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Issue link: https://digital.macdirectory.com/i/1359241
SO-lation Ward There is often a need to do shows that are live-to-tape, recorded in real time and then cleaned up in post. Pro-level post-production software has been making the process easier in recent years, but it’s still a fair amount of work getting all your discreet camera recordings and the switched version synched-up. If you’re doing a long, 4K show, that’s a whole lotta data. That’s where the ingenious ISO model of the Mini Pro Extreme comes in. It uses Blackmagic’s famed HyperDeck technology to record not only the switched output but all your inputs to SDHC cards along with a pre-built DaVinci Resolve project. Open up the project and you’re ready to start editing with a full set of Fairlight audio tools and DaVinci’s powerful color grading. Attach Blackmagic’s new $399 Speed Editor panel with its jog/shuttle knob and eight-input switcher and you’ll make short work of the re-edit. If your cameras were recording in some of the Ursa Mini’s extremely high-def formats, now up to 12K Raw, the ISO recording format will let you do all your editing at your more modest streaming resolution and automatically swap in your original camera footage for your final pass of color work and encoding. This all assumes that all your hardware and software came from Blackmagic. One of our favorite features of the ATEM Mini series remains true with the Extreme, it’s designed for the table-top—any table-top. When you’re doing lightweight mobile production, you never know where you’ll be asked to set up. With heavier production systems (even the more advanced ATEM switchers) you have to deal with cases, consoles, and noisy cooling fans. In the Mini world, any flat surface will do. A four- or five-foot folding table should do just fine and still give you room for your paperwork. And There’s More… There has been something of a gap in the Blackmagic product line when it comes to users of their SDI-based ATEM Studio line of switchers, from the humble ATEM Television Studio HD to the stellar ATEM Constellation 8K. This is a direct link to web streaming. Along with the new Mini Extreme, Blackmagic announced their totally redesigned Web Presenter HD, now built for 12G-SDI workflows. As was the case with the earlier models, the USB output looks like a webcam to your streaming and conferencing software, but as USB-C, it provides a 1080p HD stream. As it stands, that alone would have been great news, but the company recognizes its ATEM Studio customers as professional broadcasters and has built up the feature set in the Web Presenter HD to provide the kind of performance and reliability they need. First off, it can support either two parallel streams or provide an automatic failover in the event one disconnects. The ethernet port serves has a hardwire connection to the internet, while one of the USB-C ports can connect as a network tether to an iPhone or Android. It also supports both AC and DC (via a 4-pin XLR) power sources for added reliability on that front. The new box also offers the same kind of advanced stream monitoring that arrived with the Mini Extreme. This can be displayed on the Presenter’s front panel or output via HDMI or SDI to a separate display. Add a video switch and you can monitor a bank of Web Presenter HDs from a single external display. The device can be configured from either the front panel or, more conveniently, from a computer connected to the same network via the included Web Presenter Utility software for either Mac or Windows. With a built-in hardware H.264 encoder based on Blackmagic Teranex technology, the image quality should equal some of the best in broadcast. If you switching a live show, it really stops mattering whether it’s a long corporate event or an NFL game when your head settles into the flow. It’s a mindspace that few others ever get to experience. What can bring you crashing back to reality is stumbling over balky or amateurishly-designed hardware and software that requires more attention than your show. Once again, Blackmagic has succeeded in bringing that pro experience to lower budget productions. The ATEM Mini Extreme line and the Web Presenter HD opens up a couple of new paths to get there. For more information, visit: www.blackmagicdesign.com.