» Posts Tagged ‘aftereffects’
Anyone who’s read the expanded PDF of the DSLR Guide knows that I use Neat Video for noise reduction. While the results are top-notch, I do have some issues with the plugin: namely, that it doesn’t take advantage of the host machine’s graphics card, and as such the render times can be quite slow. A new entrant in the video noise-reduction market is Magic Bullet Denoiser, which ships as part of the excellent Magic Bullet Suite 10. I haven’t had the chance to fire up the plug-in yet, but there are a few excellent reviews and tutorials already out there: More »
Since we’re on the topic of backyard effects with that Russian Transformers clip, let’s take a look at the technique of integrating 3D objects with live action footage. The technique of placing a 3D object into a previously filmed scene (known as matchmoving) requires sophisticated camera tracking generally reserved for high-end effects packages, but Aetuts+ has a tutorial for doing it with a free After Effects plugin called Voodoo Camera Tracker. I’ve only done 2D tracking myself (to erase people and other background elements in The West Side), but if you’re interested in integrating your own 3D transformers (or something more original, perhaps?) into a live scene, here’s a tutorial for you: More »
I was recently hired to be the A Camera operator on a fashion shoot for a company that will go unnamed. I’m not trying to be mysterious — they had me sign a Non Disclosure Agreement, so I’m erring on the side of caution. Actually, posting nothing at all would probably be erring on the side of caution, but there were too many expensive tools and newfangled gadgets being put to use on the shoot for me not to share. As an indie used to low-budget DSLR shoots, getting my hands on a $200k camera was quite the departure. More »
More free After Effects tutorials: rotoscoping, tracking, expressions
In addition to Video Copilot’s free After Effects tutorials, here’s a set of free AE tutorials from Mack Dadd Productions. Note that some of these are dated, but many of the techniques still apply; I would think the Video Copilot series is a good starting point, and these could fill in any gaps. A sampling: More »
Adobe After Effects is an incredibly deep compositing program that often flusters first-time users with its myriad panels and switches. It’s not the most intuitive program, and as such I don’t recommend taking the approach I did: banging my head against the wall until it made sense. Instead, why not take advantage of two hours of free training from Video Copilot? This video series came out a while ago (circa CS3), but 99% of it still applies to CS5. More »
One of the drawbacks to shooting movies with DSLRs is the problem of stuck pixels, also known as “hot” or “dead” pixels. If every pixel on a DSLR’s large CMOS sensor is essentially a bucket for catching light, out of the tens of millions of buckets (21 million in the case of the 5D Mark II), there are always going to be a few faulty ones. But whereas dead pixels are easy to remove from still images (and harder to detect), on video they stick out like a sore thumb. So — what to do if your otherwise beautiful footage is marred by one (or more) stuck pixels? Thankfully there are a number of solutions to removing dead pixels in post, using your software of choice. Included here are methods based on Final Cut Pro, Vegas, Aperture, and After Effects. More »
mike_tee_vee: Have Nikon done ANYTHING quickly? All of their flagship lenses and bodies… Will Nikon Enter the Large Sensor Video Camera Market to Compete with Cano…
Samuel Hurtado: Dear Nikon I have nearly finished developing a high-performance cinemaDNG… Will Nikon Enter the Large Sensor Video Camera Market to Compete with Cano…
jay: one also has to account for the now severely retarded attention spans of a… Three Steps For 21st-Century Independent Filmmaking Success
jay: @Hummer > > When everyone and their cousin is making a new “web … Three Steps For 21st-Century Independent Filmmaking Success
Patrick: There was a book about a decade ago, can't remember the title, maybe it wa… Will Nikon Enter the Large Sensor Video Camera Market to Compete with Cano…