Firewire Filmmaking (With CD-ROM) [Paperback]

Scott Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 15, 2002

Digital technology and FireWire, Apple Computer's high-speed connectivity standard, are revolutionizing the process of movie making. With today's tools, students and professionals alike can create high-quality digital footage, transfer it to their computers, and edit it for output over email or the Web. FireWire Filmmaking is a four-color guidebook covering the art and science of digital filmmaking. Experienced author and filmmaker Scott Smith begins with the basics, including controlling the camcorder and capturing video with FireWire. Readers will then learn how to shoot their own digital movies and how to archive them on a variety of formats including CD-ROM, DVD, and DAT. Software covered in the book includes Adobe Premiere, iMovie, EditDV, and Final Cut Pro. As digital filmmaking becomes the industry standard, multimedia professionals, videographers, educators, and students are in need of a solid foundation on today's technologies. With expert advice and guidance including shared techniques from eight successful digital filmmakers, FireWire Filmmaking shows how digital video cameras and FireWire technology are bringing moviemaking to the masses.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The blazingly fast FireWire interface allows filmmakers to take full advantage of digital video production. This guide will, in turn, help novice to intermediate auteurs unleash FireWire's powers, with guidance on purchasing a camcorder to capturing footage to setting up networks and sharing video files; illustrations and examples visualize those processes. The book could have benefited from more careful editing, but the misspellings and other glitches are a minor annoyance. The companion DVD includes examples of films made with FireWire technology and trial software. An appropriate purchase for larger libraries.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From the Back Cover

Digital filmmaking is no longer a fringe technology. It's the force behind everything from commercial Web shorts by famous directors to feature-length Hollywood productions. Low-cost digital video cameras and FireWire technology have opened moviemaking to the masses, but few people take full advantage of the unprecedented opportunity. For a solid foundation in the latest technologies, turn to FireWire Filmmaking, a book that covers both the technical and artistic issues you need to know to take your digital production from the storyboard to the screen.

Don't worry if you've never picked up a digital camera before: FireWire Filmmaking begins with an introduction to the basics, like how to select and set up a FireWire-equipped camera and a blazing-fast FireWire network. You'll learn not just how to use your camera, but how to create a compelling film, thanks to chapters devoted to story structure, organizing clips, and adding sound, music, and titles. Throughout the book, eight successful FireWire moviemakers lend inspirational tips and techniques, illustrated with photos and clips from their own digital productions. FireWire Filmmaking also includes sections on those all-important finishing touches, such as how to import footage and manipulate it using programs such as Adobe Premiere, iMovie, EditDV, and Final Cut Pro, and how to output your final film to tape, CD-ROM, DVD, DAT, or the Web.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Pearson Education; Pap/DVD edition (January 15, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0201741636
• ISBN-13: 978-0201741636
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 9 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,209,113 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great way to learn the practical aspects of FW moviemaking, December 26, 2001

By 

Imran Anwar (E. Patchogue, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Firewire Filmmaking (With CD-ROM) (Paperback)

I have been using a camera for many years (... has my boating/flying clips), know how FireWire Macs work, can throw a decent amateur home video together, and now with my PowerMac G4 and Apple's movie making magic apps I am begining to expand my horizons. So, I was pleasantly surprised at how much useful information I got from this book. I think the title is a bit misleading. FireWire has nothing to do with film making, IMHO. After all, that is like saying that I can become a better writer if I have DSL at home instead of a dial-up connection. (I do have DSL, and believe me, it did not make me a better writer ;-) ).

So, it is more appropriate to say that is is an excellent book for people planning to use FireWire ENABLED devices to get into the art, business or hobby of making movies. (Interesting that we still call it Film making when in fact most of the stuff we do on these technologies will never see a frame of film).

The book simplifies many of the mysteries that novice moviemakers may face as they not only try to learn how to use things like Final Cut Pro (or iMovie/iDVD etc. from Apple {... is a great resource)) but also figuring out what and how FireWire can do for them. This book simplifies that part quite a bit. I do most of my moviemaking with a decent consumer FireWire equipped Panasonic DV-701 and found this book helpful in deciding what level of camera to buy, for example, and why some day I will want to buy a 3-CCD camera instead of the one this camera is based on. It helped me understand what kind of techniques I could use in making movies with my equipment. It helped me understand some of the issues I would face if I wanted to make movies that would play in non-US parts of the world that use a different standard, etc. In short, I found the book extremely useful, extremely easy to read, detailed enough to be useful, not so detailed as to be boring and left unread or put on a shelf and forgotten.

If you are looking into making movies, ideally with a FireWire equipped set of tools, this is a great book, but even for people not ready to invest in all that FireWire equipment yet, the book will be a useful addition to their toolset.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not for general crowd - for intermediate/advanced amateurs, October 4, 2002

By 

Rustam Garrey "power user" (Mile high above sea level) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Firewire Filmmaking (With CD-ROM) (Paperback)

This is overall a good book, although I did not find it too
useful for myself or my son (he is 12 and into moviemaking).
Not useful for two major reasons:
- mostly (if not exclusevely) oriented towards Mac hardware
and software (and higher end software),
- is for more advanced users, since it discusses semi-pro and
pro video equipment, and more than trivial editing tricks
and effects.
Nevertheless it is entertaining and educational to read and
includes a DVD ...

0 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not for most of us, May 30, 2003

By 

Gadgester "No Time, No Money" (Mother Earth) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Firewire Filmmaking (With CD-ROM) (Paperback)

If you use the Macintrash and has tons of money for high-end software, this may be for you. For 99% of the world, this book doesn't give you anything you can put to use. Avoid.