Aputure Mini 20C LED Fresnel Light - NAB 2017

Aputure keeps cranking out high quality, reasonably priced lighting gear. In this announcement, Ted from Aputure runs us through the features on their new Mini 20C. The light features a focusing beam, including barn doors with an infinity ring, controls for dimming, changing color temperature between 3200 and 5600 Kelvin, and focusing the beam angle between 20 and 80 degrees (flood and spot). One other nice feature is the ability to power with 5 to 18V DC power so you can use a USB battery pack, Sony NP-F style batteries, or even a big Sony V-Lock or Anton Bauer Gold Mount battery.

I've been working with an early copy of the daylight version of this light for a few weeks now and it works great as an accent or hair light.

Apologies for the wild camera work. I had the clever idea to go super light without a tripod at NAB this year. Lesson learned. My brother Cary Judd was kind enough to suffer through shooting. Thanks bro!

Gear used to record this episode:

Panasonic Lumix GH5 Camera

Panasonic Lumix 12-35mm f/2.8 Lens

RODE Reporter Microphone

RODE iXLR Audio Adapter for iPhone

Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd

Sanken CSS-50 Stereo Shotgun Microphone Quick Demo

The Sanken CSS-50 is a professional grade stereo shotgun microphone. This is a rather unique design in that the mic has 3 square capsules. I was pretty impressed with the sound it produces and it also stood up well to a key jangling test where we stress the microphone's transient and high frequency capture abilities. This is not the one microphone for everyone or every occasion, but it is a nice option, particularly for those who do a fair bit of stereo recording.

Gear used/covered in this episode:

Sanken CSS-50 Stereo Shotgun Microphone

Sennheiser 5-pin to Dual 3-pin XLR Adapter Cable

Rycote Softie Wind Cover (good for light wind)

Blackmagic Ursa Mini Pro Camera

Panasonic GH5 Camera (behind the scenes wide shot)

Panasonic 12-35 f/2.8 Lens (original mark I version)

Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd

Aputure Amaran Tri-8C LED Panel Light - NAB 2017

Aputure keeps cranking out high quality, reasonably priced lighting gear. In this announcement, Ted from Aputure runs us through the features on their new Amaran Tri-8C LED light panel. The light features the ability to power with AC, Sony NP-F style batteries or even Sony V-lock or Anton Bauer Gold Mount batteries. This model is color tunable from 2300 Kelvin to 6800 Kelvin. Light output is roughly equivalent to a 650W tungsten light (though speaking in equivalents is fraught with issues).

I've been working with this light for a few days now and it works great as an accent light and I was very happy with the results when I used it as a fill light for an outdoor talking head piece.

Apologies for the wild camera work. I had the clever idea to go super light without a tripod at NAB this year. Lesson learned. My brother Cary Judd was kind enough to suffer through shooting. Thanks bro!

Our Vlogging setup:
Panasonic Lumix GH5 Camera - the in-body stabilization saved us because I had the "clever" idea to travel light and not bring a tripod this year. That was a mistake but the IBIS in the GH5 did a pretty nice job!

Panasonic Lumix 12-35mm f/2.8 Lens - This is the original version of this lens. The new version is a bit pricier but evidently works even better with the GH5 to smooth out camera motion.

RODE Reporter Microphone - great at managing handling noise. I didn't hear any in this recording.

RODE iXLR Audio Adapter for iPhone - Yes, recorded this audio to my iPhone. Pretty good for a phone recording on a noisy show floor.

Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd

Aputure Space Light and Light Dome Mini - NAB 2017

Aputure keeps cranking out high quality, reasonably priced lighting gear and their latest announcement includes two new modifiers for their COB lights (or any LED light with a Bowens mount). These include the Space Light and the Light Dome Mini. Let’s have a quick look at both and talk about when you might choose to use each.

Looking forward to getting our hands on these for review!

Apologies for the wild camera work. I had the clever idea to go super light without a tripod at NAB this year. Lesson learned. My brother Cary Judd was kind enough to suffer through shooting. Thanks bro!

Our Vlogging setup:
Panasonic Lumix GH5 Camera - the in-body stabilization saved us because I had the "clever" idea to travel light and not bring a tripod this year. That was a mistake but the IBIS in the GH5 did a pretty nice job!

Panasonic Lumix 12-35mm f/2.8 Lens - This is the original version of this lens. The new version is a bit pricier but evidently works even better with the GH5 to smooth out camera motion.

RODE Reporter Microphone - great at managing handling noise. I didn't hear any in this recording.

RODE iXLR Audio Adapter for iPhone - Yes, recorded this audio to my iPhone. Pretty good for a phone recording on a noisy show floor.

Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd

Aputure COB300d First Look at NAB 2017

Aputure keeps cranking out high quality, reasonably priced lighting gear and their latest announcement is for the impressive COB300d - an LED light that is roughly equivalent to a 2k tungsten. That’s a lot of light output. This one is daylight balanced (6000K) and a tungsten version will follow. All the same accessories that fit their smaller COB120 lights also fit this including the soft box, fresnel lens and other bowens mount accessories available on the market like barn doors and beauty dishes. The color quality is rated at a TLCI of 98 which is very high.

Can’t wait to get our hands on one of these for review!

When might you use a light this powerful? The first two scenarios that come to mind are though a window to simulate daylight (so you can shoot a daytime scene at night or just when you want to make it look like a different time of day) or when you want to bring the ambient light levels up in a larger space. Aiming this as the ceiling could do an impressive job lifting that ambience.

Apologies for the wild camera work. I had the clever idea to go super light without a tripod at NAB this year. Lesson learned. My brother Cary Judd was kind enough to suffer through shooting. Thanks bro!

Our Vlogging setup:
Panasonic Lumix GH5 Camera - the in-body stabilization saved us because I had the "clever" idea to travel light and not bring a tripod this year. That was a mistake but the IBIS in the GH5 did a pretty nice job!

RODE Reporter Microphone - great at managing handling noise. I didn't hear any in this recording.

RODE iXLR Audio Adapter for iPhone - Yes, recorded this audio to my iPhone. Pretty good for a phone recording on a noisy show floor.

Panasonic Lumix 12-35mm f/2.8 Lens - This is the original version of this lens. The new version is a bit pricier but evidently works even better with the GH5 to smooth out camera motion.

Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd

Tentacle Sync E - Just Announced: Smaller, Bluetooth Enabled Timecode Generator

Last year I decided to simplify the process of shooting dual system sound (sound recorded to a separate audio recorder rather than the camera). The process of clapping at the start of each clip makes it easier to sync the sound and video files together, but it still takes a fair bit of time on bigger projects.

That lead me to talk with the guys at Tentacle Sync while at the NAB show in 2016. I was impressed by what their Tentacle Sync timecode generators could do and they were priced more reasonably than many of their competitors' generators. Here is the original interview we did with them in 2016:

We also ran through an overview of how timecode works and how it simplifies the process of syncing audio to video in this previous Sound for Video Session:

This year at the NAB show, several timecode companies announced new, smaller timecode generators, including Tentacle Sync. Here is an overview of their newest offering, the Tentacle Sync E.

Thanks to Cary Judd for the camera work. Tricky job since we decided to go without a tripod.

Pricing and exact time of availability are still to be determined, but the original Tentacle Sync was the most affordable way to get into timecode generators of which I am aware. Keep an eye on Tentacle Sync for updates on release and pricing.

In the meantime, their original Tentacle Sync does a nice job. And they didn't pay me or give me anything to say that, I'm just speaking from personal experience.

Sound Devices MixPre-3 and MixPre-6: Overview at NAB 2017

Sound Devices just announced a new set of audio recorders/mixers called the MixPre series. In this episode, we stopped by the Sound Devices booth at the 2017 NAB show where Paul Isaacs gave us an overview of the new mixers for filmmaking enthusiasts, podcasters, musicians, and even production mixers.

It was an honor to have Paul run through the features and capabilities of the MixPre as he is the lead designer for Sound Devices.

We have a MixPre pre-order in so that we can review them in the next few weeks. Can't wait to get my hands on them!

Gear used to film this interview:

SoundDevices MixPre-3 Audio Mixer/Recorder

SoundDevices MixPre-6 Audio Mixer/Recorder

Panasonic Lumix GH5 Camera

Panasonic Lumix 12-35mm f/2.8 Lens

RODE Reporter Microphone

RODE iXLR Audio Adapter for iPhone

Sound for Video Session: Sound to Camera, Matching Mics, Handheld Recorders, Etc.

In this week's Sound for Video Session we addressed several questions submitted by several of you:

- How to send sound to camera?
- How to make recordings with two mics sound the same?
- How to use a handheld recorder when booming a mic?
- Which type of mic to use when recording in very loud environments?
- Is there a single mic that can work in most situations?

Items discussed in this session and where to find them:
3.5mm Attenuation Cable

Sound for Video Session on Sending Audio from Mixer to Camera:

 Zoom F8 Audio Recorder

Sound Devices 633 Audio Mixer & Recorder

Izotope RX6 (Software for matching microphones)

Blackmagic Ursa Mini Pro (Recorded the talking head portion with this camera)

Furman PL-8C Power Conditioner

Antelope Audio Orion Studio Audio Interface

Panasonic GH5 XLR Microphone Adapter DMW-XLR1 Review

The Panasonic Lumix GH5 is an incredibly capable little camera for video and filmmaking. It’s imaging capabilities are impressive given its size and price. But one thing it lacks for producing high quality film is inputs for XLR microphones. This is where the DMW-XLR1 audio microphone adapter comes in. The XLR1 allows you to record one or two XLR based microphones or wireless microphone systems directly to your Panasonic GH5. So you won’t need to sync audio in post like you would with a separate audio recorder and the sound quality is very good with shotgun or other boom microphones. Let’s have a listen!

Gear used to record and featured in this episode:

Panasonic GH5 Camera (talking head shots)

Panasonic DMW-XLR1 Microphone Audio Adapter - All audio in this episode recorded to the GH5 with this adapter

Sanken CSS-50 Stereo Shotgun Microphone - Used to record talking head and voiceover audio for this episode

Blackmagicdesign Ursa Mini Pro Digital Film Camera - all product shots made with this

Audio Technica AT4053b Hyper Cardioid Boom Microphone - my go-to microphone for recording indoor dialogue

RODE NTG4+ Shotgun Microphone

Zoom F8 Audio Recorder

Tascam DR-60DmkII Audio Recorder - Good budget recorder with XLR inputs. The XLR preamps are impressive, the 3.5mm input is not

Sound Devices 633 Audio Mixer/Recorder - with automix

Aputure Light Storm COB120t LED Light - Key light for all the shots in this episode

Aputure Light Dome Soft Box - Makes the COB120t key light very soft. Great type of light for talking head/interview

Panasonic Lumix 12-35mm f/2.8 Lens - My most versatile lens for the Panasonic GH5

Sound Devices MixPre-3 and MixPre-6: A New Standard for Sub $1000 Mixers/Recorders

Sound Devices have just announced a new series of audio recorders/computer interface for filmmaking enthusiasts, podcasters, and YouTubers called the MixPre-3 and MixPre-6. I didn't see this coming and - WOW - on paper they look impressive. They're shaking up the category that has been owned by Zoom for the last couple of years with their F8 and F4 recorders.

What makes the MixPre's unique?

• New Kashmir preamplifier design by Sound Devices - Class A preamps with discrete components rather than off-the-shelf integrated circuit preamps
• Analogue limiters
• Analogue to Digital Converter - new 32-bit design
• Touchscreen LCD Screen
• USB audio interface for computers - Via USB-A and C
• Basic and Advanced menu modes
• Stream audio to computer and record to SD card simultaneously
• Large, ergonomic potentiometers (knobs)
• Several powering options including AA, USB, and Sony NP-F style batteries
• Bluetooth app for iPhone/iPad to control the MixPre wirelessly
• 1/4"-20 tap and screw to mount the recorder under your camera

Fortunately, I have an appointment to meet with the guys at Sound Devices next week at NAB so I'm planning to get a good look at the MixPre's and will have more info for you soon.

Oh, and pricing: The MixPre-3 is priced at $650 USD, the MixPre-6 at $900 USD.

Did Sound devices just kill their 6xx and 7xx series mixers and recorders with these new devices? No, not even close for a lot of reasons we can cover another time. But this is a great option for those who cannot spend $3300 for a high quality mixer/recorder and an audio interface to boot!

My friend Jonathan Morrison, for whom I've done a little bit of audio post work, was lucky enough to get an early look at the MixPre. He's coming from the perspective of a YouTuber and does a nice job outlining the benefits from a mobile creator point of view.