Beat matching feature

[nelson]

I found this quite interesting to read.

https://fstoppers.com/review/smartslides-new-beat-matching-feature-creating-professionally-beat-matched-219395

[Lin Evans]

It's an interesting concept - It would be nice though if there were some "analysis" software which could match the beat of virtually any song to the display process rather than having to rely on the songs in the software library. 

Best regards,

Lin

[wideangle]

Hi everybody,

At one point I was trying to build a jigsaw with the pieces appearing in sync with the beats in the background music, doing it manually. Having this sort of automatic feature would have been so much easier!

By the way, are there any hints, tips or tutorials around for manually adding slides to the beat of the music in PTE?  I did search around but couldn’t find anything.

(My aim had initially been to try to produce a Style for the jigsaw, but there were issues in trying to include audio in a ptestyle)

Regards

wideangle

[davegee]

BB's method works best as long as the "beat" that you are trying to work to is not too fast.

In the Timeline, CUT all slides other than Slide 1.

PLAY the show in the Mini Viewer and press the "+" button when you want to insert a Slide.

You can refine the result using "Shift Transition Points".

DG

[Barry Beckham]

Beat matching software? What’s next, picture generating slide shows, so we don’t have to create anything. 

[Lin Evans]

LOL - you can't stop "progress" Barry - it's like railing against an automatic transmission in your auto. The real skill perhaps comes from choosing a song which properly sets the mood and has a tempo and "beat" which can be best used by the artist (the show's creator) to paint the scene as conceived in the mind.  Programs such as this, like Animoto, will probably become very popular because the average Joe doesn't have any desire to learn to become a "slideshow conductor" but rather just wants to have a great show about a single event and do it as quickly and efficiently as possible. 

There will always be a place for the true artist and software such as PicturesToExe which will not and actually can not be replaced by automation. But for the masses, the "automatic" method will probably continue to become more popular. I have people ask me all the time - "where can I get this "app" for my phone so I can push a couple buttons and pop out slideshows and effects like yours?"  They are crestfallen when I explain that there is no "push a few buttons" and out pops the show "app" for their phone. Most lose interest quickly  when they discover that there is a learning curve and that they actually have to spend a bit of time and learn a bit before they can do the same things. Our "styles" like Photoshop "actions" are helping greatly because it seems people today need instant gratification. The pride in learning new skills and honing the process seems to be, for the most part, lost on today's generation.

Best regards,

Lin 

[wideangle]

Lin

You've totally hit the nail on the head there.

I suppose it's a sign of the high-speed society in which we now live.

Regards

wideangle

[Barry Beckham]

Come off it. If you can clap in time to music you can make a synchronised slide show. (I know some can’t do this because I have stood beside them at a concert ) 

This is a creative medium. Name something creative and unique that has been improved by an automatic process?

No. Any slide shows worth watching have one thing that is special to them. It’s called “Making an Effort”  Those who are not willing to add that special ingredient should get out of Dodge. 

[JudyKay]

We must consider if getting old causes us cling to the way things were as being better.  My mom didn't trust calculators for a long time and checked the machine by hand--she didn't trust calculators to be better.  I remember being on the edge of having to know log and trig tables only to realize that vastly more and better was to use a computer.  Now, better art can be created and enjoyed by automating the mundane to focus time and energy on the creative.  I am conservative by nature, but strongly in favor of progress.  Slower is both worse and better.  

 

[davegee]

At what point do we cease to be able to say:

 "All my own work"?

DG

[Lin Evans]

Hi Dave,

Truthfully, only the "creative" part can be said to be "all my own work" these days. None of us living invented the tools we work with. We didn't build our own computers and cameras from components we invented. We didn't write our own code for the software we use so what's left and is truly owned is the creative process we use. Our choices of images and our choices of sound and the way we combine them to augment the story we are trying to tell I guess.

Best regards,

Lin 

[davegee]

I was away from school on the day that we did "rhetorical" and never seem to be able to get it right.

But that aside, surely synchronising images and sound is part of the creative process? In AV circles they call it "Photo Harmony" and in a competition scenario marks would be given (or taken away) for good or bad Synchronisation. At what point in a transition do you want the beat to occur? Beginning? Middle? End? Is this not where the creative bit comes into play? 

I have no objections to anyone using these devices but see it as another nail in the coffin.

I'm not sure if this analogy works but here goes. During a long time spent working in bands of all descriptions, I have had to play with "Drum Machines" and Drummers of varying capabilities. The Drum Machine is super accurate and there are versions which are capable of "human feel" but give me a drummer of average capability any day. Knowing when to hold back "off the beat" or "force the pace" is where it gets creative. The method described above allows you to do this and it is worth a try. It is also adjustable after the event.

So, if this is a democratic forum allow me to say that I would be against the use of such devices on the grounds that they are, IMHO, counter-creative. Just an opinion.

DG

 

 

[Lin Evans]

...."There will always be a place for the true artist and software such as PicturesToExe which will not and actually can not be replaced by automation"...

Of course - their place is not for the artist, but for the person who has neither the time nor the inclination to learn to use the software. 

Best regards,

Lin

[Barry Beckham]

Comparing  the use of a calculator with a creative process like audio visual on a forum of enthusiasts!!! Really? This reminds me of the PC nonsense we see each day on the news. When someone wants the most creative part of the AV process automated. You would expect enthusiasts on a forum like this to stand up and say. No, that’s not a good way to go and suggest ways to achieve what they want.

But, in an effort “not to offend” We make excuses and pander to it, we shouldn’t.  I am also a little bored with the idea of all these alleged poor people who never have time to do anything to a good standard. Come off it again. That’s the excuse we give when we can’t be bothered to do something, or we have forgotten to do it.

Those who have neither the time nor the inclination to learn to use the software. 

You will always get some people who fall into this category, but we shouldnt encourage it. Suggesting that it’s all far too hard for some is nonsense. My Son visiting Australia from the UK put a slide show together last week using PTE for the first time without any help from me. I didn’t even know he was doing it till I saw the result. The video is perfectly timed to the music. If you can clap in time to a beat, you can sync images/video to music.

 

 

 

[JudyKay]

Years ago I bought P2E entirely because it produced really cool automation.  Through that process, I discovered a new fabulous realm of creativity.  previously I flipped through photos with whatever computer browser automated what was once photos in an album, which automated photos in a shoebox, which automated...you get the picture. 

Not long ago Igor gave us the ability to auto-spread images along a timeline.  Great idea!  Then I went in and adjusted them for any of 100 reasons.  Beat-matching is just that same idea.

Has anyone used Audacity "Beat-Finder" for such a purpose?
 

 

 

[Lin Evans]

Here's what Audacity's help says about "Beat-Finder" : 

•  Attempts to place labels at beats which are much louder than the surrounding audio. It's a fairly rough and ready tool, and won't necessarily work well on a typical modern pop music track with compressed dynamic range. If you don't get enough beats detected, try reducing the "Threshold Percentage" setting.

 

I haven't tried it for real - just put in the song "Oh Canada" (Canadian National Anthem) and I could do a much better job just using my ears and eyes so didn't pursue it any further.

 

Best regards,

Lin