Three Quick Ways to Make Your B-roll Better

As a producer, I log hours and hours of video. There are three mistakes that I frequently see. They cut across all levels of experience. Fortunately, they’re easy to fix. Don’t Talk When Shooting B-roll It’s easy to think that you won’t need audio when you’re shooting visual sequences. But the truth is, b-roll is far more dynamic when it includes natural sound. B-roll with sound can be used for pacing between sections of your project or to cover interview sound bites and provide a rich texture. If you talk while shooting, you lose this opportunity. You’re left with just visuals. While you can sometimes get away with this, say when you use music, it’s far better to have the option of using natural sound. If you have it, chances are that you’ll find a use for it. Remember, no matter how softly you speak, the camera microphone will hear you. So…

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MediaStorm Guide to Crossfades

In my last post, 10 More Ways to Improve Your Multimedia Right Now, I wrote: Delete all dissolves between images...The eye sees cuts. When we look from one object to another, we see a blink. We don’t see one object then dissolve to another. A reader responded with a comparison: "Our eyes don’t see shallow depth-of-field [either], but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t use shallow DOF when appropriate." I agree. So before I discuss when it's appropriate to dissolve between pictures, let's quickly revisit why doing so usually doesn't work. The problem is that crossfades create an unexpected middle image. In most cases, this intermediate picture, a combination of two hopefully strong ones, is both messy and confusing. There's no particular meaning to be gleaned from this superimposition. Now, repeat this between every image over the course of a three- to five-minute project, and it's not hard to see how exhausting it…

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MediaStorm’s 10 More Ways to Improve Your Multimedia Right Now

As a followup to a previous post, here are ten more ways to improve your work right now, no matter how challenging your original assets may be. Make edits with purpose. Always ask why you are making an edit at a particular place. Is the cut motivated by action? A musical beat? A pause in narration? If you don't have a reason, you need to find a new location for your edit. Every edit must be motivated. When editing your visuals, don't cut in the middle of a word. Doing so is confusing. Edit between words, or even better, edit according to written grammar: at a comma, a period, or to emphasize a word. Cutting after words like because and however is also effective. Edit rhythmically. Make the first cut at the beginning of a spoken phrase. Time the first phrase so it ends right before a musical beat. Cut to another…

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MediaStorm’s Guide to Using Apple’s ProRes 422 Codec

One of the questions I'm asked most frequently about Final Cut is, "When do I use Apple's ProRes 422 codec?" To tackle this question it's first necessary to understand a few things about codecs. Shooting video is a very intensive digital capture process. It requires cameras to capture lots of information in a short amount of time. To handle so much raw data, most cameras need to compress what they capture. A codec is essentially a compression scheme, a way to encapsulate so much material into a containable format. Standard DV footage, for instance, uses a compression scheme referred to as the DV codec. Similarly, HD footage -- 1080i60, 1080p, etc. -- uses the HDV codec. Codec takes its name from “encoder” and “decoder” since your computer must now decode the encoded file during playback. When you create a new sequence in Final Cut, you are building what will become a new…

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MediaStorm’s Guide to Final Cut Pro Resources on the Web

Final Cut Pro is a rich application, offering vast possibilities to those who take the time to learn it well. With that goal in mind, here is a list of some of the most important Final Cut Pro resources on the web. Apple Final Cut Pro Support - Apple's repository for Final Cut white papers as well as troubleshooting information and how-to documentation. Final Cut Studio Resources - Apple's comprehensive list of support and resource links related to Final Cut Studio. Apple Final Cut Studio Discussion - This is the best place to turn when looking for answers to very specific technical problems. Final Cut Video Training Lynda.com - The fountainhead for all video training. This subscription-based site offers extensive classes on all of Final Cut Studio's applications; a great place to learn the basics. Ripple Training - Ripple Training sells both DVD-based tutorials as well as screencasts that are downloadable via…

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