video

Learn Adobe Premiere Pro CC for Video Communication: Now available!

Learn Adobe Premiere Pro CC for Video Communication: Adobe Certified Associate Exam Preparation

If you’re getting ready to take the Adobe Certified Associate (ACA) Exam for Adobe Premiere Pro CC, I recently helped write a study guide for it. Learn Adobe Premiere Pro CC for Video Communication: Adobe Certified Associate Exam Preparation (yeah, it’s a long title) isn’t just a book. Buying the printed or ebook versions of Learn Adobe Premiere Pro CC for Video Communication: Adobe Certified Associate Exam Preparation also gives you access to the Web Edition with embedded videos by experienced Premiere Pro instructor Joe Dockery. I wrote the text that accompanies Joe’s videos.

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The Photographer’s Introduction to Video in Lightroom 4 and Photoshop CS6: Now available!

Have you upgraded to Lightroom 4 or Photoshop CS6 but are still not quite sure how to start working with video files from your cameras? With The Photographer’s Guide to Video in Lightroom 4 and Photoshop CS6, you can begin to realize the full video potential of the software you invested in. You’ll get the most out of this eBook if you’re a still photographer starting to integrate video into your workflow.

The Photographer's Introduction to Video in Lightroom 4 and Photoshop CS6 cover

Why I wrote this ebook

While Lightroom and Photoshop can work with digital video files, they’re designed to streamline very specific photographer-oriented video workflows. In addition, what they can do is different in scope than what you’d be able to accomplish if you were using a professional digital video editor such as Adobe Premiere Pro or Final Cut Pro. I wrote this ebook to help you understand when Lightroom or Photoshop is the right choice for your video project, and how to use them.

The book assumes you already know how to use Lightroom or Photoshop in a still-image workflow. I wanted to build a bridge between what you already know about your cameras and your Adobe software and the new challenges of organizing, managing, and creating output from digital video.

How to learn

Download and read The Photographer’s Introduction to Video in Lightroom 4 and Photoshop CS6 as an ebook in multiple formats, including Kindle, PDF, and  iBooks. Here are some links to get you started:
Amazon.com for Kindle
Peachpit.com for Kindle/MOBI, ePub, and PDF
iTunes store for iOS devices

More info

Below is the publisher’s marketing copy if you want to learn a bit more…

Use the image tools you already know as a photographer—Lightroom 4 and Photoshop CS6—to edit HD video from your DSLR camera or smart phone. This ebook will help you make the transition from still to motion, learning how to organize, edit, export, and upload your HD video. Take advantage of the advanced features in Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop and bring your work to life.

Highlights of this ebook include:

  • Understand which software application is right for your project
  • Get tips on planning, shooting video, and recording audio to make post-production easier
  • Organize and prep your video clips by taking advantage of metadata, filters, and using Collections
  • Prepare still images in Lightroom for video
  • Learn about the Photoshop Timeline, making basic edits and cuts and creating transitions and fades
  • Color correct your video files and adjust audio
  • Create a video slideshow of your photographs
  • Fully grasp all the concepts and techniques as you go with step-by-step instructions

Combining photos and location audio: “Palio di Siena: L’Atmosfera”

In an earlier post, I put together a quick-and-dirty Flash-based slide show of photographs from Il Palio in Siena, Italy just to give you an idea of what kind of work came out of that trip. But I didn’t want to leave it at that. I wanted to convey a more complete sense of what it felt like to be in Siena during Il Palio, so I created a two-minute video focused on the atmosphere of the Palio.

Note: If you view this video full screen (which you really should), be sure to change the resolution at the bottom of the full-screen view to 720p or the highest resolution your internet speed can handle.

I think of this video as like a movie preview trailer for this personal photo project, generating interest and setting expectations for the larger project in progress. The video helps communicate why I went there, as well as the tone of the place, time, and culture.

And I’m happy with it. Read on if you’re interested in the decisions I made and things I learned while planning, capturing, organizing, and editing the media for this piece.

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Canon SLR video: Technicolor picture style optimizes dynamic range

Canon EOS 7D

In an earlier article, I talked about how customized Canon picture styles (rendering profiles) can optimize the dynamic range of video captured on Canon digital SLRs for better image quality during post-processing and color grading. Now you have one more option: The Cinestyle picture style by Technicolor.

Unlike the picture styles available so far, Cinestyle was developed by Technicolor color scientists together with Canon USA and the ASC Directors of Photography…it’s hard to beat a team like that. And the Cinestyle picture style is free.

Cinestyle is optimized for the Technicolor post-processing workflow, but Technicolor says you can use Cinestyle together with any non-linear editing system (NLE) as well. Also, while Cinestyle is optimized for the Canon EOS 5D MkII, they say it should work fine with other Canon SLRs that capture video, and based on the online comments so far that seems to be true. I personally haven’t tried it out yet. In reading through the information available online, it works best if you also apply an S-curve lookup table (LUT) that’s available as a free download. For more information and to download Cinestyle tools and documentation, go to the following links:

Technicolor Cinestyle and LUT download and documentation
Technicolor FAQ for Cinestyle picture style
Vincent LaForet’s blog post about Cinestyle with examples and tips

Color Management without the Jargon video: now available!

[Note: I now have a newer video, Color Management for Photographers and Designers (2014), that updates what I covered in Color Management without the Jargon (2009). Color Management for Photographers and Designers includes more current information about color-managing Photoshop, Lightroom, and Adobe Creative Suite applications as well as demonstrations of profiling a display, a printer, and a camera.]

Are you a photographer or designer and still not quite sure how color management works? Confused about how to use color profiles? Have you tried to read books and articles about color management, but are overwhelmed by the terminology?

Color Management without the Jargon cover

Now you can better understand color management with my DVD and online video, Color Management without the Jargon: A Simple Approach for Designers and Photographers Using the Adobe Creative Suite. I created this video as an approachable introduction to the ideas behind color management and the basics of a good color management workflow. While there’s a lot of good material about color management out there, I feel that much of it jumps into jargon and abstract concepts too quickly. I saw an opportunity to explain color management in the simplest possible terms. I intend Color Management without the Jargon to prepare you for and to complement the deeper, more comprehensive, but also far more challenging material out there.

What you’ll learn

This 1½ hour training video helps beginning and intermediate Photoshop, Bridge, InDesign, and Illustrator users understand the basics of color management, including how to profile monitors and create consistent color in a production workflow. This video provides technical background without being overwhelming, and presents concepts and steps that are easy to follow.

How to watch

You can order Color Management without the Jargon as a DVD from your favorite bookseller or store, or you can watch it online as a streaming video from Peachpit Video. Here are some links to get you started:
DVD on Amazon.com
DVD on Peachpit.com
Watch online at Peachpit.com

More info

Below is the publisher’s marketing copy if you want to learn a bit more…

Every digital photographer or graphic designer knows that color management is important, but many still do not calibrate their computer monitors or understand how color works in different spaces. This 90-minute DVD will help beginning and intermediate Photoshop, Bridge, InDesign, and Illustrator users understand the basics of color management and how to create consistent color in their workflow.

Highlights of this accessible and easy-to-follow DVD video include:

  • Calibrating your monitor and digital SLR camera
  • Tackling color profile detective work in Photoshop and InDesign
  • Assigning, converting, and embedding profiles
  • Managing color output for print and the Web
  • Integrating raw files and Lightroom into your workflow
  • Handling color conversions between video-editing software and Photoshop

The supporting 48-page printed reference guide provides additional links and content.