7 Guatemalans learn to color correct and more…
I just returned from the Republic of Guatemala in Central America, where I interpreted a class for David Catt, the original product manager at DaVinci Systems. (Since then, DaVinci Systems was purchased in 2009 by Blackmagic Design). David Catt taught 7 Guatemalans how to perform grading, including color correction and more using DaVinci Resolve. The client who recently purchased the new Mac-based DaVinci Resolve system is Julio Borrayo, president of STAFF HDTV/Alta Definición, which produces high-end TV commercials in Guatemala. This article explains the details of the system they purchased (hardware + software), installation and preparation, main points covered in the class, and the students. David Catt has agreed to join us on an upcoming episode of TecnoTur to discuss grading and the differences between different DaVinci Resolve configurations. Read the whole article here…
Dear Apple’s iTunes Podcasting Team:
In episode 3 of Covert Affairs, Universal Cable Productions simulated Caracas, the capital city of the South American country of Venezuela, both visually and linguistically (at least they attempted the latter). Covert Affairs is an enjoyable new series from USA Network (a division of NBC Universal) which last week broadcasted episode 3 (Southbound Suárez), where the protagonist Annie Walker (Piper Perabo) —a novice CIA agent— is sent to Caracas to carry out her third assignment. This article will describe a bit about that, and about Universal Cable Productions’ feat in simulating Venezuelan scenes, along with some cultural and linguistic blunders. 
The medium that most of us call podcasting has gone way beyond the Pod. When I say that, I am referring to both known etymologies of the term podcast: 1) The first, which refers specifically to Apple’s iPod devices. 2) The second, which states that the letters P—O—D in podcasting are actually an acronym for the words Portable On Demand. Of course, almost everyone knows that the programs which are popularly called podcasts can now be played on computers and multiple portable mobile devices, including iPads, iPods, iPhones, Blackberries and a handful of other portable audio players and other smart mobile telephones. But beyond that, some people are not yet aware that the market is now being flooded with many other devices that can receive and play these “podcast” programs directly, without any computer in the loop, including some HDTV sets, and even an in-dash car radio which connects to the Internet wirelessly. In this article, you’ll discover those, plus Internet table radios and inexpensive set top boxes which tune podcasts directly, without a computer. You’ll also get to reason with me about whether we should still be calling this medium podcasting, and keep calling the programs podcasts… and what this all means, both for content producers and for listeners/viewers. (
After many months of teamwork, the Avid Media Composer 101 courseware is now available in a translated and localized version for Latin America & Spain. As a result, many Avid MC101 students in those areas can now benefit from having this courseware in their own language. My friend Rubén Abruña of iLevel and I had the honor of receiving this contract from Avid in 2009. The first draft of our translation/localization was initially used in September 2009 at an Avid training event in Santiago, Chile, South America, both to teach a group of new students, as well as to generate feedback from certified Avid instructors from the region. In this article, you’ll see the behind the scenes of this project, which combined our knowledge of the techie video terms in each language, as well as that of the regionalisms and political debates that surround this type of a project. (
After several months of waiting, I finally received a DreamColor evaluation unit from HP. Back in May of 2009, I had included the DreamColor in an article called How to connect your HD evaluation monitor to your editing system properly: Let me count the ways! That article included a comparison chart that I had made called Affordable 1080 HD monitors for critical color evaluation. Even back then, the DreamColor looked attractive compared to the specs of the competition, which included contenders from JVC and Panasonic. Before receiving the evaluation unit, I had the experience of going to Guatemala to install a DreamColor. However, because I had to integrate an entire system while I was in Guatemala, I didn’t have a chance to spend enough time with the DreamColor then as I have had now. In this article you’ll discover many reasons why the DreamColor is probably the the most sensible monitor to purchase for video production or post-production when you need critical image evaluation, even if it may mean purchasing it with a converter box, if your current NLE or grading system doesn’t have an an ideal connection for it. Even after adding the cost of a converter box (if required) or otherwise upgrading your current system, the DreamColor will still cost thousands of dollars less than a comparable competitive critical evaluation monitor with a true 10-bit panel. (
