Some References for Digital Film/Video Artists
Books
Some titles from our shelves - though dated, the older ones contain useful
info on the creative process. Sometimes we need the older material to explain
the basics that later authors take for granted, or just to see how things
have changed. They are representative of several decades of student coursebooks
and professional acquisitions.
Software
Not all inclusive, just what I use - other tools will do much the same. What
you use is dictated by those with whom you work, your previous experience,
cost, speed, interoperability, and the ability to get the job done. Don't
get into dogma about specific products here! Each competitive product has its
strengths and weaknesses. Focus on the artistic need. It is always good to
know how to use at least 3 different applications that can do much the same
work. For example: knowledge of Avid XpressDV Pro, Apple Final Cut Pro, and
Adobe Premiere Pro is a good starting point for an editor, and these skills
can easily be translated to work with higher end hardware based tools.
Other software
You may encounter installations of these (and other) Open Source applications
from time to time. They are primarily used by studios that want
to deploy many systems without a major capital investment,
and will probably be customized for a specific need.
Operating Systems and Computing Platforms
Again, don't get hung up on brands. Look for price/performance ratios, ease
of use, and factor in your previous experience.
Intel, Motorola, IBM or AMD?
It looks like the x86 variants have won the processor wars in the commodity
market. For motion graphics work, spend more moola and buy for
the future. I've upgraded cases from 286 to 486 to Pentium to P3, motherboards
from one
350 mhz P2 processor to 1.2 gigahertz dual P3 processor, video storage drives
from 6x36gig ultra wide SCSI array to a single 200gig EIDE, etc.
Right now, buying for the future on a tight budget would be to get a dual socket 64 bit Opteron or Xeon motherboard, install one cheap single processor chip and a gig of memory. When prices drop, pull out the processor and the dummy termination. Replace with two multiple processor chips, bump the memory up to the max. You will still be getting value from the system in 5 years.
Look for emerging industry standards. Which video cards are most often recommended for your software? Do you need Open GL? Dual screen? High resolution?
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