Day 2 at #AdobeMax: Lightroom Tricks, 360 Video, and Sneak Peaks!
The second day of #AdobeMax started a keynote featuring inspiring speakers from the creative fields of fashion, photography, installation art, and film. From the innovative fiber optic dresses designed by Zac Posen, to the fearlessness and the photographic truth offered by Lynsey Addario's dangerous frontline photography, the imaginative blending of nature & art in Janet Echelman's fiber floating structures, I left feeling like anything is possible! And then, Quentin Tarantino. He told us he was actually denied admission into AFI and that all you need to do to succeed is to trust your own instincts and your ability to tell unique stories. After writing, he also encouraged us to practice simply by making films and making mistakes! Yes, film school can help you get the assets to make your first film, but in today's world many films are crowdfunded by communities who are inspired by the story the filmmaker has to offer. So go out there, share your story, meet people you can collaborate with, get your hands dirty, show your passion! That's what Quentin did and look where he is now!
Following the keynote, I became an expert in Lightroom with Chris Orwig. Here are some of the key-takeaways from the session:
After you "Alt" click on the arrow next to each panel, the arrow turns into a arrow filled with tiny dots. This means solo mode is turned on.
- Lightroom is a tool that helps you manage, improve and share your photos.
- Catalogs in Lightroom are extremely important. They contain the location, metadata, and all edits you make to your photos. For example, if you crop your image in Lightroom, it saves the crop image info to the catalog, not the image. The reason Lightroom saves this data to the catalog is to save speed in Lightroom. If all that data was saved to the images, the program would run slow! Thus, be sure to back up your catalogues on another external device!
- When you are in the "Develop" module in Lightroom, you can turn on "Solo Mode" by selecting the ALT/option key and clicking on the arrow next to the panel which enables you to only have one panel open at a time. This speeds up your editing process so you don't have to spend extra time opening and closing panel tabs.
- Here are some other tips and tricks I posted on Twitter:
Following Lightroom, I walked into the Virtual Reality & 360 world with Dave Helmly, Karl Soule, and Lucas Wilson. Karle Soule walked us through the ideal 360 Video process and explained the 360 editing is quite easy to do because it following traditional linear storytelling practices, but just in a different 360 environment. Here is the process he recommends:
- Acquire 360 video by buying a 360 camera.
- Consumer Cameras: Samsung, Kodak, Ricoh Theta S
- Professional: Multiple goPro Rig or Higher.
- If you use a multiple camera set-up, you will need to stitch your images together.
- Software for stitching: Kolor AutoPano and VideoStitch.
- You can edit 360 footage directly in Premiere Pro
- You can add effects to the footage like 306 titles with the Mettle plugin.
- Export your video in the H.264 file format and you can watch in a headset or on Facebook and YouTube.
Following the session, I interviewed Karle about why he recommends the Ricoh Theta S as an entry level 360 camera. Video with Karle coming next week! Some people have said the camera quality is not that sharp in 1080p, but Dave Helmly recommends sharpening the 360 video footage using the Lumetri panel in Premiere Pro.
Premiere Gal and Karle Soule discussing the benefits of the Ricoh Theta S 360 camera for consumers.
Robbie Carmen's session "Demystifying Log, Raw, and HDR video" was enlightening as I have never shot log, raw or HDR video. Here are some tips to keep in mind before you start shooting in these formats:
- Raw is not video. Raw by itself is just patterned data. It needs to be processed within your video editing software to be seen. This process is called "debayering." Robbie recommends thinking of debayering as decoding the camera's sensor pattern.
- Log footage looks flat and desaturated, but there is a wide range of color information stored within it. In other words, Log is meant for color grading. LUTS (look up tables) are mathematical equations that are often used to convert footage shot in Log to the 709 standard (standard high definition). Some cameras, like Sony, give users custom LUTS to convert the log footage into 709. You can also download many LUTS online for free. You can read this awesome guide by Sony that will walk you through the history of log.
- HDR = High dynamic range. HDR photos looks so hyperreal and incredible because it is a weaved image made up of the best overexposed and underexposed images. But HDR video is not weaving of images, but about opening the spectrum of light in the image. HDR video is just starting and Robbie thinks next year there may be more information to give! You can read this article to learn more.
And then on to #ADOBESNEAKS. Adobe Sneaks are presentations on some new Adobe projects that make things you could have thought were impossible to actually happen! These were my favorite sneaks:
- #WetBrush This new tool will help all the digital painters out there achieve the actual feel of painting with a brush. Watch it here, in action:
- #SkyReplace. We have all dealt with overexposed skies before. Well, rather than creating a custom mask, #SkyReplace does it for you with one click of a button! And it can even give you options for different types of skies to choose from using stock photos. Check it out here:
- #Voco. Voco is a tool that analyzes voice dialogue and enables you to edit the voice and add in words the person didn't say by typing text. What?! Yes, if you don't believe it, watch it here:
And lastly, but certainly, not least! #MAXBASH. It was located right on the waterfront of downtown San Diego. There were heaps of audiovisual stimulai and eye candy throughout the. To name a few, the bars were aquariums, there was one of Janet Echelman's giant fiber artworks hanging in the sky, Alabama Shakes played, a life-size model of Vincent Van Gosh's paintings being recreate out of jewels and there were about 10 different cuisines! I took some video shots of the various events and I look forward to sharing that once I get into the editing room!
Premiere Gal received a complimentary ticket to attend and cover #AdobeMax. If you have any questions contact me! Follow me on Twitter , Facebook, Instagram and subscribe to Premiere Gal's YouTube Channel. If you find my content useful, help support my effort through a small tip on my Patreon page.