Rebel's Guide on your iPad or Kindle, DV Rebel Tools For Free

My book, The DV Rebel’s Guide, is finally available as an eBook for Apple iOS devices, Amazon kindle, and anything that reads the epub format (such as the Nook). This has been a long time coming, and I wanted to celebrate by giving away updated versions of the DV Rebel Tools scripts that I included with the original edition of the book.

These scripts create a tool palette that turns Adobe After Effects into a full-featured onlining tool. Add color correction effects to clips easily (including Colorista II if you have it installed), and check your grading continuity with a powerful thumbnail view that updates live as you work. For a full tutorial, watch the video:

To install the scripts, download this .zip file and expand it. You’ll see two folders: “Put contents in Presets” and “Put contents in ScriptUI Panels”.

Make sure After Effects is not running. Copy the contents of “Put contents in Presets” into this directory:

/Applications/Adobe After Effects CS5/Presets/

Copy the contents of “Put contents in ScriptUI Panels” into this directory:

/Applications/Adobe After Effects CS5/Scripts/ScriptUI Panels/

Now you can launch After Effects CS5 and find “rd_DVRebelTools.jsx” at the bottom of the Window menu. You can dock the palette into your workspace wherever you like.

Although I created the nerdy expressions and presets that power the DV Rebel Tools, there is a limit to my nerd powers, and that’s where Jeff Almasol stepped in and created the amazing scripts that automate the tools. A big and continued thanks to him. Check out his other handy scripts at redefinery.com.

Update on Wednesday, March 30, 2011 at 11:45AM by Stu

After some Twitter responses I figured this is a good place for a quick FAQ:

Q: A lot has changed since the release of The DV Rebel’s Guide. Ever thought of doing a update?

A: No. I’m gonna make movies instead. Besides, the best parts of the book still aplly even with a new generation of camera tech.

But don’t despair, because I can’t seem to shut up either. If I were to do an update, it probably wouldn’t be a dead tree product. It would be somehow electronic, and mobile, and able to hold file and video links, and be a part of a conversation, and constantly updated.

Waitaminute… in the famous words of Madge, you’re soaking in it.

So let me change my answer. Yes.

Update on Wednesday, March 30, 2011 at 2:27PM by Stu

Derps.

If you’re getting a “Divide by zero” error when trying to run the Thumbnails script, that’s because I screwed up and uploaded the wrong files. Please re-download and re-install the scripts and presets and all will be well.

Color Correcting Food with Colorista II

My friend Pete came by with some Canon 7D (UPDATE: Oops, it’s the 5D Mark II) video and stills. We sat together for about an hour grading the video to match the stills, which had been professionally shot and processed by photographer Eric Wolfinger. We used After Effects CS5, Colorista II, and the DV Rebel Tools scripts from The DV Rebel’s Guide.

What I find interesting about this session is that it provides one answer to a common question: “Why doesn’t the video I shoot with my DSLR look as good as the stills?” Setting aside numerous technical issues, a big part of it is that stills shooters, as a rule, color correct their shots before letting the world see them.

Here’s the session:

And here’s the before/after:

BRICK & STEEL

A fake trailer for a sequel to a movie that was never made, a birthday party gone horribly wrong, a CalArts reunion, and a fun test of achieving a hyper-poppy Stephen Sonenfeld (colorist on Transformers, Mission Impossible III and my Playstation spot) look on 5D and 7D footage (+ Redrock Micro Stubling, Eyespy Deluxe, Zacuto Z Finder Pro, and Zoom H4N) using Magic Bullet Denoiser, Colorista II, and Mojo. Budget = beer. Lots and lots of beer. Also available at 1080p on YouTube. For some reason.

Rebel Epic

Stu Maschwitz’s Rebel Epic for Looks from Red Giant Software on Vimeo.

Rebel Epic is a set of presets that work with Magic Bullet Looks and PhotoLooks. This collection is pulled from my personal bag of Looks tricks that I reach for when grading. They range from subtle to very much not, and they all share a common goal: to lend your footage a high production value look. Like all presets, they are best used as a launching pad for your own tweaks and mods. Check out the detailed tutorial to see the Looks in action and learn a bit about what they’re for and how they’re made.

Getting Started with Rebel Epic from Red Giant Software on Vimeo.