After two days of pouring over the entire online manual and editing with Final Cut Pro X I have to say there are things I love about it that I’ve always wished Final Cut Pro had (performance, integrated metadata support, background processing), and things that are deep disappointments (lack of XML import/export, lack of multitrack audio editing, splitting tracks, exporting stems). Final Cut Pro X is like a precocious teenager that still has some growing up to do before they are ready for the adult world, but they have prospects, and we simply have to take a wait and see attitude. I can’t depend on it for mission critical work, however, I will use it for editing and see what it can do, and over time, and as it evolves, it might become part of my professional workflow.

I like the product and I think Apple did more things right than wrong. We have to take a moment to pause and reflect this is a version 1.0 product, not 10.0 like the splash screen states. But the things that are missing are not consistent with the hype, and there lies the rub. It’s possible that the way this product was released at the same time support for the current version was dropped may have done huge damage to the brand among professionals, but on the other hand Final Cut Pro X bring excitement and sizzle to the majority of people editing everything besides professional productions that require complex workflows and resource sharing. This much larger group is the future. Sophisticated editing has become democratized. Apple is betting on the new generation. When it comes to shareholder value and market share, there is no room for nostalgia or catering to the old ways. Leave the pros in the dust, their days are numbered, at least that’s the message I hear through Apple’s actions. Apple can say they support professionals, but their actions say otherwise, and as Aristotle reminds us in The Poetics, character is revealed through action. It’s clear that the future lies in tens of millions of individual editors, not in tens of thousands of professional editors. I’m sure many of the missing pro features will be added.

Here are three interesting threads I’ve been following this week:

Larry Jordan: Ain’t Nothing Like It In the World

My response to Larry’s blog post:

Larry, this post has been very useful and thought provoking. While Final Cut Pro X has a slick interface and provides sizzling performance, I can’t imagine using it in a professional environment. Without the ability to place audio in individual tracks for exporting to a sound editing and mixing application, without multi-cam, without the ability to import legacy Final Cut Pro projects, without EDL or XML export for transferring work I can’t take it seriously in a professional environment. This resets the clock back to version 1.0 and it’s a travesty. [PAUSE] sip on Apple Kool-Aid [PAUSE] Final Cut Pro X is revolutionary, it’s awesome, it’s what we’ve all been waiting for! 64 bit performance, background rendering, new interface, none of this could have been done in an evolutionary way the way Adobe does with their applications, Apple is about revolution and what Apple tells us we’re going to like, we’re going to like, and two or three versions later, we’re all going to say, why did we not do it like this all along?

Philip Hodgetts: What are the Answers to the Unanswered Questions about Final Cut Pro X?

My response to Philips’s blog post:

At the end of the day, I think much of the anger and frustration is ultimately about the gap between what works today (Final Cut Pro 7) and what is promised (some future version of Final Cut Pro that supports a professional workflow). In this interim many of us will have to continue using Final Cut Pro 7 with no idea how long this gap is going to be with our work, our livelihood now depends on an unsupported product. Imagine the outcry if Avid did the same thing to their users? But Avid would never do this, their editing applications are their livelihood, on the other hand, Final Cut Pro is a tiny sliver of Apple’s business, and so given this fact we have plenty of justification in being concerned, it’s hard not to feel as a professional and educator that the rug has been pulled from under me and there is no soft landing in sight.

DVinfo.net: FCP X Now available to buy and download from App Store.

One of my contributions to the discussion thread:

Goes to show that in the wake of all the hype, reality is now setting in. This is becoming a fascinating case study in expectations, and the meaning of the “Final Cut Pro” brand. It’s a risky strategy to kill off an old product, replace it with a completely different one, and call the new version “awesome” as if it was the second coming. As “iMovie Pro 1.0″ FCP X is brilliant. As the next version in the Final Cut Pro line? It’s ludicrous. It’s going to take the hyperspace edition of the reality distortion field to fix this situation…

In some ways this break between the old ways of Final Cut Pro and what would have better been called iMovie Pro 1.0 gives us all a chance to re-evaluate our choices of editing tools. I started on Avid, perhaps it’s time to take a look at where they are at, I stopped using Avid with the introduction of Final Cut Pro 4.5 in what now seems like ancient times. This might also a good time to see if Premiere Pro is worthy of this role, since Adobe has a good track record of evolving applications and not leaving their professional users out in the cold as they evolve their products (I’ve been using Adobe Photoshop since version 1.0).

The time has come to look around and play the field, for no matter what happens in the future, one thing is for certain, Final Cut Pro as we know it has come to the end of the line, it is a dead product with no support. We have to consider the tradeoffs of jumping over the chasm between where we are with Final Cut Pro 7 and the promises that Final Cut Pro X will grow up fast enough to meet out needs and fulfill our desires. For now I will continue editing my mission critical work with Final Cut Pro 7 and experiment on short projects with other tools and see what happens. The day Final Cut Pro 7 stops working due to an OS X update or new hardware incompatibility will force a change, but for now, it’s still smooth sailing with a lot of underlying anxiety that comes with editing on a dead platform.

Video from Abattoir Rising, a work-in-progress documentary by Audrey Kali

But the camera itself has never really been the ideal place to record audio, since ideal microphone placement is rarely at the camera position, so double system (a.k.a. double or dual source) sound recording (which was the standard in the days of film cameras) is coming back in vogue. Double system is the practice of recording sound and image separately in production, and then synchronizing them in post production. This used to be a laborious process, but thanks to new tools like Dual Eyes or Plural Eyes from Singular Software, this process can be automated in Final Cut Pro.

So what to record with? Professional location sound recorders can cost thousands of dollars. If you’re on a tight budget, don’t fret, you can record excellent sound with one of several portable audio recorders on the market. For example, the following four units are all under $300. and can produce good results. In the end, microphone placement is at the top of the list of those factors contributing to the quality of location sound recording for your documentary.

In a future post, I’ll look at some higher-end recorders (the downside of these little puppies is they are not as quiet as you would like them to be). In my next post, I’ll talk in some detail about some microphones to use with these small recorders and how to automatically synchronize the audio from them to the audio and video recorded with your camera using Dual Eyes or Plural Eyes from Singular Software. One comment about formats: for video editing, I suggest setting these recorders to WAV, 16-bit, 48kHz recording. Don’t use the MP3 format for location sound recording. It’s fine for notes, meetings, etc. but you want to start off with the cleanest, uncompressed recording. Better formats like 24-bit and higher sampling rates are overkill for dialog and don’t produce significantly better recordings with these little puppies due to other limitations in their design.

Manufacturer	Zoom (Samson)	M-Audio	Roland	Zoom (Samson)
Model	Zoom H2	Microtrack II	R-09HR	Zoom H4n
Street Price (U.S.)	$140	$180	$265	$299
Manufacturer’s web site	[link]	[link]	[link]	[link]
Recording formats	WAV (BWF): 16 or 24-bit @ 44.1, 48, 96kHz (Stereo) and 44.1, 48kHz (4 Channel) MP3: 48 to 320 kbps, @ 44.1kHz	WAV (BWF): 16 or 24 bit @ 44.1, 48, 88.2, or 96kHz; MP3: 96 to 320kbps @ 44.1 or 48kHz	WAV: 16 or 24-bit @ 44.1, 48, 88.2, or 96kHz; MP3: 64 to 320kbps @ 44.1 or 48kHz	WAV: 16 or 24-bit @ 44.1, 48, 96kHz; MP3: 48kbps to 320kbps @ 44.1kHz
Channels	2 or 4	2	2	2 or 4
Limiter/AGC	Limiter or Automatic Gain Control	Analog input limiter with bypass	Limiter or Automatic Gain Control	Compressor/Limiter
Low-cut Filter	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Balanced inputs:	No	Yes (TRS, Mic or Line)	No	Yes (XLR/TRS combo)
Phantom Power:	No	Yes (48V)	No	Yes (48V or 24V)
3.5mm mini-jack audio input	Yes (Mic and Line)	Yes (Mic)	Yes (Mic and Line)	Yes (Mic)
Plug-in Power on 3.5mm mic input	Yes (2.5 V)	Yes (5V)	Yes (5V)	Yes (2.92 V)
Built-in Microphone	Yes (W-XY mic patterns with 4 mic capsules and signal processing allows Front 90° cardioid, Rear 120° cardioid and 360° polar patterns)	No	Yes (Stereo 2 mic in T configuration)	Yes (X/Y stereo configuration can be configured with 90° or 120° recording pattern)
Headphone output	3.5mm mini-jack	3.5mm mini-jack	3.5mm mini-jack	3.5mm mini-jack
Additional inputs or outputs	Line in, Line out (via headphone jack)	S/PDIF coaxial digital input, line out (RCA connectors)	Line out (3.5mm mini-jack)	Line out (3.5mm mini-jack)
Recording Media	SD or SDHC flash cards up to 32GB	CompactFlash (CF) or Microdrives	SD or SDHC flash cards up to 8GB	SD or SDHC cards up to 32GB
Display Screen	Backlit LCD	Backlit LCD	1.5″ OLED	Backlit LCD
Interface	USB-2	USB-2	USB-2
Power	AA Batteries or AC adapter	Built in Li-Ion battery (charges battery and can be powered via USB port) AC to USB power adapter included.	AA Batteries or AC adapter	AA Batteries or AC adapter (or USB adapter, not included)
Additional features	Awesome stereo imaging with 4 microphone capsules and clever signal processing.	Add markers to BWF recordings easily, includes electret t-shaped stereo microphone, software for editing and file format conversion, 1/8″ stereo extension cable with lapel clip.	Wireless remote included; speed adjustment effects; Cakewalk Pyro Audio Creator software included	Built in reference speaker, optional remote control, can be mounted on a standard camera tripod threaded mount. Four track recording takes two channels from the built-in mic and two channels from the XLR/TRS inputs. Can be used as an USB audio interface (sampling rate 44.1 kHz)
Commentary	Popular, value priced contender, great for recording live music and ambience tracks. If you need XLR inputs, check out it’s big brother, the H4n.	A solid performer. If you are looking for a small recorder to use with separate phantom-powered condenser mics, this might be the one for you, the built-in battery is it’s Achilles heel, it will not hold much of a charge after a couple of years of use. M-Audio charges about $75. for a battery replacement. If this recorder worked with AA batteries, it would the perfect portable recorder in this price category. The first Microtrack had issues with low phantom power voltage and did not have a limiter (essential for professional recording), and those issues got fixed with this model, I hope the battery issue will be resolved in version 3.	A solid performer, if it had balanced TRS inputs with phantom power, it would be the perfect portable recorder in this price category. While I own a Microtrack v.1, I use these a lot in a educational context and they have held up well with student use and are good for teaching with their nicely organized menu, logical set of controls, and crisp, easily to read display. Having a choice between AGC or Limiter is nice.	With X-Y microphones, 4 channel recording (so you can record stereo ambience with the built-in mic and dialog from condenser microphones or mixer at the same time, what’s there not to like about this nice update to the H4? One strange thing about the design is that the 3.5mm microphone jack is located on the back of the device, and the plug-in power voltage is not a full 5 volts, but does seems to work with a reasonable number of Plug-in Power microphones.

After doing some shopping around, I’ve come to the conclusion that the Sennheiser Evolution Series provides a nice middle ground between the less expensive systems (e.g. Azden) popular among wedding videographers and the more expensive wireless systems used by location sound professionals (e.g. Lectrosonics). I’ve used the Lectrosonics on a number of professional shoots and the performance of their “Digital Hybrid” system is spectacular, but it’s a little more than I have budget for, so the Sennheiser Evolution G3 it will be it.

There are two configurations of the Sennheiser Evolution G3 100 Series to consider for documentary work:

Camera Mount Wireless Microphone System, kit number EW 112P G3-{A/B/G}, estimated price: $600 (US), this kit includes:

• SK100 G3 Bodypack Transmitter
• ME2 Lavalier Mic
• EK100 G3 Portable Receiver
• Cold-shoe adapter for Receiver
• Interconnection cables (1/8″ and XLR) for connecting Receiver to camera
• Excellent, clearly written owners manual

Wireless Microphone ENG Combo, kit number EW 100 ENG G3-{A/B/G}, estimated price: $800 (US), this kit includes all of the items in the Camera Mount Wireless Microphone System, plus:

• SKP100 G3 Plug-In Transmitter

Compared to less expensive VHF wireless systems, a UHF system provides longer range and you’ll experience fewer drop-outs and interference during use. I’ve had really good luck using the Sennheiser Evolution wireless system over the past year, and have been very pleased with its performance both in terms of sound quality and overall robustness and have not run into too many interference issues. Being able to tune the devices to one of 1,680 tunable frequencies makes it easy to find quiet spots in a electromagnetically noisy area like the Boston metropolitan area in which I live.

The EK100 receiver is designed to be attached to a camera via a cold-shoe adapter, it has a 1/8″ unbalanced TRS mini out which can be connection to camcorders with either a 1/8″ or XLR input (Sennheiser provides both 1/8″ or XLR interconnect cables in their kits). The receiver has 4 preset memory locations that can be reassigned to any of the 1,680 available frequencies, within the 42 MHz tuning range. This is handy because you can determine the frequencies least likely to have interference in your area and program these into the four presents, making it easier to pull these out and get them working quickly in documentary situations. The G3 features a new “adaptive diversity” design, it’s not “true diversity” but it does offer slightly better performance compared to the previous G2 series. There are also adjustments for audio level output and a squelch adjustment. It’s critical to set the audio level output to match your camera, otherwise you’ll get some over-modulation, which is sometimes hard to detect in the field unless you’re listening really carefully with good headphones (which you should always be doing, right?).

The system is available in two transmitter configurations: the SK100 body pack transmitter and the SKP100 plug-on transmitter, which attaches to any self-powered metal body microphone with an XLR connector (e.g. Electro-Voice RE50 reporters microphone) to be used wirelessly. The SK100 G3 body-pack transmitter has a 1/8″ locking-mini input for compatible lavalier microphones and it comes with an ME2 omnidirectional lavalier microphone. The transmitters support adjustments for audio input gain, and it’s important to adjust this properly. You want to avoid peaks (there’s an LED peak indicator in addition to an audio level on the LCD) but also not set the levels too low so you’re lost in the noise floor. In terms of functionality, the plug-in transmitter is very similar to the body-pack transmitter.

The EK100 receiver, SK100 G3 body-pack transmitter, and SKP100 G3 plug-in transmitter are each powered by two AA batteries and each sports an LCD display which makes it easy to configure and make adjustments via a logically organized menu system. When not in menu mode the LCD shows you channels and frequency information, battery status, audio level, and signal status. All three devices have metal bodies, which allegedly makes them more robust that cheaper plastic units, but I’ve never dropped any of these devices in order to find out how rugged they really are. I’m not tempted to try.

In the United States, the Evolution G3 is a UHF wireless microphone system available in three frequency ranges, A: 516 – 558MHz, B: 626 – 668MHz, or G: 566 – 608MHz, providing 1680 tunable frequencies and 12 frequency presets. Which range to get? The idea is to find a range that has the largest number of “dead spots” which all depends on your region. Sennheiser has a great calculator on their web site in which you can see all the licensed transmitters in your area in order to determine where the open slots are in the spectrum. You can use this to decide whether A, B, or G frequency ranges are best for you. It’s also handy for setting up presets that are likely to be free and clear, so there’s less fussing around in the field. The B frequency group seems to be the best option for the Boston area based on conversations with some sound people I know.

In some situations I like using the plug-in transmitter with my Electro-Voice RE-50 reporters microphone, I like having the mobility without the wire, therefore the EW 100 ENG G3-B kit is my preference. If you never see yourself using the plug-on transmitter with a hand-held or boom microphone (by the way, it has to be a metal body mic and self powered, since the SKP100 G3 Plug-In Transmitter does not provide phantom power), you can save money and get the EW 122P G3-B kit instead of the EW 100 ENG G3-B kit. Basically you’re paying an additional $200. (US) for the plug-on transmitter.

A future option to consider is upgrading the Sennheiser ME2 to a TRAM-50 (my favorite lavalier, available cabled for the EW transmitters for about $220 (US)). You many also consider adding a Sennheiser ME4 cardioid mic to your kit for use in high-noise environments (but I would not go with this as your only mic due to more critical placement issues).

You will also want to add a Rycote Lavaliere Windjammer (or equivalent) if you’re going to be working outdoors, these are available in white, grey, or black for about $25. (US) each. A windjammer is essential when using a lavalier mic outdoors when there is wind. Here’s an important pointer: use the windjammer over a foam windscreen on the lavalier, since the windjammer needs air space around the mic itself to work properly. I keep several of them in my sound kit at all times.

There is really only one down-side I’ve experienced using the Sennheiser Evolution G2 wireless microphone system (and this goes for the new G3 as well): since the receiver is designed to mount on a camera, it’s really awkward to use in a situation where you have a couple of receivers and a mixer in a shoulder-mounted pouch. The LCD display is simply in the wrong place. I really wish Sennheiser would have placed the LCD display on the top of the device (like the Lectrosonics receivers), but for mounting on a camera, I can see why the designers placed the LCD on top, and given that Sennheiser has brought these units into the marketplace at such an attractive price-point, this is but a minor inconvenience.

In the Boston area you can purchase these kits from Talamas Broadcast Systems, Rule Broadcast Systems, or The Camera Company. Online you can purchase them from B&H Photo-Video.

This post was inspired by Monika Fimpel, thanks for asking the question, and thanks to Bill Shamlian for his insights on wireless systems and frequency selections.

Note: This post was revised on February 22, 2010 to reflect that Rule Broadcast Systems is also a Sennheiser dealer. I also fixed an error in which I specified the EW 122P G3 kit (which includes ME4 microphone (cardioid) mic) instead of the EW 112P G3 kit that I intended to list that comes with the more versatile ME2 (omnidirectional) microphone. While the ME4 is better in high-noise environments, its added directionality and proximity effect make it less versatile for general use. If you’re only going to have one microphone for your wireless system, the ME2 is a more versatile choice, and if you find you need the more directional ME4 in some situations, it (or another cardioid lav) can be purchased separately.

Update:I actually went ahead and purchased two kits, one w/ an additional plug-on transmitter. I’ve been using these since April of 2010 and I’m very pleased with the kit (April 19, 2010).

• SFDN101 Documentary Video Boot Camp (Monday through Friday, June 8-12, 9a-5p, 1.5 credits). An immersive hands-on learning experience for those who want to learn the fundamentals of video documentary in an intimate and focused setting.
• MPFV217 Documentary Project Studio (meets Tuesdays, June 16 through Aug 4, 6-9:30p, 1.5 credits). A studio course for students who want to produce their own complete short documentary, prerequisite: Documentary Video Boot Camp or equivalent experience.

In addition, check out the summer schedule of film/video courses available online, especially Maria Agui Carter’s Producing the Documentary class.

More details and sample handouts are available on my Documentary Video Boot Camp page. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about these classes or call MassArt Professional and Continuing Education at 617.879.7200 to register.

Photo credit: Toys by saaby

Practical Sound Recording and Editing Techniques For Better Video
Friday, March 20th, 3:00pm to 5:00pm, Poolside Room, Fee: $25.00
(REGISTER NOW)
Sound is half the picture, yet most often it receives only casual attention. Viewers can’t articulate what’s wrong, but quite often it’s the soundtrack that either engages or distances them. This session will present practical techniques and a guide to the tools for recording and editing sound for video that will improve your work whether you are a beginning or intermediate video maker. Real-world problems in a range of shooting situations and their solutions will be presented. Discussion topics include microphone selection and placement, recording strategies for noisy locations, improving intelligibility of dialog, mixing in music without interfering with dialog, making sure your video sounds good on a wide range of devices, and doing it all in a manner that flows nicely with video editing. Special attention will be paid to working on a tight budget and getting the most out of modest gear.

Lighting Techniques for Better Documentary Interviews
Saturday, March 21st, 3:00pm to 5:00pm, Room TBA, Fee: $25.00
(REGISTER NOW)
This session will present through discussion, examples, and demonstration a practical approach to lighting documentary interviews ranging from low-budget existing light and one light techniques to classic three-point lighting and beyond using professional lighting instruments. The first half of the session will cover lighting fundamentals, a survey of popular lighting fixtures, screening of examples with a discussion of aesthetic and technical tradeoffs, and suggestions for putting together a kit based on your specific needs. The second half of the session will consist of demonstration using a variety of lighting gear so participants can gain some practical experience with the topics discussed during the first half of the session.

If you live in the Boston area and are interested in video production or post-production, this is the place to be on March 20th and 21st, 2009. A schedule of workshops (for fee) and free seminars is available at the Camera Company web site in the near future.

You can order replacement pads from Sony, but I did not like the idea of replacing the pads with the same pads that I knew would again fall apart and in addition, I was never crazy about their plastic feel. Over the years I’ve noticed that other folks have replaced the original Sony pads with velour pads made by Beyerdynamic (model number 942704) which fit the Sony MDR-7506 and V6 (it’s predecessor) headphones perfectly. So I decided to give them a try.

I ordered them from B&H for $19.95 a pair and they turned out to be good purchase. They have breathed new life into the headphones and they are much more comfortable to wear. I found it was a little tricky getting these pads onto the headphones, but with a little stretching of the pad and the use of a credit card to helped guide the plastic ring around the groove in each of the headphone’s metal shells, I completed the installation. The pads come with plastic adapters for other headphones, those can go straight into the recycling since you will not need then for attaching the pads onto the Sony MDR-7506 and V6 and headphones. It’s been about six months or so since I purchased the pads and I’m very happy with them, the headphones are very comfortable to wear, even for long periods of time. These velour pads transform these excellent headphones into most excellent headphones. Good headphones are an important investment. In this disposable world we live in, it’s nice to be able to refresh an old standard.

In an earlier post, I sung the praises of the Sony MDR-7506 headphones.

Here are some resources associated with my session, “Practical Sound Recording and Editing Techniques For Better Video” recently given at the 4th Annual New Media Expo held in Las Vegas.

Presentation Slides

Here’s a copy of my presentation slides, available in two flavors.

Sound-Better-Video-4NME.pdf
A PDF of the presentation slides (34MB).

Sound-Better-Video-4NME-Notes.pdf
A PDF of notes to accompany the presentation slides (236K).

Dialog audio clips

The following files are available for download as a zip archive: dialog.zip (8.7MB)

David-123.wav
Recording made with an RE50 omnidirectional, handheld microphone, from three distances, 1 foot, 2 feet, and 3 feet. Note how the audio level falls off dramatically as we move farther away from the source, there’s also some background noise.

David-123-levelator.wav
The above recording processed with Levelator, notice how bringing up the level of the second and third recordings brings up the noise level too. Keeping the mic close the source keeps the level of the voice well above the room noise. The farther away the mic, the less difference between the dialog level and room noise level. Levelator is a good tool for quick and dirty balancing of levels of an audio track, but can sound strange when the original recording is not perfectly clean. Note how the three recordings are progressively worse, since Levelator has to deal with more noise.

Scott.aif
The baseline audio clip, recorded in a room with hard walls, note the reverberation that results, this is impossible to remove.

Scott-Levelator.aif
The Scott.aif clip processed through Levelator

Scott-3Comp-2Gain.aif
The Scott.aif clip processed with 3:1 compression and +2dB gain, zero attack, gentle decay

Scott-3Comp.aif
The Scott.aif clip processed with 3:1 compression, zero attack, gentle decay

Scott-6Gain.aif
The Scott.aif clip without compression but +6dB gain

MS audio clips

The following files are available for download as a zip archive: MSdemo.zip (11MB)

MS-1M-2S.aif
The baseline clip recorded with an MS microphone, M in Ch. 1 and S in Ch. 2. See notes in presentation for more details.

MS-M-only.aif
The mid capsule (short-shotgun) only. This is also good demo of how a source to the side and in front of a short shotgun sounds, notice how the off-axis sound is not only muted, but it’s colored. See notes in presentation for more details.

MS-S-only.aif
The side (figure-of-eight a.k.a. bidirectional) capsule only. Also a good demo of just how much side-rejection a bidirectional mic is capable of. See notes in presentation for more details.

MS-M+S-mixed.aif
The M and S channels mixed.

MS-Stereo-M+6dB.aif
The M and S tracks put through an MS matrix to covert Mid/Side to Left/Right, M channel given +6dB gain to emphasize the speaker in front of the mic.

MS-Mono-fr-StM+6dB.aif
The stereo MS-Stereo-M+6dB.aif track collapsed to mono. The +6dB gain added to the M channel messes up the stereo imaging a bit.

If you’re interested in blogging, podcasting, video on the web, social networks, and how you can get the most out of Web 2.0 and new media, PodCamp is the event for you with two days of great conversations, knowledge sharing, and insights into the leading edge of new media.

Check out the schedule, you’re sure to find something of interest. Yours truly will be doing two presentations on Saturday morning following the Opening UnKeynote: “Improve your video using cinematic language technique” (10:00 – 10:45 am) and “Art of the Interview: Strategies and Techniques for Better Video Interviews” (11:15 am – 12:00 noon). I’m also participating in the “Project Reviews” session with Larry Lawfer on Sunday morning. Hope to see you there!

Here’s a quick comparison I did of recording dialog with an MKH60 Shotgun Microphone mounted on a camera vs. mounted on a boom.

Click To Play

External SATA drive
LaCie d2 external drive via FireWire 800 interface,
LaCie d2 external drive via FireWire 400 interface, and
Mac Book Pro internal SATA drive (5400RPM).

While performance among various drives and interfaces is bound to vary, I think the test confirms that unless you’re using a RAID, the fastest single disk performance you’re going to see with a MacBook Pro is with an external SATA drive.

Notes: Xbench 1.3 used for tests, units in MB/sec; Hardware: MacBook Pro (Santa Rosa) w/ Fujitsu 5400 RPM SATA internal drive and SIIG eSATA II two-port EXpressCard/34 interface card; External SATA: Western Digital Caviar SE 2 SATA 7200 RPM drive w/ 16MB Cache in PowerSpec enclosure; External FireWire Drive: LaCie d2 Firewire Drive (internal: Western Digital IDE 7200 RPM drive w/ 8MB cache). All file systems HSF+/Journaled.

The New England Chapter of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) held its Annual Digital Production Showcase (which has become a mid-winter tradition) on Wednesday, January 17th at WCVB-TV’s studio in Needham, Massachusetts. My photos from the event are available on Flickr. In addition to being fed sandwiches and piping hot New England clam chowder (very appropriate given the cold snap) attendees had a chance to experience hands-on demos of the latest digital production tools in a collegial atmosphere. I thank SMPTE/New England for hosting such a delightful event in which I can catch up with what’s happening in the realm of digital production.

While vendors had lots to show, the really interesting conversations were on the show floor, abuzz with speculation of what vendors might be unveiling at NAB in Las Vegas this year. This year the show had more exhibits than ever before, and while the emphasis of the show is video post production and non-linear editing, I took delight in checking out several new cameras.

Marty Feldman from The Camera Company showed me the new HVR-V1U, Sony’s first entry into an affordable entry-level progressive scan HDV camera, it sports three 1/4″ CMOS chips. Also in the Camera Company Booth were two other popular HDV camcorders, the Canon XH-A1 and the JVC GY-HD250. The HD250 is a much needed upgrade to their ProHD line-up featuring 720/60p recording, HD SDI and component out, and a decent battery connector for Anton-Bauer batteries. The cheesy add-on connector that’s available for the earlier GY-HD100 was very fragile to put it politely. With the 250 the camera line has grown up

Vendors know that many sophisticated people will be kicking the tires at this event, so they send out some of their more knowledgeable representatives for this show, it was a good evening for getting answers to tough camera and post-production questions.

There was also talk among some Final Cut Pro editors that they are tired of rendering hell and are ready to switch to some of the real-time alternatives now available on “the other platform.” As editors mix different media types on the timeline these days, the time wasted rendering is becoming a serious productivity issue. More than one editor I spoke with expressed their disappointment that Apple has yet to address this issue and is apparently more concerned with iPods and iPhones than creative production.

1 Beyond was at the show pleased to offer Final Cut Pro editors an alternatives with the Matrox Axio running on their HD Octoflex eight processor workstation running Windows XP. When it comes to HD editing, and you start to compare prices and performance, the Axio solution is in the same ballpark as Final Cut Pro on a Mac Pro with a Kona 3 card but offers better real-time performance.

Why has it taken Apple so long to deliver a true real-time solution? There were no significant announcements at NAB from Apple last year regarding Final Cut Pro. Will Apple at NAB this year finally unveil the long-rumored next version of Final Cut Pro? Will it finally address the problems of real-time performance, color correction, and media management? Apple’s acquisition of Silicon Color and Art Box leads me to speculate that Apple may have something interesting to show. In the meantime, with deadlines looming, some editors tell me they are at the point where they would rather switch that wait. Personally, I’m going to wait.

In addition to their line of P2 cameras and decks, Panasonic had on hand their amazing BT-LH2600W 26″ LCD and BT-LH1700W 17″ LCD monitors. Although the blacks are still not as good as you will find with professional CRT monitors, these LCDs come very close and do a good job of simulating the color response of SMPTE phosphors. These monitors have a useful function that will superimposed a Waveform monitor display over the image. They also provide dual-rate SDI HD or SD inputs, component input (Y, Pb, Pr) as well as a PC RGB input. Most critical viewers will prefer to use a Sony BVM or PVM series glass CRT, but since CRTs have been phased out and sell on eBay for more than their original selling price, these LCD monitors from Panasonic are really looking good as a flatter, more environmentally friendly alternative.

With digital production comes the need to manage lots of storage, with high performance and reliability. I saw two RAID storage solutions that meet the needs of small to medium sized-facilities. 1 Beyond was showing off their Intelliraid C-XPR providing fiber channel performance designed specifically for video that allows you to work with 30fps, uncompressed, 1080i video without skipping a beat. Another storage option is the Terrablock from Facilis Technology. Francis Albert, president, founder, and former Avid guy, described it as a high-performance fibre channel storage soulution that can be shared between Linux, Windows XP and Mac OS X clients running a range of NLE applications. Their 12D model can support 10 clients over 4Gbit fibre and in terms of real-time performance is cpable of serving two clients at a time playing 24P 10-bit 1080 video, or a single client running 2K DPX at 24fps.

In comparison to the many new storage offerings like the two above, Apple’s XServe RAID is looking mighty long in the tooth. Why does Apple do that? They introduce an amazing product, market the hell out of it, sell a bunch, and then forgets about it for sometimes years? Sometimes I think Apple is like an ADD teenager that gets very excited about something and and then moves on to the next crush.

Tom Talbot of Rule Broadcast Systems showed me Anycast with Sony’s new add-on board that allows it to switch high definition, as well as mix HD and SD sources. Anycast provides cost effective switching of multiple cameras for covering live events and now with the ability to bring HD cameras into the mix, is an even more compelling offering for people who need to switch multiple cameras but are working on a very tight budget. Also in the Rule both was Sony’s F350 XDXAM HD camera, which I’ve had the pleasure of shooting with and I’m very impressed with the amazing image quality, in spite of 1/2″ chips and the MPEG-2 recording. With excellent image quality, variable frame rates, progressive scan, Blu-Ray disk recording, ENG form-factor, and the ability to put good glass on it, the F350 offers a compelling middle ground in-between the crowd of low-end camcorders with the fragile and problematic HDV recording format and the higher-end 2/3″ professional camcorders. I have to say I really like the XDXCAM HD disk format in lieu of tape idea.

David Talamas had the amazing little Zylight in his booth (which I raved about in my NAB 2006 post), along with the elegant Sound Devices 744T digital audio recorder and the JVC GY-HD250 which he’s very pleased with. The JVC has done well for them, and customers are constantly amazed with the picture quality, as long as you take the time to create a look for the camera. JVC has not yet figured out that they really need to tweak their default look. One of the reasons filmmakers are so happy with the DVX100 and HVX200 from Panasonic is that right out of the box they look great. The JVC can also look very good (I shoot with one now and then) but you have to tweak the settings.

WCVB-TV was a gracious host and in addition to providing a spacious location for this event, was taking attendees on tours of their facility. There was much more to see, including the latest offerings from Autodesk, Grass Valley’s portable news room, Panasonic’s DVCPRO HD cameras, decks, and P2 players, Avid’s product line, Harris-Leitch, Quantel, Telestream, and more.