If you have not been tuned in to the Creative COW Podcast, you have missed the return of Franklin McMahon to the helm. Franklin has been back for the last couple of weeks and all of us here at the Headquarters Barn are delighted to have him heading up the COW Podcast once again. So please visit the Creative COW Podcasts homepage at cowcast.creativecow.net for all of our great podcasts. You will find Franklin's news and views program along with our After Effects and other great podcasts.
If you would like to subscribe using iTunes, please click here.
Want to let everyone in your shop use the same media at the same time? The Cow's Bob Zelin shares the secrets for affordable shared storage that you can build yourself, and that WORKS. Start with big, fast storage from your favorite pro vendor, then follow along. Bob even shows you a few hazards to avoid along the way. Read more...
Think Non-Broadcast Production means bush league? Think again!
Hollywood, Bollywood and Pinewood will always be glamorous, but for most people, the biggest and best opportunities may be elsewhere. Join us for a close-up look at the people who are actually succeeding in fields including medical, corporate, real estate and live event video, multi-media museum installations, and more, for clients from the Atlanta Braves to You Tube.
Not that we're leaving Hollywood out! Read Creative Cow leader Nick Griffin's exclusive look inside the production of HBO's The Wire, already acknowledged as one of TV's greatest series ever. You'll also find practical advice from one of the industry's most respected systems engineers on the new requirements for digital broadcast, and how that will affect production deliverables.
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When one of the world's biggest rock and roll bands, Oasis, celebrated a career's worth of achievement, the film playing behind "Rock'n'Roll Star" was created by Creative Cow author Nel Johnson and the team at Studio Skylab. Learn the After Effects techniques that helped them complete the project under a ridiculous deadline, while wowing Oasis and a worldwide audience. As Nels puts it, "We locked ourselves away, cranked up the music, and went nuts." In this "Creative Cow Magazine Extra," we take a closer look at the story, starting with the creation of the film's unique look. Read more...
We appreciate the help that many of you have been in helping us debug the COW's new MOBI interface. The system is now well underway and most all the areas have been lit up and can now be accessed. So over the course of the new few newsletters, we would like to introduce Creative COW users to the new mobile COW and what it brings to you and how it works. Because our Library is so popular, we'd like to start there...
The Creative COW Library is now available in a convenient travel size for those using phones like the iPhone, Blackberry, Treo and many others. But due to the differences in support for various technologies like Flash -- which Apple has not added to the iPhone -- our mechanism watches for your phone and serves up the articles that you can see. For phones able to deal with Flash files, you will be able to access the COW's rich repository of Flash-based tutorial content. iPhone users won't find a bunch of broken links as we have filtered out the Flash content to save you the frustration of trying to access articles that you cannot play.
If you haven't yet had a chance to visit the new mobile COW website, please point your cell phone to http://mobi.creativecow.net
If you find a bug or want to suggest a feature, please visit us in the COWmunications forum.
Sure, you can visit Creative COW using your iPhone or Blackberry to visit the COW. But the interface can be nearly untenable for smaller screen devices like the iPhone and Blackberry. So we're working on a new interface that will be live quite shortly and it is designed to allow you to visit the COW while on the road.
If you would like to help Abraham Chaffin beta test the new interface and be a part of this new addition to the COW, please write him at abraham@creativecow.net
The "reality" shooter has to be mobile and invisible. Futzing around with lighting, support and/or audio can simply mean missing the shot, and often does. Videographer/editor and longtime Cow leader Grinner Hester demonstrates how to "mod on a budget" in this unique little how-to.
"Specializing in reality, motorsports and documentaries, I have found there are two major drags to turning each shot into a major production in itself," says Grin. "Time, and the fact that you are usually shooting people not used to being in front of the camera. Because life is what is happening as one prepares for a shot, I customized my camera to better suit my needs.
"I drag race, rally race, autocross, drift...and when I'm home, I add performance mods sitting in my own driveway. Hey, nothing goes un-modded around here."
Looking for ideas to make your camera work better for you? Start here...
It doesn't make you a better FCP editor, but no matter what kind of work you do, speed still matters. Cow author Dustin Lau shares some tips and tricks to accelerate your work in Final Cut Pro that even the old dogs can learn from.
And that's just the beginning of Dustin's FCP tutorial extravaganza! As a producer at ESPN/Star Sports Asia, he's learned about Final Cut Pro's media management the hard way. In "Better Media Management in Final Cut Pro," he shows you exactly how to get started. (It's easier than you think!)
He builds on those principles in "Become Replaceable. Have a Life." It can be scary to become replaceable, but it's absolutely critical to be an effective part of a large team. Or even if you just want some time off. In Dustin's case, these are exactly the preparations he made on his way to his recent honeymoon!
No matter your level of experience in Final Cut Pro, no matter what kind of work you do, all 3 of these articles are for you.
Dylan Reeve and a small team of New Zealand filmmakers had 48 hours to get their assignment, write a script, direct, shoot and post their film, then hand in the finished show... oh yeah, and refine their RED shooting and editing skills under the gun while trying to beat out 230 other teams! Sound wild? You have no idea... Read more...
For those who want to explore and learn techniques of motion graphics in a "How Do I?" environment, the COW's Motion Graphics forum is a great place to join in on discussions that often cut across using numerous tools and plug-ins, and explore some of the strategies and ways that some of today's popular techniques are created. Headed by a team that includes award-winning motion graphics professionals and broadcast designers, the COW's Motion Graphics forum is where you will find answers to many common "How Do I?" questions.
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