The 3rd generation Flip Video UltraHD is a fast high quality video camera without the hastle.

I have three camcorders: a Canon HV30, a Panasonic GH-1 (micro 4/3 hybrid) and the new Flip Video UltraHD ( 3rd Generation ).

I primarily shoot stills with a Nikon D700 or a Canon S90. However, for action, nothing beats video.

My Canon HV30 does a great job but there are several things I do not like:

1. Start up and stop have a delay while the tape is started and stopped.
2. Tape needs to be ingested in its entirety. You can’t just choose the clips you want.

My Panasonic GH-1 does great video especially with the GH13 hack. However, to take steady video with this camera requires an expensive rig to hold the camera steady.

Both of these cameras require video editing software which has a fairly steep learning curve. I use Final Cut Express and like it. However, for a lot of stuff it is overkill.

Now for the Flip Video UltraHD.

This is my third flip.

I started with the Flip Mino and liked it for its small form factor. However, I found it a little too small.

I then bought the 2d generation Flip UltraHD. I found this fit my hands better and I actually used it to do video for two weddings just for fun. The only downsides were short battery life and inconsistent warnings about battery life.

I just upgraded to the 3rd generation Flip UltraHD and find the improvements well worth the upgrade:

1. Battery indicator on the screen at all times.
2. Lithium battery ( instead of NiMH)
3. Image stabilization.
4. Availability of microphone input ( October 2010)

For a casual video shooter, the best feature of the Flip UltraHD is that you literally point and shoot. You don’t have to wait while the camera queues the tape. The included software is fine for trimming the beginning and endings of each clip. If you want to do more editing, the mp4 files can be converted and imported into Final Cut Express. Post processing for video is orders of magnitude more complicated and time consuming than for stills. I would rather shoot than edit.

It may not match the video quality of a regular camcorder of a micro four four third hybrids, but for my money, it is the best option for casual video shooters whose out put is primarily YouTube or Vimeo.

Most of the videos I shoot these days are with a Flip.

I don’t leave home without it ( or my Canon S90 and my iphone)

If you import mp4 files into Final Cut Express you will have to render the files you put in the time line.
This post shows you a way to convert the mp4 files from a Flip Video Camcorder into a format you can edit with Final Cut Express without having to render the files.

Here is my procedure:

Copy the files from the DCIM folder on the Flip camera into a folder. ( I call it rawfiles/project)

Use MPEG-STREAMCLIP ( a free converter) to convert the files from .mp4 format to Quicktime .mov files.

This is the link to Squared 5 which publishes the converter: http://www.squared5.com/

I use these parameters for the conversion:

1280 x 720 ( 16:9 aspet ratio)

Apple Interface Codec

30 frames per second

deinterlaced

Edit in Final Cut Express.

If you need to recompress for uploading to Youtube, you can use MPEG-STREAMCLIP to recompress the files

Andy went one full year without any printed media !!. He says the hardest part was that 20 minutes when the plane door closes and you can’t turn on any electronic devices. It is then that he pulls out People Magazine and reads about some young starlet and her 8 children.

Hopefully someone will publish a video of this talk. It is a classic. Meanwhile here are a few clips I took with my Flipvideo UltraHD while sitting in the audience.

Thanks Andy ! It was the best of Macworld for me.

Next up I am editing the stills and will integrate them with the video. I also have video footage of the reception.

Stay tuned.

Dancing With Josh from Alan Morris on Vimeo.