I'm Using Davinci Resolve a Little More These Days

I’ve been using Davinci Resolve a little more these days because I wanted to get better in yet another app that’s being used regularly in the creative industry. This has been a several month process and I’m still learning as I go. With that said, I did feel comfortable enough to do an intro video for folks on my Twitter page asking if I can help with a tutorial for beginners. Well, here’s that tutorial. This is just to help you get started with Davinci Resolve. And for the record, I’m not ready to leave the Adobe Creative Cloud* just yet, but Resolve can definitely make one think about it. At this time, I still find value in having Lightroom, Photoshop, and After Effects for my workflow. Thanks for watching and sharing. Click the image below to watch.

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Adobe Integrates Frame.IO Into Its Creative Apps

Adobe acquired Frame.IO in the summer of 2021 and all of the creative world was a buzz. It was an acquisition that just made sense in the creative space. Especially the film side. Now, Adobe has announced some fascinating and seamless integration of Frame.IO into its Premiere Pro and After Effects video apps.

Yup. The acquisition allows for simple integration for Creative Cloud subscribers* to work even more efficiently on video collaborations. Creative teams can work on a project managing assets as they’re used to doing with Premiere Pro and After Effects, but now there’s better versioning and review tools built right in. Even if you’re not a collaborative type like me, but want to have a client review a sequence, they can. And get the ability to add notes and mark-ups right onto the file with this new integration. Pretty good stuff. All of this will begin to roll out in PHASES starting April 12th (today).

Adobe also announced better performance for the M1 Apple silicon in its creative suite. In particularly in After Effects boasting an 3X performance boost. WOAH. I like After Effects, but man it can be really slow depending on the composite or effects. M1 users, rejoice.

Image: Adobe

Premiere Pro has also gotten a new look with its import, export and upload layout. More on that redesign and proposed efficiency can be found here on the Adobe blog. Sounds good, but I find the Frame.IO news to be the true meat of today’s announcement. I’m looking forward to trying this out with my clients for their video reviews.


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New Platypod Extreme On Deck

The squad at Platypod has announced a new product for photographers and content creators. The Platypod Extreme is the next iteration in the Platypod ecosystem as it offers some updates to be more portable, versatile and even easier to use.

Image: Platypod

I’ve used the Platypod and Platypod Ultra (the smaller one) quite regularly in my workflow. Whether for mounting my camera against a tree to capture hummingbird photography, to shoot low-angle landscapes, or mount a floor light for a photoshoot, the Platypod product line has been ridiculously useful. The new Extreme has me interested as it now has the pegs integrated with the platform. No more of me carrying a pouch with the pegs in it for a field shoot. Good thought, team.

You can find out more about the product and see the successful campaign on Kickstarter. Yes, they’ve already met their crowd-funding goal. There’s a reason for that.

I Was On Our News Show Last Week

From time to time I get the opportunity to be on our news show Tech News Weekly. I’ll be the first to mention that I’m not much of a “news guy,” but I do enjoy filling in for my co-host when they’re out of the office. Check out our discussions below. Don’t worry, no one will ever confuse me as a top-notch news anchor. Thanks for watching.

VEGAS Teams Up with Razer

Video creators looking to get a new Razor laptop may have a juicy incentive. The squad at VEGAS Creative is sweetening the pot with a FREE SIX MONTH subscription to VEGAS Post with the purchase of a qualifying Razer laptop if ordered by June 30, 2022.

Razer has been pretty popular in the gaming world for several years, which means that if you can do some extreme gaming on a device, there’s a likelihood that content creation can be quite snappy on the device. Usually, when you see a Razer laptop or desktop, it’s all RGB’d-up, but the internal components are usually those needed in handling high bandwidth video processing. All at a nice price.

The VEGAS Post package includes the following tools aimed to help out the content creators looking for a new rig:

VEGAS Pro 19 editing software

  • 100GB of cloud storage

  • VEGAS Effects software for high-end compositing

  • VEGAS Image software for RAW image compositing

  • VEGAS Stream for high-production-value live streaming

  • VEGAS Content: Unlimited access to royalty-free HD and 4K video and/or audio clip downloads

  • SOUND FORGE Audio Studio

  • BorisFX Primatte chroma keying software

I’ve been playing around with Vegas Pro for video editing for my show and also been playing with BorisFX. There’s even a free Particle Illusion application from Boris FX that’s free and absolutely AMAZING for creating custom particle effects on your video. At some point, I’ll share some tutorials with that software.

To get the deal, order your Razer machine and follow the instructions on the image below. More information on the promo can be found here

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a GREAT Autofocus Explanation With Rudy Winston of Canon and Steve Brazill

So my man Steve Brazill is not only an amazing photographer but also a great podcast host. He hosts a show called Behind The Shot which features great images and the photographers explaining the thought process of the image captured. This particular episode is a bit different. Brazill is joined by Canon’s Technical Advisor Mr. Rudy Winston and he does a ridiculously THOROUGH explanation of the way Canon’s autofocus system works in its new mirrorless cameras. But don’t worry, this explanation is applicable to most cameras today. Not just the Canon system. Definitely worth a watch. Check it out below.

Hanging Out With the Makers on "Because We Make" Podcast

I’ve known Vinny and Ethan for several years now. It’s quite an honor to call them friends. They’ve been so supportive of me and my career going from an IT support guy to a content creator. This week, I had the opportunity to be a guest on their show to talk about my work, life and just general fun conversation. I appreciate them having me on. Subscribe to their show, Because We Make, on whatever podcast app you use. Listen to this week’s episode featuring me down below.

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Canon Announces the EOS R5 C (Hybrid) Cinema Camera

Canon has announced its new cinema camera. Actually, it’s more of a hybrid camera. It’s the EOS R5 C.* It was rumored a handful of times previously and I gotta tell ya, I’m excited and also a bit confused about this. But then again, maybe this is Canon’s way of continuing to add SOMETHING to its RF mount system. Anyway, some quick tech specs.

Cine Features in a Mirrorless Body

The R5 C boasts a 45-megapixel full-frame sensor capable of shooting up to 8K RAW cinematic video at 60 frames per second. Woah. This also includes Canon’s magical dual pixel autofocus system that’s nothing short of amazing when it comes to tracking and eye detection for portraiture and action shots. You’ll also get 20 frames per second image capture if needed.

Those are the basics, but the finer points on the spec sheet include:

  • 4K 120 frames per second for slow motion in 4:2:2 10-bit

  • Ability to record audio while shooting high frame rate (slow mo) footage

  • C-Log3 picture profile for more flexibility in color grading and maximizing the dynamic range

  • Internal cooling fan for non-stop 8K recording (this was a big problem on the R5)

  • Two card slots for recording (Qty 1 CFExpress Type B, qty 1 UHS-II SD)

  • Internal RAW 8K recording up to over 800Mbps at 23.98 fps

But why?

These specs sound REALLY good. But one has to ask “why” on this. Canon’s R5* is a highly capable camera for stills and video at a hybrid level. Especially after the firmware updates. No, you’re not getting all of the RAW video capabilities, but you’re able to get RAW video on another cine camera from Canon - the C70.* I absolutely loved the C70, but it’s strictly a cinema camera. No photography involved. Maybe Canon is trying to offer something slightly more portable than the C70 all while including high quality video and photo capabilities? I’m not sure. Wil the C70 have more firmware updates for the super 35 senor’s capability?

You can preorder the R5 C here today over at Adorama. Let me know your thoughts and if you plan on grabbing one. I think the $4500 price point is fair.

*Affiliate link used. Affiliate links allow me to earn a small commission as a content creator if you purchase items using the affiliate link. Thank you for your support.

Balmy Alley Murals and Photo Walk with Jefferson Graham

I had the honor and pleasure to do a bit of street photography in the Mission area of San Francisco with Mr. Jefferson Graham. I’ve had him on my show previously to talk about getting the most out of your smartphone’s camera. Phone cameras are really powerful today, but it does take a bit of know-how to harness that power. Check out that episode here.

But yeah, we met in Balmy Alley to check out the beautiful murals and shoot some photography. I even brought the #hardhead along as he enjoys getting into fashion and photography. Check out the show below by clicking on the image. There’s also a Flipboard magazine you can check out and even contribute to with some of your photography. Just e-mail photowalkstv@gmail.com for an invite to share your photos, and get a critique and shoutout from Mr Graham and I. He’s also scheduling another walk for folks to join.

Image: Ant Pruitt all rights reserved

Blackmagic Design Creates Free Tutorials for DaVinci Resolve

I’ve been attempting to get more serious with my workflow in DaVinci Resolve. So much that I’ve even purchased a training course in addition to watching many video tutorials online and doing my own trial and error. Fortunately, the team at Blackmagic Design have stepped up to create its very own set of tutorials. THANK YOU, team.

Image: Blackmagic Design

I started checking out the tutorials and they’re quite nice. DaVinci Resolve is such a robust app with so many different tools, I expected the tutorial playlist to be several hours long. (It’s roughly three hours.) Blackmagic Design has done a great job breaking down the subject matter to make it easier to digest all the information. Check out the tutorial playlist here via YouTube or just click on the image above.

I’m going to create my own Resolve tutorials as some point for my show, but I’m not ready for that just yet. I do ok in the app with some of the content I’ve created recently, but I don’t feel I’m ready to “teach” about the app. I know many of you have asked about me doing tutorials. I promise. I’ll create some quick hitters soon. Having a Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera* in my kit has been great and working with the RAW footage in Resolve is a dream experience. In the meantime, make sure you’re subscribed to my YouTube channel and my podcast at TWiT for more updates.

*Affiliate link used. Affiliate links allow me to earn a small commission as a content creator if you purchase items using the affiliate link. Thank you for your support.