James Wright

James is a Senior Content Producer at Pond5. He has extensive experience in television and event production, and is the former director of operations of the CineVegas Film Festival and producer of competition reality-television shows American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance.

News, Trends

RED Cinema Unveils ‘Holographic Media Machine’ Hydrogen One

Accoring to RED, the HYDROGEN ONE represents “the future of personal communication and information gathering.” The phone will switch between 2D, 3D, and something called “holographic multi-view content.”

July 6, 2017 / 194 Shares / Comments

Artist Spotlight, Pro Tips

The Incredible Slow-Motion Footage of Phantom Pioneer Steve Romano

Steve Romano uses a Phantom 4K camera capable of shooting at up to 1,000 fps. The results give you a new perspective on motion and time — and they’re immensely satisfying to watch.

January 18, 2017 / 743 Shares / Comments

Artist Spotlight, Pro Tips

How Nature Pro David Fortney Mastered the Art of the POV Shot

David Fortney is one of the world’s most distinguished nature cinematographers. We paid him a visit at his home in Oregon, where he showed off the customized camera-stabilizer rig he built and perfected himself.

January 10, 2017 / 97 Shares / Comments

Inspiration, Pro Tips

How Dmytryk’s 7 ‘Rules of Cutting’ Hold Up to Modern Post-Production

Film-editing authority Edward Dmytryk lived in a time when editors hand-spliced celluloid, so it makes sense to assess whether his rules are still relevant in an age of 4K video files edited on computers.

December 12, 2016 / 560 Shares / Comments

Artist Spotlight, Inspiration

War Stories: Documenting Conflict in Syria and Iraq with Marketa Kutilova

Marketa Kutilova has spent her career reporting from some of the most underdeveloped and dangerous places on Earth, telling the stories of those whose greatest concern is survival.

December 6, 2016 / 712 Shares / Comments

Inspiration, Pro Tips

Making the Story Producer’s Dream a Reality

It takes moxie to make it in Tinseltown, and story producer Matt Watkins has been putting his moxie to use by crafting raw video footage into network-television content for years now.

October 25, 2016 / 442 Shares / Comments

Pro Tips, Reviews

3 Quality 4K Camera Systems That Won’t Break the Bank

If you can’t afford a top-end camera setup, but you don’t want to sacrifice quality, here are three production cameras that can be outfitted to be field-ready and recording 4K for about $10K.

September 15, 2016 / 623 Shares / Comments

Pro Tips, Reviews

Which Drone Is Right for You? A Day With Brooklyn Drones NYC

We paid a visit to Brooklyn Drones in NYC to explore some of the many options available for the modern videographer, including the Yuneec Typhoon H, the DJI Inspire Pro Black, and the DJI S 1000.

September 8, 2016 / 173 Shares / Comments

Artist Spotlight, Pro Tips

Our Man in Havana: Filmmaker Hugo Perez on Production in Cuba

Interested in filming in Cuba? Award-winning filmmaker and producer Hugo Perez has been visiting the country for two decades now, and here he provides his tips for the first-time camera-wielding visitor.

September 6, 2016 / 807 Shares / Comments