Adobe MAX 2011 Technology Sneak Peeks

Adobe’s big annual MAX conference finished a couple of weeks ago, and as part of it they included a series of technology sneak peeks. I’ve gone through the videos posted on AdobeTV and pulled out the ones of most interest to us video folks:

The One Collaboration I Need Adobe To Make

Hey folks, been gone a while, but it’s fall and time to get back in the swing of things.  One of the interesting side-effects of writing for PVC is that I am on just about every PR person’s mail list.  Usually these missives are easy to toss to the side, but the other day I got one from Adobe, talking up their presence at IBC 2011 in Amsterdam (for the record, IBC is the international version of NAB, held in early September every year.)  As a long-time Premiere Pro and CS-suite convert, I paid a little bit more attention to this one than average.  Unfortunately, I neglected to save the URL, but the gist of it was this:

Roland QUAD-CAPTURE: the little sister of the OCTA-CAPTURE

ProVideo Coalition readers who are into audio gadgets probably read my recent full review about the OCTA-CAPTURE from Roland. This article is about the OCTA-CAPTURE’s little sister, the QUAD-CAPTURE, and covers the differences between the two units, as well as its relative preamp and ADC (analog>digital conversion) quality compared with similar devices. Both of the two sisters connect to a computer via USB. One of the first things you’ll notice is that the QUAD-CAPTURE’s name insinuates more microphone inputs than it really has.

CMG Hidden Gems: Chapter 36B – Audio Effects

We’re going through our book Creating Motion Graphics with After Effects 5th Edition (CMG5) and pulling out a few “hidden gems” from each chapter. These will include essential advice for new users, plus timesaving tips that experienced users may not be aware of.

After Effects comes with several audio processing effects located inside the menu Effect > Audio. We discussed the basics of audio plus the Stereo Mixer effect in the book’s Chapter 36; in the Bonus Chapter we discuss some of the other effects, including how they work as well as some suggested applications for their use. Our personal bias is more toward audio “sweetening” than special effects creation, and that is our focus in the bonus chapter on the book’s DVD, and in the tips we share here. Of course, the effects available in a dedicated program such as Adobe Audition are far more capable than the rudimentary ones included inside After Effects, but surprisingly often the After Effects versions are all you need to perform simple enhancements.

CMG Hidden Gems: Chapter 36 – Working With Audio

We’re going through our book Creating Motion Graphics with After Effects 5th Edition (CMG5) and pulling out a few “hidden gems” from each chapter. These will include essential advice for new users, plus timesaving tips that experienced users may not be aware of.

After Effects has never made audio one of its strong points. If you need to seriously rework a soundtrack, do it in a dedicated audio program (such as Adobe Audition, which is now part of the Production Premium suite as of CS5.5). But if you just need to edit, mix, and do some basic improvement or “sweetening” to your sound track, After Effects already has the tools you need. In this installment, we’ll share some tips on working with audio; in the next installment, we’ll cover audio effects.

Review: Roland OCTA-CAPTURE 8/10-channel USB 2.0 audio interface

Many of the affordable pro audio interfaces that are available on the market have a maximum of two balanced microphone inputs, and few of them include hardware-based limiting, compression, or gating. Among the special features of Roland’s OCTA-CAPTURE is the fact that it contains 10 total audio inputs, of which 8 are balanced microphone inputs. The OCTA-CAPTURE allows recording to a standalone audio recorder and/or to a computer. At least when used with a computer and a compatible piece of audio software, the operator can even record all of the available inputs on individual tracks, which provides extra flexibility in post-production, i.e. to mute a cough, or to re-adjust volume or equalization of any particular source after-the-fact without affecting any other source recorded simultaneously. The OCTA-CAPTURE also features onboard compression and gating. In this article, I’ll cover the OCTA-CAPTURE’s features, setup, preamp quality, compatible audio software, and then offer my conclusions.

A Sound Solution to HDSLR Audio

It seems everyone wants a piece of the HDSLR pie, and Sennheiser USA is no exception. With Rode microphones and Zoom recorders aggressively achieving an early HDSLR market position, Sennheiser is a bit late in the game, but according to Kevin Waehner of Sennheiser, their new MKH 8060 shotgun brings a high end solution for those seeking a camera top shot gun microphone.

The Cure for Rolling Shutter?

One of the highlights of NAB 2011 for me was having an opportunity to sit down with Sr. Product Manager for Adobe CS5.5 Production Premium and Adobe Audition, Ellen Wixted. Ellen took some time out of her busy schedule to visit with us, and tell us why the latest creative suite is the answer to the problem of rolling shutter.

Page 1 of 13 pages  1 2 3 >  Last »