When you stick your head above the parapit you have to accept some flack, it seems like Philip has had his fair share of abusive comments from some users on RED USER a forum for people who like and use RED products.

Philip has written about his problems with his RED EPIC especially having Beta software installed and it seems to have let him down till it got to a stage his confidence was no longer with the camera… PB  ”I was no longer comfortable with using the camera on paid jobs.”

You need to be 100% confident in your bread and butter otherwise it can cost you a job and possibly your reputation. If I ever spend $80K on a camera I would not tolerate anything going wrong with it let alone signing an EULA…thats an end-user license agreement which is a contract you sign between you and a manufacturer when you are usually assessing new equipment or software.

Mr Thomas from Philip Blooms comments page “When buying an Epic, RED gave my boss an EULA to agree to that included wording that made it clear that any issues were to go through RED and nobody else. Would be really surprised if you didn’t get the same terms of use.

If this is true its the one single point that would stop me from ever buying a RED camera, can you imaging Sony selling you an F3 and asking you to sign such a document…GET REAL !!! This must be the first time in my production life of over 25 years that a manufacturer has had the nerve to impose restrictions when buying a video product.

I think this episode has been very damaging to RED, Philip has a huge following of potential customers and if I were RED I would seriously be looking at improving my products reliability issues and stop being obsessed with what people might say about your product…good or bad.

And just like magic Jim has actually posted on RED USER with an apology to Philip Bloom.

The Case of Philip Bloom… – Today, 06:29 PM By Jim Jannard

“I guess everyone makes mistakes… this one was mine.

A lot has been posted about this so I thought I would clarify from our perspective.

This situation is my fault… no one else’s. My apology was offered to Philip and apparently accepted.

Philip has returned his EPIC and cancelled his Scarlet order.

We will not allow any disrespectful posts here on Reduser about Philip or anyone else…

We consider the case closed. Nothing to see here… move along.”

 

Lets hope Philip is back to his cheery old self as was seen here at the Skywalker Ranch 2 years ago.

Craig Blair of Canon Rumors was NOT sent an invitation by Canon to attend the official launch of Canon’s new large sensor event but Craig has moles everywhere and has just posted this exiting news…

Possibly some early specs of the new Canon S35 camcorder :

• Name: Canon EOS 300C
• EF and PL Versions
• Dual CF Card Slots
• Built in ND
• Super35 Sensor
• HDMI and HDSDI out
• Hot shoe mounted monitor w/ 2 XLR ins
• 1920 x 1080 resolution
• Also is able to record out of SDI

Specific video features…

Improved movie mode with reduced artifacts and moire, no line skipping, better low light performance, no file size limitation, SMTPE compliant time code, on screen audio meter, new video compression Intra frame and IPB, 1920x1080p full HD shooting at 24, 25 and 30fps, 1280 x 720p at 50 or 60 fps.

This is fantastic news for not only serious photographers but for serious video producers who are kitted out for DSLR shooting. The best bit about the news is it clears the way for November the 3rd being a video camcorder and dare I say it a large sensor film camera.

It’s like loosing one of your family, the daddy of Apple computers has sadly passed away today and I for one will forever be indebted to him. This Genius and visionary was my only saviour from the PC and a fantastic editing package Final Cut Pro.

My business is run on Apple computers from the 23″ iMac that I am typing this tribute on to the MacPro that day in, day out edits many happy clients video footage to the three iPhones and two iPad 2s we are steeped in Apple fantasticness and it’s all due to one man…Mr Steve Jobs.

I thank you Steve from all my heart and am glad you are now free from any pain and distress you may have suffered and my best wishes to your family and all Apple employees who will also be feeling very sad today.

Only yesterday were we treated to a further advancement to the iPhone 4 the 4s with many fantastic new features and people are now calling for the launch date of October 14th to be called Steve Jobs day…I would prefer the Apple stores to close for a day in respect of Steve who with his vision and commitment has brought not only a lot of pleasure to many people’s lives but a lot of employment worldwide.

In the words of the great man himself “You can’t just ask customers what they want and then try to give that to them,” he once said. “By the time you get it built, they’ll want something new.”

A lovely tribute to Steve on Apples own web site from the people who knew Steve best…

I sent an email off to Sony Broadcast UK last week asking about the discrepancy between the FS100 specs in the US and the UK.

In the US you can get 8bit 4:4:4 out of the HDMI socket while in the UK it was claimed to be 4:2:2, I decided this was nonsense and today came back the amazing reply…

Regarding this question, we would like to answer as follows.

 Simple version:

Q. What is the signal of HDMI output?

A. It is “YC422 8bit” which is one of the HDMI output standard (EE/PB).

     (Both FS100 and NX70)

Detailed version:

Q. What is the signal of HDMI output?

A. It is both “RGB444 8bit” and “YC422 8bit” which are one of the

    HDMI output standard (EE/PB).

* Both are automatically changed according to connecting equipment.

  Basically, “YC422 8bit” is output. If connecting equipment can receive

  only RGB, “RGB444 8bit” is output.

(Both FS100 and NX70)

 HDMI is very flexible for the resolution and bit, it can have 4:2:0, 4:2:2 and 4:4:4.

 On the other hand, the data of the image created by the FS100/NX70 processor is just 4:2:2.

 Then it is lifted up to 4:4:4 in the HDMI processor if the connected device is 444 capable.

(In fact, nobody knows the 444 HDMI device.)

But the picture quality is 422 (422 is just in 444 bucket).

As I read it and I am still a bit confused…You can get 4:2:0, 4:2:2 or 4:4:4 out of the HDMI socket but this depends whats plugged into the FS100 or the NX70.

What can I say but…thanks Steve without your vision Apple would not be the company it is today. Personally I think Mr Jobs needs to take a back seat due to on-going health problems which is a great shame.

I wish him all the best and hope he makes a good recovery.

A little known TV station has been projected world wide thanks to Twitter for their excellent so called “live coverage” of the riots in Birmingham.

Sangat TV is a registered charity, backed by gurdwaras from the UK and from other individuals. The channel is an open platform for the Sikh sangat to express their views independently. Programming includes educational material on the Sikh gurus and Guru Granth Sahib.

Wiki “Sangat TV came into prominence during the Birmingham Riots of August 2011. The station broadcast live from the streets of Birmingham on the second day of rioting in the city, Tuesday 9 August 2011, to provide accurate, live information and broadcasts. The channel’s coverage was used by Sky News and other national and international stations to show what was happening in the city”

It’s a rare picture indeed when in the middle of a live riot situation you get a British police riot officer shaking hands with the driver ( Mr Singh), this shows the respect Sangat and their crew are held within the Birmingham community.

People like the honesty and less polished production of Sangat against the two giants, Sky and the BBC, there is possably a lesson to be learned by the two major broadcasters.

Quote from Asian Image “What the Sangat TV team did prove however that maybe the traditional Indian method of getting a good story is most likely the best. To put it simply…get a camera…get your friend to drive and think about the consequences later.”

This ability to broadcast these events might not have happened had Sangat TV—normally a Sikh religious channel—not leased the LiveU units from Garland Partners. The station had intended to use the units to provide live coverage of a visit of a famous Sikh preacher. However, Sangat TV was contacted by a local councillor in the Handsworth area of Birmingham who wanted to warn the local community and help them work with the police.

Rather than having the councillor come to the studio, reporter Randher Singh took an LU60 unit with camera attached, and broadcast the councillor live using 3G connectivity from outside a local temple. From that point on, the station brought live pictures of the riots to Sky viewers that others simply could not, all due to their use of the LiveU technology.

You can catch their excellent live coverage on SKY CHANNEL 847

Sony are listening to us…there are two things missing from the NX70 and both are being addressed early 2012 with a firmware upgrade (FW).

1. 720p is a very useful setting but is missing from the NX70…this will be enabled with a FW upgrade.

2. The second FW upgrade is music to my and many NX70 users…the ability to to record onto card and internal memory at the same time, once again this will be enabled early next year.

There may be other enhancements nearer the time but this is indeed fantastic news for all NX70 owners, it just goes to prove that Sony take our comments seriously. Firmware upgrading is a great advancement in todays new technology allowing companies like Sony to enhance features that may only become apparent after the camera hits the marketplace…top marks to Sony.

As a further update I have just finished an 8 minute major corporate shoot for a large drinks manufacturer, two years ago I did a similar shoot using a Sony EX-1, this time it was all shot on the Sony NX70 and the shots were better than my EX-1 could produce and a lot less noisy.

I am about to embark on a major documentary about type 1 diabetes and it will be a mixture of NX70 and FS100 footage, shot at 1080 50p. The cameras are well matched and having the new FW enhancements at the turn of the year will give the NX70 a further professional enhancement.

I hope Sony are also addressing the zoom rocker switch to make it more variable please and a PAL/NTSC switch in the menu would also be appreciated.

Today sees our 1,000,000 hit or to be precise 1.002,750…fantastic, we have gone from 99 hits a day to 3,000 hits a day in just over the year, now thats the power of the internet.

Thanks again to everyone who looks in daily from all parts of the world.  Whats the secret you may ask, my candidness and sheer honesty about all sections of video production good and bad.

I rattle a few cages but if your blogging is honest and not fabricated people get to trust you.