We talked about it earlier and now it is official. You can read the press release here. The interesting part is Canon talking about a 2x gain in speed for Prores 422 HQ transcoding compared to Compressor. Then again, if you are using MPEG Streamclip, the speed gain should be about the same.

This last sentence sound a bit weird to me:

Additionally, users will also be able to add timecode, reel names and metadata to footage quickly and easily – further enhancing the experience of EOS MOVIE users when editing their footage.

This could mean that we will not have access to the camera metadata, something that was part of the original product developed by Gluetool.

Release date, for the free beta, will be in March so new features might pop in until then.

Note: Thanks to Peter Wiggins for the link on this one, almost missed the announcement!

A lot of people talked about the announcement of the EOS E1 plugin for FCP yesterday so I feel like I have to talk about it too. As far as we know, it is all vaporware so far since the software is not released yet. Old time blog readers might remember this post from Vincent Laforest testing a similar tool developed by Glue Tools (which has not been released yet, hence my lack of faith in unreleased software!).

So, what is all the fuzz about anyways?

Why do you need a tool to import files from the CF card to your computer? The finder/Explorer is already doing a fine job. Well, the first reason is to make the file importing task part of the FCP workflow. When using the Log & Trans window, you can attach other process to the import action, for examples sending the file to compressor for transcoding, make a backup copy on another drive, add meta tags, etc… Pretty cool and a nice time saver, especially if you are working on a set.

Now about what it cant do…

I have seen  a few cut&paste reports of people saying the plugin would allow users to start the edit with the video still in the camera/CF card. Sorry but this sounds more like a sentence taken from the generic Log & Transfert feature description than what you can expect to do from this plugin. You still need to transcode to ProRes if you want real time editing, and it is not like we are shooting 45 minutes long clips with the 5D, we are limited to 12 minutes so no real need to partial file import. Actually, I dont even know if it is possible with the H.264 codec to do partial import without re-encoding the whole clip.

So, is this a big announcement or not?

Yes it is because the Log & Trans tool is part of a professional work flow. Pros are used to it and expect it. While not a show stopper, it was keeping the 5D away from being seen as a ‘real’ tool on a production set.

The plugin is not out yet so we can’t confirm its features but I hope the file metadatas include exposure settings,  lens used, camera id, etc…

Once released, the plugin will be available here.

A while ago, we announced that the BeachTek DXA-5D was discontinued and confirmed that a new version of the product would be out ’soon’. Soon in this case sounds like the end of February /March. Just got an email from BeachTek announcing these:

I know a lot of people prefer to use en external recording device such as the Zoom H4n but being able to record (and monitor) directly on the 5D means no sync in post which can be a real time saver and less clutter in your bag.

The conference was not over this afternoon and I had already received a few emails and SMS from friends telling me how great of an external screen the iPad could be. And now even Philip Bloom  talks about it.

I am currently downloading the iPhone SDK3.2 to investigate the possibility but if it is doable,  I am not the one who will do it! Way too complicated!

M. Jobs might call the iPad a magic item, transforming the iPad as an external monitor would require massive coding skills. Why? You would have to port the Canon desktop SDK to the iPad which is near impossible unless you are Canon and have access to the source code. OnOneSoftware did it for the iPhone with their DSLR Remote app by using a little trick: they use a computer as a proxy so they could piggyback on the existing Canon API. The next part would be to resize the feed in real time so it fits on the iPad screen, something I doubt the iPad has the CPU power to do. So you see, it is not really possible in the current context.

It is too early to tell, but one thing is for sure: if it is possible, it will be done! The market for such a product is too big for a developer to ignore! And who knows, maybe the solution will come directly from Canon! (wishful thinking!)

By the way, I am looking for a cocoa/Objectif-C dev for a totally unrelated top secret project…

Finally, someone realized that pressing the start/stop button is a pain when using a shoulder rig. While Red Rock Micro already has a solution to this problem, it is not elegant or practical since you have to place the remote in front of the camera. The solution proposed by Switronix is better (since you can position the remote at the back of the camera), yet not perfect. Before going further, lets look at their press release.

NEW FLEX DSLR Remote from Switronix Inc.

January, 27th 2010
Rockville Centre – NY: Switronix Inc releases the FLEX DSLR Remote. The FLEX is a patent-pending, handle mounted DSLR remote unit that triggers HD video start and stop recording for Canon 5D/7D. The FLEX’s unique gooseneck arm houses an optic to be positioned within line of sight to the remote sensor on the Canon cameras (transmits up to 1m away, 135deg spread). Once positioned, the remote transmits a signal through the optic when the button is depressed.
The arm can be extended up to 12″ and coils down to approximately 3″ in diameter. The FLEX’s all metal construction will standup to the everyday rigors of HD DSLR video production. Max clamp diameter 1.5″. Powered by 2 included AAA batteries. The FLEX DSLR remote will have a street price of around $150.
Shipping week of 2/8/10
For more information Visit: www.switronix.com

150$?

Yes, that is a little steep and it does not look super ergonomic to me. While I applaud the idea, I hope someone comes up with a more refined solution. Actually, I know someone who is working on a similar issue: me!

Should you get this?

Unless there is a use case I did not think about or you really have to position the camera in an awkward place, I think it would be better to wait and see what the competition is coming with.

Came back from the electronic store yesterday and got these parts. Anyone guessing what I am working on?

I am giving an HDSLR training class next Sunday. If you are in the Montreal area and would like to know everything there is to know about HDSLR, contact me! The course is for photographers who want to shoot video so we are starting from the very basics and end at the moment where the files are imported in FCP. You will learn everything in between!

The class will be in French and will last  around 3 hours, more if needed. It is mostly targeted at 5DMrkII owners but 95% of the content is also valid for 7D and 1D owners. Users of other brands can attend but about 25% of the content wont be relevant to them (ex: I dont know how picture style works with the D300s).

For the amount of content I am packing in and the small size of the class (5 learners), this is ridiculously cheap @ 130$ for what you will gain.

So, if you are interested, contact me for more details.

The guys at Cinema5D have had some fun recently. They received a bunch of rigs from various suppliers and tested them from a HDSLR user perspective. We have done this in the past, but their work is at a total different level of scale! 62 pages of review! It is actually because of them that some of the reviews I was supposed to write were delayed: all the demo gear was stuck in Austria!

While I agree with some of their evaluations and I like how demanding they seemed to be, I don’t agree with some of the ratings, or think they should be put into context. You cant really judge a rig by trying it out in a test environment, no matter the amount of experience you have. These few minutes are good to reveal big flaws and general feeling but not how a rig performs for a real job where you have to carry the darn thing on your back a whole day! Then again, not every camera operator has to walk the whole day with a rig on his back. This is my main complain: the review seem to have been done from a single point of view: film making. Continue reading…

It is with great pleasure that we introduce our new sister site: the Canon5dTips Market!

What is it?

It is a place for you, the users, to publish ads for gear you want to sell and for prospective buyer to find gear at great price. It is mostly targeted at Canon cinephotographer but you can post gear from any brand. As long at they are related to HDSLR.

How much does it cost?

It is free!

Why use this instead of a forum?

By using various fields to gather the relevant information, we hope to make it easier for buyer to find the gear they want. And if it is easier for the buyer to buy, it will be easier for the seller to sell! The structure we use to publish your ads also maximize their visibility toward Google and other search engines.

Any cool features to help sellers?

To increase products visibility, randomly selected ads will be places it in the sidebar of Canon5dtips. This mean over 1000 people will see the ad every day. If that isn’t giving sellers all the visibility they can get, I don’t know what it is!

What about features for buyers?

They are coming…

I don’t have anything for sale and already have all the gear I need. Anything I can do to help?

Of course! A market place is only as its popularity. So please, spread the word: Tweet about it, talk about it in forums, Facebook it, etc… The bigger the site grows, the easier it will be for you to buy/sell gear when time comes!

Anything else coming up?

Yes.

Final word

I know the system is not perfect, yet, but I am working on some improvements to come in the next few weeks. If you have any cool idea, please contact me.

The contest is now open. You can read the rules here.

The prizes are quite good: the choice between a 5DMrkII and a 7D, a lens (selected from a long list), a few days to shoot with Vincent and a year subscription at Vimeo. I dont know who made the prize list but I would like to know why someone would pick a 7D over a 5D! You could get the 5D, sell it, get the 7D and you would be left with some change. Even worst, the lens selection includes lenses ranging in prices from 700$ to almost 5000$. Who would be stupid enough to pick the 700$ lens (EF 15mm2.8) when you can have a 300L2.8?

Dont get me wrong, I think these prizes are awesome (especially the days with Vincent!) I just wonder how long the guy who made the prize list thought about it.

US ONLY

Now that we look at the prizes, we can somewhat guess the reasons about the US only restriction: the plane trip to see Vincent. I am sure this is the part that complexity everything for the lawyers. It is quite sad because I had a good idea and there is a building that looks exactly like the ending still near my loft…