Interviews

---

NanoFlash Investigation with Ben King (parts 1 and 2)

31/08/2010

Rick Young
Broadcast Editor Ben King, investigates Convergent Designs NanoFlash. The aim is to see just how much difference it makes working with full 4:2:2 image processing and at higher bitrates. The NanoFlash is is a portable device which accepts video in via SDI or HDMI. It can be used to record a full broadcast signal out of affordable cameras, bypassing the image compression which these cameras natively employ.

Panasonic integrated twin-lens 3D high definition camcorder

05/07/2010

Rick Young
Current 3D systems are large-scale setups in which two cameras are fitted to a rig in parallel, or vertically intersect across a half-mirror. Separate recorders are also required. In Panasonic’s new Full HD 3D camcorder, the lenses, camera head, and a dual Memory Card recorder are integrated into a single, lightweight body. The camcorder also incorporates stereoscopic adjustment controls making it easier to use and operate.

---

---

AJA KI Pro: real-world operation

26/06/2010

Sidney Lobb and Rick Young
Recorded in Rome, this interview with Project Engineer, Sidney Lobb, gives insight as to how AJA's Ki Pro can be used in a professional situation. Designed as a ProRes recorder, the Ki Pro can be used to replace traditional decks, and also to enable up conversion, down conversion, cross conversion of video signals. One can use the Ki Pro to bypass the compression of the affordable cameras and achieve superior results to highly compressed codecs.

Garrett Brown shows off Steadicam Tango

14/06/2010

Rick Young
Steadicam Tango - an extension arm which connects to a compatible Steadicam to provide crane movements from floor to ceiling.

2 different Steadicams: Steadicam Smoothee and Steadicam Tango

14/06/2010

Rick Young
Two very different Steadicams on show: (i) Steadicam Smoothee - for ultra-light cameras such as Apple's iPhone (ii) Steadicam Tango - an extension arm which connects to a compatible Steadicam to provide crane movements from floor to ceiling. Both these models show just how far Steadicam has come - from ground-breaking technology which changed the world of feature film production forever, to light-weight consumer device for anyone to take advantage of.

Shane Hurlbut - ASC, talks about shooting feature films with the EOS 5D Mark II

07/06/2010

Rick Young
Shane Hurlbut has embraced the DSLR technology, particularly the Canon 5D Mark II, as a cinematic tool suitable for feature film production. Having been the Director of Photography on 35mm feature films, such as Terminator Salvation, Shane understands big budget production and how this kind of movie making happens. Shane has been one of the pioneers of using DSLRs in feature films with a 15 camera system which he tells us all about.

---

---

Arriflex Alexa - Stephan Ukas-Bradley

31/05/2010

Rick Young
NAB 2010 and the talk of the show is Arri ALEXA - a digital cinema camera which records native ProRes at standard or HQ ProRes, using SxS as the recording medium. Interchangeable lenses with PL mount, with other options to follow. The camera is a similar size to an Arri 16SR and has captured the imagination of cinematographers and producers due to its ease of use, image quality, and compatibility with Final Cut Pro. This digital motion picture camera comes from ARRIFLEX, one of the great manufacturers of film motion picture cameras.

Rodney Charters: Cinematographer

24/05/2010

Rick Young
Rodney Charters talks about the excitement surrounding the Canon EOS 5D Mark II and other DSRs, with comments on the recently announced Arriflex Alexa and also the RED digital cinema camera. In this piece he talks about the needs of the industry for different types of production and gives his views of where cinema acquisition is going in the near to medium future.

Talk less and shoot more: interview with Vincent Laforet

17/05/2010

Rick Young
Late 2008 and Vincent Laforet gets his hands on a Canon EOS 5D Mark II prototype. In the space of a single weekend a film, called Reverie, is produced - this quickly clocks up over two million views online. In the months that follow the EOS 5D Mark II gains acceptance as a new way of making films; extending the tool-set available to those wishing to produce high quality images without a huge budget. Vincent relives the excitement of that time and gives his views on where technology will take us.

Shooting with DSRs: comments by Ned Soltz

08/05/2010

Rick Young
DSLRs have exploded into the filmmaking world in a short space of time, redefining the toolset available to those seeking cinema-looking images on a budget. However, these cameras are not without their problems. In this interview, digital video expert, Ned Soltz, gives an honest opinion of what it is like to work with a Digital SLR camera - the pros, the cons, what these cameras are suitable for and reasons why one needs to steer clear for certain shooting situations.

RED Digital Cinema: changing the face of movie making

26/04/2010

Rick Young
RED Digital Cinema has shaken up the production market like no other company in the history of movie making. In the space of 3 short years the RED ONE camera has become used in markets which traditionally relied on 35mm motion picture film. RED has redefined the standard and price for which films can be produced. Now RED is on the verge of releasing EPIC, a 5K digital cinema camera which is smaller than the original RED ONE, produces higher quality, and is capable of producing images which once again will redefine the equipment needed for feature film production.

Vaughan Smith: Return from Afghanistan

05/04/2010

Rick Young
Back only a few days from Afghanistan, Vaughan provides insight into what is going on in this country. Right at the front lines of the action we witness what the British troops deal with daily, fire fights, snipers, unexploded improvised devices, and a mission which, in Vaughan's words, makes this "a thinking man's war."

Run-through of the Ki Pro by Jon Thorn

08/03/2010

Rick Young
Jon has been heavily involved with the Ki Pro - it has been described as his "baby". His enthusiasm for the product shines through as he explains in detail that this product functions as a 10-bit ProRes recorder, enables one to up-convert, down-convert or cross convert the video signal, and can be used as a recorder/playback device for high quality mastering level performance.

Stu Maschwitz: DV Rebel (part 2)

22/02/2010

Rick Young
Why shoot 24P? Stu Maschwitz tells us why. In this, Part 2 of the MacVideo interview with Stu Maschwitz, he tells why shooting and replay at 24 frames per second is so important to the filmmaker. Stu Maschwitz is a highly regarded director, writer and visual effects artist based in San Francisco. He has worked as a senior visual effects supervisor on many films. He previously worked at Industrial Light and Magic and also co-founded a company known as The Orphanage.

Canon reveal prototype 4:2:2 camera; 50mbps; recording to MPEG-2

08/02/2010

Rick Young
Canon has announced it has adopted an MPEG-2 Full HD (4:2:2) file-based recording codec for a new file-based professional video camera currently under development. The new Canon MPEG-2 codec will enable high-quality imaging in a 4:2:2 colour space, making this camera suitable for many broadcast applications.

Ajay Parekh, Live Events/Video Producer

31/01/2010

Rick Young
Ajay Parekh has had 2 decades of experience in the live events, conference and video industry. Trained as a stage managerhe quickly developed his people and project management skills into the film and television industry. During his four years at the BBC he worked on many projects, with one of his highlights being a film called 'Truly, Madly, Deeply' Written and Directed by the late Anthony Minguella.

The future of Radio Mics. - Alain Richer, Sennheiser

18/01/2010

Dean Cleary
Much of the entertainment industry relies on radio mics: television, theatre, concerts, hotels, events - at every corner of the production scene there is a need for wireless mics which are high quality and effective. The current range of radio mics rely on analogue frequencies. As these frequencies are reallocated or switched off this presents a problem to the entertainment industry with fears current equipment will not work for too much longer.

Matt Davis on the PMW-EX1R

11/01/2010

Rick Young
When Sony released the PMW-EX1 over 2 years ago now, Matt Davis purchased one of the cameras as an upgrade to his Z1. The jump in quality was significant, the tapeless workflow provided the means for ultra-fast turnaround, and since then Matt has moved more and more away from the world of tape and to a file-based workflow. Now Matt has purchased a PMW-EX1R. In this interview he gives impressions the latest model, what has changed, what matters, and tells just why he is now considering a second EX1R.

Best of MacVideo Interviews 2009 (parts 3 & 4)

02/01/2010

Rick Young
Featuring: Claudio von Planta - War Cameraman/Journalist; Jonathan Walls- Co-Director/Editor; Lenny Lipton - Independent Filmmaker; Michael Wohl - original Final Cut Pro Development Team; Vaughan Smith - War Cameraman/Journalist; Walter Murch - Feature Film Editor; Tom Ohanian - Founding team Avid Technology; Jerry Hofmann - Digital Video Pioneer; Ramy Katrib - CEO and Founder, DigitalFilm Tree; The Ken Stone Sessions (part 1).

Underwater Specialist: Luca Coltri

07/12/2009

Rick Young
In this interview Luca talks about the equipment he uses, how it operates, and just what he has to go through to work as an underwater videographer. Beyond the task of acquiring the footage, the post-production process is equally interesting. The footage is shot an 50 frames per second, providing slow motion, and is then conformed using Apple's Cinema Tools to the required frame-rate. The option is there to work at slow motion (50 fps) or standard motion (25 fps). For HD acquisition Luca works with the Panasonic DVCPro HD format.

top | older >>