18 TVBEurope IBC Wrap-Up
New camera round-up: The evolution revolution
Broadcasting may start with the camera, but it has been one of the last areas to gain from the move to IT-based hardware. However, the
benefits of software- upgradeable flexibility are now emerging, with free or low-cost upgrades a key theme at IBC this year, reportsDavid Fox
ADVANCES SEEN at IBC2013 included the rise of 4K, which is almost ready for mainstream production, large sensor cameras, high-speed capture, and the release of miniature cameras usable in almost any type of production. However, the biggest crowds on the show floor were headed in the direction of ARRI’s first documentary-style shoulder- mount digital camera, the Amira, which takes the sensor and many features of its Alexa, and adds such things as in-camera colour grading and 200fps shooting. “Everyone wants the Alexa
image quality, but they said make the camera smaller, lighter and more affordable,” said Stephan Shenk, ARRI’s general manager, camera division. It has live colour management, with 3D LUTs in the camera. “A lot of people doing documentaries don’t have the time or budget to do elaborate colour grading, but they still want the look,” said Milan Krsljanin, ARRI’s director of business development. The Alexa influence extended to the studio, where Ikegami was showing the new HDK-97 ARRI large-sensor camera. It is “a new type of dock-cam style studio camera with an ARRI front end, using a single large super 35mm sensor. It is ideal for studio drama or music,” said Masanori Kondo, president, Ikegami Europe. The first delivery, of eight PL-mount cameras, went to MTV, which used them for its Video Music Awards.
Entry level: Roache with Hitachi’s affordable new
Z-HD6000 dockable camera
Shenk: The Amira is an Alexa “for single operator use and with perfect balance”
Touchscreen ergonomics: An LCD is the Production Camera 4K’s main user interface
Grass Valley has extended its LDX camera range with the new LDX 80 for robotic or remote use, which is claimed to offer high sensitivity with “best signal-to- noise performance”. It uses Xensium-FT 2/3-inch CMOS 1080 50/60p imagers with global shutter, and there will be three versions: LDX Compact Premiere, LDX Compact Elite, and LDX Compact Worldcam, all software upgradable. One selling point of the LDX
range has been its flexibility, “allowing instant upgrades through perpetual or weekly licensing,” said Matt Allard, Grass Valley’s market development manager.
Searle: IO’s tiny 2KSDI can now take EF-mount lenses
Remote miniatures Bradley Engineering launched three new miniature high- resolution (HD/SD up to 1080p) camera heads all with 10:1 zoom lenses at IBC. The Eyeb all-in-one design has up to 99 pre-set positions for Pan, Tilt, Zoom and Focus, for commentary use, PoVs, or reality TV. The self-contained BEHD15 is designed to give greater detail in low light, without noise, has SDI and analogue outputs, is infrared sensitive and has an IP66 option. The mini, remote ball HDC150/150SR has 32 pre-sets, is designed for smooth, quiet operation and has an infrared mode. Its new Cam-Ball 3 miniature
rotating camera can have a 30x zoom lens to go with a new high- resolution sensor with increased low light sensitivity. The 1080p PTZ camera offers 32 pre-sets in a lightweight, weatherproof carbon fibre housing, but users can remove the front seal to attach a wide angle lens. Telemetrics’ new HDSC-1
Could this be the Z1 for the 4K era?: The new Sony PXW-Z100 High speed, higher resolution: The Phantom Flex4K
“Although it is the same sensor as the Alexa, it is Ikegami’s digital signal processing and TV output,” added Shenk. “It’s a collaboration between ARRI and Ikegami to bring the aesthetics of the motion picture to the TV studio.” It can do 1080 50p, as well as 24 and 25p, would normally be used with a fibre adaptor and will work with all of Ikegami’s existing Unicam HD accessories, so it can use the same base stations and control infrastructure. Panasonic is also aiming for the studio drama market with its AK- HC3500A. It offers progressive shooting (1080 at 25p, 23.98p or 29.97p) with cine gamma and various other improvements to take it beyond its existing AK-HC3500.
However, it has three 2/3-inch IT
CCDs rather than a single larger sensor. It boasts 60dB signal to noise, uses spatial pixel shift technology and a newly developed 16-bit A/D Digital Signal Processor (38-bit internal processing) for improved picture quality. Hitachi has gone the MOS
sensor route with its first 3MOS sensor HD camera: the affordable Z-HD6000 portable studio/EFP dockable model that outputs 1080 50/60i with 1100TV lines resolution. “This is a global release. There is a large market in the US for universities and religious use. That market doesn’t exist in Europe at a high level, but this will be an excellent entry-level product for people with small
studios or OB vans,” said Paddy Roache, Hitachi director and general manager. Sony introduced two new studio/OB camera ranges at IBC: the HSC-300R/RF and HSC- 100R/RF. These are essentially upgrades of its existing HSC-300 and HXC-100 system cameras, but with new 2/3-inch Power HAD FX CCDs with an S/N ratio of 60dB. The HSC-300R/RF models are compatible with the HDLA series of large lens adapters and equipped with Neutral Density and Colour Correction dual optical servo-controlled filter wheels for outside broadcast use, while the HSC-100R/RF models are compatible with a portable lens and more suited to studio use.
Robotics Specialty Camera is compact, lightweight and uses a Sony 3.27-megapixel CMOS image sensor with a Canon 20x zoom lens. It provides native 1920x1080 HD-SDI video outputs as well as SD composite video outputs in NTSC and PAL. It also has a new Remote
Camera Operation System, including a touch-screen Robotic Camera Control Panel, Camera Shader Panel for single operator control of studio operations, and Enterprise Database Control Software, for enterprise level camera control using an SQL database with configurable access control. The first operational control
panel for IO Industries’ Flare 2KSDI camera has been launched by Polecam. This can control up to six cameras from one panel, including lens control (iris and
www.tvbeurope.com November2013
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