About a month ago, I purchased a BenQ PD2725 monitor because I wanted a color accurate monitor for scanning still images and video editing. Based on what I’ve learned and seen, I’m comfortable making color and composition decisions based upon what I see with the BenQ PD2725U.
Displaying video full-screen in Adobe Premiere is as easy as pressing a single key. However, for best results, when you have two monitors, this quick tutorial shows how to change preference settings to create a separate view and grading monitor.
Animated GIFs are short animations that are posted to a web site and viewed in a web browser. Not only can you create stunning animation in Motion, this short tutorial illustrates an EXTREMELY fast way to automate the process.
In the old days, to monitor video to see exactly what it looks like for color grading required an external video monitor. Today, that’s no longer necessary. Here are three different techniques to view full-screen video from cheap to high-quality.
The news presents events in the real world to help viewers understand what it going on. A documentary deconstructs real people and real events to explain and illuminate them. Given the state of AI, how do you convince viewers that your images and sounds are not fake?
Changing the playback speed of a clip is a fast and easy way to create an eye-catching visual effect. In this short video, Larry Jordan shows the differences in image quality using five different techniques to create slow motion in Final Cut Pro.
Topaz Video AI delivers dramatic results, with a great deal of promise for the future. It’s not cheap and not all features work well. But, for the most part, this is an outstanding tool to improve image quality. Here’s my detailed review.
The Apple Studio Monitor is an amazing display. But, as a monitor, it has too much — and too little. This could be the perfect monitor for you – or it could be far more than you need. It’s complex. Here are my thoughts.
Topaz Photo AI almost works magic enhancing still images. Here’s a detailed review of what it does and how it works. It isn’t cheap, but the results are worth it.
This tutorial looks at how to get the best image quality out of still images that don’t move (i.e. animate) in Final Cut Pro. You’ll find these results surprising – there’s only one key parameter that affects image quality.
Still photographs, slides and digital images are a common component in many video projects. In this short video Larry Jordan shows how to animate their movement, including moving on curves, in Adobe Premiere Pro.
Still photographs, slides and digital images are a common component in many video projects. In this short video Larry Jordan shows how to use Topaz Photo AI to improve the look – and resolution – of still images.
Still photos, slides and digital images are a common component in many video projects. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to use keyframes inside Final Cut Pro to animate still images using straight lines and curves.
Still photographs, slides and digital images are common in many video projects where editors often need to bring them to life. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows three simple, AI-based, Photoshop tools to repair still images for video projects.
Masks allow us to select a portion of a video image. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows a variety of ways to use color, shape and draw masks in Apple Final Cut Pro to create visual effects or fix problems.
Shaky video footage can cause an audience to get motion sick watching your program. Fortunately, Apple Final Cut Pro provides three ways to smooth shaky footage. Here’s an illustrated tutorial on how these work.
“Ask Larry Anything!” is a free-form conversation about video editing technology.In this short tutorial, Larry Jordan illustrates how to read the video scopes inside Apple Final Cut Pro and, by extension, Adobe Premiere Pro, because they share similar scopes. He also provides a table describing where to set skin tones to make people on camera look “normal.”
One of our favorite – and most wide-ranging – sessions returns with “Ask Larry Anything!” Presented by Larry Jordan, this is a free-form conversation based on questions submitted by viewers. In this short video tutorial, Larry shows you how to read the video scopes in Adobe Premiere Pro, then how to use them to match skin tone colors.
Color management for HDR media in Premiere Pro is rapidly changing. For now, it’s a mess with too many color settings that need to be changed manually, with color results that vary inconsistently between clips. iPhone video is a special problem. Here’s what you need to know.
Picking a high-quality computer monitor for video editing is surprisingly confusing. Here is Larry Jordan’s explanation of what specs you need to look for, which you can ignore, and what criteria he uses for picking computer and video monitors.
What is a “Retina Display?” What does it do and what monitors support it? This tutorial explains the term, why it’s used and what it means.
In this highly-illustrated tutorial, I showcase what the “Light” effects do in Final Cut Pro, along with the settings used.
The reason we use effects is to help us tell our story more effectively. While creating effects can take more time than we expect, the results, when effects are chosen wisely, can be amazing. Here are a baker’s dozen of little-known effects in Apple Final Cut Pro.
One of our favorite – and most wide-ranging – sessions returns with “Ask Larry Anything!” Presented by Larry Jordan, this is a free-form conversation based on questions submitted by viewers. In this short video, Larry answers Simone’s question about scanning photographs for digital video.
Particle Illusion is a free, powerful particle generator that runs on both Macs and Windows with hundreds of presets for 2D or 3D particles. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to get started using it.
BorisFX Continuum is the “Swiss Army Knife for visual effects for video editors and motion graphics creatives. In this short video tutorial Larry Jordan shows how to create a complex effect using blurs, color effects and multiple masks, plus Mocha mask tracking in BorisFX Continuum 2022.5 and Final Cut Pro.
BorisFX Continuum is the “Swiss Army Knife for visual effects for video editors and motion graphics creatives. In this short video tutorial Larry Jordan shows how to create a simple blur effect using masks and Mocha mask tracking in BorisFX Continuum 2022.5 in Final Cut Pro.
BorisFX Continuum is the “Swiss Army Knife for visual effects for video editors and motion graphics creatives. In this short video tutorial Larry Jordan shows how to create a simple “Day-for-Night” color effect using Continuum in Final Cut Pro.
Integrating vertical video into a horizontal video timeline is increasingly common. Here’s an illustrated tutorial on how to do it using both Final Cut Pro and Adobe Premiere Pro.
Video bit depth makes a difference when you are creating effects, color grading or working with HDR material. Here’s an explanation of what bit depth is and when to care about it.
This illustrated tutorial on creating retro film effects using Final Cut Pro was written by Burkhard Berger.
This tutorial creates a 3D text template in Apple Motion that allows Apple Final Cut Pro to put moving video inside adjustable, textured 3D text. There are many creative variations on this idea.
What I like about the Classic Color Meter is that it works the way you expect, measures colors six ways from Sunday and allows copying and pasting color values, even color images, from whatever you measured into whatever you need. Here’s how it works.
Multicam recording captures an event using multiple cameras. Multicam editing displays all those angles during the edit. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to create virtual angles in a multicam clip to provide more diversity in shot selection, as well as how to create a montage using multicam in Final Cut Pro.
Almost all digital video cameras shoot video levels with excessive levels for any project destined for broadcast, cable, streaming or digital cinema. The highlights are too bright and the shadows are too dark. Here are two ways to control them.
Apple Motion is powerful software that can be used to create motion graphics for any video editor, not just Final Cut Pro. For example, you can use Motion to create animated text and graphics on a Mac, then export it …
This is an excerpt of a recent PowerUP webinar called “Ask Larry Anything.” In this short tutorial, Larry Jordan illustrates why scaling video larger than 100% creates blurry images. This is also called “up-resing” or “up-scaling.”
Creating the illusion of night in video is not a case of turning off the lights. It a case of where those lights get put and the contrast between them.
Here’s a simple technique to simplify reframing clips stored inside a drop zone in Apple Final Cut Pro.
Like many, I get confused about the differences between HDR, RAW, HDR, Log, LUT, and 10-bit media. All too often, the explanations are deeply technical – and confusing. So, here’s an overview of what these are and how to use them.
If you’ve been wondering what the color tools in Final Cut do, or how to make them work better, this session is for you. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to adjust the color in a portion of a video clip using the new object tracking feature in Final Cut Pro.
If you’ve been wondering what the color tools in Final Cut do, or how to make them work better, this session is for you. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to use high dynamic range media, called “HDR,” in a standard dynamic range (SDR) project, like HD, in Final Cut.
If you’ve been wondering what the color tools in Final Cut do, or how to make them work better, this session is for you. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to adjust skin colors, and fix color casts, using the color wheels in Final Cut.
If you’ve been wondering what the color tools in Final Cut do, or how to make them work better, this session is for you. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to fix color casts in video, using the Color Wheels in Final Cut.
If you’ve been wondering what the color tools in Final Cut do, or how to make them work better, this session is for you. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to use the Comparison Viewer for color correction in Final Cut.
If you’ve been wondering what the color tools in Final Cut do, or how to make them work better, this session is for you. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan explains the Three Rules of Color Correction and how they apply regardless of which video editing software you are using.
“Ask Larry Anything,” is a free-form conversation about questions related to media production and editing. In this short excerpt, Larry Jordan discusses the differences between using photo scanners and copy stands when digitizing photos or 3D objects.
For web work, you don’t need to worry about video levels. However, for just about all other video projects, you do. In those cases, it’s nice to know the Broadcast Safe effect has your back by keeping your video levels “legal.” Here’s how it works.
SilverFast SE Plus 9, by LaserSoft Imaging, provides high-quality image scans for professional use. However, it has an interface that takes time to learn. It does a great job, not because of its interface, but in spite of it. Here’s my review.
I’m a long-time owner of an Epson Perfection V600 Photo scanner. But, recently I purchased an Epson V850 Pro because I have a lot of slides to scan. In this review, I compare both and share the strengths and weaknesses of each.
