MELVILLE, N.Y.—NBC Sports relied upon Canon for the vast majority of broadcast lenses used for the production of Super Bowl LX between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks, Feb. 8, from Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif

As it has for the past 30 years, Canon Professional Services (CPS) also provided on-the-ground support at the Super Bowl.

"We are thrilled that Canon’s gear and expert support could contribute to the success of the image capture of the Big Game," said Kiyoshi Oka, executive vice president and general manager for Canon. "It is a distinct honor to empower the creators who preserve these historic cultural milestones. At Canon, we are incredibly proud to play a part in the joy and inspiration that this event delivers to fans everywhere."

Canon supplied more than 98% of the lenses used by NBC Sports during the game. They included 47 broadcast lenses for all of their pre- and post-game studio activations throughout the Santa Clara metro area as well as 11 lenses throughout the concourse and on-field studio sets where the CINE-SERVO 11-55mm T2.95-3.95 lens, which features an ultra-wide angle of 100 degrees, took center stage.

Canon also had a strong presence for many of the credentialed photographers at the event thanks to the Canon Professional Services (CPS) team. The CPS team brought in over 200 pieces of Canon gear, including camera bodies and lenses for photo agencies, freelancers and other credentialed Canon photographers.

"Testing Canon’s new glass at the Big Game was the perfect opportunity to see how the RF7-14mm F2.8-3.5 L Fisheye STM and RF14mm F1.4 L VCM prime lens could handle the massive scale of the stadium,” said Terrell Lloyd, Canon Explorer of Light and San Francisco 49ers director of photography.

“My goal was to capture wide, high-intensity shots from a top-down perspective, and the synergy between these lenses and the EOS R1 camera delivered exactly that. The sharpness and dynamic range allowed me to bring my home stadium into the global spotlight with more clarity than ever, once again pushing the boundaries of what I can create in a fast-paced, in-game environment."

More information is available on the company’s website.

STAMFORD, Conn.—NBC Sports has selected Canon U.S.A. to provide broadcast lenses for its production of the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics and Paralympics, Feb. 6-22, and March 6-15, respectively.

(Editor’s note: NBC Olympics coverage begins Feb. 4 with early round coverage of curling. Opening Ceremony coverage begins Feb. 6 at 2 p.m. Eastern Time. Coverage details are available online.)

The Opening Ceremony from San Siro Stadium in Milan will be presented live and in primetime on NBC and Peacock on Feb. 6. NBCUniversal is presenting its 20^th Olympic Games, 13^th consecutive overall, and owns the U.S. media rights on all platforms to all Olympic Games through 2036, which are scheduled for Milan Cortina (2026), Los Angeles (2028), French Alps (2030), Brisbane (2032), Utah (2034), and the Olympic Games 2036 (host yet to be determined).

Besides the UHD lenses, Canon is also sending support staff to Italy making four service and support members available onsite of the Games.

“NBC Sports is proud to continue our longstanding partnership with Canon for the Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic and Paralympics Winter Games. Canon’s broadcast lenses and onsite support are integral to our commitment to delivering world-class coverage and immersive experiences for viewers. Their dedication to innovation and reliability helps us bring the excitement of the Games to life for millions of fans,” said Christopher Connolly, the broadcaster’s vice president of Sports & Olympics Engineering.

Canon has worked with NBC Sports for 35 years, assisting NBC Sports’ production efforts at previous Olympics and other major international sports events in North and South America, Europe and Asia.

“We are immensely honored that NBC Sports has once again selected our finest broadcast digital imaging solutions and chosen us as their dedicated broadcast lens provider for the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics and Paralympics,” said Sammy Kobayashi, president and CEO, Canon U.S.A.

More information is available on the company’s website.

Click here for more on NBCUniversal’s Milan Cortina 2026 programming.

TV Tech’s overall coverage of NBC Sports' overall tech plans for the 2026 Winter Games can be found here, here and here.

MELBOURNE—Atomos has announced the immediate availability of a new free firmware update for its Ninja TX GO and Ninja TX monitor-recorders, enabling ProRes RAW recording from the Canon EOS R6 hybrid mirrorless camera.

Firmware update 12.2.1 unlocks the full potential of the Canon EOS R6 Mark III with pristine ProRes RAW recording. Ninja TX supports a maximum video resolution of 6960 x 3672 up to 30P, and 4320 x 2278 up to 60P. Ninja TX GO has a maximum resolution of 4320 x 2278 up to 60P. Both also offer camera control of the EOS R6 Mk III over USB-C, the company said.

“The release of the Canon EOS R6 Mark III is a landmark moment for hybrid creators, and we are thrilled to offer support for this incredible camera,” said Atomos CEO Peter Barber. “By unlocking ProRes RAW recording on the Ninja TX and Ninja TX GO, we’re giving filmmakers the ability to capture every bit of detail the EOS R6 Mark III sensor is capable of.”

Ninja TX GO and Ninja TX are Atomos’ on-camera monitor-recorders designed for professional filmmakers and content creators. Both combine a bright, high-resolution 5-inch HDR touchscreen display with advanced recording capabilities, supporting formats like Apple ProRes RAW, ProRes RAW HQ, ProRes LT, 422 & 422 HQ and Avid DNx, the company said.

Both also offer real-time monitoring tools, such as EL Zone, waveform, focus peaking and LUT support, with camera control/touch focus on supported cameras. They record directly to CFexpress card over HDMI (Ninja TX GO) or SDI & HDMI (Ninja TX), enabling long recording times and fast post-production workflows., it said.

The Canon EOS R6 Mark III is a hybrid mirrorless camera with a 32.5MP full-frame CMOS sensor, a DIGIC X processor and Dual Pixel CMOS AF II. It features high-speed continuous shooting at up to 40 fps, up to 8.5 stops of in-body image stabilization and advanced video capabilities, including 7K 60p RAW and oversampled 4K up to 60p. The camera also has a single CFexpress Type B and a single SD UHS-II card slot.

The new firmware offers:

• The ability for both monitor-recorders to record ProRes RAW output over HDMI from the Canon EOS R6 Mk III mirrorless camera.
• Ninja TX support for up to 6960 x 3672 up to 30P and 4320 x 2278 up to 60P. Ninja TX GO has a maximum resolution of 4320 x 2278 up to 60P.
• Both Ninja TX GO and Ninja TX support camera control.

More information is available on the company’s website.

The subtle art of aiming cameras at live events is perhaps the part of film and television practice which has been most resistant to new technologies. While sheer specifications have skyrocketed, outside broadcast camerawork is marked by nothing more than a determination to maintain a consistent operator experience.

Recently, though, the drive for sheer gloss—driven, perhaps, by the ascendancy of single-camera drama from OTT distributors—has imposed change on this most change-resistant of fields.

Adapting to Live
Guilhem Krier, based in France, is Panasonic Connect’s Head of New Business & Market Development, and traces the origins of the trend to “concerts, mostly, where you want to have a very nice cinematic feel for the singer, and the background is blurry so the person is detached. I think it was 10 years ago.”

Larger-sensored options, Krier recalls, already existed, “but they were mostly designed for production work, with a full camera crew. There was a clear request for this kind of picture, but there was no product really designed in this way—a real studio camera, a broadcast camera with a cinematographic look to it. This is where the idea of products like the PLV100 came from.”

The AK-PLV100GSJ is Panasonic’s answer to the problem, a system camera with Super 35mm sensor announced in October 2022. Big chips, though, were already popular in adjacent fields, according to Krier.

“It’s not only broadcast sports,” Krier says, “but also integration. Corporate things, meeting rooms, theatres where we’re selling tons of PTZ cameras. The tendency is to go for bigger and bigger sensors, to get more sensitivity and also to get this kind of picture with a short depth of field.”

While the technological direction was straightforward, Krier describes the early big-chip broadcast experience, which often repurposed cinema cameras, as “an absolute nightmare in terms of blurry pictures and [poor] workflows.

“At the time I was mostly focused on the French market but we had big organizations like [industrial training organization] INA, and they had started tons of training and courses on how to manage focus not only with HD but with 4k and large sensors,” he said.

Time has allowed technique to mostly catch up with technology, Krier added.

“Today we don’t really have people coming up saying it’s too difficult to keep the pictures sharp, but for a long time it was a big topic, especially for people switching to full frame. Super 35 is a bit in the middle, but still you have super sharp sensors with 20, 30, 40 million pixels. It’s still a challenge.”

Super Sensor at the Super Bowl
Masakazu Murata is Senior General Manager, Head of Media Solutions Business Unit at Sony, and relates a somewhat comparable trajectory. “Particularly in sports broadcasting, where there’s a growing demand for cinematic visual expression, we're seeing cinema cameras like the Venice 2 being used more frequently. At this year's Super Bowl in February, in addition to a lot of Sony system cameras, Venice 2 and FX series cameras were also used.”

Perhaps mindful of the ergonomic concerns associated with repurposing cinema cameras for live work, Sony announced its own Super 35mm system camera, the HDC-F5500V, at NAB this year. The new design, Murata confirms, “features a Super 35mm CMOS image sensor delivering impressive bokeh effects while maintaining system camera operability.

“There’s talkback and remote control, and a variable ND filter,” he added. “We've received very positive feedback from broadcasting professionals who appreciate the expanded range of visual expression options. They can mix traditional system cameras, with deep depth of field, and cinema cameras, with shallow depth of field, and select the appropriate visual style for each scene.”

Grass Valley’s Klaus Weber recognizes that mix-and-match option as key. Responsible for product management of camera solutions and technology, Weber reinforcinges the need for proper workflow integration of large-sensor cameras. “Yes, you can adapt UCPs to a camera and yes, you can add a tally light and yes, you can attach an intercom solution. But then it’s building a camera with external blocks to act like a live camera.”

Even then, Weber goes on, many cinema cameras remain compromised. “The time between light hitting the imager and the image being ready for distribution is one frame, perhaps,” Weber said. “It needs to be instant. And the camera does not have multiple live outputs—in live you need a UHD HDR signal but [also] a 1080p feed for shading or iso feeds. You need cameras with a global shutter because… high end sport productions often need to shoot LED walls with a virtual ad replacement system. Sometimes you can set it up so it works, but in a live environment, where you have to react to situations it simply doesn’t work.”

Grass Valley’s response is the LDX 180, launched at this year’s NAB. Weber describes the camera as expanding on a much-loved existing product.

“It’s taking one of our LDX 100 camera bodies and replacing the three-chip block with a newly-developed Super 35 optical block,” Weber said. “Since both imagers are developed with the same technology, the same development team even, they provide the same characteristics, global shutter and dynamic range. Because the imager is more than six times larger, we have more than six times more pixels which gives you a heavily oversampled image.”

Not For Everyone
Even so, Krier suggests that even the smoothest pictures are unlikely to persuade the industry to universal adoption (and the industry seems to concur).

“A big soccer match for the Champions League in Europe is typically 20, 30 cameras; the soccer field is more than a hundred meters long, so a camera high up, shooting down to a player on the ground, has a distance of at least 100 meters to the subject,” Krier said. “You need a focal length of 400-500mm and your depth of field is already close to zero.”

Crucially, the practical performance envelope of larger-sensor cameras is increasingly constrained by optics more than electronics. Joshua Stoner is Senior Technical Specialist at Canon, with responsibility for lenses, and describes the convergence of cinema and broadcast simply. “As the two industries have been on a collision course, they’ve had some crossover,” Stoner said. “Some of our cinema lenses and cameras have been getting broadcast-style operability, the ability to use a third-party control panel to shade our cameras.”

As regards broadcast-specific lens designs, though, Stoner is clear that Canon has no intention of following in the footsteps of Fujifilm and its upscale 25-1000mm PL-mount box zoom.

“I don’t think the market is enough to support the R&D,” Stoner said. “We looked into it when Fujifilm released theirs and went a different way—the cine-servo line of lenses. We have also started releasing the USM Z line, which are RF mount and have external zoom and focus controls. There’s an add-on module that gives you handheld zoom. It has a 20-pin connector, and with a Y-connector you can put on rear controls.”

This sort of hybrid lens technology, with the option to involve electronics in what was once an almost purely opto-mechanical device, seems like the most promising avenue for fundamental advancement in what can be done. “It’s a more video-focused lens,” Stoner says, “but it’s still an RF-mount photo lens, and it has that performance benefit [of a short flange focus distance]. It’s our advancement into that lower cost video kind of lens that people are screaming for.”

Stoner reports one other popular option among people looking for a broadcast operating experience, albeit one which may not extract the best performance from camera or lens: “to put a B4 lens on a cinema camera. That’s popping up more and more. Not very much in live, but a team might have a features group that shoots interviews or team footage and they’re trying to leverage the new cameras.”

Box-lens enthusiasts seem more likely to be entranced by an upgrade option for Canon’s Digisuper 122 and 111 lenses which occupies a previously-disused aperture on the extender.

“You can install this new optical block into the Digisuper 122 and 111 which helps mimic the shallow depth of field look—but you get the broadcast operability,” Stoner says. “And you’re not giving up a camera position. It’s not a true shallow depth of field, [but] the operators are operating the lens like they normally would, they’re not chasing focus and it gives the director the hero shot they want.”

That hybrid try for a best-of-both-worlds solution was announced at NAB 2025 and, Stoner says, was well-received. “The demand for it in the U.S. has been through the roof,” he said. “We’re ready to deploy this this summer in time for the NFL season.” Overall, it seems plausible that the desire for a large-sensor look might well take a third route of this kind, ideally skirting the practicality shortfalls of Super 35mm sensors.

Either way, Stoner concludes by echoing what seems to be the prevailing view. “I don’t see Super 35 overtaking ⅔-inch any time soon. I see it as an add-on inside the industry.”

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon has launched the EOS R1 and EOS R5 Mark II, two full-frame mirrorless cameras for professional still photography and video production.

The EOS R1 is designed to meet the needs of professionals who shoot sports and news as well as those involved in high-end video production. The EOS R5 Mark II features improved video focused features for advanced creators and a real-time multi-recognition tracking system for those who focus on still photography, the company said.

Canon’s EOS 1 high-performance, reliable and weather-resistant camera. It offers a back-illuminated stacked 24.2 megapixel full-frame sensor and new processing system for extremely fast reading; increased read-out speed, reducing rolling shutter distortions; still-image shooting speeds up to 40fps; cross-type AF imaging sensor for more positive focus on subjects with linear detail; and video capture up to 4K with 6K RAW available as an option, it said.

The EOS R5 Mark II offers the fundamental elements in one package for sports and wildlife photographers, journalists and producers, video producers and visual creators. Key features include: 

• Back-illuminated stacked 45 megapixel full-frame sensor and new processing system for extremely fast reading.
• More advanced and powerful AF system when compared to previous EOS R camera models, such as Eye Control AF and new subject tracking technologies.
• Cinema EOS video features such as custom picture color profile, including Canon Log 2; false color waveform monitor; four-channel audio with 24-bit LPCM; and pre-recording up to five seconds.

Canon is offering accessories for the EOS R5 Mark II, including the LP-E6P, a new, more powerful battery when compared to predecessors; and three optional battery grips: the BG-R20 supporting vertical operation; the BG-R20EP with Ethernet port; and the CF-R20EP with cooling fan and Ethernet port, it said.

Both cameras offer new DIGIC Accelerator, an addition to the DIGIC X processor, that assists with deep learning processing, which helps to analyze large volumes of data quickly and supports the Dual Pixel Intelligent AF system, it said.

The Canon EOS R1 camera is expected to be available in the fall for an estimated retail price of $6,299. The Canon EOS R5 Mark II camera is expected to be available in August for an estimated retail price of $4,299 for the camera body only. The EOS R5 Mark II camera kit, which will include the RF24-105mm F4 L IS USM lens, will have an estimated retail price of $5,399.00. The estimated retail prices for the optional battery grips are:

• BG-R20– $560
• BG-R20EP – $750
• CF-R20EP – $600

More information is available on the company’s website.

Missed any of our product news this week? Here is our new weekly wrap-up of new products, services and deployments we published in our newsletter between June 3 and June 7. The stories are listed from the newest on Friday June 7, day by day back to our stories from Monday June 3. 

Charter Sees a Big Payoff from AI-Generated Ads

Evidence that AI tools can be a bonanza for local ad sales and bring in a host of new clients that might not otherwise be able to produce video ads, can be found at Charter’s Spectrum Reach’s local ad sales efforts.

J:COM Taps Brightcove for New Streaming Service

Brightcove has announced that J:COM Co., Ltd., Japan’s largest cable TV company, is using Brightcove technologies to power J:COM’s newest streaming service, Ikimono Watch (“Animal Watch”).

Blackmagic Design Announces Blackmagic Cloud Live Sync

Blackmagic Design has announced Blackmagic Cloud Sync, a new feature of Blackmagic Cloud storage that allows a camera to sync media into a DaVinci Resolve bin while the camera is recording.

Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation Deploys Riedel's Production Suite in OB Vans

Riedel Communications has announced that the Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation (ERT S.A.), Greece’s state-owned public broadcaster, has acquired Riedel's cutting-edge Simplylive Production Suite to expand its live production capabilities across a wide range of events.

ARRI Introduces Hi-5 SX Wireless Camera, Lens Control Unit

ARRI has unveiled its single-axis Hi-5 SX wireless camera and lens control hand unit, which can be upgraded with greater functionality via an optional software license.

Live Cloud Production Takes Off With Far-Reaching Implications

The broadcast industry’s accelerating transition to cloud-based production of sports, news and other live programming is proving far more disruptive to the evolution of video services than seemed likely not so long ago.

Dante Adds Media Encryption, Enhancing Security Features of the Dante AV-over-IP Platform

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Anton/Bauer Launches 'Preservation Power' Campaign in Partnership with Rainforest Trust

Anton/Bauer has announced the launch of its 'Preservation Power' campaign. This initiative supports Rainforest Trust's mission to conserve and protect the world's most threatened tropical forests and endangered wildlife.

Canon Announces New EOS C400 6K Full-Frame RF Mount Cinema Camera

Canon U.S.A. Inc. has made several new product announcements with the unveiling of the new Canon EOS C400 cinema camera, a new RF-Mount CINE-SERVO and firmware updates with enhanced features for Cinema EOS Cameras and Pro Camcorders.

New Yahoo Advertising Data Offering Takes Aim at Ad Market Fragmentation

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ITV Turns To Friend MTS To Fight Piracy

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Akili Kids! Handles Fast-Paced Schedule With PlayBox Neo

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Clear-Com Expands Connectivity, Device Support Of Arcadia Intercom

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Sony Electronics Unveils New Firmware Roadmap for the BURANO Digital Cinema Camera

Two new firmware updates will include additional recording modes, support for live event production and more improvements, which will be released over the next year.

DZS Completes NetComm Acquisition

Deal expands its offerings to broadband networking, connectivity and cloud software and its footprint in the Americas, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Australia/New Zealand.

FCC Ends Affordable Connectivity Program

Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel has announced that the agency officially ended the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) on June 1, 2024 after Congress failed to provide additional funding.

Dielectric Antennas Help CTN Spread Its Message Far and Wide

This user report explains how the Christian Television Network, which operates 24 television stations throughout the United States, recently installed three new Dielectric antennas at its stations. 

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon U.S.A. Inc. has made several new product announcements with the unveiling of the new Canon EOS C400 cinema camera, a new RF-Mount CINE-SERVO and firmware updates with enhanced features for Cinema EOS Cameras and Pro Camcorders.

The Canon EOS C400 cinema camera features a native RF-mount and full-frame, back-illuminated stacked CMOS sensor and is designed with the film and live production markets in mind. 

Canon is announced the company’s first MOUNT ADAPTER PL-RF, and an RF-mount version of the popular and award-winning CINE-SERVO 17-120mm cinema lens.

In addition, the company announced a variety of firmware updates for key models in its Cinema EOS and professional camcorder line of cameras, including the EOS C500 Mark II, EOS C300 Mark III, EOS C70, EOS R5 C cameras and the XA75/70, XA65/60 and VIXIA HF G70 camcorders. 

“Canon is proud to provide filmmakers and videographers with a variety of tools to capture high-quality and visually stunning images,” said Brian Mahar, senior vice president and general manager, Canon U.S.A., Inc. “The new camera and lens strengthen Canon’s already impressive lineup of cinema products.” 

For the first time in the cinema EOS system, the Canon EOS C400 camera features a newly developed 6K full-frame, back-illuminated CMOS sensor, with triple-base ISO, allowing the camera to deliver stunning imagery in a wide range of lighting conditions.  The base ISOs of 800, 3200, and 12,800 maximize the full dynamic range of the camera.

An additional benefit of the EOS C400 camera’s sensor is the support for the next generation of Canon’s Dual Pixel CMOS Autofocus, Dual Pixel AF II.  The back-illuminated stacked positioning offers better light-capturing efficiency, which widens the area of the sensor that can be used for autofocusing. The sensor also empowers faster readout speed, as well as better 4K image quality from 6K oversampling.

The EOS C400 camera records in 6K full-frame up to 60p in 12-bit Cinema RAW Light.  By changing the sensor mode, the camera can record 4K RAW up to 120fps and 2K RAW up to 180fps. This is all recorded in Canon’s latest iteration of Cinema RAW Light, which provides three different recording modes to choose from depending on your file size preference and workflow. 

Other recording options include the Canon-developed, industry standard XF-AVC codec which can be recorded in 10-bit 4:2:2 with oversampling from the 6K sensor, helping to create rich detail and smooth imagery, at frame rates up to 120P, without the need for cropping the image from the sensor. Canon is also introducing two new recording codecs into the EOS C400 camera, XF-AVC S and XF-HEVC S. These formats feature an easy-to-manage naming system and folder structure, while recording in the familiar MP4 format and preserving metadata.

All of these options are recorded to the camera’s CFexpress slot with sub-recording and proxy options available to the SD Card slot, which allows for simultaneous recording even when shooting RAW. 

For live productions, the EOS C400 camera body features a dedicated 12-pin lens terminal for broadcast and cine-servo lenses, a variety of output and input interfaces including mini-XLR audio inputs, DIN connectors for time code, genlock and return video, 12G-SDI and 3G-SDI monitor outputs, a full-size HDMI output, built-in Wi-Fi connectivity, Ethernet and much more. The camera also features SRT protocol for IP streaming of video and audio. For shooting scenarios where the camera will be controlled remotely, you can use the Ethernet port or Wi-Fi connectivity to enable remote control, including support for the Canon Multi-Camera Control app, browser remotes, or the Canon RC-IP100 or RC-IP1000 controllers via use of the included XC protocol, the company reported. 

The EOS C400 camera can also provide frame-by-frame metadata in real-time and post-production to support virtual production workflows. Ready for 180-degree VR shooting, the EOS C400 camera has built-in compatibility with the Canon RF5.2mm F2.8 L dual fisheye lens. 

In terms of the new CINE-SERVO 17-120mm Cinema Lens, the company said that it builds upon the legacy of the company’s CINE-SERVO line, with the added benefit of a native RF mount. The additional pins of the RF mount increase communication with RF-mount cameras such as the EOS C400, enabling auto focus, distortion correction and metadata output for virtual productions. The lens comes in either RF or PL mount configurations, with the PL mount version supporting ZEISS eXtended Data and ARIA (Automatic Restoration of Illumination Attenuation).

The lens’ new e-Xs V servo drive unit helps to improve its focus and iris speed, enables focus breathing compensation, and includes a USB-C connector for copying drive unit configurations.

In addition, Canon is also introducing the newly developed MOUNT ADAPTER PL-RF. This adapter opens up a broad range of PL mount lenses to the EOS C400 camera. The adapter maintains compatibility for Cooke i/Technology metadata communication between camera and lens and includes locking plates to help achieve maximum mount strength.  To learn more about these new products and Canon’s array of cinema solutions, please visit here.

Canon said that the Canon Cinema EOS C400 Full-Frame RF Mount Camera is scheduled to be available in September 2024 for an estimated retail price of $7,999.00. The CINE-SERVO 17-120mm will be available in October 2024 for an estimated retail price of $23,850.00. The MOUNT ADAPTER PL-RF will be available in September 2024 for an estimated retail price of $1,599.00. 

More information, including accessory prices and availability, is available here. 

In terms of the firmware updates, Canon said they will be available through a free download at the end of June 2024.

Highlights for each of the Canon products include:

• EOS C500 Mark II/ EOS C300 Mark III Cameras. “Sensor Mode” will be saved to an assignable button on the camera body to quickly change between Full-frame, Super 35mm and Super 16mm crop modes. The Focus Guide box will have two size options: Standard and Large (approximately two times larger than standard). Camera LCD screen will display a playback marker in Media Mode. 
• For the EOS C300 Mark III camera: Cinema RAW Light HQ/ST/LT recording modes will be added. Auto ISO/Gain functions that can be operated from the camera menu, an assignable button, or with a compatible remote-control unit will be added. 
• EOS C70/EOS R5 C Cameras: Same Focus Guide and playback marker enhancements as the C500 Mark II and C300 Mark III cameras will be added. Option of assigning functions to the select dial on the back of the camera, including AF subject selection, shutter, iris, ISO/gain, and white balance mode will be added.
• For the EOS R5 C camera, the following will be added: Ability to adjust the thickness of the AF frame, making it easier to see in certain lighting conditions. Ability to reset the AF position by pushing the joystick or set buttons. When shooting RAW VR content with Canon’s dual fisheye lens, you will be able to record both the peripheral illumination and chromatic aberration data. This will help with processing footage into smoother and even more amazing VR content than before the firmware update. New features from the March 2024 R5 firmware update.
• XA75/70 and XA65/60 Camcorders: Option to view the date and time in the on-screen display (OSD) while recording will be added. White balance will be able to be changed while recording.

To download the firmware updates once available, or for more information regarding the firmware updates and all of Canon’s professional video products and solutions, please visit usa.canon.com.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates—Canon Europe today unveiled the CJ27ex7.3B IASE T portable zoom lens for capturing 4K High Dynamic Range (HDR) image quality from wide angle to telephoto.

The new lens, which the company will unveil at the 2024 NAB Show in Las Vegas, April 13-17, features the Canon’s newly developed e-Xs V drive unit.

The new lens, which is compatible with 4K broadcast cameras equipped with 2/3-inch sensors, offers a 7.3-197mm focal length range and a 2.0x optical extender, the company said.

The CJ27ex7.3B IASE T delivers powerful magnification with a 27x optical zoom, ranging from 7.3mm wide angle to 197mm focal length at the telephoto end, making it a versatile option for capturing desired shots, it said.

Its built-in 2.0x extender unlocks the ability to double maximum reach to 394mm. The new lens ensures optical performance is standard across all shooting scenarios, it said.

From the center of the screen to the edges, the lens delivers high-quality 4K HDR performance. Advanced technologies, such as the multi-group zoom and floating focus system, ensure high-resolution imagery is captured, it said.

The lens’ e-Xs V drive unit offers three 20-pin connectors, a newly added USB-C port for various applications, including remote control and firmware updates, and a 16-bit encoder for precise lens data output, it said.

The drive unit enables greater precision for users and offers high speed zoom and improved iris responsiveness. Integrated focus breathing compensation promises consistently smooth shots by automatically correcting fluctuations (only applicable to UHDxs series lenses), the company said.

Weighing about 4.6 pounds (2.10kg), the compact lens and drive system is ergonomic and offers a high degree of maneuverability in multiple broadcast scenarios, it said.

See Canon at NAB Show booth C3825.

More information is available on the company’s website.

As Fox Weather prepares for its live coverage of the solar eclipse from April 6 to 8, Fox Weather correspondent Robert Ray describes some of his tech plans for the coverage by saying “we are covering this eclipse like a sporting event" with "live action, play-by-play, color commentary, stats, live interviews, dynamic graphics and fan reaction."

Like a sporting event, Ray adds that they have to be prepared for how fast the action unfolds and “how ready one must be technically”

Overall the free streaming weather service will have meteorologists and correspondents spanning nearly 10 cities to capture the events leading up to the full eclipse on April 8. 

In this Q&A, Ray lays out some of the technologies he'll be using in his coverage and some of the challenges they face. It has been edited for length and clarity. 

TV Tech: What are some of the technologies you are using to help with your eclipse coverage? 

Robert Ray: Along with many Fox Weather team members, I'll be reporting live from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, my coverage kicks off on Saturday April 6th and rolls all the way through the event on Monday the 8th.

From a tech perspective, coverage of the eclipse is robust and unique at Fox Weather...Imagine watching a correspondent give a play-by-play of the eclipse all the while seeing what he is capturing through his own eyes, live on Fox Weather. The latter is the plan.  

A Fox Weather photojournalist will be shooting me and the crowds, I'll be shooting the eclipse with a Sony PXW-400 with a Canon lens and extender plus a certified solar neutral density filter to help with the live imagery and safety for the lens and camera. And of course, we will have custom Fox Weather protective eyewear. During the eclipse and after I'll be talking with folks getting their reactions all the while training the camera on the eclipse. Capturing the eclipse takes technical skills with not only focus and riding the F-stop but following how fast it all happens, remember, the Earth is moving and so will the images, so it takes some concentration. During the eclipse I'll offer viewers the chance to peek into the lens of the Sony 400 and I'll also have my Solar Binoculars to hand folks as well. 

Transmitting the event will be multi-faceted, we will utilize LiveU tethered Wi-Fi technology connected to both cameras. If we have any signal issues from the WI-FI we can pivot to a traditional satellite truck that will be standing by and helping with the many facets of the broadcast and stream.

TVT: What are some of the challenges posed by eclipses from a technical angle and how are you addressing those? 

Ray: The approach we are taking, with 2 cameras and the correspondent (myself) shooting the eclipse while doing live play-by-play and interviews with people is a recipe for anything to go wrong. But pushing the envelope is rewarding, especially on a live broadcast.

Having said that, as a photojournalist and a guy who can talk with anchors back in NY on live TV, I feel this immerses the viewer, gives them totally unique access and perspective into the wonder and beauty of the eclipse & how the phenomenon is captured, all live. My biggest challenge is framing the sun properly so that it can make its way from the bottom edge of the left-hand side of the screen and make its way diagonally to the upper right quadrant of the frame, or screen. The latter will allow the viewer to see the eclipse properly and will give me room to do quick interviews with spectators while the eclipse is happening. Now, I'll have to be diligent in getting my eye into the viewfinder about every 20 seconds to monitor the framing and exposure. If cloud cover is robust and the sun dips in and out, then the challenge of exposure will be significant. Anything easy usually never has a big payoff anyway, so, that's my mantra in this coverage.

TVT: What did you learn from the ring of fire eclipse coverage last year?

Ray: Speed, I was reminded how fast the event happens & how ready one must be technically. We are talking about the speed of the moon's orbit moving at about 2200 mph, of course the effective speed at the surface is less and varies but that's why an eye needs to be in the camera frame & the adjustments are constant, required by the photojournalist to properly capture. The eclipse in April will last around 4 minutes, which as we know, is an eternity in the world of television, so its laser focus technically and mentally in the lead-up, during the vent and after. I'll need a cold one when this coverage is complete:)

TVT: Any other technical details? 

We are covering this eclipse like a sporting event. Live action, play-by-play, color commentary, stats, live interviews, dynamic graphics and fan reaction. Looking forward to the challenge and excitement of this event. Fox Weather will have teams across the country, the coverage will be like no other.

Broadcast lens makers have long worked to marching orders from large venue live sports and concert producers wanting longer and (still) longer focal length telephoto zoom lenses. This year the camera at the center field fence can frame a head and shoulders shot of the batter; next year it will inch in a bit to a head only shot.

But now those lens makers are hearing a second voice. It’s asking them for a more cinematic look, not to replace the mega-telephoto zooms, but for use on the sidelines and locker rooms.

There are a number of elements to that cinema look. The most easily identifiable is a shallow depth of field. At the risk of oversimplification, depth of field in still or motion picture photography is the distance between the nearest and the furthest objects that are in acceptably sharp focus in an image captured with a camera. The more shallow the depth of field, the less of the image is in focus, and the more is out of focus. 

This shallow depth of field has long been the province of photography and motion pictures, where it is said to be eye catching. But now it no longer is just restricted to pros—with average consumers using the “profile” feature on their smartphones, even the average joe understands its appeal.

How to Do It
There are three ways to reduce the lens’ depth of field:

• Increase the image sensor size
• Increase the iris setting, the f-stop
• Increase the lens focal length

Most live sports cameras and lenses utilize B4 mount lenses, with -inch three-chip prism sensors. Most cinema cameras and lenses utilize PL mounts, which have larger image sensors than the B4 mounts, and thus deliver a more shallow depth of field.

Opening the lens’ iris setting will also shallow the depth of field. In order to keep the light level even it may be necessary to deploy neutral density filters in the camera. Shutter speed can also be used to limit the light hitting the sensor, but can also yield unwanted effects.

To shallow the depth of field by increasing focal length, a prime lens can be switched out with a higher focal length lens, or zooming the lens can achieve the same result. For a production moving fast and furious, a zoom lens is preferred.

“Over the last series of years, be it sports or other live events, concerts, generally multicam, we’ve seen a desire to create that cinematic look,” said Stosh Durbacz, national sales manager, Optical Devices Division, Fujifilm North America Corporation. 

At the 2023 NAB Show, Fujifilm introduced its Fujinon Duvo HZK25-1000 box lens, which deploys a dual-format system that supports two single sensor sizes: a large format sensor size and a traditional super 35mm sensor.

“Our customers helped us identify a very clear need for a long and fast cinema lens that can produce cinematic results in a live production environment,” said Durbacz. Fujifilm’s newly developed 1.5x expander shifts the focal length of the telephoto side, enabling super-telephoto image capture of 1500mm (1000×1.5).

Bokeh is another lens attribute that yields a cinematic look. Bokeh is the aesthetic quality of the blur produced in out-of-focus parts of an image. 

There are several characteristics that impact bokeh, said Art Adams, product specialist, Cinema Lenses at ARRI. “But the most important is spherical aberration: do light rays from the edge of the lens focus at the same point as light rays from the center of the lens? ARRI lenses are very well corrected for spherical aberration and this produces backgrounds that are incredibly smooth. Subjects pop out of out-of-focus backgrounds as there are no residual hard edges to draw the eye away.”

Adams pointed to ARRI’s 65-300 Signature Zoom as the most useful for live sports. “It is exceptional because it doesn’t exposure-ramp at the end of the zoom range: when you start your zoom at T2.8 at 65mm, you’ll end your zoom at T2.8 at 300mm. That lens ships with a 1.7x extender at no extra charge, and that turns this lens into a very high quality 110mm-510mm T4.9.”

Ergonomic Hurdles
There are a lot of technical hurdles to developing lenses that provide the cinematic look. But there are ergonomics factors as well. 

In cinema production, there may be four or five different operators working around the cinema camera. On a broadcast crew, you have one operator for each camera. 

“This is largely because when they’re making a video, making a movie, they’re not beholden to the action head of them,” said Mark Weir, senior product manager, Alpha Cameras & Lenses, Sony Electronics. “They can have as many takes as they want because the actors and what’s happening are under the control of the production, they’re not taking images that are happening in front of them. They’re literally making them, they’re crafting them, they’re organizing them, they’re structuring them to fit their requirements.“

Weir notes that the technology for the cinematic look is in its infancy. “It doesn’t cover everything in the world of broadcast sports, for example,” he said. “You’ve got to deliver the kind of reach to cover action 100 yards away. Trying to then cover it in shallow depth of field is probably not what the production is looking for. It’s a balance of both.”

As the depth of field becomes more and more shallow, keeping the lens focused on the action becomes more difficult. 

“The challenge is knowing where to point that auto focus,” said Josh Stoner, senior specialist, Product Management Team, Broadcast and Cinema Lenses for Canon. ”The trick is how to make it react so you’re not catching someone out of frame, like somebody coming into the frame and then the focus jumping to that person.  That’s more of an operator function to learn how to do that. It’s less about learning where to point the autofocus, when to engage it and when not to engage it.”

Stoner said picking a lens for a cinematic look depends on which cameras utilized. “If they’re using a stubby camera and they have a whole rig built up around it, I’m going to suggest one of our CINE-SERVO, the 70 to 120, which is going to give you a kind of a wide angle look,” he said. “If they’re going to run around on a gimbal, with a C370, I’m going to go with one of our RF lenses to give you autofocus and lightweight capability so you can run around with it.”

With host broadcaster Olympic Broadcasting Service recently announcing that it will be using cinematic lenses for the first time at the 2024 Games in Paris, expect to see an overload of the cinematic look next summer. Which seems appropriate when you consider the French invented cinema.

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon U.S.A. today introduced its first RF-Mount Cinema Prime Lenses for its Cinema EOS System.

The lenses combine high optical performance for 4K and 8K shooting, cinema-style operation and RF mount communications, the company said.

The first set of seven RF-Mount Cinema Prime Lenses will quickly be followed by a lineup of RF-mount-compatible video production equipment video production of movies, TV and commercials, it said.

The lenses include focal lengths and T stops of: 14mm T3.1, 20mm T1.5, 24mm T1.5, 35mm T1.5, 50mm T1.3, 85mm T1.3, and 135mm T2.2. They are compatible with the Canon COS C70 and EOS R5 C Cinema Cameras, it said.

They enable RF-mount protocol transmission and like the EF-Mount Cinema Prime Lenses, operators can control magnification, chromatic aberration correction, peripheral light correction, and a dual-pixel focus guide via camera body operations, it said.

The new lenses are able to achieve high optical performance suitable for use with 4K and 8K cameras by optimally positioning large-diameter aspherical lens elements and lens elements with anomalous dispersion glass. Their compatibility with the full-frame large-format sensor, bright T stop values and 11-blade iris helps produce a shallow depth of field for subjects, natural round blurring and soft image expressions, Canon said.

Unified Cinema EOS color balance throughout the series helps provide consistent color, even when changing lenses.

Designed with the proper level of ring torque, the new lenses allow for the precise and smooth adjustments often needed during cinema productions, it said.

A unified design across the series, including the gear position of the operation ring, the diameter of the lens and the rotation angle (operation angle), enable lenses to be swapped in and out effortlessly without the need to adjust matte boxes or external focus accessories for each lens, it said.

A new coarse surface near the mount provides a comfortable and ergonomic fit in the user’s hand, allowing the lens to be held securely without gripping the operation ring when attaching and detaching different lenses, the company said.

More information is available on the company's website website.

MELBOURNE—Atomos has announced that it is now offering support for Apple ProRes RAW plug-ins. 

The update lets camera manufacturers provide their own ProRes RAW processing pipeline to take advantage of the unique properties of their cameras, sensors, lenses, and more.

Canon is the first camera maker to deliver a ProRes RAW Plug-in, with the EOS R5, R5 C and R6 Mark II cameras outputting RAW to an Atomos monitor-recorder. Atomos has already enabled full ProRes RAW plug-in support for these cameras in the current release firmware for Ninja V, Ninja V+, and Shogun Connect.

ProRes RAW is widely regarded as the universal RAW video format. With the introduction of plug-ins, now every camera maker can provide their own unique processing, in a completely confidential way, by writing a single ProRes RAW plug-in that brings out the best quality and unique looks created by their own cameras, Atomos said. 

ProRes RAW plug-ins will be supported in Final Cut Pro as well as many third-party applications that have licensed the ProRes RAW SDK, such as nonlinear editors (NLEs) and color correction applications.

Users can simply install the camera vendor’s ProRes RAW plug-in and Final Cut Pro will automatically show all the new enhanced features of the supported camera. Using a ProRes RAW plug-in enables camera-specific adjustments such as custom white balancing, noise reduction, demosaicing, lens distortion correction, and more.

Atomos supports over 50 camera models recording ProRes RAW from the camera’s RAW output over SDI or HDMI, so is uniquely placed to record this new enhanced metadata standard.

“This new feature for the ProRes RAW ecosystem is absolutely going to change the way people think about recording ProRes RAW,” said Trevor Elbourne, Atomos CEO. “For the first time the filmmaker literally gets the best of all worlds: shoot in ProRes RAW with the option to immediately apply camera-specific processing, use standard processing, or customize individual parameters to their own taste. You have to ask yourself: why wouldn’t you shoot in ProRes RAW?”. 

“We are very proud to be working alongside Apple and Canon to bring this ProRes RAW innovation to market,” Elbourne added. “We were first to market with an 8K ProRes RAW compatible mirrorless camera - the Canon EOS R5 - and now we are making another huge advancement with the ProRes RAW format.”

The ProRes RAW plug-in model has been designed to work not only with macOS but also with Windows and Linux.

Today, there are myriad digital cinema cameras available in the marketplace. Netflix, the largest of the video streaming services, has created a useful guide for which of these cameras are recommended for use on their scripted programming. 

If a camera meets these specifications, it is not only approved for use on Netflix productions but should be considered a top choice for purchase by most production companies.

Rigid Standards
Netflix collaborates extensively with the creative community, camera manufacturers and globally recognized experts to approve cameras that support its production workflows. Approved cameras are evaluated to meet image capture benchmarks for dynamic range, color accuracy, detail rendition, signal to noise ratio, resolution and key workflow requirements, the streaming media company says.

In addition to the camera program, in 2018 the company launched the Netflix Post Technology Alliance and introduced a logo program that will help creators identify that their original programming meets Netflix technical and delivery specifications. Netflix said “manufacturers of products bearing this logo are closely partnered with Netflix. They have early access to the Netflix technical roadmap and collaborate with Netflix on technical support, training and updates.”

Netflix said it doesn’t expect all products in the media production process to have the logo and the alliance is not designed to endorse or force creatives to use certain tools. “As an artist, you should use the tools that make sense for your production, are best suited to your workflows, and serve your creative interests,” Netflix said. “With that in mind, this logo is an identifier to quickly tell you a product has been vetted for delivery to Netflix, and that the company who makes the product is committed to ongoing support and innovation.”

Netflix requires that 90% of a program’s final total runtime be captured on approved cameras using the following basic capture requirements. 

The company expects a camera with a true UHD 4K sensor with a minimum of 3,840 photosites across and a capture format (RAW or an intra-frame compressed codec); 16-bit linear or 10-bit log processing; and capture transfer function (e.g., S-Log3, Canon Log 2).

Bit depth must be 10-bits or greater; data rate (a minimum 240Mbps at 24FPS); scene-referred color space (S.Gamut3, ALEXA Wide Gamut, REDWideGamut etc.); and a camera system capable of jamming timecode to an external source with the code written into metadata.

Netflix also requires daily black balancing of the camera’s sensor; avoidance of spanned clips (i.e., single takes spread out on multiple cards); extra resolution for anamorphic imaging and use of aspect ratios less than or equal to 2:1.

Not Set in Stone
This list of basic Netflix requirements isn’t absolute. Not all cameras that meet these basic capture requirements are approved. However, these requirements are Netflix’s minimum specifications necessary for a camera system to be considered for approval. Other attributes taken into account include dynamic range, form factor, stability and workflow compatibility.

Netflix does allow limited use of non-approved cameras in certain situations. But the producer has to check with Netflix first about use of non-approved cameras on a production slated to be aired on the network. Nothing is set in stone and camera specs for nonfiction documentary content are more flexible.

The list of Netflix-approved cameras, especially for non-technical production executives, has proven to offer a useful guideline for the purchase of digital cinema cameras. Since camera models change so frequently, so does Netflix’s list. The latest posted update of added Netflix-approved cameras was Dec. 12, 2022 (it was updated last week with the addition of the Canon EOS R5 C).

Netflix emphasizes that its rules are not frozen, but general. Sometimes capabilities can be added to cameras with third party accessories. Some non-approved cameras might be required on a production for a special type of shot. Netflix says it is open to considering all possibilities.

Avoid Overkill
Camera buyers, however, can be assured that Netflix-approved cameras have been vetted thoroughly and the list is an excellent path to finding the best cameras to purchase or rent for a production. No filmmaker wants to do a production and later find their gear does not meet the minimum standards of a streaming service.

Even if a camera model is not on the Netflix-approved list, it can still be a good purchase decision for a specific application. Remember, the Netflix list is for shooting scripted dramatic shows for streaming. Not every producer is doing such critical production work. Often the capabilities required on a Netflix production are not needed.

For example, when shooting news, documentaries or YouTube productions, a Netflix-approved camera is overkill. Action cameras, like GoPros, don’t meet Netflix standards but may be used for special shots on Netflix productions. There are many camera choices for varying applications. Creative videographers should never be confined to a single list of cameras.

This list represents the top end of available digital cinema production cameras. All meet Netflix’s approved standards for shooting scripted television. Each is part of an extensive system of accessories. And these models also represent the most expensive video cameras on the market today. 

Netflix-approved Cameras

ARRI ALEXA Basic, Mini LF and 35

Blackmagic Design URSA Mini Pro

Canon EOS C300 Mark II, EOS C500 Mark II; EOS C700, EOS C70 and EOS R5 C

Panasonic AU-EVA1; VariCam LT 4K S35; Lumix BGH1; Lumix, BS1H; Varicam 35; Lumix S1H Mirrorless and AK-UC4000 studio camera

RED Digital DSMC2 with Gemini 5K S35 sensor; DSMC2 with Helium 8K S35 sensor; DSMC2 with Monstro 8K VV sensor; DSCC2 with Dragon-X sensor; Komodo 6K; RED Ranger with Helium 8K S35 sensor; RED Ranger with Monstro 8K VV sensor; RED Ranger with Gemini SK S5 sensor and V-Raptor 8K VV DSMC3

Sony Venice 6K; FX6; PXW-FX9 XDCAM 6K; Venice 2; PXW-Z450 4K UHD; PXW-Z750 4K; FX3 and FR7 Cinema PTZ camera

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon has announced a firmware update for its pan-tilt-zoom (PTZX) remote cameras that will provide access to new paid video production features.

Called the Add-On Application System, the new offering’s first applications include auto tracking and auto loop functions for the company’s CR-N700 4K PTZ camera. 

The auto tracking application enables the CR-N700 to pan, tilt and zoom automatically as it tracks moving subjects. The auto loop application enables users to program and automate repeated camera movements, the company said.

The Add-on Application System can be added with a future firmware update. Canon plans to expand the number of applications it offers as well as the lineup of compatible remote camera models, it said.

As opposed to competitive offerings that require an external control device, the new paid add-on applications run directly from within the Canon PTZ camera, it said.

The auto tracking add-on reduces the workload of the camera operator, allowing users to focus on other tasks, such as switching and streaming. It also allows for multiple cameras on set to shoot with fewer people, it said.

Auto tracking is highly responsive, allowing for full-body, upper-body and head-and-torso tracking at both slow and normal walking speeds. Full-body and upper-body tracking are available for fast-walking subjects, it said.

The auto tracking application provides users with a wide range of adjustment functions, such as composition, tracking sensitivity, priority display area, fixed viewing angle area, tracking target auto select, pan/tilt halting area, initial position, auto select exclusion and pan/tilt operation control, it said.

Automating camera movements with the auto-loop add-on can reduce the burden on operators as well. It gives operators the ability to choose between two repeated movements, loop or back-and-forth, based on specific needs. It also supports the ability to adjust acceleration and deceleration when beginning and ending movements, Canon said. 

The firmware update adding the Add-On Applications System is scheduled for March. The first two applications will be available in April. Auto Tracking is priced at $1,200. Auto Loop costs $800.

More information is available on the company’s website.

The San Antonio Spurs are ready to take a record-setting step forward, with tonight’s contest against the Golden State Warriors, marking the first time a team has approached selling out a football stadium for a regular season NBA game.

How did that circumstance arise? By the franchise taking a step backwards. The Spurs are celebrating their 50th anniversary in the Alamo City by playing a game in its former home arena. And that spelled opportunity for ESPN.

New Dimensions
The Spurs, who now play at the AT&T Center, are returning for tonight’s game to their home from 1993 to 2002, the Alamodome ― an indoor stadium with a capacity of 65,000 for football—but this time sans that huge curtain that was intended to make the venue more intimate. Tonight’s configuration will encompass the entire stadium, which means new dimensions for ESPN to address.

“First and foremost, we’re covering the game. However, this time the broadcast is also about documenting history,” said ESPN vice president of production Tim Corrigan. “So we’ve made some adjustments given the unusual circumstances, such as higher positioning of the game cameras in the lower bowl to encompass the scene and present a better sense of scale.”

 That basically means more of everything. The crew headcount will reach about 65, which is more than the usual 40-50 for an NBA game; and instead of the usual 10 cameras, ESPN will use 14. The Sony 2500, P50 and 4300 1080ps, “are needed for their high frame rate and super slo-mo capabilities, for the game coverage,” said Eddie Okuno, senior remote operations specialist for DMED-ESPN.

 In addition, ESPN will share cameras with the Spurs and Warriors, who will present their home broadcasts (on Bally Sports Southwest and NBC Sports Bay Area, respectively). “That approach is common during the season,” said Corrigan, “because it makes for an incredible network.”

A Wider View
Also part of the special broadcast will be a four-point Skycam Wildcat with a Sony P50 and wide angle lens for game and scenic coverage. It will be used like the camera that hangs above the field in an NFL game, with the capacity to run the 120-yard length of a football field from 65 feet in front of the press box ― or that half of the field, since the Alamodome’s video board will be hanging lower than usual.

 “We have a great deal of space to work with,” said Corrigan. “Howeverr it’s important to understand that this broadcast is not akin to broadcasting a football game just because it’s in a football stadium.”

The incorporation of Skycam is more to tell the story of the game than focusing on the actual coverage of the action. “It will allow us to document the players’ walk from the locker room to the court, for instance,” he said, “and there will be numerous panoramic shots of the packed stadium.”

Another touch by ESPN will be to use longer lenses, namely the Canon 122X and the 27X, on the game camera since it will be farther from the action “to better present the scale of the entire venue,” said Okuno, also noting the Sony Alpha One shallow depth of field RF camera that uses mirrorless technology “to create a cinematic look.”

As for the rest of the technical setup, the network also installed all home run dark fiber provided by Bexel earlier this week, then the rest of that part of the install yesterday.

 ESPN will produce the game via its two main NBA trucks from the NEP Group: EN3A and EN3B, which house the Grass Valley dual-suite switchers, seven EVS XT4K units and an edit room that includes a dedicated EVS unit for editing the player’s and coach’s microphones.

In addition, one player from each team, each head coach and one referee, will wear Q5X mics. Shure Axient is providing the other mics for the talent, which are all also rentals from Bexel, an NEP company and a long-time partner of ESPN.

NBA Drone
A DJI drone will also accentuate the broadcast. It will be used from the loading dock of the adjacent Gonzales Convention Center, with clearances managed by the DMED drone operations team led by Manager Ryan Humble, who is an FAA certified pilot.

Humble said the plan is to fly the drone from the Convention Center, starting with the pregame festivities throughout broadcast “to get shots from around the venue, the Riverwalk District, the city skyline and anything that’s needed.

“We’ll be working with a visual observer,” he said, noting battery changes every 30 minutes and adding, “we’ll use bonded cellular to transmit drone video to the two mobile units and Zoom for our program return.”

Getting the Signal from Here to There
Concerning transmission, the Alamodome does not offer NBA the necessary signal specs, so it will be sent via fiber to the AT&T Center, then on to ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Conn., and to the NBA technical operations center in Secaucus, N.J.

While the event will bring back old memories, much has changed since the team moved out two decades ago. “I used to work at NBC, which had the NBA contract the last time the Spurs played at the Alamodome,” said Okuno, “but the technical setup today is different. “

Corrigan knows the feeling. “We haven’t often worked in such scenarios, because ESPN didn’t have the rights when the handful of other NBA stadium or outdoor games were played,” he said.

But with the attendance record and today’s technology, it’s a new day. “This is a big event,” he said, “and an opportunity to show what we can do on a bigger stage.”

SEATTLE—There’s a rule of thumb in video image capture that the finished picture will only be as good as the weakest part of the signal path. HDR (High Dynamic Range) is no exception.

“The great news is that the camera manufacturers have come a long ways in terms of how many stops of lights they can record,” said Stosh Durbacz, national sales manager at FUJIFILM Optical Device Division. “So we, the lens folks, have had to keep pace with that.”

Although HDR is a function of the processor inside the camera, the lens definitely plays a part, according to John Stoner, senior product specialist for Canon. “The light that passes through to the processer first passes through the lens, so if that light’s not clean, you’re never going to get a good HDR image,” he said.

Art Adams, cinema lens specialist at ARRI, said that HDR makes everything in a lens more pronounced. “That includes chromatic aberration, flare, softness at the edges, a lot of things that can be really distracting and can also impact the HDR image significantly.”

Secret Sauce
One critical component of a lens is the glass  optics within it. As light passes through each glass element, it creates reflections, which appear more pronounced in HDR. One way lensmakers deal with these reflections is with antireflective coatings.

“One of the biggest deciding factors is the antireflective coating that’s on the lenses,” said Snehal Patel, Head of Cinema Sales, Americas, Carl Zeiss SBE. “The higher quality antireflective coating, the higher performing antireflective coating you have on your lenses, the more exposure range you’re going to see in the lens, even when it’s wide open.”

FUJIFILM’s Durbacz noted: “Coatings are huge—they’re the secret sauce of any lens. They minimize the reflection of light. Every time light passes through a piece of glass, it comes in and then goes out, and there’s light that if reflected. So what we want to do is minimize that. These modern lenses can be 15-25-30 individual pieces of glass, all moving in unison.”

He also pointed out that in addition to reflections from the glass elements in a lens, there are other components that can create reflections. “The way the internal barrels are constructed, there’s baffling built in. It’s very small machining of those internal surfaces that will deaden any stray light that hits them.”

Another thing that’s improved is the black matte paint that’s used inside of the lens, according to ZEISS’ Patel. “Wherever you have glass elements inside the lens, you usually coat the edges with a matte black finish,” he said. “And any metal inside the lens that might be visible in the interior optics, you also coat that with matte black finish.“

“We have a design we call ‘flocking,’” said Canon’s Stoner, “which are mechanical ridges inside the barrel to eliminate that reflection of light before it gets to the camera sensor.”

Another lens error that becomes more pronounced when shooting in HDR is center to edge roll-off. FUJIFILM’s Durbacz pointed out: “Using the coatings and the grinding and polishing of the glass, we want to make sure that from the center of the lens—from the sweet spot out to the corners—that we’re providing flat illumination; we don’t have perceptible roll-off to the camera, from the center to the corner.”

ARRI makes both cameras and lenses for HDR. “Because we now have a camera that captures more dynamic range than anything else out there, the Alexa 35, we needed a set of lenses that would work with it,” said ARRI’s Adams. “We went back and redesigned our PL mount for this new camera. We realized that the previous design still had enough stray light issues that in HDR, with the new camera, you could start compromising your blacks, you could see them turn gray.”

To address HDR in broadcast production, Canon and Sony collaborated on ALAC (Automatic Chromatic Aberration Correction), a function that allows  automatic feedback between the lens and the camera, according to Stoner. “The lens tells the camera ‘I’m at this focal length and this iris position,’ and then the camera compensates for chromatic aberration, and removes them from the image before they get to the physical side.”

Difficult Compromise
Lensmakers pointed out that the degree of difficulty goes up when it comes to perfecting a zoom lens for HDR production.

“A zoom lens has a lot more glass in it,” said FUJIFILM’s Durbacz. “We’ve got moving groups, and we’ve got to maintain focus at all these different focal lengths. If you’re focused out to 25 feet, and you zoom the lens, there’s a lot going on. And there are additional groups of glass within the lens that the light has to transmit through.” 

ARRI’s Adams pointed to compromises that need to be taken. “Our zooms are more corrected for chromatic aberration, and we allow a little bit of distortion,” he said. “It’s a balancing act, they interact with each other. In a prime lens you can correct for both chromatic aberration and distortion because you’re only concentrating on one focal length. In a zoom, where you have a large range of focal lengths, you really have to go after one or the other or the lens gets very big and very, very expensive.

“So we opt to go toward correcting for chromatic aberration, because we think a little bit of distortion isn’t going to be as noticeable in HDR as chromatic aberration is. So our zoom lenses are very corrected for chromatic aberration, but there will be a little bit of distortion.”

While lensmakers go to great effort and expense to remove lens errors that have become noticeable in HDR, they’re aware that many cinematographers want the lenses to provide some character in addition to scientific perfection.

“What we’ve tried to do is to come up with a family of lenses, our Signature lenses, that work with HDR,” said Adams. “We try to maintain the most dynamic range possible, while eliminating the disturbing things that HDR doesn’t like, like chromatic aberration, and still make lenses that have character.”

ZEISS offers two different HDR- ready lens families: Supreme Prime and Supreme Prime Radiant. “The Supreme Primes are a cleaner set of lenses,” said Patel. “They have a wonderful cinematic look to them, they’re basically the successor to our Master Primes. They have both the 35 and full-frame coverage. And there’s a range of 14 focal lengths, from 15mm to 200mm. And then the Supreme Prime Radiant is a modified version of the Supreme Primes that add blue flare characteristics by manipulating anti-flare reflective coatings.”

“Now if we’re looking at real old lenses,” said Durbacz, “they still mount on these modern cameras, which is fantastic. But sometimes you start to see corner shading, or illumination roll-off to the corner. Those lenses were designed at a time when cameras didn’t see that kind of latitude, so you didn’t have to worry about a roll-off from the center out to the corner.”

Patel pointed out that “some of the things that they loved about the lenses, like maybe the flare, or the look of it, there are some qualities that maybe they didn’t notice before in some lenses that they notice now in HDR. That would be the only danger, that there might be something that they didn’t expect. They’re using a lens where they got a certain look before, but looking at it in HDR, they go ‘wow, the flares in there are very prominent, you can really see that.’

“Of course you can go back to color correction and maybe level out the blue tones and what not, to reduce the contrast level,” he added. “But it might just be baked into the image, and you won’t be able to change it as much as you want. That’s why I always say to test. You might like what you get; you might not. You certainly can get a more scientifically accurate image now, but it may not be the correct image for the production.”

Lensmakers also recommend monitoring in HDR during production itself, even if the first release will not be in HDR.

Adams warned: “Movies and TV shows especially, are going to have a long lifespan now, with streaming libraries, and I don’t think people are aware of what’s going to happen when those products are remastered for different levels of HDR, or just when they’re graded in HDR while the DP has been watching Rec 709 on the set. I think [HDR monitoring] is going to become desirable as people see the artifacts that creep in that they aren’t able to see. 

“It’s not exactly like shooting film, where you didn’t see what it was going to look like until the dailies were out, but there are probably 30-40% of the image that you’re not seeing when you shoot in Rec 709, and then graded in HDR.”  l

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon has unveiled several new cinema and broadcast digital imaging solutions, ranging from the CINE-SERVO 15-120mm T2.95-3.95 EF/PL lens for cinematic and live production to the DP-V2730 4K HDR monitor for filmmakers and broadcasters.

The company also announced a new expansion unit that’s compatible with several Canon cameras and new firmware for several EOS cameras.

The new CINE-SERVO 15-120mm T2.95-3.95 EF/PL (CN8x15 IAS  S) combines a versatile focal range, compact size and lightweight and offers support for Super 35mm and Full-Frame sensor cameras. Supporting a focal range from a wide 15mm to a telephoto length of 120mm, the lens can extend further to 180mm via a built-in 1.5x extender, the company said.

The new lens also supports 8K optical performance across the full focal length to support future productions, it said.

It also features Canon’s warm color science, matching the existing range of the company’s cinema lenses and offers an 11-blade aperture to produce a beautiful, round bokeh. The lens supports EF mount communications and advanced metadata capture with support for Cooke/i Technology. The PL mount version is the first Canon CINE-SERVI lens to enable ZEISS eXtended Data (XD) communication and Cooke /i Technology, Canon said.

The CINE-SERVO 15-120mm T2.95-3.95 EF/PL uses the same 16-bit encoder found in the company’s broadcast and existing CINE-SERVO lenses. It provides accurate lens position, zoom, focus and iris metadata as well as critical information and communications support between the lens and camera, which is vital for VFX, virtual and cinema production, it said.

The new EU-V3 modular expansion unit for live productions is compatible with the Canon EOS C500, Mark II and EOS C300 Mark III cameras and supports specific functions for multi-camera and live productions, Canon said.

For studio and live production applications, the EU-V3 has a 4-pin XLR DC poser input for constant power to both the expansion module and the camera body, eliminating the need for external batteries for the devices, it said.

Offering an SDI return video feature, the EU-V3 allows real-time monitoring of a live broadcast feed from a production switcher. The return output destination can be selected from the VIDEO, EVF-V50, MON/HDMI and SDI-OUT terminals. The expansion unit also supports tally, the company said.

The lens focus position can be displayed on-screen when using the EU-V3 – with compatible broadcast and CINE-SERVO lenses via 12-pin serial communication. 

The expansion unit can be combined with the CINE-SERVO 15-120mm T2.95-3.95 EF/PL (CN8x15 IAS S) lens on the EOS C500 Mark II and EOS C300 Mark III cameras, it said.

The new DP-V2730 4K HDR reference monitor has a 4K UHD display engine and offers 1,000 cd/m² full-screen peak brightness, with Canon’s local dimming technology giving an ultra-low black level of 0.001 cd/m², it said.

With a 27-inch screen, the DP-V2730 achieves high brightness with minimal noise, making it well-suited for on-set and post-production uses. The monitor meets Dolby Vision certification standards and EBU TECH3320 user requirements, it said.

The new monitor offers several monitoring tools, including waveform monitor, histogram, frame luminance monitor and RGB parade. It offers users an HDMI input and 12G-SDI terminals (4x Inputs and 5x Outputs) and is capable of delivering 4K60P 4:2:2 10-bit or 4K30P 4:4:4 12-bit signals, Canon said.

Canon’s new Cinema EOS firmware update for the EOS C500 Mark II and EOS C300 Mark III cameras enables both to be used in live environments with multiple workflows. Among the updates are:

• XC protocol support for multi-camera application and providing direct control via RC-IP100 remote camera control and Ethernet;
• Enhanced AF features, including 120p/100p AF support, alongside face detection during slow and fast shooting mode use;
• 4-channel audio display showing all channels with the mode is selected;
• New accessory and lens support, enabling the EOS C500 Mark II and EOS C300 Mark II cameras to work with both the CINE-SERVO 15-120mm T2.95-3.95 EF/PL and the EU-V3 and support for the Flex Zoom series of lenses.

The company also announced pricing and availability of the new offerings, including: 

• CINE-SERVO 15-120mm T2.95-3.95 EF/PL , $30,999, November;
• EU-V3, $2,999, December;
• DP-V2730, $18,999, March 2023;
• Canon Cinema EOS firmware update, free, October.

More information is available on the company’s website.

SANTA CLARA, Calif.—AMD will provide Canon with its Versal AI Core series, which leverages AMD AI Engine technology, for the Canon Free Viewpoint Video System which is expected to transform live sports broadcast and webcast viewing.

AMD Versal AI Core devices deliver machine learning (ML)-based video processing at the edge for Canon camera systems, AMD said.

The Canon Free Viewpoint video system consists of a ring of high-resolution cameras that surround a stadium or arena to allow broadcast viewers to see the action on the field from any position or angle in the stadium. The technology changes how sports are viewed, putting viewers in the middle of the action, it said.

The Canon system is expected to be deployed at multiple U.S. professional basketball arenas and other premier sports venues around the world.

“This single-chip Versal solution allows our system to do more in real-time than we ever envisioned possible,” said Masanori Yamada, senior managing executive officer, head of the Canon Imaging Group. “Versal AI Core’s powerful edge-processing capabilities enable our system to handle multiple functions simultaneously so broadcasters can deliver new and immersive viewing experiences.”

The Versal AI Core series delivers high performance and ultra-low latency processing to enable reduced image processing time, which makes it possible for live replays to be produced in near real-time, compared to several minutes with traditional architectures. The technology offers unique images that have never before been experienced by broadcast viewers. Live broadcast networks can also monetize live event metrics, such as game and player statistics, it said...

Moving the intelligence of AI-based video processing to the edge enables Canon to reduce the workload in the data center. The Versal AI Core powering the image-processing system implements proprietary Canon algorithms for image detection and segmentation using ML at the edge and sits behind each Canon camera deployed around a venue, it said.

“The implementation of machine learning at the edge during a live broadcast is an exciting first in the industry,” said Yousef Khalilollahi, vice president, Asia Pacific, at AMD. “The Canon camera system really puts the viewer in the game like never before. At the heart of Canon’s cutting-edge systems is the Versal AI Core series delivering the low latency edge-processing that is key to heralding this new era in live sports broadcasts.” 

More information of the Versal AI Core series is available on the AMD website.

More information on the Canon Free Viewpoint Video System is available on the Canon website.

ZURICH—Camera automaton software specialist Seervision has partnered with Canon to offer integration of the Seervision Suite and Canon PTZ cameras, making the video production automation solution part of its PTZ camera lineup, the company said this week.

Integration of the software suite with Canon robotic cameras automates live video productions and opens up use of cameras to a new range of users in live and hybrid events, education and corporate settings.

“When Seervision introduced us to the solution they’ve developed, we were impressed by the quality of tracking and automation,” said Matthew Koshy, European product marketing specialist at Canon Europe.

“We see the integration of our PTZ cameras with the Seervision Suite as well-suited to a wide range of use cases, and it marks another step towards enabling our customers to be as flexible in their video production as they want to be.”

Saying the mission of the two companies is to make video production “effortless,” Conrad von Grebel, co-founder and product team lead at Seervision. noted the software suite and PTZ cameras complement each other. “Now, we are excited to bring out technology to new audiences through Canon’s PTZ customer base and start addressing their needs,” he said.

More information is available on the company’s website. 

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon U.S.A. has launched a new series of lenses for the company's EF Cinema Lens lineup — the Flex Zoom Lens series of lenses, which were developed to create cinema-style productions with greater workflow efficiency. 

The first lenses in the series are the CN-E20-50mm T2.4 L F/FP wide-angle zoom lens and the CN-E45-135mm T2.4 L F/FP telephoto zoom lens.

Designed in the pursuit of cinematic beauty, the new large-aperture lenses feature both high-level optical design and performance while maintaining the style and ease-of-use of Canon's EF Cinema lens series, the company said. 

With the introduction of the zoom lenses featuring focal length ranges of 20-50mm for wide-angle and 45-135mm for telephoto, Canon now offers zoom lenses that cover the same range as its six existing prime (single focal length) lenses. The versatility of these new lenses supports efficient production workflows for a wide range of scenarios, including film, TV programs, commercials, and much more.

When paired with full-frame or large-format cameras, these lenses fully leverage the cameras' signature shallow depth-of-field look and provide smooth and natural background blur, helping to produce powerful storytelling imagery. The lenses also maintain a bright T2.4 aperture across their entire zoom ranges allowing for image capture in both natural light and darker environments. 

This feature helps to reduce the need for intricate lighting setups, enabling more efficient and cost-effective video production workflows, the company said. 

Engineered with an optical configuration that creates the optimal placement of lens elements, including a large-aperture aspherical lens and an anomalous dispersion glass lens, the CN-E20-50mm T2.4 L F/FP and the CN-E45-135mm T2.4 L F/FP lenses help reduce the potential for color smudging and chromatic aberrations. This enables them to maintain high optical performance from the center of the image to the periphery when paired with 8K cameras.

In addition to supporting EF-mount data transmission, the new lenses are also compatible with /i Technology from Cooke Optics. With this capability, recording metadata such as focus, zoom, aperture, and lens model can be transmitted via the lens mount for visualization on the camera itself. This additional information helps to contribute to more efficient workflows not only during on-location recording, but also during post-production and editing.

The Canon CN-E20-50mm T2.4 L F/FP wide-angle zoom lens and Canon CN-E45-135mm T2.4 L F/FP telephoto zoom lens are scheduled to be available in early June 2022 and early September 2022 for an estimated retail price of $21,999.00.*

Canon will showcase its latest digital imaging solutions and products, including the new Flex Zoom Lens series of lenses, at the NAB Show 2022 (Booth #C4432) in Las Vegas, April 24th-27th. 

For more information about the new lenses and Canon's presence at the show, please visit usa.canon.com.

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon USA has announced two new products, the DP-V1830 18.4-inch 4K/HDR professional reference display and the CR-X300 4K outdoor PTZ camera.

The new reference display features improved core components such as a high-quality display engine, a revamped set of high-resolution algorithms, new panels and a new backlighting system. Combined with its lightweight 18.4-inch panel, the DP-V1830 is a versatile tool for demanding industry professionals that support efficient workflows in a wide variety of working environments, Canon said. 

The new CR-X300 is the latest to join Canon’s lineup of PTZ cameras and expands Canon’s remote camera systems to give users more flexibility and efficiency in their video production workflows. With its support for a wide range of communications standards and robust protection against environmental factors, the CR-X300 is an ideal remote PTZ camera system for video capture in many outdoor environments.

The DP-V1830 18.4-inch 4K/HDR Professional Reference Display 

It features improved black, wide color gamut and wider viewing angles, Canon said, and is ideal for use in tight working spaces, including outside broadcast (ob) vans, sub-control rooms, and on-set production tents.

The display achieves a peak luminance of 1,000 cd/m2 for white luminance, which meets the parameters defined in ITU-R BT.2100 for HDR, as well as featuring an improved imaging engine. Compared to previous models, the display offers enhanced control over backlight illumination to better delineate dark and light portions of high contrast. With the help of these improvements, it is possible to accurately represent stronger and darker blacks, isolated black portions, and brilliant bright colors, even in challenging scenes.

The Canon DP-V1830 reference display is scheduled to receive a product enhancement in the summer of 2022 via a free firmware update that will include: 2-screen / 4-screen individual image quality setting of input video signal; chromaticity diagram (distribution display of all pixels); waveform monitor RGB Parade; and SD-SDI support.

The Canon DP-V1830 18.4-inch 4K/HDR Professional Reference Display is currently scheduled to be available in January 2022 for an estimated retail price of $14,299.00*. For more information, visit, usa.canon.com/provideo or watch the launch video here.  

The CR-X300 PTZ Camera

The CR-X300 is an ideal remote PTZ camera system for video capture in such outdoor scenarios as sports broadcasts, live events, wild animal observation, and theme parks, Canon said. 

In addition, the CR-X300 offers built-in ND filters to help with shooting outdoors in the sun.

The new camera system delivers 4K 30P and 1080 60P / 4:2:2 / 10-bit video by leveraging video processing technologies cultivated through Canon's history of developing professional video cameras—including a 1/2.3-inch sensor and a DIGIC DV6 image processing platform. In addition, the CR-X300 features a 20x optical zoom lens with a 29.3 – 601mm equivalent focal length for video recording of various scenarios from wide-angle to the super-telephoto range.

The Canon CR-X300 4K Outdoor PTZ Camera is scheduled to be available in February 2022 for an estimated retail price of $13299.00. 

For more information is available in the launch video here.  

SAN FRANCISCO—CNBC’s new Steuart Tower studio in San Francisco may not be the biggest or most expensive studio revamp the network has ever taken on, but what it may lack in scale the 1 Market Studio makes up for in technical innovation, especially when it comes to minimizing latency, and appealing design.

“We launched a show a couple of months ago called ‘Tech Check,’ and being a tech show we felt we really had to have a real, legitimate presence out there [in San Francisco],” says Steve Fastook, senior vice president of operations and engineering at CNBC. 

The business-news cable network chose to expand its existing San Francisco bureau, originally built about a decade ago, transforming a rather simple Flash Studio into an attractive space taking full advantage of its seventh-floor view of the Bay Bridge and an appealing set design by John Casey Production Design. 

Lowering Latency
It’s the exception rather than the rule for a full production crew to run shows from 1 Market Studio. Rather, most of the network’s production assets and production control technology reside in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., at CNBC headquarters, says Fastook. So, reducing latency between the 1 Market Studio location and New Jersey was essential.

CNBC upgraded its bandwidth between the locations from 1Gb/s to 10Gb/s and installed Cisco IP video gateways supporting Hitless Merge and Evertz JPEG 2000 encoders and decoders. “We went from a roundtrip before we did the project of about a second and a half to now a roundtrip of a quarter of a second,” he says.

From a production point of view, the nearly non-existent latency brings a natural feel to the on-camera give and take between contributors. “[With] cross talks, you don’t even know they’re not in the same room. That’s huge for us because it’s natural conversation,” says Fastook. “What we wanted to be able to have was cross talks between anchors in New York, New Jersey and San Francisco.”

However, what happens on screen is only a part of the story. Off camera, the ultra-low latency means operators in Englewood Cliffs can control the three Vinten robotic heads supporting the new 4K-upgradeable Sony box cameras with Canon lenses at 1 Market Studio as if they were in the studio.  

“That’s sort of the theme we’ve been taking. If you’re doing a show and it’s coming from a particular location, you grab the cameras at that location and you can control them like you are there,” he explains. “With the connectivity being so upgraded, that control is fluid.”  

In a similar fashion, the low latency helps to enable CNBC to run audio remotely from Englewood Cliffs. CNBC installed Calrec audio boards and the Calrec RP1 remote-controlled processing engine. 

“If you acquire a microphone in Englewood Cliffs that’s out in the studio, it’s the same as acquiring a microphone in San Francisco. All of the mix-minus and everything else can be assigned and followed,” says Fastook, who notes the approach made it unnecessary to add another audio operator.

“Everything comes back homerun through this RP1. You could look at your board and see four inputs from the studio mics in New Jersey, two from the stock exchange, two from the NASDAQ and three from San Francisco, and it really makes no difference. That really enabled three- and four-party conversations to really be as real as possible.” 

The new studio’s lighting system, like the lighting systems in all CNBC remote locations, is controllable from Englewood Cliffs. Fastook relied on CNBC ENG crew members to design and install the setup, which consists of LED fixtures, including Rosco studio lighting and large Litepanels LED studio lights.

Using LED fixtures was important because Steuart Tower is an office building. “Our ceiling height is a little bit higher than normal office space, but there’s no great height, and the air conditioning is really designed for office space, so the LED lighting was critical,” says Fastook.

While remote operation is integral to the 1 Market Studio workflow, local robotic camera, lighting and audio control are also available when needed, he adds. 

The redesigned space also relies on an electronic shade system on every window. Used throughout the day and prominently featured during “TechCheck,” which premiered in April, the space is subjected to the sun as it traverses the sky. 

“The sun comes up in the corner of the building, and it sets on the other side of the building,” says Fastook, “and we’re on through the whole horizon of the day.” 

Working with Broadcast Blinds, CNBC installed electronic shades on every window—whether they’re fully behind scenery or partially blocked by scenery. As the sun moves, the ND filters used as shades can be dialed in and out depending on the time of day.

COVID And The Studio
Like so many other things in broadcasting and society at large, expanding 1 Market Studio was not immune to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the case of the studio, however, its impact was both positive and negative. 

Typically renovating the small bureau to a 2,500-square-foot remote studio complete with a custom set would have required Fastook and crew to restrict their work to overnights and long weekends, making sure the space was ready to use when the broadcast schedule resumed every day. That start-and-stop approach would have required two months to complete this studio upgrade. However, COVID changed the equation, he says.

“Because of COVID, the bureau had been closed. We were able to go in and do everything we needed to do, and the whole project was completed in over a little less than three weeks, including the set, which took at least a week,” he says.

However, the new studio was not exempt from supply chain problems—particularly chip shortages—that are plaguing the economy during this stage of the pandemic. While Fastook made his completion deadline for the project, the job was “pushed to the limit,” he says.

“It really was a little bit less about the broadcast equipment, and a little a little bit more about the traditional switch gear—mostly Cisco-type stuff—that really got hit by the chip shortage,” says Fastook, who attributes getting the job done on time to being in the queue for equipment “pretty early in the process,” ensuring a place near the front of the line when the crunch began to ease.

Engineering for the studio renovation, which Fastook estimates cost between $150,000 and $200,000, was done by CNBC engineers, and the actual work was completed by an implementation team from NBCU.

While production from the renovated space supports CNBC’s 1080i HD needs today, the three Sony box cameras selected for the studio are 4K-capable, preparing 1 Market Studio for the future.

“We’re getting to the point where the amortization of those cameras may fall into our 4K transition—although I don’t know what that is, we haven’t really decided,” says Fastook. “It’s really more driven by the desire for it to be 4K than the content. This isn’t sports—that’s a whole different thing.”

But as the rest of world adopts 4K, there will come a point where transitioning to 4K may be unavoidable. When that day comes, 1 Market Studio will be ready.

LONDON—Lenses, even though they sit prominently on the front of cameras, still tend to get overlooked. There continues to be a tendency towards asking “what camera did you use?” first, rather than about the lens. 

Maybe it’s because lenses smack a little of old school physics, all focal length and the circle of confusion. But it is the optical component that primarily creates the look of a program. At one time in broadcasting, a lens was just another tool, but in these days of 4K, HDR and beauty shots, it is an ever more important one.

GROWING DEMAND FOR UHD CONTENT

Such requirements are already established for shooting top-end dramas and documentaries, which have long had cinematic sensibilities, but similar considerations have been made for studio and outside broadcast (OB) production since the advent of HD. 

That is only set to increase as the demand for UHD grows, with, as Claus Pfeifer, head of connected content acquisition at Sony Professional Europe, points out, the need to accommodate a recent trend in camera technology.

“In both studio and OB work, we’ve seen the demand for large frame sensor-based cameras grow,” he says. “To complement and enhance the traditional 2/3-inch equipment, we’ve seen a matching trend in lenses.”

Large frame (LF) cameras have become the preferred format for filmmaking in the last few years. There has also been a renewed taste for shallow depth of field, which creates a narrower zone of sharp definition in a shot, which directs the viewers' attention to a specific part of an image. 

Pfeifer says this is becoming increasingly popular and demanded in sectors outside of cinema, which is placing more requirements on lenses. “In live or quickly moving environments, auto focus is more crucial because, with the shallow depth of field, focus has become absolutely critical,” he explains. “We have integrated linear focus motors to ensure that lenses focus smoothly and accurately.”

MEETING FUTURE DEMANDS

The fast-moving pace of broadcasting, both in the studio and on location, calls for equipment that can be trusted by those using it to get the shots as they happen. “Operators expect controls that match the speed of their reflexes,” agrees Peter Crithary, vice president of marketing and market development at ARRI. “And technical directors want to see a technically superior image. [Because of this] broadcast lenses require range, responsiveness and the resolution to match the capabilities of the cameras with which they are paired.”

Outlining the main requirements for broadcast lenses, Jake Ratcliffe, technical marketing manager at U.K. film and TV equipment distributor CVP, highlights excellent long focal range with good consistent performance throughout; fast operation through either traditional three-ring controls or a Servo drive unit (with fast, accurate remote control according to zoom and focus demands); and parfocal optical design. “Having extenders built into lenses is very handy as well,” he adds.

As to the vision formats now being requested by broadcasters, Fujifilm reports that although HD is still in use, 90 percent of the new sales it is seeing are for its 4K box and ENG lenses. HDR is usually mentioned together with 4K; to suppress flare and accurately transmit the blacks in a video image, Fujifilm developed the HT-EBC coating, which was introduced in 2016.

New opticals have been designed to work with HDR technologies, including ARRI's Signature series. Peter Crithary comments that building lenses now means thinking beyond existing display technologies.

“Footage shot today will still be viable many years from now,” Crithary said. “We don’t know exactly how future audiences will view that footage but we know they will see it in higher resolution and dynamic range than we see today. HDR is here and 1,000 nit [the metric unit for brightness] displays in homes will become commonplace in a few years. UHD is available through most streaming services, 8K may be next. As displays become more immersive, we need lenses that complement that trend rather than fight against it.”

Ratcliffe observes that the growing popularity of 4K programming has confirmed the need for improved optics. “Older broadcast lenses designed for lower resolutions and smaller sensors will perform much worse than their modern counterparts,” he says. “Luckily the major lens brands creating broadcast-style lenses have been updating their line-ups with options for higher resolution acquisition. This also includes higher performance for the increased HDR spec, with improved resolving power and aberration control.”

Among its brand of lenses available, CVP offers Canon’s CN10 cine-servo lens, and Ratcliffe says that particular glass is a good example of how optics will develop.

“It improved the optical quality over the CN7 and gave us extra range with a longer tele end as well as a 1.5x extender, which also gives the lens full-frame coverage,” he said. “Optical improvements will also be key when virtual production becomes the norm.”

MORE VERSATILITY

Pfeifer is of the opinion that lenses will become increasingly versatile, allowing users to select the few that really suit their needs. “However, a wide range of lenses will be on the market or in development to meet the demands of the creative industry,” he comments. “We’re also seeing the mount really start to matter. Sony’s E-mount was designed to be used for both stills and moving pictures, with APS-C/Super 35mm and full-frame sensors.”

Lenses are both scientific and artistic, with a structure that can be defined by physics combined with less definable characteristics, something Crithary concludes will both play a role in future designs.

“Tangible and intangible optical quality will be equally important,” he says. “As audiences see better and better images, it will be imperative to figure out how to deliver images that are not just technically exceptional but aesthetically pleasing. The latter is the hard part because how does one define it?”

Despite the scientific principles available to describe the optical properties of lenses, they are more likely to be spoken of in terms that are less definable, although most people would recognise what was meant by “warm,” “soft” and “real.” In the end, “the look” is important and it is increasingly so in broadcasting. Which probably makes the lens even more essential than the thing to which it is attached. 

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon has introduced the RF5.2mm f2.8 L Dual Fisheye lens, bringing stereoscopic 3D virtual reality (VR) capture to the EOS R5 camera as part of the EOS VR System.

The digital interchangeable dual fisheye lens is capable of shooting stereoscopic 3D 180-degree VR imagery with a single image sensor, streamlining the complexities of virtual reality production as well as the ability to view content in full capacity, the company said.

To enable viewing the content captured by this system in its truest form, use of compatible VR headset, such as the Oculus Quest 2, enables viewers to immerse themselves in the content by moving their heads, it said.

“At Canon, we innovate so creators can push artistic boundaries, and this commitment to innovation is what led us to introduce the new RF5.2mm F2.8 L Dual Fisheye lens. As Canon’s first entry into the world of virtual reality image capture, the EOS VR System represents an important milestone in our company’s rich history as a lens manufacturer and welcomes a bright future for VR content creation,” said Tatsuro “Tony” Kano, executive vice president and general manager of Canon U.S.A.’s Imaging Technologies & Communications Group. “This new RF lens produces a stunning 8K virtual reality image and sets itself apart through its simplified workflow. Our goal is to make immersive storytelling more accessible for all.”

The new lens features high-quality L-series optics engineered with an interpupillary distance of 60mm for delivery of 3D imagery in VR with natural parallax, closely resembling human vision when viewed through a compatible headset, it said.

With a 190-degree field of view captured from two separate optical systems they deliver outstanding results for 180° VR viewing platforms. With subwavelength coating technology offering impressive flare control in backlit conditions, VR creators can have freedom to shoot regardless the time of day or position of the sun. The dual fisheye design provides versatile exposure control with a maximum aperture of a bright f/2.8 to a deep depth of field of f/16 with electronically controlled apertures allowing the dual fisheye lens to operate just like other RF mount lenses, it said.

Canon’s free Camera Connect app and Canon's EOS Utility program both will be updated in the future to offer remote control live view functionality for monitoring purposes while on-the-go, it said.

The EOS VR System’s workflow is based on recording left and right fisheye images to a single full-frame image sensor. This helps to solve common VR challenges of stitching and syncing, by outputting one single image file. Canon is currently developing two paid subscription-based software solutions as options for completing the post-production process, it said.

The EOS VR Utility will offer the ability to convert clips from dual fisheye image to equirectangular and make quick edits, as well as select the resolution and file format before export. With the EOS VR Plug-In for Adobe Premiere Pro, creators will be able to convert footage automatically to equirectangular and cut, color and add new dimension to stories with Adobe Creative Cloud apps, including Premiere Pro, it said.

Features of the new lens include:

• A close-focusing distance of 7.87-inches/0.2m is possible; max magnification is 0.03x.
• Aperture range of f/2.8 to f/16 with a 7-blade aperture and simultaneous electro-magnetic diaphragm for both left and right lenses.
• Built-in gelatin filter holder, which allows ND gel filters to be used in bright environments if a bright aperture is desired.
• Fluorine coating on the front lens elements, with a dust and water resistant design.
• Extremely compact size, allowing the lens to be used in different types of productions.

The RF5.2mm f2.8 L Dual Fisheye lens is scheduled for December availability and has an estimated retail price of $1,999.

More information is available on the company’s website.

MELBOURNE, Australia—Atomos has announced the availability of a firmware update for the Ninja V+ enabling the unit to record 8Kp30 ProRes RAW from the Canon EOS R5 full-frame mirrorless camera.

Apple ProRes RAW 8K provides the combination of real-time, multi-stream editing performance and image quality preservation. The recently announced new features of white balance (WB) and ISO in Final Cut Pro gives creators even greater flexibility and control over their image processing during post-production.

The Atomos Ninja V+ coupled with the Canon EOS R5 full-frame mirrorless camera offers an affordable solution that democratizes 8K without compromising quality, the company said.

Redesigned with a stealth gray bezel and expanded processing power, the Ninja V+ delivers more options for creators. Using the new Atomos Silicon chip, the AtomIC3, and AtomOS 10 technology, the Atomos team re-engineered the Ninja V+ to increase its power to record ProRes RAW at even higher frame rates and resolutions, it said.

ProRes RAW continues to build momentum in 2021 with more than 30 cameras supported by Atomos. The format combines the visual and workflow benefits of RAW video with the real-time performance of ProRes, the company said.

The format gives filmmakers wide latitude when adjusting the look of their images and extending brightness and shadow detail, making it well-suited for HDR workflows. Manageable file sizes speed up and simplify file transfer, media management, and archiving, it said.

ProRes RAW is fully supported in Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere Pro and Avid Media Composer, along with a collection of other applications, including Assimilate Scratch, Colorfront, FilmLight Baselight and Grass Valley Edius.

AtomOS 10.68 for Ninja V+ available online.

LONDON—As live sports production returns to pre-pandemic levels and demand increases for equipment in the global rental market for live sports, Gravity Media has announced that it is expanding its inventory of top Canon lenses in preparation for what the company is calling an “global bumper season of live sporting events.”

Gravity Media is a large global provider of live broadcast facilities and production services.

The investment into the kit comes in direct response to increasing customer demand for a wide range of premium 4K lens products and allows Gravity Media to provide clients with more choices for production, the company said. 

The order from Canon totals more than 70 new lenses and includes 25 units of both the 7.5-180mm 4K UHD servo zoom and focus and the 4.3-60mm 4K UHD wide angle servo lenses. 

The order also includes a number of other Canon CJ servo and UJ box lenses, all of which will be available to clients this summer to deliver UHD programming to sporting audiences.

Ed Tischler, managing director of Gravity Media in EMEA noted that “with the games taking place in Tokyo, Euro 2020 and Copa América all running consecutively – as well as the return of a full calendar of regular annual sporting fixtures – 2021 is set to be an incredible year for live sport. We’re delighted to be able to provide our support to help clients deliver their programming using these new premium Canon lenses.”

In the ongoing effort to shoot higher resolution video while decreasing the weight of the camera, Canon is offering its new EOS R5 mirrorless camera capable of shooting in 8K RAW. We now have a high-end digital full-frame mirrorless camera that can compete with larger cinema cameras offering similar capabilities.

FEATURES

Boasting a dual pixel CMOS sensor that’s full frame and 45MP, this is Canon’s first mirrorless camera that shoots in 8K RAW up to 30fps and 120fps in 10-bit 4K. Capable of tracking the head, face and eyes of the subject, the camera is much lighter because of the absence of a mirror. The rear touchscreen LCD is slightly over 3 inches and is positional in variable angles. The half-inch 5.76 million dot viewfinder is electronic, and the recorded images and video are stored on a CFexpress Type B card.

As a still camera, you have all of the features expected with a Canon including shooting up to 20fps with its electronic shutter.

The video side, in my opinion, is where the EOS R5 really stands out. Shooting internally in 4:2:0 8-Bit H.264, you have:

• 8192x4320 DCI 8K in 23.976p, 24p and 29.97p;
• 7680x4320 UHD 8K in 23.976p, 24p and 29.97p; 
• 4096x2160 DCI 4K in 23.976p, 24p, 29.97p, 59.94p, 100p and 119.88p; 
• 3840x2160 UHD 4K in 23.976p, 24p, 29.97p, 59.94p, 100p and 119.88p; and 
• Full High Definition 1920x1080 in 23.976p, 29.97p, 59.94p and 119.88p  

Similar frame rates are offered in 4:2:2 10-bit H.265, and DCI 8192 x 4320 12-bit RAW in 23.97p, 24p and 29.97p at 2600 Mbps onto the CFexpress Type B card. The latest v1.3.1 firmware offers 8K DCI RAW (light), IPB (Light) for 8K UHD and 4K, as well as Canon LOG3.

Powered by an internal LP-E6NH lithium-ion battery, it offers up to 30 minutes of constant sensor use.

The Delkin Devices CFexpress POWER 512G Type B Memory card is capable of 1540 Mbps write and 1730 Mbps read speeds and is necessary if recording in 8K.

IN USE

My loaner EOS R5 arrived with a Canon 24-105mm F4 RF mount lens, a Canon RF to EF mount lens adapter and two batteries. The kind folks at Delkin Devices loaned me a 512Gb CFexpress POWER memory card. 

Shooting a seven-minute film 8K RAW, I wanted to ensure the CMOS sensor was capable of operation without overheating. Mounted on a DJI Ronin S, the EOS R5 shot through an EF Mount 16-35mm Canon F2.8 lens (using RF to EF converter), the sensor functioned perfectly.

Switching to the RF mount 24-70mm F4 lens while on a tripod, I believed the extra weight of the mirrorless (and slightly more telephoto) lens was better suited on a more stable platform. We began the shoot in 66-degree temperature and four hours later the temperature had plunged to 40.

The articulating touch LCD screen was placed so it faced Greg (the camera operator), and he kept the facial tracking activated throughout the shoot. Playbacks were easily accomplished by touching the play icon on the screen.

Shooting the entire film outdoors, the 8K RAW experience is the optimal route to take. Just like shooting in HD, 4K or any K, the camera did what it was intended to do. Again, as mentioned, we filled the 512GB Delkin card and had no overheating problems. Not having a CFexpress reader, we attached the provided USB-C to USB-C cable from the camera to my MacBook Pro. Downloading the free Digital Photo Professional 4 software from Canon’s website allowed the RAW files to reside on my laptop. I was concerned that I wouldn’t be able to open the files in Adobe Premiere Pro, but had no issues. Playback is understandably slowed by the huge file size but changing the quality of playback to 1/4 proved helpful. Color grading in Blackmagic Design’s Resolve 16 Studio was also a breeze, and the files were easily graded.

Is 8K RAW really necessary? No, it isn’t, but if you want the flexibility of punching into something within the shot, easily controlling the exposure, dynamic range and color parameters and just having a higher quality source allows output to almost anything. When I first started teaching, I told my students if you shoot in 35mm film, even your VHS copies will look great. The same thing applies to 8K RAW—your web videos never looked so good.

SUMMARY

I really enjoyed using the EOS R5. It performed as I expected a Canon DSLR to perform, and I had the added feature of shooting in 8K RAW. The size of the camera helped with its versatility on the Ronin as well as on a tripod and we easily moved from setup to setup. Shooting in a public park attracted little attention because of the camera’s tiny footprint. The size of our crew was more of a “movie shooting” red flag. You can view the final film in 1080p on Vimeo. 

Chuck Gloman is an Associate Professor of the TV/Film Department at DeSales University. He may be reached chuck.gloman@desales.edu. 

LOS ANGELES—Seven companies have come together to form the Volumetric Format Association, dedicated to ensuring interoperability across the volumetric video ecosystem. The founding companies are Verizon, Zeiss, RED Digital Cinema, Unity, Intel, Nvidia and Canon.

Volumetric video is a new way to experience content in holographic 3D, giving the viewer a more immersive and interactive experience, VFA says. It is characterized by the process of simultaneously capturing content from multiple cameras, which can then be viewed from any angle at any point in time.

The goal of the VFA will be to facilitate collaboration, innovation and technology sharing to establish a collection of specifications that will help drive faster development, adoption and ecosystem growth.

As VFA members, the companies will be able to share intellectual property within the confines of the organization while protecting the value of that IP. The VFA Technical Steering Committee has defined four initial working groups to create the specifications, including Capture Acquisition, Interchange of Data, Decode & Render and Persistent Metadata.

"The Volumetric Format Association is leading the way in how content, especially in sports and M&E, is being presented, and we are seeing the biggest shift since B+W went to color" said Tian Pei, head of business affairs for sports at Unity. "Volumetric technologies encompass the process of capturing, viewing, and interacting with the real world and here at Unity we are pushing the limits of what's possible and transforming the interactive experience forever."

VFA is opening membership to other companies. For more information, visit www.volumetricformat.org.  

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Larry Thorpe, one of the most influential figures in the field of broadcast and film technology for the past half century, has announced his retirement as senior fellow from Canon USA, where he served nearly 20 years, developing and promoting the company’s line of professional lenses and digital cameras. 

Thorpe is retiring April 30, 60 years to the day he began in this business, starting with the BBC in 1961. His career spanned a period of rapid development of cameras and related imaging technologies for both broadcast and film—from the RCA TK 47 to Canon EOS digital cinema cameras—and he has received numerous industry honors and awards, including the Charles F. Jenkins EMMY Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014. 

A summary of his many accomplishments can be found here.  

TV Tech sat down with Larry this week to discuss his career and his thoughts about how broadcasting and film have evolved over the years. 

TV Tech: Congratulations on your well-deserved retirement, Larry! First off, can you share with us what prompted you to get into this business in the first place? 

Larry Thorpe: I studied electronic engineering at the College of Technology in Ireland, in Dublin. And in my final year I went over to the U.K., seeking future employment as an engineer as there wasn't much in Ireland back in the early 60s. One of my interviews was with the BBC, and I liked what they said and what they offered. So I jumped into the BBC, and I've been in broadcasting ever since 1961. 

TVT: What did you do at the BBC?

LT: I was in the BBC designs department; they had a place right in central London where they had many labs, a lot of engineers designing our own equipment for the many facilities of BBC. Color was big at that time so we were immersed in all sorts of early color equipment. If they were a hit, some of that development would be handed over to one of the U.K. manufacturers and become a product, but a lot of it was custom designed. I did learn my design capabilities while I was there for five years.

TVT: Did you always plan to go into imaging and image acquisition?

LT: Well, RCA came to London on a recruiting campaign in 1965 and was looking for broadcast engineers, because at that time all the Americans were going into aerospace and not into broadcasting,  so they hired a lot of Europeans at that time and I was one of a wave that went over—my wife and I were newly married—and we decided to have a one- or two-year adventure in America, and here we are in 2021. At RCA, I went straight into camera development. 

TVT: Who are your biggest inspirations?

LT: One of the greatest mentors I had was Neville Watson, who headed up the BBC designs department. He was tremendous at nurturing me, encouraging me and we stayed friends for many many years when we would meet at Montreux and IBC over the years. 

Then when I came to RCA, my mentor there was the famous Henry Kozlowski, who ended up in advanced development. He spent a lot of time with me while I was developing cameras for RCA. At Sony, it was a number of people, including the founder of the broadcast company Masahiko Morizono, who was the guy who decided they were going to go into HD full steam. And the fact that I was enthusiastic about it, he liked me for that and he spent quite a bit of time encouraging me. And then I came to Canon and of course I had Mr. Yamasaki who hired me and Ken Ito who's still with us, he was one of my mentors, still, still is. And more recently Scott Antaya.

TVT: What was your mission when you were brought on board to Canon nearly 20 years ago? 

LT: Mr. Yamasaki said “I need help in marketing of broadcast lenses,” and he asked if I'd come aboard for a couple of years to do that because I had retired from Sony in 2003. So I came in for a couple of years and here we are 17 years later, I'm still with Canon. 

And it was somewhere in the middle of that period there that Canon elected to enter the digital cinematography world. I was part of a planning group that was looking into that and recommending to Japan that we do that, and then they did it and the rest is history. I got back to my love of cameras, with all of the cinema EOS products.

TVT: So you kind of divided your time between the lens and the camera side.

LT: Yes, right up to today, I’ve been dividing my time between broadcast lenses, which we now have many 4K long zooms, and cinema EOS lenses and optics and reference displays.

TVT: As a long-time veteran of this industry, what has surprised you the most over the years in regards to this business and how it has evolved?

LT: Well, there's always surprises, but one particular surprise is the durability of the 2/3-inch image format. I was at RCA when we gave birth to that image format, with a small pickup tube that later became CCDs. Forty years later it's still pretty well the center of the universe for live broadcasting, because you can make gigantic 100:1 zoom lenses in that small format and it's still reasonably sized, etc. 

And because the 2/3-inch was born in standard definition, we wondered about high definition television 2/3-inch sensors and optics and we made that too, I mean, collectively the industry made it. And then, here we are 4K and 2/3-inch makes beautiful 4K in optics and image sensors. 

And it's flexible in that there's been tremendous technological advances you couldn't have done 20-30 years ago, or today, that can be done with powerful computer-aided design etc.

TVT: What project or initiative that you've worked on has been the most challenging?

LT: Among my biggest challenges was my “swan song” at RCA, when I was made the leader of the group that developed the TK 47, the world's first fully automatic studio camera in the latter part of the 1970’s. The microprocessor had just been born, software was emerging, and we worked with some scientists at the Princeton research labs of RCA, and they helped us develop that, but that was a huge project, huge. And for three years I was just buried in that and the last two years we were working shifts to try and get that finished in time. 

And that was one of the biggest. Also challenging was dealing with all of the recording formats, all the way through HDTV, while I was promoting during my time at Sony. I was immersed in the standardization of HDTV, and then at Canon, it's been HDTV and 4K cinema. 

I’m leaving at a time where it's still incredibly exciting, which is a small regret but I still think it's the right thing to do.

TVT: Tell us about your experience working with film director George Lucas

LT: That was back in the 90’s. One of our sales people at Sony brought the Digital Betacam to Lucasfilm and they were intrigued at digital camcorders and digital recording. They were very impressed with the quality of standard definition. 

And they said to us, “you know, if you could elevate the resolution, move it towards HD, think about 24 frame, we might get really interested.” So a year later we brought an HD camcorder to Lucas, and that really ignited their interest and they said, “now that we’ve got it, you’ve got to do it 24 frame.” 

And that took a big discussion, because that involved the entire system, including the editing and post production. So we formed an alliance with some entities, including Panavision and Lucasfilm Light, and ultimately ended up with a 24-frame system, and almost as soon as we handed that over to Lucas for the “Star Wars” films. 

In 2000, James Cameron asked for a meeting, and in 2001, I brought him to NAB to see a 24-frame high-definition system. He was looking at that for 3D. We took him to Japan, formed a working group with him and he ended up working with Vince Pace, and they made the 3D system that did “Avatar.” And then Francis Ford Coppola as well, he was one of the first actually into like high definition.

These were all mavericks—they weren't the Hollywood community, they lived outside Hollywood, which at that time was still resisting HD; they said “no films!” But the mavericks said, “man, we need to try something different,” and they made it happen.

TVT: You played a huge part in the transition to HDTV. Did the transition to high definition pan out the way you expected? What was the biggest surprise there?

LT: How long it took! But there's a simple reason for that. Before HD, production standards were developed by the broadcast industry, and largely, the film industry worked on production standards for television and movies. 

But when HD came along, the computer industry said, “oh, we’ve got to be part of this, this is too important.” And the Department of Defense says “we’ve got to be part of this, it's too important,” and academia as well. So suddenly the SMPTE working groups were just loaded with all of these entities who were somewhat strangers to us. And there were fierce battles.

So we ended up with two standards for HD because we couldn't come to a singular agreement—60 frame, less resolution and 60-frame, interlace, higher resolution. But it worked. 

TVT: Are you satisfied with the way things turned out and are there areas of improvement you could see with the move to 4K?

LT: While there was a surge of interest in 4K among consumers, broadcasters backed off because of the almost parallel emergence of HDR and wide color gamut. So they said, “you know, that's much more visible across the living room, that is higher resolution like 4K on a small screen.” 

So they said, “let's stay with 1080P, but layer in HDR and wide color gamut,” and that's the way a lot of the major sporting events have been done. But at the same time, broadcasters are shooting more 4K, downconverting, but getting used to 4K and investing in 4K lenses and cameras that are switchable to HD. So there's a slower transition to 4K in broadcast, live broadcasting and television production. For the high-end episodic programs, 4K is almost universal, and it's full frame or super 35, etc. And of course, 8K is looming.

TVT: These days, most viewers are not viewing 4K in true resolution, but with advances in compression and processing within the displays, what impact have those developments had on the future of imaging and resolution?

LT: It’s sold a lot of 4K sets! 4K TV sets have been the most popular selling sets for the last couple of years, but most of the material has been upscaled inside the sets, because the broadcast is in 1080 or 720P. But the upscalers are very good, they're very sophisticated, and they work on screens that are not too big. They seem to work very well up to like, say the 65 inch, maybe 70. But if you go much bigger than that perhaps you might see something, because the viewing distance hasn't changed, in the living room it's around 10 feet, average. But screens get bigger and bigger. And suddenly, the 4K, wow factor may not be there on an upscaled 1080, right, but it's working well with the sets that are selling today.

TVT: What do you plan to do now? 

LT: I am finishing precisely to the day I started in this industry exactly 60 years ago. My wife and I are in good health and we want to go out now and enjoy life and travel. I mean, there's going to be a problem I have to confront, because I stopped suddenly and I was immersed in all this technology, I love it. What am I going to do to satisfy that? I've yet to find out.

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon U.S.A has announced a trio of new 4K/UHD PTZ cameras, as well as a new remote camera controller that can handle multiple PTZ cameras at once.

The first new PTZ camera is the CR-N500, which features a 1-inch CMOS sensor, 3.2μm pixel pitch and a DIGIC DV 6 image processor to capture images with high sensitivity, low noise and a minimum subject illumination of 1.5 lux. The PTZ camera has a 15x optical zoom 4K UHD lens that covers a focal range of 25.5-382.5mm. It has a variable pan and tilt speed of 0.1-degree to 100-degree per second. There is also a built-in three-density ND filter, nine-bladed iris, Dual Pixel CMOS AF and support for Canon Log 3.

Then there is the CR-N300 and its 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor, DIGIC DV 6 image processor and a 20x optical zoom lens with focal range of 29.3-601mm. CR-N300 has four scene modes: portrait, sports, low-light and spotlight. Additional features include Canon’s Hybrid AF system combining high-precision contrast AF and high-speed phase-difference AF; and 0.2-degree to 300-degree per second pan speed and 0.2-degree to 170-degree per second tilt speed.

Both the CR-N500 and CR-N300 are indoor PTZ cameras and support HDMI, IP and 3G-SDI. They are also compatible with live production protocols like NDI | HX, RTMP and more, per Canon.

The CR-X500 is an all-weather outdoor 4K/UHD PTZ camera. It has a 1-inch CMOS sensor that captures images in 60p/4:2:2/10-bit, as well as 3.2μm pixel pitch and a DIGIC DV 6 image processor to produce images with a minimum subject luminance of 3 lux. It features the same 15x optical lens as the CR-N500, but when in FHD mode operators can use the camera’s 4K multipixel sensors for up to 30x advance zoom. It also features Dual Pixel CMOS AF, Image Stabilization mode, a built-in wiper and support for Canon Log 3. Support is available for 12G-SDI.

Canon has also introduced the RC-IP100 camera remote controller that is compatible with all three of the new PTZ cameras and allows for the control of multiple cameras simultaneously. The RC-IP100 touts control and seesaw zoom levers and a 7-inch touch panel to control pan, tilt, zoom, focus and iris functions. When connected via IP, it is possible to control up to 100 CR-N500/CR-N300 cameras. When an outdoor CR-X500 camera is connected via RS-422 serial, up to 99 additional CR-N500/CR-N300 cameras can also be connected and controlled.

Canon’s indoor PTZ cameras come with Remote Camera Control Application software included, which allows PC users to register up to 20 cameras and view as many as nine at once.

A newly developed XC Protocol2 has also been announced, offering control and communication with select Canon video production devices for video streaming over IP. Later this year, Canon is expected to release new firmware to introduce the new XC Protocol to select Cinema EOS System cameras.

Canon will release the CR-N500, CR-N300, CR-X500 and RC-IP100 product in the summer. For more information, visit usa.canon.com. 

WASHINGTON—The inauguration of President Joe Biden on Jan. 20 was brought to viewers on ABC, CBS and NBC, but those three networks’ coverage was pooled together with the help of mobile production company Game Creek Video. In turn, Game Creek Video relied on a number of Canon lenses to capture the historic moments seen by millions of viewers.

Game Creek provided facilities, cameras and engineering support for the three major parts of the inauguration broadcast that were all used by ABC, CBS and NBC—NBC took care of the pool coverage, CBS the parade route coverage and ABC covered Lafayette Park.

Sony cameras outfitted with Canon lenses were used to capture the event, according to Steve Dolce, Game Creek Video’s project manager for the inauguration. The majority of the 30 cameras Game Creek used for the production were Sony 2500s, with a variety of Canon portable lenses being utilized.

Among the lenses was a UHD-Digisuper 122x (which captured the podium where the inaugural address was given), four UHD-Digisuper 100x lenses, 10-12 UHD-Digisuper 86x lenses, 10 HH WA Angles lenses and six 21-24x HH lenses.

The use of Canon lenses is part of Game Creek’s long established partnership with the brand.

“Game Creek and Canon have a great partnership,” said Dolce. “It is always a pleasure working with the folks at Canon and we have always been extremely pleased with their equipment in the field. Being a company that takes partnerships with its clients extremely seriously, the ability to cultivate the same kind of partnership with Canon, one of our key vendors, has been equally as rewarding.

"When the stakes are as high as they are for events like the inauguration, millions of people are depending on us to deliver that historical moment to their screens,” added Jason Taubman, senior vice president of Technology, Game Creek Video. “It really takes the pressure off to have a group like Canon in your corner. The shot of the inaugural address was seen around the world and Canon helped us capture it flawlessly. We are looking forward to many more years of working with Canon to make sure we provide the best product we can to our clients and their viewers."

SEATTLE—Two of the largest providers of professional camera lenses to the broadcast industry recently introduced new glass designed to improve the production of an increasing supply of 4K (and higher) resolution content.

FUJINON

One of the new lenses grew out of a Fujifilm box lens developed for NHK’s postponed 8K coverage of the Olympics for the Japan television market, according to Gordon Tubbs, vice president for broadcast and cinema products for Fujinon. These 8K cameras designed for the project use Super 35 single sensors and PL mount lenses.

“Our people thought about developing as long a box lens as was possible,” Tubbs said. “Most PL-mount motion picture lenses, including the ones we developed for NHK, were like a 5x1, 7x1 zoom. I mean, your iPhone can zoom twice as far as these extremely expensive lenses we were developing for NHK.

In response, the company developed a 20x 35mm box lens, Tubb said.

“Twenty doesn’t seem like much, because we make ENG lenses in 4K that are 24x, that are normal size hand-holdable lenses,” Tubbs said. “This lens will go from 35mm to 700mm, and then with an extender go out to 1,000. That’s unheard of in PL mounts.”

The result is a difference in size and weight than with most professional lenses, according to Tubbs.

“In order to do that, the lens is heavier and bigger than our 125 box lens for 2/3-inch chip cameras,” Tubbs. “It’s a 70 pound lens. You couldn’t fit it on your coffee table, it’s too big. All of that to get a 20:1 lens. So NHK bought a few of them.”

(Note: Several camera makers have introduced 8K, 2/3-inch, three-chip cameras that allow use of smaller 8K lenses.)

Tubbs added that the new lens had potential beyond NHK’s immediate needs.

“We looked at the lens and said ‘You know something? That’s got a PL mount on it; it’s got a cine mount on it. What’s to stop us from marketing that to people who are doing concerts?’ HBO wants that cine look for its concerts. If they’re going to use cine cameras, this could be their lens. It’s the only PL mount 20x 8K zoom lens in the world.”

He thinks there’s also a market for the 20x zoom in sports production, where many super slow-motion cameras are single sensor, PL mount. “The lens is so expensive the only thing they’ll do is rent it as they need it, which is why we’re concentrating on the rental companies,” Tubbs added.

REVISITING AUTOFOCUS 

More than a dozen years ago, broadcast lens makers introduced an autofocus feature on their HD lenses. But it never sold all that well.

Fast-forward to today, Tubbs said Fujifilm is revisiting autofocus.

“Focus is much more important in 4K because depth of field in 4K is actually shorter than HD, so there’s less in focus,” he said. “That will be true again when you shoot in 8K. And we know that the viewfinders on the cameras really aren’t that advanced to be able to really, precisely show if you’re in and out of focus.”

The technology for Fujifilm’s new autofocus system is called “phased detection” and is entirely new, according to Tubbs.

“It is much more accurate than the prior system, faster and it doesn’t overshoot,” he said. “The [old system] could sometimes go past focus and then come back real quick. It won’t do that. The other thing it can do is reach focus from a much further out of focus position. With [the old system], if you were considerably out of focus, if it was just a blur, you were looking at a fog bank, it wouldn’t find focus. Now this system can find focus even from that far out of focus.”

The autofocus feature is available on Fujifilm’s 4K 107x box zoom for about an additional $20,000.

Fujifilm also introduced a UA125X8 zoom ratio box lens last spring, the longest in the industry, according to Tubbs.

“This lens is not only the longest telephoto zoom lens, it’s got the longest zoom ratio at 125x, of any broadcast lens ever made,” he said. “It’s got the widest angle of any field lens, sports lens that was ever produced. It starts at 8mm and goes to 1,000mm, so with a 2x extender it goes out to 2,000mm.”

CANON

Canon has two tiers of 4K lenses, the difference being a function of the spec, according to Larry Thorpe, Canon USA’s national marketing executive.

“We tightened the specs on the upper level, and that costs more, of course,” Thorpe said. “The specs we talk about are sharpness across the image plane, tightening up on the lateral and longitudinal chromatic aberration. And then last but not least, doing justice to the new world of HDR, getting deep, rich blacks and good treatment of speculars in the lens.”

Thorpe said Canon discovered a gap between the two wide angle zooms in Canon’s upper level of 4K lenses. To develop the new lens to fit that gap, “we mobilized some of the latest of our technologies in lens design that we’ve been able to improve, along with more powerful simulation capabilities and manufacturing capabilities. We saw that we could slot in there a lens where we push both the wide angle and the telephoto end.”

The result is the CJ20ex5B 4K UHDxs, a 20x zoom that goes from 5mm to 100mm, (200mm with a 2X extender.)

“This baby comes in at just under 5 pounds, [4.9], is 9.9 inches long with a filter diameter of 127mm,” Thorpe said. “And it has the latest in our digital drive unit that gives you the capability of broadcast controllers controlling zoom and focus. It also has an output for virtual, giving you the 16 bit information on the virtual application. It has a range extender of two times. The horizontal width that you get, the angle of zoom horizontally that you get at 5mm is 87.7 degrees.”

Thorpe emphasized the importance of HDR to the development of Canon’s lenses.

“We pay high attention to dynamic range,” he said. “We have the latest in optical coatings to ensure we get a deep, rich black, which is essential to good HDR. And then the choice of glass materials allows us to properly handle speculars.

With its small size and weight, the new lens has applications with a portable camera. “But where it really shines for that focal range is in a lot of coverage of small venue sporting arenas, probably basketball being the best illustration,” Thorpe said. “And because of size, weight and focal range it has application for SkyCams.”

COMPACT AND LIGHTWEIGHT

Last spring Canon introduced the CJ18ex7.6B KASE S, a new addition to its UHDgc series of 4K UHD broadcast portable zoom lenses. The new lens is designed to be used with 4K UHD broadcast cameras with 2/3-inch sensors. It has the same optical specifications as the existing CJ18ex7.6B IRSE/IASE except it has no optical extender. The lens features a zoom range of 7.6-137mm and weighs just 3.7 pounds.

The 4K UHD imaging quality is delivered at a price point that matches well with the many lower-cost 4K cameras in the market. By eliminating the optical range extender, the lens maintains a compact and lightweight design to meet the versatile and ever-changing needs of a broad range of video productions, including documentaries, sports, events and news coverage. Additionally, the lens is compatible with the new Canon ZDJ-G01 Zoom Demand and FDJ-G01 Focus Demand accessories that provide operators with enhanced functionality and operational control of the lens.

The new portable zoom lens utilizes Canon’s proprietary optical design technology, incorporating materials such as fluorite and Ultra-Low Dispersion (UD) glass. In addition, the lens supports the wide color gamut approved by the ITU-R BT.2020 UHD broadcasting standard, essential to HDR imaging. The ergonomics and digital servo operational controls of the lens are similar to Canon’s current lineup of portable zoom lenses, providing users with maximum mobility in a variety of shooting situations.

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon has unveiled a pair of new products that focus on capturing high resolution content in the form of the EOS C70 4K digital cinema camera and the CJ20ex5B series of  4K UHD broadcast portable zoom lenses.

The EOS C70 is Canon’s first-ever RF mount cinema EOS camera designed with a small form-factor, weighing 2.6 lbs. It features a slim, motorized, 10-stop ND filter unit with 6mm depth that enables users to control the exposure while keeping the desired depth-of-field, per Canon. There are 13 customizable buttons that allow users to select from more than 80 functions that can be assigned based on personal preference.

EOS C70 features Canon’s Super 35mm DGO sensor, which extends the high dynamic range and lowers noise level by reading out two different gains for each photodiode. This results in an image with up to 16-plus stops of total dynamic range in up to 4K/60p or 2K/120p. It also has Canon’s DIGIC DV7 image processor to help create HDR images while offering choices between Canon Log 2 and 3, in addition to PQ and HLG gamma functionality. The C70 also can record 4K DCI or UHD up to 120fps and 2K DCI or Hd up to 180fps.

Additional features for the C70 include support for XF-AVC format or Long GOP 10-bit 4:2:2/4:2:0 MP4/HEVC with an MP4 file format. There’s also a new direct touch menu system, coordinated electronic image stabilization, two built-in Mini XLR inputs, time-code input/output terminal, custom picture processing, dual-SD card slots, built-in stereo mic and support for optional Canon RC-V100 remote control. The camera also works with the Canon Mount Adapter EF-EOS R 0.71x optical adapter.

A new addition to Canon’s UHDx series of 4K UHD broadcast portable zoom lenses, the CJ20ex5B is designed to be used with broadcast cameras that have 2/3-inch sensors. The lens has a built-in 2x extender that can expand the zoom range up to 200mm, with Canon’s optical design technology and coatings helping to maintain high-level 4K UHD performance across the zoom range.

The CJ20ex5B lens features an improved inner focusing system for greater resolution in the periphery areas of the screen, per Canon. The lens also supports the wide color gamut approved by ITU-R BT.2020 UHD broadcasting standard. Additional features include a quick power-on button, an on-board display for rapid setting adjustments and the lens is compatible with Canon’s G-Series zoom and focus controllers.

Canon plans to release the EOS C70 camera in November at a price of $5,499. The CJ20ex5B lens is expected to be released in early 2021. For more information, visit usa.canon.com. 

PITTSBURGH—NEP Group has added Canon UHD-DIGISUPER 111 and UHD-DIGISUPER 122 4K field box zoom lenses to meet the growing demand for high-quality TV broadcast content, Canon said today.

"We strive to stay up to date on the latest, cutting-edge broadcast technology, and our long-term collaboration with partners like Canon makes this possible," said Glen Levine, president of NEP U.S. Broadcast Services. "We've enjoyed a great relationship with Canon over the years, and we're excited to add these lenses to our resources as we ramp up support of our clients post-COVID-19."

Canon's UHD-DIGISUPER 122 4K field box zoom broadcast lens offers a focal range from 8.2 mm at the wide end to 1,000 mm at the telephoto end, for a zoom ratio of 122x. The UHD-DIGISUPER 111 has a 111x zoom ratio and a focal-length range of 8.3 mm to 925 mm, the company said.

Both lenses offer the ability to record high-resolution and high-contrast video from the center to peripheral areas of the imaging field, it said.

The lenses are the first Canon 4K field box zoom lenses to feature the company’s proprietary Air Sphere Coating (ASC), resulting in reduced flaring and ghosting compared to previous lens coatings. ASC coating enhances the High Dynamic Range (HDR) of the lenses, providing more natural and vivid tonality. New optical coatings also help to shape spectral response to enhance Wide Color Gamut (WCG), Canon said.

"Canon's relationship with NEP goes back many years, and it's a source of great pride that such a prestigious production company continues to rely on Canon broadcast lenses to deliver major events to the world," said Tatsuro "Tony" Kano,executive vice president and general manager of Canon U.S.A.'s Imaging Technologies & Communications Group. "As live sports begin to return, we hope that NEP's work will help to bring back a sense of normalcy to everyday life."

More information is available on the Canon website. 

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon has previewed two new lenses that will be released later in 2020, the Cineo-Servo 25-250mm T2.95-3.95 and the CJ18ex7.6B KASE S lenses.

This new Cineo-Servo lens is specifically designed for use with 4K cameras. It is available in both EF and PL mounts, features 10x optical zoom, a built-in 1.5x extender that allows for a range of 375mm and a removable servo motor drive unit. The lens has ultra-low dispersion glass and a large-diameter aspherical lens, which are meant to help correct color fringing and limit chromatic aberration during operation. The lens also features Canon’s warm color science and an 11-blade aperture.

The EF mount version of the Cineo-Servo 25-250mm lens enables the use of Canon’s Dual Pixel CMOS AF. The PL mount version supports Cooke/iTechnology. There is also a macro function to allow close-up shooting.

Canon has also previewed the CJ18ex7.6B KASE S portable zoom lens, designed for 4K UHD broadcast cameras that have 2/3-inch sensors. The new lens have the same optical specifications of Canon’s CJ18ex7.6B IRSE/IASE, but does not offer an optical extender, giving it a compact and lightweight design.

The CJ18ex7.6B features Canon’s optical design technology, which incorporate materials like fluorite and Ultra-Low Dispersion glass. The lens supports the wide color gamut approved by the ITU-R BT.2020 UHD broadcasting standard and features a zoom range of 7.6-137mm. It also features Canon’s ergonomics and digital servo operational controls. In addition, the CJ18ex7.6B lens is compatible with Canon’s new ZDJ-G01 Zoom Demand and FDJ-G01 Focus Demand accessories.

PLUS: Canon Announces C300 Mark III, EOS R5 Cams

Both lenses are expected to be released later in 2020. The Cineo-Servo 25-250mm lens will be priced at $29,999; no price was currently given for the CJ18ex7.6B KASE S.

For more information, visit usa.canon.com. 

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon is preparing to launch two new cameras that are designed for the capture of high-resolution content, the EOS C300 Mark II and EOS R5 Full-Frame Mirrorless cameras.

The C300 Mark III is a Super 35mm camera that has a Dual Gain Output sensor and employs a modular design and interchangeable lens mount optional accessory for customizing the camera for specific needs. 

The C300 Mark III can capture HDR content by reading out each pixel through two separate gains—one that prioritizes saturation in highlight areas and another that suppresses noise in the shadows. This creates an image with up to 16+ stops of dynamic range for 4K/60p content. In 2K recording mode, it features recording speeds up to 180p. The camera also features Canon’s DIGIC DV 7 video imaging processor for recording of 4K and HDR, and for the processing of high-speed video recording, including 4K at up to 120p.

Additional features of the C300 Mark III include Cinema RAW Light, which helps cut the data size of a file without losing grading flexibility; support for XF-AVC for flexible options in recording duration; a 4.3-inch LCD monitor; a GR-V1 grip; two CFexpress media card slots; five-axis electronic image stabilization; four-channel recording that supports four XLR inputs; user LUT; support for Canon Log 2 and 3; as well as a series of optional accessories.

Canon plans to release the EOS C300 Mark III later in 2020 at a price of $10,999.

The EOS R5, meanwhile, is the latest edition of Canon’s EOS R series of cameras that will be able to capture 8K video. While the camera is still in development, Canon has announced a bunch of new specifications that will be available with it.

Features of the EOS R5 will include 8K RAW internal video recording up to 29.97 fps; 8K internal video recording up to 29.97 fps in 4:2:2 10-bit; 4K internal video recording up to 119.88 fps in 4:2:2 10-bit; 4K external video recording up to 59.94 fps; no crop 8K and 4K video capture; Dual Pixel CMOS AF available in all 8K and 4K recording modes; Canon Log available in 8K and 4K internal recording modes; five-axis in-body image stabilization; and dual card slots, a CFexpress and SD UHS-II.

PLUS: Canon Debuts New Cinema, Portable Lenses

Canon also announced free firmware updates for a number of its cameras: XF705; the C300 Mark III; EOS C500 Mark III; EOS C500 Mark II; EOS C700; EOS C700 FF; EOS C700 GS; EOS C200; and EOS C200B.

For more information on these cameras, visit usa.canon.com.  

Extraordinary technological advances are taking place in digital video imaging. Both professional and consumer image-capture systems are now widely available in 4K, raising audience expectations for more immersive experiences. Other critical dimensions of imaging beyond resolution are now vying with the ongoing elevations in image sharpness. Higher dynamic ranges, wider color gamuts and higher picture capture rates have all gained global attention by virtue of the impressive enhancements they each impart to imagery.

4K has almost become a byword and 8K resolution is looming, but close examination reveals somewhat uncoordinated movements in 4K image capture adoption and very little movement towards 8K.

SPORTS AND ‘OVER THE TOP’ SERVICES ARE DRIVING 4K ADOPTION

4K TV shipment value grew by 6% in 2018. The global market is expected to reach more than 380 billion by 2025. HD TV shipments have plummeted as global TV manufacturers drive 4K TV sets into the world’s disparate markets.

However, paradoxically, most viewers are watching HD program material upscaled to 4K on all of these displays. Broadcasters and cable operators in the Americas and Europe have largely shunned investing in 4K delivery services, largely on the basis that they see little return on investment in the very significant new broadcast infrastructure costs required. Yet, most feel it is only a matter of time before competitive dynamics usher in the inevitable arrival of 4K. It is for this reason that manufacturers are presently selling multiformat cameras that are able to switch between HD and 4K resolution capture, supporting an easy transition. Increasingly, professionals are choosing 4K lenses because they can originate higher HD image quality today, while being future-proofed for downstream 4K services.

This adoption is especially pronounced in the case of high-profile outside broadcasts—particularly sports coverage. The anticipated renewal of major sports broadcast rights over the next three years is likely to spur new investments in lenses and cameras.

In addition to sports broadcasters, the quickly growing new world of “Over The Top” (OTT) services has seen major players quickly adopting 4K content creation and distribution.

While many broadcasters study transition scenarios, sports and OTT are spurring brisk growth in the adoption of 4K lenses, cameras and reference displays.

HIGH-END IMAGING ON THE BIG SCREEN

Quite different from broadcast television, digital 4K and higher resolution origination continues to grow in moviemaking, with more and more movies across genres being shot using this technology each year. In recent years 5K, 6K and 8K have appeared in digital cinematography and are stimulating exciting advances in lenses and cameras that will continue in the years ahead.

The large screens in digital cinemas directly benefit from the substantial increase in resolution. Beyond that, mastering high-end entertainment materials in 4K extends the shelf life of those masters, while downsampled versions from the 4K master produce higher HD sharpness for today’s home distribution and enhanced 2K for the majority of digital cinemas.

THERE IS A MODEST BUT GROWING ROLE FOR 8K BROADCAST TELEVISION

At this early stage, from my observation, no U.S. broadcaster, cable or satellite operator has shown much interest in offering 8K delivery services. However, the 8K imaging system is finding an important niche application in U.S. sports broadcasting, supporting the extraction of 1080p segments from wide-angle 8K images, which has opened important new degrees of image clarity in replays.

Elsewhere in the world, however, 8K is gaining even higher visibility. A major sporting event in Japan next year will be broadcast in 8K UHD. Hundreds of thousands of 8K TV units have been sold in Japan, Korea and China in 2019, and by 2023 the Asian market is predicted to see 130% growth.

In anticipation of this increased adoption, Canon has been working intensively over the past decade on 8K optical developments. We recently announced the first two 8K UHD broadcast television lenses to be released based on the 8K UHD 1.25-inch image format: One is an 8K box field lens with a groundbreaking 51x zoom range and a 10.7mm wide-angle portable 8K lens with a 7x zoom range. Canon’s research and development in Super 35mm 8K optics have also significantly contributed to the high optical performance of the 4K Cinema EOS lenses.

THE FUTURE IS NOW

The evolution of video-capture technology is happening, with some early adopters seeing advantages in creating truly immersive viewing experiences. With 4K and 8K video capture lenses becoming more prevalent and driving the high image quality that consumers increasingly expect, the future is bright for today’s HDTV image quality, while familiarity with 4K production steadily grows. 

Larry Thorpe is Senior Fellow at Canon U.S.A, a Lifetime Achievement Emmy Award winner, holder of 10 patents in the field of broadcast development, and publisher more than sixty papers on camera technology and the topic of HDTV imaging.

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon U.S.A. has launched two 8K broadcast zoom lenses for 8K broadcast cameras equipped with 1.25-inch image sensors, the company announced last week.

“8K broadcasting equipment is the newest frontier for covering sporting events and documentary productions around the globe,” said Kazuto Ogawa, president and chief operating officer, Canon U.S.A. “Through the addition of our first 8K broadcast lenses, Canon is cementing our position on the cutting edge of the latest ultra-high-resolution digital imaging solutions.”

The new UHD-DIGISUPER 51 (SP51x15.5B) is a long-zoom field lens, and the 7x10.7 KAS S is a portable zoom. The 7x10.7 KAS S offers a 7x zoom and covers a focal range of 10.7-75mm. It delivers a resolution and contrast from the center of the screen to the corners of the periphery that’s compatible with 8K broadcast cameras but also offers the same operability as a conventional 2/3-inch HDTV or 4K portable lens, the company said.

According to Canon, early experiments in 8K coverage of sports played a critical role in determining an image format size that could provide an essential depth of field while ensuring the photosite size of individual image sensors could sustain 8K modulation transfer function (MTF), adequate dynamic range and luma signal to noise, the company said.

The 1.25-innch sensor balances those factors in three-sensor 8K UHD live television cameras, Canon added.

The 7x10.7 KAS S will be available in January 2020 by special order. The DIGISUPER 51 will available via special order beginning in May 2020.

More information is available on the Canon website. 

ALEXANDRIA, Va.—Television and motion picture lens makers have found themselves challenged to develop and manufacture lenses that hold up to increasing resolutions of 4K and beyond. To achieve this, they’ve invented and applied new technologies that have been years in the making.

HIGH PRECISION OPTICS

Citing Thales Angenieux’s 70 years of building prime lenses, the company’s North American Sales Manager Nick Hayes said their new Optimo Primes “are the result of decades of proven experience and know-how in high precision optics and mechanics.”

The Optimo Prime series of 12 lenses provides full-frame 46.5mm image circle coverage with a consistent 1.8 T-stop except on the extremes. They are available as PL and LPL mount, and designed as smart lenses. The Optimo Prime series is very compact and lightweight, and they offer a common gear size and position for all lenses in the 12-lens set.

“Based on cinematographer feedback, Optimo Primes will provide both Cooke-I and LDS metadata,” said Hayes. Other user features include a replaceable iris blade unit, user-configurable for bokeh including anamorphic effect, a replaceable internal glass element to customize optical properties, a 320-degree focus rotation angle and the possibility to go beyond infinity and close focus.

He noted the full-frame Optimo Prime series is a perfect match with the Optimo Ultra 12X, Angenieux’s new long-range zoom.

BREAKING FREE

“ARRI’s new Signature Prime lenses take advantage of significant recent advancements in optical design, optical materials and coatings and optical machinery,” said Art Adams, ARRI cinema lens specialist. “But the real advancement has been a willingness to break free of our own legacy lens mount.”

The 30-year-old PL lens mount was developed by ARRI for 35mm film and had to make room between the lens and the camera for a spinning mirror, part of the viewfinder system. The new, larger LPL mount “should result in better, cheaper lens designs and greater lens portability between cameras.”

“The LPL lens mount is wider to allow for the free interchange of lenses between large format and S35 sensor cameras,” said Adams. “This additional width also allows for near-telecentric optical designs, where light strikes the sensor at an angle as close to perpendicular as possible. To do this, the lens mount must be as big as the sensor. Near-telecentricity eliminates a number of artifacts related to sensor design, such as increased chromatic and spherical aberration, edge shading and color-crossover effects. ARRI Signature Primes are the only near-telecentric multiformat lenses in the world, and as such we believe they will work optimally with any foreseeable future sensor designs.”

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE

Canon has just introduced a top-of-the-line portable 4K UHD lens, the very wide angle zoom UHD XF. “4K’s tough in 2/3 inch,” said Larry Thorpe, Canon USA’s national marketing executive. “You’re dealing with 200 line pairs per millimeter, it’s really pushing things.”

“We’ve been pretty good at wide angle for some years now. But with this one we wanted to extend the telephoto, and that was responding to pleas of various people. A lot of people in sports, when they’re shooting in smaller venues—like a basketball court, wrestling, boxing, even tennis—they love the wide angle. But they also want more telephoto. This lens gives them both.”

Not all customers are ready for 4K today, but can appreciate 1080 60p and HDR performance. “One of the problems with HDR and wide color gamut is that even a small amount of chromatic aberration becomes more visible. So when you make an HDR wide color gamut lens, you’ve just got to grind down those aberrations even more. And to do that, we use a multigroup for the zoom. Typically, portable lenses have two zoom groups to perform the zooming operation. In this lens we use three groups, and that way we get more degrees of freedom to control the aberrations and elevate the resolution.”

THE ‘COOKE LOOK’

Cooke Optics pioneered a number of lens developments over its more than a century of lens design and manufacturing. In its current lenses, it is replicating what it calls the Cooke Look, described as warm and natural images on the screen.

“We noticed when digital cinematography came in, not to talk bad about digital, but some people think of it as a boring format,” said Les Zellan, Cooke chairman. “Cinematographers were desperate to find a way to put character and life into the digital, and one of the ways they did that was by using the old lenses.”

One Cooke lens in particular, the Speed Panchro lenses, looked promising to fill that bill, even though Cooke hadn’t made one in 55 years. “We thought ‘why don’t we bring them up to the modern world mechanically?’ A lot of those old glasses weren’t available anymore, so we had to substitute, using that old look as a target. We’ve added things like the linear iris and the Cooke focusing scale. But the actual look that comes out of the back of the lens is a dead ringer for the Speed Panchro.”

BRAND NEW DESIGN

Over the past couple of years, Fujifilm has replicated 15 of its HD lenses to 4K Ultra High Definition with HDR capabilities. Two new focal length 46-times zooms are the wide angle UA46x9.5 and the more telephoto UA46x13.5.

“They’re all digital, all new stabilization system,” said Gordon Tubbs, vice president at Fujifilm North America Corporation, Optical Device Division. “We didn’t just build a new 4K lens and put an existing drive unit in it. Literally the whole lens is a brand new design in both cases.” There are two specialized versions of each of the zooms. One eliminates stabilization for applications such as aerial photography where stabilization is already provided. The other provides motorized remote control of the 2x extender, which is necessary for robotic operations.

Tubbs explained the 4K lenses in Fujifilm’s lineup are only marginally more expensive than the HD models they replace. “During the transition from SD to HD we learned a lot about manufacturing and tight tolerances as we went from one technology to the next. And of course there are advancements in glass and coatings.” The company has developed its HTEBC process, High Transmittance Electronic Beam Coatings.

“And now we’re making the same steps into 8K.”

CLOSER TO HUMAN EYESIGHT

A year ago, Zeiss introduced the first of its Supreme Prime line of lenses, and is continuing to add focal lengths a step wider and a step more telephoto to the first lenses released. The Supremes can handle both full frame and Super 35. “It’s being used in both sets of formats,” said Snehal Patel, Zeiss director of cinema sales for the Americas. “It works with the latest crop of digital cameras, like the Alexa LS, RED Monstro, Sony Venus and the C700 FF from Canon.”

He noted, “The Supremes are priced between the cost of a Zeiss Ultra Prime and a Master Prime. So economically it makes a lot of sense, especially in the rental environment, where the lenses will be used for a very long time.

“You’re going to see more and more demand coming because the cameras are available and the full frame format is so interesting with the wider angle of view, which is closer to human eyesight. And also the fact that you get this smaller grain structure from this sensor size, because you’re using pixels that are about the same size as the Super 35 sensors, except that when projected those pixels look smaller on screen.”

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon is introducing consumers to its latest reference display unit, the DP-V3120, which measures 31 inches and is 4K capable. The display is designed to for high-end HDR and 4K production workflows.

The DP-V3120 features an edge-to-edge luminance of up to 2,000 cd/m2 and offers a contrast ratio of 2,000,000:1. It also offers a display engine, improved local dimming algorithm, an LED backlighting system and an IPS LCD panel. The display’s color reproduction, high resolution and high contrast assist with accurate checking of 4K or HDR content.

Canon says that the DP-V3120 exceeds the Dolby Vision required monitor specifications and meets the requirements of Dolby Vision certified post-production facilities.

Additional features for the display unit include 12G-SDI terminals (four in and four out) for simultaneous comparing of HDR and SDR content in dual view mode, multiple video inputs in quad view mode or up to an 8K input signal. There is also the HDR toolkit with HDR capable vectorscope, waveform monitor and histogram; false color analysis; pixel level value checking; split screen HDR versus SDR comparison; and a LAN interface that allows the display to be controlled remotely over a network on a web browser.

Canon is planning on releasing the DP-V3120 in November at a market price of $39,000.

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Canon’s XF405 and XF400 have both undergone firmware updates that includes an IP streaming function.

The update means that both cameras are enabled with full HD video streaming with H.264 compression; support UDP, RTP, RTP+FEC protocols; and are equipped with four channel audio, allowing users to select which two channels to stream over IP.

In addition to the new IP streaming function, the firmware update has enabled a range of additional features, including:

• A vertical filter function added to reduce the moire phenomenon
• On the XF405 model specifically, 3G-SDI Level A and Level B mapping function has also been added
• Custom White balance apply function enabled to add to an assignable button
• An aperture value displayed on the screen, will be adjusted the same value indicated on the outside of the lens

The firmware update took place last week, a spokesperson for Canon told TVBEurope: “Canon is committed to listening to market feedback and industry observations to meet the evolving needs and requirements of the industry. As such, we’re delighted to announce this firmware update for the XF400/405, bringing IP streaming, 3G-SDI Mapping and the vertical filter function to users. This important firmware update further strengthens the quality and connectivity features of this professional and compact 4K UHD camcorder, making it an indispensable broadcast and production tool.”

CHELMSFORD, U.K.—It’s been clear for awhile that manufacturers can now build cameras with more or less any desired resolution, so it’s increasingly difficult to compete on resolution figures. Unless we’re intent on sitting 18 inches from a cinema screen, resolutions beyond 4K, and certainly beyond 8, risk being seen as an attempt to create a marketable bullet point.

In lenses, things are different: an 18:1 zoom has a wider zoom range than a 17:1 zoom, and everyone, especially in the crucible of handheld newsgathering work, quite reasonably wants a lens that covers as much ground as possible. Longer-ranged zoom ranges also mean more difficult engineering, while at the same time, those high-res cameras have begun to demand every drop of sharpness from the lenses they’re used with.

CLEVER ENGINEERING

Two recently-announced competitors in the broadcast lens race are the Fujinon UA46x9.5BERD and Canon’s Digisuper 122, the UJ122x8.2. They’re not competitors with each other, exactly, since the Fujinon is a (reasonably) portable zoom, while the Canon is a big-box lens for studio or OB camerawork.

Nonetheless, nobody will object to the idea that there’s a certain rivalry in play here. The Fujinon 46x9.5 compares in specification to Canon’s CJ45ex9.7, which appeared at the end of 2017. The Canon UJ122x8.2 is less easy to associate with a specific competitor, but Fujinon have been offering a beyond-100x broadcast lens, the 107x8.4, as “the world’s longest zoom ratio” since at least IBC last year.

Free-market economics in action, then.

While it’d probably be quite accurate to see this as a bit of good-natured one-upmanship there’s also a very significant amount of clever engineering going on. We’ve talked about 4K, which matters, but the emergence of high dynamic range imaging also has implications for lenses. Previously, a lens might not have been expected to encounter such huge ranges of light and shadow, at least not with the expectation of a reasonably flare-free image. Now, with HDR, both sharpness and contrast need to be better controlled than would have been OK a while ago. The two things are readily confused–a higher-contrast image generally looks sharper, all else being equal–but the engineering required to achieve both is complex nonetheless.

Both companies make reference to this concern in their literature. Canon, for instance, refer to their “air sphere coating” in literature about the 122x8.2 lens, specifically referring to HDR and wide colour gamut. Fujinon’s brochure for their broadcast lens range, including both portable and box lenses, calls the flagship series “4K Plus Premier,” with the 107x8.4 in the “4K Premier” range. The former is marked in gold text; the latter in silver. Make of that what you will, but it’s clear that at really long zoom ranges there has to be some sort of compromise.

Canon and Fuji are keen to promote the suitability of their lenses for UHD, and even beyond-UHD work. Both organizations are, of course, based in Japan, where the national broadcaster has been pushing 8K for some time. It’s been referred to as “Super Hi-Vision” by NHK and makes some very serious demands on the sharpness of lenses. The broadcaster is to launch an 8K channel in December this year, clearly in preparation for the Tokyo Olympics in 2020.

In a similar vein, Sony announced its 8K UHC-8300 broadcast camera in 2017, which is interesting because it is designed for the same B4-mount lenses as existing broadcast cameras. It uses an optical relay assembly to allow a lens intended for 2/3-inch image sensors to land a picture on the larger 8K chips, but the lenses themselves are the same. There are other 8K cameras, but few or none use conventional broadcast lenses, and so don’t put crews in such a familiar environment.

HOW MUCH LIGHTING IS NEEDED?

Can even the best modern lenses stand this sort of heat? It’s is a difficult thing to evaluate, because there aren’t really any standards for the way zoom lenses are assessed. Metrics such as modulation transfer function, involving a test chart with vertical black and white stripes, are commonly used to test resolution, but there’s no widely-recognized way of applying that sort of test to a zoom where the characteristics change as the controls are manipulated.

Most zooms perform best in the middle of their range of focal lengths and away from the extremes of iris, so that often, more light still make things work better, even now. Still, modern lenses such as the the Fujinon UA46x9.5 and the Canon UJ122x8.2 work better at wider apertures than those of even a few years ago, so we can not only shoot 8K, we can probably do it with less light than we’d have needed for similar results a few years ago.

Both of these lenses have siblings of slightly different configuration–Canon’s UJ111x8.3 is fractionally shorter than the 122x8.2 in maximum reach while being about the same size and weight, but should reasonably be cheaper (none of the lenses discussed here yet have public pricing.) The Fujinon UA46x9.5 is complemented by a longer 46x13.5. Perhaps more important than the raw numbers, though, is the idea that all these modern cameras, with their huge pixel counts, can be paired with more capable lenses than ever before.

Both Canon and Fujinon have respected ranges of cinema zooms which are making for faster, easier work in that field too, to the point where even the most experienced cinematographers can sometimes be persuaded to argue against the inconvenience of primes. The engineering concerns of a cinema lens are at least a little different, but the ability to frame things as we’d choose, with a minimum of compromise and inconvenience, are hard to argue with.

LOS ANGELES — The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) has announced that its 2018 Engineering Excellence Awards will go to Blackmagic Design, Cinnafilm, Canon, IBM Aspera and Telestream, with Samsung receiving an honorable mention. The awards are peer-judged and considered highly competitive.

The HPA Awards Engineering Committee evaluated prospective candidates at a blue ribbon judging session held at IMAX on June 16. Awards will be formally presented at the 13th Annual HPA Awards Gala, set to take place Nov. 15, at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles.

[Read: HPA Panel Examines Road To ATSC 3.0 And Repack]

With the Engineering Excellence award the HPA recognizes the following companies for outstanding technical and creative achievement in media, content production, finishing, distribution and archive:

• Blackmagic Design for DaVinci Resolve 15, a new platform integrating creative and technical tools streamlining tasks from ingest to delivery, while improving quality, functionality, and time to delivery for feature film, episodic TV and short-form productions.

• Canon for Visual and Technical Monitoring of HDR images, including engineering tools for determining exact values of HDR image pixels, comparing SDR and HDR images, utilizing camera metadata, and other key quality control capabilities.

• Cinnafilm Inc. for PixelStrings, a cloud-based video conversion service focused on media playback quality by employing framerate conversion, retiming, artifact/noise/telecine correction, transcoding and other toolsets available on a predictable, platform-as-a-service OpEx model.

• Telestream’s Vantage and Lightspeed Live integrated with Aspera’s FASPStream streaming technology, which enables high-speed capture and production of live, broadcast quality video feeds — and open file workflows — from remote locations for faster production turnaround.

• Samsung for its Samsung Onyx LED technology with DCI certification for cinema and post production, available in 2K resolution 5-meter screen and 4K-resolution 10.3-meter screen models.

“Once again, the Engineering Excellence judging sessions brought us outstanding presentations from a variety of companies at work in different parts of the media and entertainment ecosystem,” said Joachim Zell, chair of the HPA Awards Engineering Committee as well as EFILM’s vice president of technology.

“The presenters are representative of the amazing work that great companies and brilliant individuals are bringing to the marketplace. The judges had a strong field of excellent technologies to evaluate, and the results were extremely close,” Zell added.

In coming weeks, the HPA will announce the recipients of the Judges Award for Creativity and Innovation, among other special awards, as well as recognize excellence in 12 craft categories, including color grading, editing, sound and visual effects.

Tickets for the 13th Annual HPA Awards Gala will be available for purchase later this summer. Visit www.hpaonline.com for more information. The HPA is a partner of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers.

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MELVILLE, N.Y. –Canon today launched three portable zoom 4K UHD broadcast lenses and introduced a mid-range telephoto zoom lens for 4K UHD broadcast cameras.

The new portable zooms include the CJ24ex7.5B, CJ18ex7.6B and CJ14x4.3B. The mid-range telephoto is designated as the UHD-DigiSuper 66 (UJ66x9B).

The three new portable zoom lenses, which are compatible with 2/3-inch sensor broadcast cameras, usher in Canon’s UHDgc series intended to broaden 4K UHD shooting options, the company said. They are designed to deliver 4K UHD imaging quality at a more-accessible price for the majority of the broadcast market.

The CJ24ex7.5B, CJ18ex7.6B and CJ14ex4.3B use Canon’s proprietary optical design technology featuring materials such as fluorite and Ultra-low Dispersion (UD) glass. They support the wide color gamut approved by the ITU-R BT.2020 UHD broadcasting standard. These features are essential to HDR imaging, according to Canon.

The new UHD-DigiSuper 66 (UJ66x9B), designed for 2/3-inch sensor cameras, offers a 66x zoom ratio, which is desirable for sports and live event production, Canon said. The new lens incorporates Canon’s Optical Shift Image Stabilizer (Shift-IS), which makes handling and controlling the lens similar to how existing field zoom lenses for HD broadcast cameras are treated. Shift-IS also delivers smooth imaging with minimal blur during 4K shooting where even slight vibrations can impact the image, the company said.

The UHD-DigiSuper 66 has a focal length range of 9mm to 600mm. A built-in 2x extender doubles the range capabilities of the lens.

According to Canon, the UHD-DigiSuper 66 telephoto and CJ18ex7.6B portable zoom lenses will ship in the fall; the CJ24ex7.5B and CJ14ex4.3B 4K portable zoom lenses will ship in the summer. All four will be shown at the 2018 NAB Show, April 9-12, in booth C4325. 

The National Association of Broadcasters said 244 companies will be first-time exhibitors at the NAB Show in April.

The list includes Blubrry Podcasting, Libsyn, Padcaster, Women in Media, Sohonet, Deity Microphones, Red Bee Media and StreamShark. (See the list.) Some have appeared at the show in the past in other booths, such as Audinate, found in the Bosch/RTS in the past; others are likely to be entirely unfamiliar. The show will have approximately 1,700 total exhibitors including 819 from outside the United States.

We asked NAB Executive Vice President of Conventions and Business Operations Chris Brown for some insights into this aspect of the event.

Radio World:What can we glean from the list of companies — what technology sectors seem hottest, and in what kind of new tech areas is the show growing?

Chris Brown: It is a great list of new companies and they tend to reflect the breadth of the show and the trends that are driving innovation. We have companies covering all ends of the content lifecycle from acquisition to management to distribution — with a slight leaning, a little more than a third, representing acquisition and production technologies. From a tech and trends perspective we are seeing healthy interest in streaming technologies, advanced advertising, social media, cloud, storage and IP. Our focus every year is to dig for companies that are developing leading edge technologies or serving particular segments of our audience with specialized products or services.

RW: Do you know which NAB Show exhibitor is the longest-tenured?

Brown: Unfortunately we don’t have accurate enough history (and remember, the show has been around since 1923) to confirm this definitively. But we certainly have a healthy list of companies that have exhibited with us for a very long time; these include companies like Sony, Panasonic, Imagine and GatesAir (formerly Harris Corp.), Grass Valley, Avid and Ross just to name a few.

[Read: An NAB Show Sampler for Managers]

RW: What will be the three largest booths at the show?

Brown: Sony, Blackmagic Design and Canon. Beyond these and others that have been exhibiting for some time, we have a number of other important brands that are emerging with an increasing presence in the show. A couple of good examples would be AWS Elemental and Google. The combination of AWS and Elemental has matched the enormous resources AWS with the deep industry expertise of Elemental to create an entity that is having a major impact on the industry. In the case of Google, not much needs to be said — they play a vital, varied and growing role within the media and entertainment ecosystem. Just two years ago they were not even participating as an exhibitor.

RW: How does this year’s exhibit space compare to last year?

Brown: Between exhibit space and exhibitor activity in meeting rooms and suites, the show will once again cover more than 1 million square feet of activity. It will essentially cover the same area as last year.

RW:What are other platforms at the show where attendees can find up-and-coming companies?

Brown: We have an area of the show that is all about up-and-coming; we call it the Innovation Pipeline, and it covers the companies and trends from inception to full launch. Three distinct areas are included: NAB Pilot’s Futures Park, which represents the true R&D side of the equation, with research and other companies showing technologies that are still in the lab stage. Then there is Startup Loft, an area that features companies that are in their true infancy, with products or services that are baked but only on the market for a year or a year and a half. These are the “garage” entrepreneurs of our business. And as a final phase, there is Sprockit. Sprockit is a program that identifies the most promising young companies in the media and entertainment space and brings them into the spotlight at the show. These are companies that are bringing technology that can revolutionize, even disrupt, the industry.

We also will be featuring a number of technology pavilions that will lean forward and will feature companies that are relatively new to NAB Show. These include our Immersive Storytelling Pavilion (North Hall), the Game Developers Gallery (North Hall) and the Podcasting Pavilion (South Hall).

Timecode vs. Genlock: Why timecode may not be enough to keep your set in sync

By Henri Rapp

The common assumption is that by feeding timecode to camera you will keep camera and sound in sync. Unfortunately this is not so, Timecode and Sync are not the same thing. Timecode is in fact only metadata to identify how the first frame is labeled for time when the camera begins rolling. Once a camera starts recording, it ignores external timecode and uses its own internal clock to record. The problem you get here is the camera clock is not calibrated to the external sound recorder’s clock, and slowly they will drift apart as you continue to record. This is especially problematic for productions that require a long roll time (30 minutes plus), such as Reality TV or Event Coverage. This can cause endless headaches in post when you match the audio and video with timecode, and by the end of the clip the video is noticeably out of sync with the audio. The solution here is Genlock.

What is Genlock?

Genlock originated in the early days of broadcast and video switching systems. Genlock was used to keep cameras, and other video sources’ frames in sync to avoid nasty artifacts introduced when switching from one source to another. These days most switchers can compensate for this rather than feeding black burst to every source from a central clock. In the HD world Genlock is still hanging around, but these days it uses a protocol called Tri-Level Sync to clock both the frame rate and line rate. This is especially important for 3D two camera rigs. Because Genlock clocks the capturing of frames on a camera, it can be used to keep the picture from drifting from the audio over time.

Keeping Set in Sync with Timecode, Genlock, & Word Clock

In order to keep every device in sync, you need to have everything clocked by one central master clock. The cameras need to be fed timecode and genlock, and the audio recorder needs timecode and word clock. I decided for my rig to use Timecode Systems :Wave Master Clock. This acts as a generator for Word Clock & Genlock and is slaved to my Sound Devices 664 for Timecode. With an additional 9 pin Lemo to USB data cable, I am able to control metadata, arm and disarm tracks, start and stop recording, and more on my Sound Devices recorder. The Timecode Systems UltraSync Ones get rejammed twice per second via 865 MHz to 923 MHz Worldwide ISM bands. Each camera gets an UltraSync One that outputs timecode and genlock keeping the camera perfectly in sync with everything else on set.

Common Cameras That Can Be Genlocked

Here is a few examples of commonly used cameras that can be Genlocked (Some, like the FS7 for example, require additional accessories to take Genlock and Timecode):

Arri: Arri Amira, Arri Alexa, Arri Alexa Mini

RED Digital Cinema: Red Weapon, Red Epic, Red Scarlet, & Red Raven

Sony: Sony FS7, Sony F5, Sony F55, & Sony F65

Canon: Canon C700, Canon C500, Canon C300 Mark II, & Canon C300 Mark I

Panasonic: Panasonic HPX-2000, Panasonic HPX-250, Panasonic P2HD, Panasonic Varicam 35

About The Author:

Henri Rapp is a Location Sound Recordist & Recording Studio Engineer in Cleveland, Ohio. When not out in the field I also do audio post-production for video and produce music out of Bad Racket Recording Studio in Cleveland.

MELVILLE, N.Y.—NBCOlympics will use a wide variety of Canon field, portable and studio HD lenses to cover the Winter Olympics from PyeongChang, South Korea, the company announced today.

More than 70 Canon broadcast lenses will be used, including:

· DIGISUPER 95 TELE long-zoom field lens with a focal length of 1178mm (2356mm with 2x Extender);

· DIGISUPER 27 studio lens providing HD imagery in a studio environment;

· HJ14ex4.3B wide-angle HD lens capturing a panoramic 96.3 degrees angle-of-view;

· HJ24ex7.5B HDTV field telephoto zoom lens, providing a 7.5-180mm zoom range in a compact, portable body

“A Winter Olympics production can be tough on equipment and especially lenses,” said Adams. “Canon lenses have always proven themselves in difficult conditions. The images, equipment and the support we get from Canon are always exceptional.”

[For all our Olympics coverage, visit here.] 

“We are honored to once again be chosen as the broadcast lens provider for NBC” said Yuichi Ishizuka, president and COO, Canon U.S.A.

More information is available on the Canon website.

MELVILLE, N.Y.—It’s a triple-play of new camcorders from Canon, as the company has announced the release of three new compact and lightweight Full HD camcorders, the XA15, XA11 and Vixia HF G21.

XA15

Each of the new cameras comes with a 20x 26.8mm-576mm optical zoom lens, Canon’s HD CMOS sensor and Digic DV4 image processing platform to capture images in 60p at 35Mbps. They all also feature wide DR mode to support the smooth compression of high luminance areas; a slow/fast segment function to support flexible image expression; and a Hi-UD lens.

The camcorders can record in both AVCHD and MP4 formats, at multiple bit rates, simultaneously to dual SD card slots. HDMI, headphone jack and optional GPS support are also offered with each camera. In addition, they each feature five-axis stabilization—roll axis, horizontal roll, vertical roll, up-down and left-right.

The XA15 and XA11 models have XLR professional audio terminals, while the XA15 also features an HD-SDI output. The Vixia HF G21 is identical to the XA15 and XA11 models, but does not include a handle.

Canon plans to release all three cameras at the end of December. The XA15 will be available for $1,899; the XA11 for $1,399; and the Vixia HF G21 for $999.

MELVILLE, N.Y.—Announcing two new lenses is better than one and that’s exactly what Canon has done, launching two new portable 4K UHD broadcast lenses, the Canon CJ45ex9.7B and CJ45ex13.6B. Both lenses are designed for use with broadcast cameras featuring 2/3-inch sensors. The CJ45ex9.7B provides a high zoom ratio, while the CJ45ex13.6B provides the same zoom ratio and a long focal length.

CJ45ex13.6B

Each lens features a 45x zoom radio and wide-angle focal length of 9.7mm to 437mm and 13.6mm to 612mm, respectively. Both lenses employ Canon optical design technology that features optimal lens positioning using fluorite and Ultra-low Dispersion glass. These enable the capture of 4K UHD imagery from the center of the imaging field to the periphery and across the entire zoom range. Also included in the lenses are three 20-pin connectors for zoom control, focus control and access to the virtual terminal. There is also a 16-bit absolute value encoder in the digital drive unit to eliminate the need for any initialization.

Canon plans to release the CJ45ex9.7B in April 2018, with the CJex13.6B following in May 2018.

AMSTERDAM--Live contribution via bonded mobile IP networks has been a real paradigm shift, but how to manage network impairments (for example) when going live from crowded areas? Dejero and Newtec addressed this issue. At the IBC they are showcasing their Cellsat solution, capable of blending cellular and satellite connectivity on demand in the field. At first, CellSat manages to get the best performance from the mobile networks on site.

Any time the available bandwidth does not cope with the user’s requirements, Cellsat seamlessly combines cellular connectivity from multiple mobile network providers with Ku-band IP satellite connectivity by Intelsat, up to secure the required data-rate. As a result, CellSat users don’t have to book satellite time – it is simply available to boost bandwidth when they need, at the push of a button. Cellsat’s users can also rely on the aggregated bandwidth to improve connection reliability when broadcasting live from the field. Cellsat relies on a Newtec Dialog IP modem, configured for the CellSat service, and Dejero transmission and receiving equipment, software, connectivity services to the CellSat network, cloud management, and support.

Dejero CellSat is initially available in the United States and Canada, with roll-out to other regions planned for 2018.

As media libraries grow - and the pace of new projects and number of assets goes up - making sure that assets are inspected and tagged properly can become overwhelming to any creative team. Axle ai promises to change the way those things are done. Cloud-deployed multiple video analysis engines allow sophisticated automatic tagging of video and instant visual search. Any time a new content is available, media is analyzed, compared to a vast image recognition database, and tagged, saving the great amounts of time required to manually tag media and enabling search based on characters, words, logos, locations and other highly specific visual information.

Automatic video analysis on ingest and proxy generating uses sophisticated AI technology to instantly find and tag objects in the frame, all keyed to the timeline code. Thanks to powerful context matching, finding every instance of an object as easy as dragging a marquee around any object on the screen and hitting 'search'. Every video clip that matches is presented, automatically keyed to relevant timeline section, with no user action required. According to Axle, even complex images with thousands of objects are easily analyzed with a wide range of applicable tags: - not just 'crowd' but 'festival' and 'tourist destination' keywords as well.

Part of the new series of Telos Infinity solutions, the Telos Infinity IP Intercom converges voice communication and contribution audio on a single IT backbone employing the latest standards-based VoIP and Livewire+ AES67 AoIP transport to provide dedicated features and functionality without compromise or limitations. More than just a talkback system, Infinity IP can replace legacy matrix technology with an advanced, distributed IP network solution that provides superior functionality in a simplified and effective layout.

Matrix-free design allows plug-and-play networked hardware and software devices to be added to the system as part of a planned ad-hoc change without ever worrying that you might exceed the number of available ports on a matrix. Telos says the introduction of the new Infinity IP Intercom represents “a quantum leap in scalability, ease of integration, efficiency and total cost of ownership”. Infinity IP natively supports Livewire+ AES67, then it can seamlessly connect with AoIP products from Telos as well as those from other supporting manufacturers.

Telos Infinity IP Intercom easily integrates into existing analog, AES, SDI, and MADI systems using Telos Alliance xNode baseband-to-IP interfaces and other AES67 partner devices.

Canon is introducing the EOS C200, their new compact 4K Cinema EOS camera, featuring Canon’s 4K Super 35mm CMOS sensor. Its effective pixel count of 8.85MP and the newly developed Dual DIGIC DV6 image processor allow in-camera recording of 4K UHD/50P MP4, 4K DCI RAW and continuous 120fps High Frame Rate (HFR) in Full HD without crop. As the first Cinema EOS camera to support the new RAW recording format – Cinema RAW Light – the EOS C200 provides the same flexibility in color grading as Cinema RAW, in a smaller file size.

Supporting up to 15-stops of dynamic range with Cinema RAW Light , the EOS C200 is perfect for capturing highlight and shadow details. The EOS C200 features an advanced AF system that provides reliability and accuracy also when shooting 4K. The ISO range of 100 to 102,400 guarantees excellent performance, even in difficult lighting conditions, while the built-in optical ND filters of up to 10 stops provide further flexibility and convenience. Built-in Wi-Fi and Ethernet connectivity allows for browser remote control and the ability to transfer files via FTP, whilst the camera’s compatibility options mean new and existing accessories can be used, including Canon’s electronic viewfinder - the EVF-V70.

The IBC Show runs through Tuesday, Sept. 19 at the RAI in Amsterdam.