Not sure if many of you have heard about Microsoft’s new development in video editing technology, but I just ran across a couple of very impressive articles about it. The idea is to be able to edit on a 3D surface by flattening it.

This is very new to the consumer market and I found it interesting that it seemed so easy to work with, (although we don’t actually see any operation). The other goal Microsoft is working at with this new development is to eliminate specialized software for different editing scenarios. For example, instead of having to use Photoshop, Ultra and then Encore you would just use the individual program for everything.

Take a look at this video on posted on BoreMe and this blog from NewScientist for more!

Canon announced today it’s consumer camcorder line-up for 2009, updating some old favorites and releasing some exciting new models.

Of immediate interest to Videomaker readers is the Vixia HF S10/S100 model. This is Canon’s top of the line AVCHD camcorder, and deserves serious consideration even by professionals. The engineers at Canon have included a 8.59 MP CMOS chip, and the DIGIC DV III processor, as well as allowing compression at AVCHD’s upper limit of 24Mbps. What does all this technical goodness get you? 900 lines of resolution, that’s more resolution than their professional line of HDV camcorders. I was able to see some sample footage from the Vixia HF S10/S100 on a recent trip to Japan, and the image quality was outstanding.

Also updated was the successor to Canon’s popular Vixia HV-20 and HV-30 HDV camcorder, the Canon HV-40. The key update here is the new abiltiy to record in native 24p mode, similar to their professional products. This addition is perfect for this model, one that has found wide acceptance in the low-budget movie making market. In addition the HV-40 sports a new custom key setting, that allows you assign your own functions to a physical button on the camcorder.

Another update was the Vixia HF-20/200 AVCHD camcorders. These are the smallest camcorder’s in Canon’s line up, and have a 15x lens, and the new Video Snapshot feature. This new mode is accessed via a button, and it simply takes 4 seconds of video each time you press record. So what’s the big deal with this feature? Well, if you’ve ever had to sit through hours of boring home movies, you will appreciate Video Snapshot. In addition to limiting shots to 4 seconds, you can use the camcorder to arrange your 4 second clips in any order, and assign a piece of background music (you can upload your own tracks to the camcorder), and play them out straight to the TV from your camera. It’s automated editing for those who can’t be bothered to edit, and seems to work very well in practice.

This is just the announcement, pricing and availability aren’t  set yet. So stay tuned to the Videomaker Blog for further updates.

Press Release Below:

Read the rest of this entry »

Yet again, more additions to Nintendo’s current line up as it looks like the Nintendo DSi has received a face lift. The new design points to the inclusion of a VGA camera andthe ability to playback music. As well as on-board memory, a built-in Web browser and SD slots enabling the transfer of images to the Wii Photo Channel.

With the recent announcement that the Wii will soon be featuring Video On Demand what else is next for Nintendo? Video Capture? Blu Ray? It’s to soon to say, but it is clear that originally Nintendo did not want to jump into the multimedia market, however it seems that now they are ready to take the leap… And so am I.

The unit is already selling out in Japan, which means that it should land in the states by next Christmas.

It’s already the hardest to find item this season, and for the past two seasons as well… but now Nintendo’s Wii will have even more reasons to reign supreme with the announcement that soon Nintendo will be adding video to its offering in the form of a video on demand service similar to Xbox Live.

Plans looks to be slated from some original programs to make the service, some free and and some that will be purchased. Nintendo will be teaming with advertising firm Dentsu who claimed, “Nintendo and Dentsu shall use the environment surrounding the Wii so that living rooms with Wii-ready TVs would become more of a fun area for communication among families and friends.”

With a market that already includes the PS3, and the Xbox 360 the Wii generally stands out due to it’s landmark interactive platform. With the capitalization on the video service, Nintendo looks to be taking the Wii into a more universal level that both Sony and Microsoft have already played in.

Android phones are well on their way to dominating the consumer market in 2009.  Sony Ericsson and HTC are planning new Android phones in time for summer next year; Huawei has an Android smart phone; and Samsung has revealed plans for a “full touch screen” Android handset by next year as well. T-Mobile is the first to jump in the loop with a new Android-powered handset that will be revealed on January 26.

Of the new features for the T-Mobile G1, one of the most pleasing to all of us cinemanias will be video capture and playback.  Other things in the the features department making debuts are a 5 megapixel camera with auto-focus and flash, and a front-facing VGA camera to take advantage of the new video calling service expected to come to T-Mobile soon.

What’s next for Google’s Android mobile platform? Only time will tell, but the addition of video capture and playback have just made me start thinking about that next upgrade.

I recently came across a story of that is gaining a significant amount of support behind it. And I wanted to know where it might lead us as cinematographers if it were to happen. There are a couple of similarities amongst two people that I found to be quite interesting. Both are artists, both are creative and very passionate and both only have the use of one eye. Here is where things get interesting; both have one prosthetic eye… which they hope to install a web cam into. Rob Spence is a filmmaker who hopes that installing a webcam in his eye socket would help him to become a so-called “lifecaster.” While Tanya Vlach is an artist who hopes that installing a webcam in her eye socket would become a source of “augmented reality.”

As a video enthusiast I found the story very compelling in that it makes me think of the days of when webcams first hit the market and now, the idea of inserting one into a human eye is not that far off from happening. What do you guys think?