Tuesday, June 26, 2018

3 Best GoPro Alternatives Action Cameras 2018

Action cameras are unlike any other kind of camera. They're designed to be attached to helmets, surfboards, cars and other objects, and they're small, tough and simple to operate, with a lens that captures the world in high-definition video and in a wide-angle fish-eye perspective. Among the action cameras, GoPro stands out for its iconic box-shaped Hero cameras and become the market leader. But some users find the GoPro action camera too expensive and do not have enough budget to afford it? Don't worry, there are plenty of top action cameras in the market today, many of which feature much lower prices than GoPro. Here we list 3 best GoPro alternatives action cameras in 2018, which are more affordable than the pricey GoPro and you can consider buying.

3 Best GoPro Alternatives 2018

Here we list 6 more affordable GoPro alternatives for you to lower your expenses.

Best GoPro Alternative #1: Xiaomi Yi Camera

Xiaomi Yi action camera is known for lightweight, compact and durable. The YI action camera is just half the price of a base GoPro camera and it's recognized as the best camera in market for its price. It equips a 16 MP Sony camera sensor with a 155-degree wide-angle lens, which supports recording 1080p HD videos at up to 120fps. The camera includes a 1010mAh removable battery and supports for WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0 and microSD support up to 64GB. Thanks to the WiFi connectivity, users can easily share the pictures and videos from the camera to your computer. What's more, the camera supports Bluetooth remote control, app and also includes a micro HDMI port that supports live video previews while recording, which is very cool. This best cheap alternative to GoPro also supports different capture modes like Time-lapse mode, Timed photo, Timed video and more. But the camera lacks water-proof ability and users have to buy a separate water resistance cases if they want to take underwater photos or videos. (Reference price: $63)

Xiaomi Yi Camera

Best GoPro Alternative #2: Drift Stealth 2

Another top recommended alternative to GoPro is Drift Stealth 2 which is also a compact, mount-anywhere action camera. People like Stealth 2 because it's incredibly small and can be mounted almost anywhere, as well as its 300-degree rotating lens and its more affordable price. It has a 12 MP camera with a 7-element lens that captures videos in up to 1080p. Moreover, The Stealth 2 features a 1.3-inch mono graphic LCD display for camera status and modes. You can even use the Drift app to control the camera remotely from your smartphone and the WiFi connect to share media easily. This action camera features a big 1500mAh non-removable battery that allows you to record videos for up to 3 hours. At last, the Stealth 2 isn't waterproof and you also require a separate casing for it. (Reference price: $84.99)

Drift Stealth 2

Best GoPro Alternative #4: Sony HDR-AS50 Action Camera

Tough compact Sony HDR-AS50 Action Cam lets you enjoy playful POV movie shooting with supplied Underwater Housing. Its casual style and advanced features encourage everyday movie-making. It features an 11 MP Exmor R BSI CMOS sensor with Zeiss 170-degree lens and SteadyShot image stabilization. The camera shoots videos in 1080p Full HD at 60fps and makes high-speed 720p HD movie capture at 120fps/100fps, and there's also support for 4K time-lapse videos. WiFi and Bluetooth are supported. This action camera is waterproof (up to 60 meters), dustproof and shockproof with its supplied case. ((Reference price: $199)

Sony HDR-AS50 Action Camera

Take Full Use of the Action Camera Recordings: Best Video Converter

Even though you can take the best 4K/HD videos form the camera, when you watching the 4K videos on TV, you may meet some troubles, for example: The TV screen is black or you get the error message shows that your TV can't recognize your 4K/HD videos. In addition, for some people who want to upload the wonderful videos to Youtube. Facebook or Vimeo, you may meet some troubles due to the video codec, video frame, video bitarte, video size, video length, etc. All these troubles can be solved by one 4K/HD video converter.

From the market, we find the video encoding/decoding assistant: Pavtube Video Converter Ultimate which is eay to use, install and upgrade, professional video converer. You can import any 4K/HD video recordings you like, at the same time, you can choose any video format you want to convert, like the MP4, AVI, H.264, H.265, MOV, etc. Best of all, this software allows you to adjust the 4K/HD video related parameter for better compatibility. Big surprise: You also can edit hte videos in this software, like the video cutting, trimming, adding subtitles, watermark, text, etc.

Quick Guide: Getting The Desired Video Format

Step 1. First, you need to transfer the 4K/HD/SD video to your PC. Then launch the video converter on your PC, then click the "Folder" or "Video" icon to load source video files from your local computer to the program.

Step 2. Click the "Format" bar and open the drop-down list, select one video format you want. You can choose one video from the "HD Video" main category. You also can choose video format from the Common Video, TVs, Apple TV, NLE software, Android devices, etc.

Load Blu-ray/DVD/video source files

Optional Step: Click "Settings" to open "Profile Settings" window, here you can choose or specify the video parameters such as video/audio codecs, file size, bit rates, frame rates, etc as you like. You also can compress the 4K video to HD video by adjusting the 4K video resolution, gframe, etc without much quaity loss.

set the video

Step 3. Press the Convert button to begin the video conversion, Just wait for a while, this software will finish the complicated video conversion. Click Open to get the generated files.

Monday, June 11, 2018

Premiere Pro CC 2018 Supported Video Formats

The new features coming to Premiere Pro CC take new aim at collaborative editing and motion graphics workflows. In Premiere Pro CC 2018, video creators will find new ways of sharing projects, new ways of VR/360 video storytelling, and new ways to adapt motion graphics to fit project requirements. We all know to the first thing to edit the video in Premiere Pro CC 2018 is to import the videos to it smoothly, at the first step, most editors will meet the trouble, how to import the videos to Premiere Pro CC 2018 and do the happy video editing? You can get the effective solutions in this post.

5 MUST-KNOW NEW FEATURES IN PREMIERE PRO CC 2018

After exploring Premiere Pro CC 2018, here are the 5 new features we're most excited about:

  1. Multiple Open Projects
  2. Shared Projects
  3. Immersive Video Effects and Transitions
  4. Responsive Design tools (Timing and Position)
  5. 8 New Label Colors

Premiere Pro CC 2018 Supported Video and Audio Formats

Formats 3GP, 3G2 (.3gp) AAC  Advanced Audio Coding Apple ProRes M2T
Details Multimedia container format Advanced Audio Coding Audio Interchange File Format Apple video compression format  Sony HDV
Formats ASF   ASND AVC-Infra AVI (.avi) M2TS
Details NetShow (Windows only) Adobe Sound Document Panasonic codec DV-AVI, Microsoft AVI Type 1 and Type 2 Blu-ray BDAV MPEG-2 Transport Stream, AVCHD
Formats BWF DNxHD DNxHR DV  VOB
Details Broadcast WAVE format Supported in native MXF and QuickTime wrappers DNxHR LB, DNxHR SQ, DNxHR TR, DNxHR HQ, and DNxHR HQX Raw DV stream, a QuickTime format Container format in DVD media
Formats GIF H.264 AVC HEVC (H.265) M1V WAV
Details Animated GIF Various media that use H.264 encoding H.265 media with resolutions up to 8192x4320 MPEG-1 Video File Windows Waveform
Formats WMV OMF OpenEXR MXF
Details Windows Media, Windows only Audio Project Format Files in .EXR, .MXR, and .SXR formats Media eXchange Format. MXF is a container format that supports
  • ARRIRAW 
  • P2 Movie: Panasonic OP1b variant of MXF video in AVC-Intra LT and AVC-LongG, Panasonic Op-Atom variant of MXF video in DV, DVCPRO, DVCPRO 50, DVCPRO HD, AVC-Intra
  • Sony XDCAM HD 18/25/35 (4:2:0)
  • Sony XDCAM HD 50 (4:2:2)
  • AVC-LongGOP
  • XAVC Intra
  • XAVC LongGOP
  • JPEG2000
  • IMX 30/40/50
  • XDCAM EX

Premiere Pro CC 2018 Supported Native Camera Formats

Usually we take the video with camera, Premiere Pro CC 2018 can support the following native camera formats

Camera ARRI AMIRA camera Canon XF, Canon RAW Phantom Cine media Sony cameras
Details Premiere Pro provides built-in support for the ARRI AMIRA camera, with appropriate color LUTs applied as master clips on import. Canon XF and Canon RAW footage, including footage from Canon Cinema EOS C300 and C500 cameras. Import and edit Phantom Cine media shot on Vision Research Phantom cameras.
  • Sony XDCAM
  • Sony XDCAM 50
  • Sony XAVC
  • Sony XAVC LongGOP (Group of Pictures)
  • Sony XAVC-S
  • Sony SStP
  • Sony RAW (F65, F55, F5, FS700 cameras)  
Camera CinemaDNG Panasonic AVC, P2 cameras RED support
Details
  • Blackmagic Cinema Camera
  • Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera
  • Convergent Design Odyssey7Q
  • Panasonic AVC Ultra
  • Panasonic AVCi 200
  • Panasonic AVC Ultra Long GOP (Group of Pictures)
  • Panasonic P2 cameras and across multiple P2 cards
  • Color Science like REDcolor2, REDgamma2, and REDlogFilm
  • RED ONE
  • RED EPIC
  • RED Scarlet-X cameras with support for RED Rocket
  • Red Dragon including RED Dragon 6K

How to Import Any Videos into Premiere Pro CC 2018 for Editing

You may met this situation: fail to import some video to Premiere Pro CC, how to do? Most reasons are the video format incompatibility issue, you just need one video converter and convert the video to Premiere Pro CC 2018 friendly video formats, that's all. I highly recommend you  Pavtube Video Converter Ultimate (to get Mac version) which is an excellent video converter with the high stability and fast video conversion speed, you can import the multiple videos with different video formats and video size, for example: You can load the MP4, AVI, FLV, VOB, even including the DVD and Blu-ray disc, disc images and folder, you also can load the 4K , 8K videos to it, and output the Premiere most compatible video format - "MPEG-2".

Apart from ouput the Premiere presets with the best settings, this software also supplies massive optimized device presets for Apple devices, Android devices, non-linear editing software, game console, and others. This software also allows you to adjust the video parameters, like the video codec, audio codec, you can solve the codec incompatibility issue. For better video compatibility, you also can adjust the video frame, video resolution, video bitrate, audio sample rate, etc.

Even though this video converter is not a professional video editor, you still can so some simple video editing with the built-in video editor, you can add the funny subtitles to video which can support the SRT, ASS, SSA subtitles, you also can replace the music in video, trim the videos to clips, etc. More features, you can download it and have a try.

pc try pc buy

mac try mac buy

Quick Guide: Convert video to Premiere Pro CC 2018 supported videos

Step 1. Load the videos

You can open this software and load the videos by clicking File, you also can drag the videos to it directly. If you want to save much time and energy, you can add the folder which holds multiple videos and do batch video conversion, you only can output the same video formats when you choose the batch video conversion.

Load the videos

Step 2. Choose output videos

Click Format button to start the output video list, you can choose one videos from different category, like the Common Video, HD Video, 3D Video, or the NLE preset.

Output Youtube best uploading format

To output the best video format for Premiere, you can navigate your cursor to "Adobe Premiere/Sony Ve..." and select "MPEG-2 (*.mpg)".

for premiere

If necessary, you can enter the video setting window and adjust the video related parameters, you also can compress the videos by adjusting the video resolution, for example: You can compress the 4K to HD video by adjusting the video resolution from the 3840p to 1080p, or compress the HD video to SD videos, you also can adjust the video frame and bitrate for uploading to YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo, etc.

H.264 MP4

Step 3. Start the video conversion

Final step is coming, you just need to press the Convert button to start the video conversion. This software will finish this task with lighting fast speed.

When you get the perfect videos, you can import it to Premiere Pro CC 2018 and have a happy video editing.

Monday, June 4, 2018

How to Edit Sony 4K XAVC S with FCP

You can get high bit rate of 4K 100Mbps through use of the XAVC S format via Sony/Panasonic/Canon camcoders. As for post shooting, the 4K video content from the camcorder can be played back directly on a compatible 4K television through the supplied HDMI cable, or in super-sampled Full HD when connected to an HD TV. How about working them with Final Cut Pro?

Import Sony XAVC S to FCP with Sony Plug-in

As we all know that the XAVC S format record by Sony UHD camcoders is mainly designed to deliver 4K video signals with a resolution of 3840x2160, it is not an the native video editing codec for Final Cut Pro. To fix the workflow of XAVC S with FCP, sony has created a special plug-in for Mac which helps to provide support for XAVC S in FCP allowing viewing and editing capability. However, most people complain that the process to install plug in is very complicated, more worse, the plug-in some times don't even work at all.

Alternative way to ingest 4K XAVC S to FCP

If you are looking for a fast and fluid workflow of 4K XAVC S with FCP, the best way is transcoding 4K XAVC S to Final Cut Pro professional editing codec - Apple Prores 422 codec, a post-production format designed for pristine quality and high-performance Final Cut Pro real-time editing. In addition, if you Mac is very old or not has the capability to handle 4K video, it would be much better for you to compress 4K Prores to 1080p prores to fix video play backs choppy issues.

There is professional solution in hand called Pavtube iMedia Converter for Mac (to get Windows version), which enables you to directly wrap Sony 4K XAVC S to FCP  Apple Prores Codec in different file types.

If you computer is old or slow, or you just want to do some rough editing, you can select to output "Apple Prores 422(Proxy)(*.mov)"or "Apple Prores (LT)(*.mov)"format to save more space and bandwidth. However, if your Mac version is powerful enough to handle multicam and high-resolution video, even the 4K video and you are going to do many effects editing work with FCP, you'd better choose to output "Apple Prores 422(*.mov)"or "Apple Prores 422(HQ)(*.mov)"for better performance.

How to to encode and compress 4K XAVC S to 1080P Prores for FCP?

Step 1: Import 4K XAVC S videos.

From "File"drop-down option, select "add Video/Audio"to add source 4K XAVC S video files to the program.

Import 4K XAVC S videos.

Step 2: Select output file format.

Click "Format"bar, from its drop-down list, select "Final Cut Pro"> "Apple Prores 422(*.mov)"as your desired output file format.

Choose Apple Prores 422 format

Step 3: Adjust video parameters

Open "Profile Settings" window, you can edit video codec, resolution, bit rate, frame rate, sample rate. channels here. To keep the output video resoltuion as 4K, just set it as 3840*2160; to compress 4K to 1080p, you can change the resolution to 1920*1080.

compress 4k proes to 1080p

Step 4: Convert 4K XAVC S to Apple Prores format.

Go back to the main interface and press the "Convert"icon on the right-bottom to start Sony 4K XAVC S to Final Cut Pro Apple Prores process.

When the conversion is done, you can easily import the converted video to FCP  for furthering professional editing.

Wednesday, May 30, 2018

How to Edit AVCHD Files Effortlessly

AVCHD (Advanced Video Coding High Definition) is a file-based format for the digital recording and playback of high-definition video. Developed jointly by Sony and Panasonic, the format was introduced in 2006 primarily for use in high definition consumer camcorders. And AVCHD files generally use extensions like MTS and M2TS, and can not be accepted by many meida players and devices.

By using AVCHD format, you can burn high definition video to a standard DVD disc. Later you can play that DVD disc in a Blu-ray disc player. Thus you don't have to own a Blu-ray disc burner to enjoy high definition video on Blu-ray disc player. AVCHD video can also be outputted to TV via an HDMI cable or components outputs. It can also be transferred and viewed to computer. Whereas, most people prefer editing the AVCHD before sharing or uploading to the social network. So the best way to get full use of the AVCHD is to convert the file to other format like: MPEG, MP4, MOV, MKV, AVI, etc. After that you are able to play the AVCHD file on iPhone X, iPad, Galaxy S9, Xbox One, and editing in iMovie, Final Cut Pro, Premiere, etc.

The Best AVCHD Video Converter for Windows/Mac

Pavtube Video Converter Ultimate is an application that you can use to encode AVCHD media files to multiple formats, including MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, H.264, H.265, DNxHD, ProRes in MP4, MKV, AVI, WMV, MOV formats. The interface of the program is clean and pretty intuitive. AVCHD files can be imported into the list by using the file browser, by the way the "drag and drop" method is also supported. Batch processing is allowed so that you can add multiple AVCHD files to batch convert AVCHD to any video format you desired with this software. To edit AVCHD effortlessly, you can convert AVCHD to MPEG for Premiere, Sony Vegas editing. If you are Mac users, you also can choose to output "Apple InterMediate Codec(AIC)(*.mov)", "Apple ProRes 422 (*.mov)" for iMovie/FCP postproduction.

Since you can adjust the video bitrate and resolution, you can make the output AVCHD video more compatible with your devices. With the built-in video editor, you can merge multiple AVCHD files into a single one file and you also can trim the AVCHD file to cut off the unwanted part. You also can add external subtitles to the AVCHD file to make the file easier to understand.

Steps to Convert AVCHD to Premiere/Sony Vegas/FCP/iMovie Compatible Video Formats for Further Editing

Step 1: Load protected AVCHD files into the program.

Install and launch AVCHD video converter program on your computer, click "File" > "Add Video/Audio" or "Add from Folder" to load AVCHD files into the program. You also can directly drag and drop the AVCHD files into the software. Batch conversion is supported here.

load avchd

Step 2: Choose output file formats.

Click "Format", from its drop-down option, you can choose MOV, AVI, M4V, MKV, H.264/H.265 MP4, etc. If you want to edit AVCHD with NLE software, you can choose the MPEG-2 preset for NLE software from "Adobe Premiere/Sony Vegas" category.

MPEG format

Choose the "Apple InterMediate Codec(AIC)(*.mov)", "Apple ProRes 422 (*.mov)" for iMovie/FCP postproduction from "iMovie and Final Cut Ex..." and "Final Cut Pro" category respectively on Mac version software.

Option 1.

Option 2.

output for fcp

Click "Settings" on the main interface to open "Profile Settings" window to tweak the output video codec, bit rate, sample rate, resolution, audio codec, bit rate, sample rate and channels to make the output video more fit with your devices or programs.

Check an item to active the "Video Editor" function, then click the pencil like icon on the top tool bar to open the "Video Editor" window, you can trim the AVCHD file length, crop video black bars, add external subtitles to AVCHD files, apply sepcial rendering effect, remove/replace audio in video, etc.

edit avchd

Step 4: Start the conversion process.

After all setting is compelted, press the "Convert" button in the right-bottom and the AVCHD video conversion process will start automatically. When the covnersion stops, please go to the output folder to get the covnerted files.

Wednesday, May 23, 2018

Top 5 Best 4K Camera Phone You Should Know

More and more often you can see 4K technology everywhere. More and more devices, monitor add support of 4K playback, 4K enables people to pursue the extremely audiovisual enjoyment. Nowadays, you can even shot video in 4K resolution with the smart phone in your hand. The following article will give you top 5 best 4K camera phones for you.

1. Sony Xperia XZ Premium

Sony Xperia XZ Premium

In terms of photography, Sony is one of those respected names in the industry. The Sony Xperia XZ Premium has everything you want when paying top dollar for a phone, with its 4K display and slow motion camera two standout party pieces. It will please Sony fans around the world. The camera has an amazing feature that we loved: it is able to record slo-mo video at only 980 frames per second. With this kind of camera, you can even film a nature documentary because it will catch all the details. However, we also need to tell you this up-front: you do need a good light.

2. Huawei P10

Huawei P10

The Huawei P10 comes with one front camera with 8Mp and two back cameras: one with 12MP and another one with 20MP. Just like it already happened with the previous Huawei models, you can use the 20MP one to take black-and-white photos. However, when you use both rear cameras, your photos will have a better clarity. Although the Huawei P10 comes with the feature that allows you to shoot 4K videos, the fact is that it doesn't offer any stabilization when you're recording at this resolution. As if this wasn't enough, if you use Windows, you won't be able to open them by using Windows's 10 Photos app, VLC, and you won't even be able to upload it directly to YouTube. 

3. Samsung Galaxy S9

Samsung Galaxy S9

The Samsung Galaxy S9 is a great phone, but one that hasn't really kicked on from the Galaxy S8, bringing a very similar design and screen to 2017's version. The improved biometrics were sorely needed, and the camera is a leap forward, but the amazing low light capabilities have resulted in sacrifices elsewhere. Samsung Galaxy S9 comes with a front camera with 8Mp and a rear camera with 12Mp. In case you're serious about shooting 4K videos, you need to know that the sound quality is not the best in the market and that you might have a few problems with the hybrid stabilization system. 

4. iPhone X

iphone x

iPhone X comes with a 7Mp camera in the front and 2 back cameras, both with 12Mp. Losing the home button and altering the design was a dangerous move, but one that was sorely needed after years of similarity and the premium design, extra power, all-screen front mix together to create - by far - the best iPhone Apple's ever made. It's impossible to give a perfect score to something that costs this much - but this is the closest to smartphone perfection Apple has ever got. iPhone X allows you to shot 4K videos at 24/30/60 fps steadily. What's bad is that it is the most expensive flagship phone around.

5. MOTO Z2 Play

MOTO Z2 Play

Featuring a 5MP camera on the front and a 12Mp camera on the back, we can say that the photos taken with the MOTO Z2 Play are among average. While the rear camera includes phase detection autofocus, dual-pixel autofocus, laser autofocus, and a dual-tone LED flash, this should imply that low light photos would have an awesome quality. In what concerns video capabilities, the MOTO Z2 Play allows you to shoot using Full-HD or 4K. Although the videos could be a lot better, they are quite ok. Besides, one of the things that you can easily do is to use the Go Live mode and go live directly on YouTube.

Best 4K Camera Assistant

Convert Any Phone Recorded Video to Non-linear Editing Software

Some day, 1080p will be the past, since the 4K will dominate the market. Finally you made the 4K videos, the next thing you want to do is to edit and enhance video and upload it to social network for sharing. Here we strongly recommend you a 4K editing software and covnerter for you which is called Pavtube Video Converter Ultimate (to get Mac version). It allows you to convert 4K video to iMovie, Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere optimized presets with the best settings. It also can upscale SD/HD to 4K video, and compress 4K to 1080p if you need.

As we know, when you import 4K video into non-linear editing software and the exported file in 4k resolution will has a large size. You will spend a lot of time to upload the render file to Youtube, Vimeo, Facebook. Don't worry, this software also allows you to customize the video codec, bit rate, frame rate, channels, etc to make the most suitable video for your media player, devices. Know more here(guide).

Pavtube Video Converter Ultimate