Seriously, when DVD players came out in 1996, they were
only like $1,000. Excess? Yes. Worth it? Doubtful,
but at least you can prove to your friends how much of a balla you
really are when you watch Scarface.[Via International Herald Tribune]
Liquid Auto-Focus Lens
Varioptic and Sunex announced a liquid-based auto-focus lens. Basically, a liquid-lens uses liquid, instead of two panes of glass, to adjust where light ends up hitting. Two different liquids, one an insulator and one a conductor, using different electric charges adjust the overall shape of the lens. The real advantage? Little to no power consumption, since there aren't any moving parts. Apparently, they've been around for a while, for those high-end users, but today they announced their lens of the auto-focus variety. They say that it offers all the ease of use of traditional auto-focus, plus there isn't as much of a depth-of-field loss. Varioptic also says the same technology will be implemented in zoom lenses. They say it supports most CCD and CMOS cameras, I'm sure for a pretty penny. Eventaully, they say this same technology could end up in camera cell-phones.
Firestore for HVX200
One of the main selling points of our good lil' buddy, the HVX200, is that it shoots on P2 cards, and is ready to edit right after you hit stop. The tapeless acquizition is a major selling point for some, and that's why I find myself a little perplexed in announcing that Panasonic has teamed up with Focus Enhancements, the folks behind Firestore, to announce Firestore for the HVX200. It's still DVCPro HD, but with Firestore, you can get your favorite flavor of file format for your editor. The system should be available in March of 2006 with a pricetag of around $2,000.Seriously now folks, I am the biggest Firestore fan, but with P2, isn't it kind of a moot point? If I'm going to spend some money on the HVX, I'd probably be one to go with the P2 cards and at least give them a shot. Last vodcast, I swore that P2 cards weren't as great as everyone says, and I'm still not a huge fan, but having a little more experience with them, and the fact that they're solid state, I'd give them a shot with a rental, if not a purchase.
First HVX200 Footage Hits the Web
Well that didn't take long, just minutes after its official unveiling DVXuser.com released some exclusive footage of the Panasonic HVX200 in action. So far two videos have been uploaded, one shot in 720 24p and the other in 1080 24p. After watching the footage over a couple times on an Apple Cinema display I must say that I was impressed. The 720P footage looked stunning though the 1080p footage looks like it got a little tweaked in the encoding process and definitely lost some of its detail. Both files are QuickTime and run around the 50MB mark so be ready for a decent download and make sure your system is equipped to play the large HD files. Now for some raw footage, though that may have to wait until tomorrow at DV Expo West.
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