Q and A with Bunim/Murray’s Mark Raudonis about their recent Avid switch

Back in January news broke that reality television producers Bunim/Murray were switching their post-production facilities from Final Cut Pro to Avid Media Composer. This probably didn’t come as a great shock to anyone who follows post-production as the release of Final Cut Pro X had left many people (especially those in the broadcast world) a bit stunned at its lack of broadcast features. There was a lot written about this subject but I had a few more questions so I spoke with Bunim/Murray’s senior vice president of Post Production Mark Raudonis as he has been the public face of this switch. Our Q and A follows.

Kicking the tires on the Final Cut Pro X 10.0.3 Multicam update

As we all know by now Apple released their promised update to Final Cut Pro X that added multicam. It’s only been a week and there’s already a lot of articles and tutorials about how this new feature works. I sat down with it some over the weekend to kick the tires and see how it performed. What follows are some thoughts, notes and observations as I was working with it. I was especially curious as to how it might work for music videos.

Avid now lets you edit video on your iPad for US$4.99. Should you?

I was privileged to find out a few hours in advance of the public announcement of Avid Studio for iPad, since Avid contracted me to translate and localize the press release, as fortunately they often do. There was something about this press release that really intrigued me. It wasn’t so much the specific advantages that Avid Studio for iPad has over other editing apps for iPad, like offering both Storyboard and Timeline views in a single iPad app, or being able to import source material from anywhere inside or outside of the iPad. It was more the fact that the announcement was coming from Avid, and the spirit of the two quotes that appear at the end of the press release. In this article, I’ll give a first look at the app, define what it is (and what it isn’t), and extrapolate about what this can mean for video editing in the short, mid, and long term. Of course, I’ll include those two quotes that intrigued me so much.

Update Alert: Final Cut Pro X goes to 10.0.3

Is it early 2012? It is and Apple has kept its promise with an update that takes Final Cut Pro X to 10.0.3. The promised features are there as well including what looks like an interesting and well thought-out multicam implementation. Broadcast monitoring is there too but it’s labeled as a beta implementation though if the drivers are there it should work. And they said it couldn’t be done but it has been: there’s now a way to easily move a Final Cut Pro 7 project to Final Cut Pro X that’s made possible by an updated XML and a 3rd party software product.

AJA’s Io XT w/ Thunderbolt is now available, but it is not Riker: What’s the cover-up?

AJA is now shipping its US$1495 Io XT, AJA’s first Thunderbolt device which I covered in detail when it was first announced in September 2011. Some of you have asked me whether the Io XT is the same as the prototype code-named “Riker” product that AJA showed at NAB back in April 2011. The answer is no. This article will explain why the Io XT is not Riker, review the currently-available Thunderbolt audio/video i/o devices I’ve covered so far (including the Pegasus Thunderbolt RAID), and clarify William Riker’s involvement in the Pegasus cover-up, as well as that of Leo Laporte, who recently declared Thunderbolt to be “D.O.A.” and “too late” on MacBreak Weekly. Even though neither is true, I think Leo had a very good reason to say those things.

Stereo 3D Video Production with GoPro

Whether you love it or hate it, 3D Stereography is here for awhile. And if you’re totally into it like I am, you quickly realize that there are few turnkey workflows out there to capture and process 3D Stereo video that’s easy to setup, shoot and edit Stereo pairs. Sure, there are a lot of high-end (expensive to rent) systems for two cameras to shoot, software to sync/mux the footage and rigs you can build to edit it, but GoPro has brought it together with a fun and easy-to-use system that anyone can use.

3D Layers Overview with Photoshop CS4-CS5.5

Not only can you manipulate video layers in 3D space in Photoshop CS4 and later, but you can create 3D objects from primitives and import 3D models. In this FREE 12-minute tutorial from my Video Training DVD Photoshop CS4/CS5 Video & Animation, I give you an overview of the 3D workspace and how you can create, manipulate and modify 3D layers and tools right inside of Photoshop.

Tangent Element panels are now shipping

Word came out today from Tangent Devices that the first Element panels are now shipping. If you don’t remember the Element is Tangent’s newest color grading control panel that uses a modular design that is four separate pieces that can be purchased separately. They are designed to work together to make a more full featured panel than the Wave with trackballs and rings, knobs and buttons and transport controls if the buyer so desires. As for supported applications, Assimilate SCRATCH and Apple Color are two more common applications on the list but the one many people are asking about, DaVinci Resolve, is (so far) missing.

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