Posts

Business Organization Ideas

How are you organized for business now? Do you work for an employer, or are you an independent contractor? Are you, in these times of re-inventing ourselves, a gig worker?

If you are an independent contractor, or sole proprietor, like many people that are self-employed, you are probably paying too much at tax-time.

Several years ago, I organized my business Enlightened Films, as an S-corporation. The main tax advantage that created was that my business income through my Enlightened Films account only had to pay $800 a year in taxes to the state, and zero to the federal government. This is probably the best way to organize your business for an individual that has previously filed as a sole proprietor.

I do pay myself as the only employee of my corporation. I do pay the state, federal, unemployment and payroll taxes as an employer. I handle this through an online payroll program. I also contribute to a SEP IRA as a retirement benefit.

You have lots of flexibility in your financial management when you operate as a business. Your corporation is a separate entity, with its own credit history and loan possibilities. Just in the process of starting a business checking account, I was offered credit cards, a reserve account and line of credit. This gives you a lot more freedom and flexibility, as income goes up and down.

By admin, ago

Blackmagic Video Assist

I use the Blackmagic Video Assist 3G seven inch monitor/recorder for my ATEM Mini Pro MultiView and Program view out. I like that the BMD Video Assist just got an update that turns it into a webcam! Plug the USB-C on the bottom of the unit to cable to your computer, and you have another live stream program. You can have one live stream from the BMD ATEM Mini Pro through the Ethernet port, another from the HDMI Program out to the BMD Video Assist USB-C port.

By admin, ago

What to Do?

What do you do when societal reality changes? This health crisis has direct impacts on our work and personal life. For the last few years, I have enjoyed being called up for freelance AV production gigs to work as a camera operator, or a video engineer at a live broadcast. Now that corporate events, conferences and festivals are no longer part of the new normal, a lot of my work has disappeared.

What to do in the vacuum? Of course, there is filing for unemployment, the SBA Payroll Protection Program, and extending your credit, while waiting for support from the government. There is also spending time with LinkedIn, and job boards to look for work. There is time to tweak resumes, and add details to websites.

To expand the work possibilities, I am focusing on live streaming, live camera editing, and video editing projects. I will post my progress as it develops.

By admin, ago

What’s on your desktop?

Because I am a techie-type of person, I tend to put a of of stuff on top of my desk. This year, I moved to the 27 inch Intel-based i9 eight core iMac with Radeon Pro 580X 8GB, with 1TB SSD, and 40GB of memory. I have connected a 28 inch Samsung 4K monitor, and Bose sound bar with an optical audio cable to the Thunderbolt 3 Dock, attached to the iMac.

For storage, I use a RAID16TB drive array, a RAID8TB drive array, a Seagate 8TB drive, and assorted portable drives. I use a fast 1TB NVMe SSD drive as a transfer shuttle drive.

I use an extended wireless Apple Keyboard, Trackpad and Mouse. I use a Stream Deck keypad.  I have a Contour jog shuttle. I use an Elgato Cam Link 4K with the iMac for live streaming images from my DSLR.

I use a Magewell HDMI to USB digitizer or Blackmagic Ultrastudio Mini Recorder with the MacBook Pro Retina. I use the MacBook Pro Retina mostly for OBS and Wirecast streaming on location, and for traveling. I use a Dell Inspiron for those few things that just have to be on Windows. I also use an 11 inch iPad Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max daily.

By admin, ago

In times of change…

How we get by in a crisis… Sell gear! In the last month, I have sold my Blackmagic ATEM Production Studio 4K, three Blackmagic HyperDeck Studio Mini recorders, two Blackmagic Studio Display 4K cameras, a Blackmagic Micro Cinema Camera, and all of my SDI cables.

Luckily, there is a market for used Blackmagic Design gear on eBay and Facebook Marketplace. Because of the nature of these times, people are buying used gear because all of the suppliers are backordered for AV equipment and anything live streaming related.

Over the last year, I speculated and bought AV gear that I knew there was a demand for, that I wanted to be able to operate professionally at corporate events and conferences. I was hoping I would be able to rent out the AV gear more, but that was not the case. I was working as a camera operator or technical director on-call for AV production companies that supplied all of the equipment for the event. Since there hasn’t been a market for rentals, I sold that gear, which had decent resale value.

This gives me a chance to get newer AV production gear, like the Blackmagic Design ATEM Mini Pro video switcher, when it is shipping in a couple of weeks. I can use the ATEM Mini Pro with the two cameras that I have left, and computers to create a professional looking show…

By admin, ago

Changing Seasons…

I can feel the difference between this month and last, signaling a changing of the seasons. It seems cooler and crisper, here in the San Francisco Bay Area. The warmer idyllic summer has given way to the feeling of acceleration in the air, with people starting school and work activity picking up.

I like the Autumn season in Northern California, it is one of my favorite times to be here. In the past, we used to experience “Indian Summer” with a continuing warm season into September and October. We will see what we experience this year.

By admin, ago

My Posts and Links

Hello Everyone!

This Post is a general sharing announcement about my various publishing links. My social presence is spread across my Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Vimeo and YouTube accounts, I publish my Posts and Links on my websites.

Here on EdwardEllsworth.com, I am posting observations and personal things to share in this space for my Blog.

On the EnlightenedFilms.com website, I put my AV Technology Posts and production tips, product recommendations and other interesting topics to share.

Please tune in and check back often!

By admin, ago

Atomos Shogun Flame

The Atomos Shogun Flame 7 inch monitor and recorder has become one of the most essential units in my video kit. It can be used mounted directly on the camera for video assist, or used with the video switcher to record the final program mix. To be able to reliably record directly to a 1TB SSD, instead of dedicating a computer to this task, has been one benefit. Then after the show, to be able to edit directly on the SSD with it’s caddy plugged into a USB 3.0 port on a computer, can save a lot of post-production time.

An SD card may take up to 30 minutes to transfer the files to a hard disk before you can work with them. I have five 1TD SSD cards that I use with the Atomos Shogun Flame, as this is my preferred recording device. The cost can be as low as $100 for a 1TB SSD, which is much cheaper than SD card prices per gigabyte.

I like the included HDMI in and out ports, and the SDI in and out ports, and the inclusion of XLR audio support, through the included cable dongle. The sunshade that comes with it is kind of wonky, and not so easy to use. The Shogun Flame can operate with up to two Sony batteries. The Atomos Shogun Flame also comes with a nice protective Pelican case.

By admin, ago

Blackmagic Design HyperDeck Studio Mini

When I use the Blackmagic Design Studio Camera 4K, it doesn’t have any recording media. So, I send the signal from the camera through an SDI cable to the Blackmagic Design HyperDeck Studio Mini, to record the video to SD card. This can be a video signal from any video cameras SDI or HDMI port (converted to SDI). The SDI video signal passes through the HyperDeck Studio Mini into my Blackmagic Design ATEM Production Studio 4K. So, the recordings and video switching are done by the Technical Director, or whoever is running the Blackmagic Design ATEM switcher, who may be behind the screen and the stage, or at front of house.

The Blackmagic Design HyperDeck Studio Mini is designed so that three of them can fit horizontally in a 1U space on a rack (attached to a Teranex shelf to mount in the rack). If you were doing a three camera shoot, each of the cameras would be sending their video signal to a separate HyperDeck recorder. This would allow the editor to select any camera angle they like to use, that might not be in the live broadcast recording. Or you might have two cameras with their inputs being recorded on their HyperDeck Studio Minis, and output the video program mix to the third HyperDeck Studio Mini. The back panel features SDI In, two SDI out, HDMI out, USB-C, Ref In, Ref Out, Remote In, PoE+ Ethernet and power.

In my case, I use the HyperDeck Studio Mini for video inputs, and use an Atomos Shogun Flame to record the video program output. Sometimes that video will be output through the ATEM AUX to video projectors. Sometimes that video signal will be output via SDI or HDMI, then scaled down and output to a computer for live streaming.

The Blackmagic Design HyperDeck Studio Mini can also be used as a video input source, playing a movie to a projector or a large video monitor or video wall.

Blackmagic Design recommends using the SanDisk Extreme Pro, and other expensive XC I and XC II SD high speed cards. This is the only negative point about the HyperDeck Studio Mini, the cost of the media. If I purchase four of the SanDisk Extreme Pro SD cards, at $75 each, a terabyte of storage costs $300.

When I use the Atomos Shogun Flame, and record to a 1TB SSD, the cost is about $100 to $200 a terabyte, which is much cheaper than SD card prices per gigabyte. I can also edit immediately on the 1TB SSD drives, using a caddy plugged into a USB 3.0 port on a computer, instead of taking the time to transfer the file to a hard disk. An SD card may take up to 30 minutes to transfer the files to a hard disk before you can work with them. I have five 1TD SSD cards that I use with the Atomos Shogun Flame, as this is my preferred recording device.

I have tested the SanDisk Extreme Pro, SanDisk Extreme, PNY and Lexar brands (shown below), and found these SD cards have formatted and recorded properly on the HyperDeck Studio Mini. Other SD cards may also work, but of course, your mileage may vary…

By admin, ago