Rarevision’s 5DtoRGB tool is making the blog rounds this week, and it looks rather amazing. Here’s a quick summary of the tool and links to initial user testing.

I hear it all the time…complete novices and non-techies look at the image from a Canon DSLR and say something to the effect of “I don’t know what it is, but it doesn’t look like video to me. It looks filmic.” There’s a lot of reasons why they might arrive at that conclusion…a shallow depth of field tends to be associated with production value and “films,” and the $2500 Canon 5D MKII offers about as shallow a focus field as you could hope for, with it’s massive sensor size (as a side note, this shallow DOF is also an annoyance, depending on the application). Canon DSLRs also render skintones and color in a very natural and pleasing way. Or maybe it’s the 24p cadence of the video capture that appears filmic. Like I said, there are many factors that contribute, and a few that don’t.

But one more area that the Canon DSLRs shine is in dynamic range. Video traditionally has had a very limited dynamic range, with the best of video cameras rendering only 6-8 stops of usable image information spanning the darkest blacks and the brightest whites. Film, on the other hand, is generally somewhere north of 13 stops, depending on who you talk to and what stocks you are using. So when people like Art Adams do tests on the Canon 5D MKII and show it has 10 stops of dynamic range, there’s one more subtle reason why people may think the image is filmic…it’s approaching the range of detail in film. That’s a significant accomplishment. When the Red One camera came out a couple years back, I recall that they were aiming for 12-13 stops of range, and most folks I believe tested it at around 11-ish stops. A significant development at the time (which has been improved of late with the MX sensor upgrade program).

And there’s reason to believe that DSLRs will improve over time…as I anecdotally recall, didn’t Zacuto recently test the Canon 7D at over 10.5 stops of dynamic range? Or was it 11? I can’t recall ofhand, but do remember if being marginally better than what the 5D offered. So there you have it…pixel pushers like Art Adams (and I say that with the utmost respect and appreciation) are telling us WHY we unconsciously appreciate the images coming from a Canon DSLR. And as a facts guy, it makes me happy that I can associate a factual number with the image that I already knew and appreciated from an aesthetic standpoint. Thanks Art!

At NAB 2010, one of the coolest new features in After Effects was the Rotobrush. We got a peek at Rotobrush in our video coverage of NAB. Now that Adobe CS5 is in wide use, you might want a tutorial on how to use this sweet new tool…so here you go, compliments of the always useful kenstone.net.

Today at Shane Hurlbut’s HDSLR workshop, Brian Valente and the Redrock crew surprised Shane with a custom camouflage-themed Field Cinema Deluxe Bundle support rig. The rig was presented in a military crate guarded by two soldiers (very cool presentation). Brian sent over a pic of the setup prior to the presentation (see below), and I think it was a super cool gift.

While Shane got the first model off the line, Redrock is now offering the Ops rigs for sale to anyone, though with a small lead time on shipment. Right now the two rigs being offered are the RunningMan (one of the new options in the nano line) and the DSLR Field Cinema Deluxe Bundle V2. Looking at listed prices, it seems that an Ops version of these rigs can be yours at roughly a 20-25% premium over standard rig pricing.

I had a sneak peek at these camo rigs a few days ago, and was really impressed at the quality of the coloration and application. It’s not paint, and it’s not a decal, it feels much tougher and integrated “in” the rig than either of those options. Redrock is using some kind of process that either adheres or embeds the camo color design into their gear, and it works beautifully. Redrock Ops looks like a cool option for military and outdoors applications, or anyone that just wants to dress up their rig with something different.

PhotoCine News has a few more pictures that show the rigs close up, head on over there and have a peek.

Just a reminder, I’ll be on Jesse Miller’s live video show tonight at 6:30pm Eastern time. That’s in under 2hrs from now. Tune in to watch me subvert the show’s focus, rant and rave, and generally screw things up. Just kidding. But I probably will screw things up…

Redrock Micro has announced a new line of DSLR support rigs, the “nano” line. These are compact solutions aimed at the handheld DSLR user. And they are of particular interest given their price point – well under $495 for most configurations. Check out three of the seven new rig configurations in the photo below.

You can order nano rigs now, so for more information, check out www.redrockmicro.com. Press release follows.

Redrock Launches New “nano” Line of DSLR Rigs and Accessories
Compact, Economical Rigs Deliver Professional Quality on a Budget

Hollywood, CA – Redrock Micro, the recognized leader in affordable professional-quality cinema accessories, today announced the new nano line of accessories and rigs for video DSLR cameras. The nano line of equipment is an extension to Redrock’s current award-winning rigs and accessories for HDSLR cameras, and is designed for low-cost entry level, photojournalism/documentary, and discreet shooting applications. The nano rigs are manufactured to precision professional standards, and can be easily upgraded to more advanced rigs as needed. Developed from extensive customer interviews and input, the nano line delivers the ideal balance of economy and professional quality in compact support rigs.

The nano line of products consists of 7 new rigs and 5 new accessories:
* Grippit™
* runningMan™
* LowDown™
* LowDown Deluxe
* Stealth™
* Stealth Grip
* Stealth V (“vee”)

Nano accessories:
Nano baseplate
Nano focus+zoom lever
microHandle Plus (with integrated shoe mount)
2” 15mm carbon fiber rails
2” handlebar rod

“We developed the nano rigs from extensive input from professional and aspiring still/motion photographers,” said James Hurd, Chief Revolutionary for Redrock Micro. Customers said they wanted additional options that were smaller, more lightweight, and offered an affordable entry point, all while maintaining Redrock professional quality and interoperability.”

Redrock nano rigs are aggressively priced and are generally under $495. Specific pricing depends on model and desired configuration. Nano rigs are available for immediate ordering through Redrock’s online store at Redrockmicro.com or one of the worldwide Redrock authorized resellers.

Shane Hurlbut has posted a good article on the many ways you can monitor with Canon DSLRs, and of course the challenges of trying to work with them professionally. Good stuff.

Auto Collapse is a very cool little one-trick-pony software by Edit Mule (so it’s a one-trick-mule?) that can quickly simplify a sloppy, complex FCP timeline. Scott Simmons has the word over at PVC.

HD Warrior has posted a review of the Sony PMW-320K, a shoulder mount XDCAM ala the EX3 but aimed at a slightly different market. It’s a short and to the point review that covers the major areas of the camera. Check it out.

As an unrelated side note, apparently the folks at HD Warrior are graduates of Jim Jannard’s school of Posting Text Info As Huge Image Files…

PMW-320K pre-orders/purchases via this B&H link help support FreshDV at no additional cost to you.

Tune in this Thursday for the one-year anniversary of Midtown Video’s live show, the .video show with Jesse Miller. It will be Thursday August 19th at 6:30pm Eastern time. More info at www.jtown.tv. Among other topics, I’ll be discussing several cool new products that are emerging, leaking a little info on some unreleased tools. Tell your friends, and tune in Thursday to see my ugly mug.

Here’s a simple side-by-side comparison of the same test scenes that show how Red and Alexa handle it both pre and post grade. It is not explicitly stated, but I would assume that the Red One was equipped with a MX sensor upgrade. Caveat emptor. Watch below.

Arri Alexa vs Red One from D-Vision on Vimeo.

Unrelated to this test, Bill Bennett has also posted some framegrabs from a recent Alexa shoot that show good highlight handling in a technically challenging situation (sun reflections from silver car). See here.

I recently picked up a GoPro HD Naked camera specifically for a vacation in Cozumel. We had scuba dives scheduled, and I wanted a simple point and shoot option to capture video and stills with a minimum of mess and annoyance. Sure, I’d have loved to rent a full housing for a 5DMK2…but that’s relatively bulky, and I wasn’t looking for perfect quality; I wanted simplicity on this trip. After all, who wants to work on a vacation?

From that standpoint, the GoPro really fit the bill. It’s a simple little camera, with very few controls and not even an LCD for framing. You just point it blindly, trusting that it’s ultra-wide fixed-focus f2.8 lens will get the shot. And along the way, can capture some really pretty stuff. It’s actually a little bit freeing to not be able to see the LCD…you just “spray and pray,” and the results can be surprising. And did I mention it’s cheap? The HD Hero Naked is only $260.

Underwater, the current stock GoPro housing has a bit of an issue. It is waterproof to beyond normal scuba depths, but there is a problem with soft edges in the video frame. Apparently this stems from the curved-lens housing design. It is my understanding that GoPro is aware of the issue and is officially working on an updated housing for divers.

Knowing this in advance, I picked up an Eye of Mine flat-port housing, which is basically a DIY mod of the stock GoPro housing. The Eye of Mine housing will vignette a touch in the stills mode, but the GoPro’s slightly cropped 1080p mode doesn’t have any issues with vignetting. This modded housing looks a bit ugly, but performed perfectly for me at depths up to 85ft.

Battery life on the camera is excellent. The small rechargeable battery is good for upwards of an hour of on-and-off shooting. I was able to get two full dives out of the camera, with plenty of battery to spare. I recorded to an el-cheapo 16GB Transcend media card.

The size of the camera is both a pro and a con. On the pro side, you can just stuff it in a pocket on your BCD and just pull it out when you wish. But that svelte size also means that the footage can be shaky as there is very little inertia and it’s difficult to grasp well with two hands. Thankfully, the wide lens hides some of these small camera indiscretions. You could easily attach handgrips or even headmount the camera to help avoid handheld shakes. I’m sure Zacuto or someone else as prolific will release full rigs for these cameras at some point. GoPro also has a number of mounting options, though they tend to market towards extreme sports shooters.

I shot quite a bit of video from our dives, and will be doing some CC and editing on that footage for a later post, but for now here are some stills snapped with the relatively low-res 5MP GoPro stills mode. Some of these have had minor retouching. Click through for larger versions, and enjoy!

Full disclosure: FreshDV is now a GoPro affiliate (because we think they make cool gear), you can shop via our link here: Official GoPro® Store.

Randy Panado got his hands on a new low-cost pre-production Cinevate Atlas slider design, and has been blogging and posting about it. He’s made some really pretty pictures and is sharing all kinds of info over at DVinfo. Never mind, the Dvinfo thread seems to have vanished without explanation. Odd. Go straight to Randy’s blog instead for pictures and info.

This new design has been dubbed the Atlas 10. It looks like this slider design is a single beam setup similar to the DP Slider and the Glidetrack, along with a few other features brought down from the higher-end Atlas designs, like leveling feet with non-marking pads. The Atlas 10 will also do the vertical slider moves, and appears to have a few hat tricks in regards to that feature…check out that cord and pulley on the rig in one of Randy’s pictures…looks like a counter-balance to me. Interesting…

Here’s another reason why every surfer should have a GoPro camera. Watch below…

Me my Shark and I from Chuck Patterson on Vimeo.

Really cool footage that Chuck captured! As a side note, I shot some scuba footage in Cozumel recently with my shiny new GoPro HD, and I was really impressed with how it performed. I used the Eye of Mine flat-port housing mod, as GoPro’s housing is currently soft on the edges of the frame underwater (they have stated that they are working on update to the housing design for underwater shooters). However, with the flat-port mod, my GoPro Naked performed beautifully in the reefs and walls of Cozumel, even at 85ft depth. I’ll be posting footage when I get a chance to do a quick edit.

Full disclosure: FreshDV is now a GoPro affiliate (because we think they make cool gear), you can shop via our link here: Official GoPro® Store. You should also be aware that GoPro will soon be selling a 960p version of their camera for a chunk of change less, so for those who don’t require 1080p output (web and SD delivery, etc), it might be a good option at a lower price.

I’ve seen a lot of filmmaking apps posts, but this one by far has been the most useful. These are excellent apps, I’ve purchased and used several of them and am now looking hard at a few others on the list. Check it out.