Autodesk Smoke 2013, the Blackmagic Design Teranex 2D Processor, the Sony NEX-FS700 camcorder, and Tiffen's IRND + Glimmer Glass Motion Picture/TV Filters won top honors in the second annual StudioDaily Prime Awards, held during a special breakfast ceremony at the Las Vegas Convention Center on Tuesday morning. Those four were named the most outstanding “Best in Show” products in categories honoring production and post-production technology introduced during 2012.
The StudioDaily Primes, sponsored by Blackmagic Design, were inaugurated last year to spotlight engineering excellence, usability, and value in technology products shipped during the preceding calendar year. Judges were drawn from the ranks of StudioDaily contributors and evaluated entries based on the criteria of Power, Innovation, Value, and Ease of Use. A range of finalists was named in the weeks leading up to NAB. Products that scored most highly with the judges according to each criterion were named as winners in that category. The Best in Show winners are products that excited our judges by excelling in every category.
A complete list of Studio Prime Award winners follows. Keep an eye open for details on next year's awards, including entry details and requirements.
BEST IN SHOW WINNERS
Post-Production
Autodesk Smoke 2013 was an ambitious overhaul, bringing sweeping changes to one of its flagship programs. Combining editing with high-end compositing tools, the new Smoke brings what was once heavy-iron functionality to your iMac and even your MacBook Pro. It's been designed to work well with the industry's existing workhorse NLEs, making Smoke 2013 a unique tool that brings serious new functionality to existing post-production workflows.
Blackmagic Design's Teranex 2D Processor brings back a familiar industry tool at a radical new price point. It's inexpensive, it's easy to use and it works at an exceptionally high level of quality, making serious format conversions available to a wider range of users than ever before. For users working with a variety of formats on a limited budget, the $1995 Teranex 2D is like a magic bullet.
Production
Sony's NEX-FS700 is a Super 35 digital camcorder that records full HD at up to 240 fps — and the frame rates go even higher if you're willing to sacrifice vertical resolution. The camera has three built-in ND filters, selectable with a filter wheel that rotates over the sensor, and will be upgradeable to output 4K over 3G HD-SDI with an optional recorder. At a price well below $10,000, it brings a lot of functionality to the table.
Tiffen's IRND+Glimmer Glass Motion Picture Filters combine Tiffen's IRND filtering with diffusion filtering in a single unit, eliminating the need to stack filters. They absorb infrared pollution in proportion to their ND value, and soften details while putting a subtle glow on highlights. Made from water white glass, they are available in ND 0.6, 0.9, and 1.2 in combination with GG 1/2 or GG1.
POWER
Post-Production
Production
INNOVATION
Post-Production
Production
VALUE
Post-Production
Production
EASE OF USE
Post-Production
Production
