Digital Video - February 2008 - (Page 12) IN REVIEW BORIS CONTINUUM COMPLETE 5 IMAGE CONSCIOUS THIS LATEST UPDATE OFFERS A VARIETY OF NEW CREATIVE VISUAL OPTIONS. BY JAMES RANKIN SO WHAT’S NEW? HEADS UP DISPLAY (HUD) One of the useful new enhancements, this addition within the filters provides better control and previews of the effects as they’re being modified. UPREZ This filter is designed to help make the process of converting SD to HD video reasonable to consider. While writing this review, the perfect opportunity came along to test this feature: I was working on a project that required a short HD video clip to help sell the storyline. When the file was delivered from the client, we discovered that the format was actually SD and not the 1080i we were expecting. With the tight time constraints, there was no time to have the file resent. This seemed like a perfect “real world” test scenario. The process includes creating a 1920x1080 comp in After Effects, then adding a Solid layer as the recipient for the filter. The filter is not applied to the SD file itself. The UpRez filter on the Solid layer then references the D1/DV layer that will be affected and displays the result. The UpRez filter enlarges the SD footage using an algorithm that actually compensates for resizing and several other factors. The filter even includes edge detection to more accurately map the new image. The blurred image and pixelation that normally accompany scaling is corrected by many of the controls in the drop-down menus. There are a wide variety of output transformation options including Cineon, film and PAL. There are also Quality output options that range from Draft to Magic Sharpen and Magic Smooth with surprisingly good results. MATCHMOVE This filter is designed to match the camera movement of one clip and apply it to a locked down or static camera www.dv.com D iscovering that a new release of Boris Continuum Complete (BCC) is about to debut is certainly a reason for a little curiosity, if not all-out excitement, considering the success of the prior version (BCC4) with both editors and motion graphics artists. I’m a fan of BCC4, especially the Motion Key, Optical Stabilization and the Light filters. I wondered, of course, if this was simply an update to some of my favorite filters. What I discovered is another major release of the product with some very noteworthy new features. The new filter set includes over 180 filters (examples of which can be seen at www.borisfx.com). This review will focus on some of the new features added for release BCC5. Many of the filters are excellent and produce very professional results, but some may not be as intuitive as you’d like. This may be due to the complexity of certain filters and might require that you refer to the instructions to explore all of the features and get the desired result. Fortunately, each filter does include its own built-in help menu and the ability to save your own customized presets. SCORE BORIS CONTINUUM COMPLETE 5 PROS: The ability to up-rez SD video to HD and match cameras moves while easily achieving convincing results is a definite plus. CONS: The complexity of some of the features may be seen as a drawback by some users. BOTTOM LINE: A great addition to the arsenal of filters for most professional setups. MSRP: $895 CONTACT: www.borisfx.com 12 dv february 2008 http://www.borisfx.com http://www.borisfx.com http://www.dv.com
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