KitPlus | Articles

Technical Testing Joins Forces with Visual Monitoring

In the past, test and measurement equipment was designed exclusively for broadcast engineers. Vectorscope and waveform read-outs sketching out shapes on a scope were readily understood by technicians fluent in the language of signal analysis. Today multi-camera digital acquisition is not merely the domain of the broadcaster; television production i...

Submitted by Kieron Seth#

Published 01 December 2012

Pushing remote broadcast boundaries

Film and TV coverage as varied as the London 2012 Olympics and the BBC’s Springwatch are raising the bar where viewer expectations are concerned. Bradley Engineering (BradEng) is a remote camera technology pioneer that has been at the forefront of meeting these expectations. TV Bay spoke to Bradley Engineering founder, David Bradley, about the late...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 October 2012

Extensive, flawless and enjoyed by millions

Due to the multiple locations of the London Games, coverage was inevitably going to a be a challenge, with locations throughout London and the South; some of them specifically designed and created for the events such as the main Stadium, Velodrome and Aquatics Centre, whilst clever forward thinking meant that existing famous landmarks such as Horse...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 October 2012

An Epic Journey for the Summer Games

With the abundance of international sporting events taking place this summer, broadcast technologies and logistics are being put to the test across the board. Beyond the typical coordination and on site expertise required for broadcasts, many companies face not only longer engagements but aggressive turnaround times and long travel distances betwee...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 September 2012

Summer of 3D

Having put 3D to one side for a few months it was very interesting to jump back into the third dimension. With 3D not making the headlines much, if at all, you might be lulled into thinking it has faded away, but that’s not the case. Many events are being shot in 3D, including the Olympics and, although there has been nothing happening that could b...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 September 2012

SPORT GB AND IBC 2012

Peter Savage has sobering thoughts about the Olympics and Paralympics while looking forward to a beer or two at IBCWell, we will soon come to the end of a summer that has been completely sports-dominated. I like sport. In fact, I could be classed as almost sport-obsessed. However, even I will soon breathe a sigh of relief knowing that, no matter wh...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 September 2012

A credit to whom?

Just over 40 years ago I was involved in the formation of the Guild of Television Cameramen as an independent non-profit-making international organisation that cares about television camerawork and the people who make it their craft. The GTC today has over 1,000 members, in the UK, Europe, Australia, Russia, Singapore, South Africa and the USA. The...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 September 2012

Handheld T and M the broadcast emergency service

“Test and Measurement”. Shudder. Like “Health and Safety”, “Bus” and “Replacement Service” or “Keith and Orville” it’s a collocation of words that fills me with dread. Seriously, who wants to read about “Test and Measurement”? Well, as it turns out, the answer is: quite a lot of people. Because, despite its lack of glamour, it is hugely important....

Submitted by Will Strauss#

Published 01 August 2012

Ask the Experts - Loudness

Introduction:Loudness level inconsistencies are one of the most common problems in the broadcast industry. Loudness standards are now being introduced as discontinuities in audio levels between programs, or between programs and advertisements, have been the cause of viewer complaints – in fact they are the number one cause. Of course anything that...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 August 2012

Our third digital revolution?

Our third digital revolution?By Bob PankA little history – the first digital revolution for the TV production and post industries started somewhere about 1972 and then involved introducing digital islands into an analogue world. The introduction of much more affordable digital VTRs such as Sony’s DigiBeta in 1993 heralded the beginning of the end o...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 July 2012

Here is the news

Here is the newsIn mid-May the EBU and SMPTE brought together many of the great and the good of the television industry – and me – to a forum on emerging media technologies. Held in Geneva, in a hotel expensive even by Swiss standards, it was supposed to set the agenda for the future, to share solutions so the future will be bright. As is always th...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 July 2012

What does a large throne, a corgi, a tent and the Beckham...

What does a large throne, a corgi, a tent and the Beckhams have in common? Me! Surprisingly. I've been involved in some pretty bizarre jobs and shoots before. I've ended up the Monument Tower in London with a skateboard deck on my back. I've been inches (inches!!) away from rapper Example. And I've seen someone fire a monkey at another exhibitor at...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 July 2012

So you think you know Flash?

So you think you know Flash?It is becoming widely accepted that HTML5 will eventually replace Flash as the platform for rich content and video on connected devices, but how can video publishers make the leap and avoid the pitfalls?David Springall, YospaceBack in the early nineties, when what few websites existed were almost completely static, a com...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 July 2012

Big Fish, Little Fish, Camera-Top-Box

Big Fish, Little Fish, Camera-Top-BoxFor whole swathes of people within the television industry the concept of digital production - and what we generally refer to as ‘going tapeless’ – is probably now considered slightly old hat. Broadcasters, engineers, camera people and other early adopters of technology are so au fait with digital production the...

Submitted by Will Strauss#

Published 01 July 2012

Waste not, want not

One of the most interesting comments I heard at NAB this year was from Gary Greenfield, the CEO of Avid. Picking up the topic of making the most of content across multiple platforms, he said “nothing is left on the cutting room floor any more”. That started me thinking about how technology has allowed us to get profligate, and whether we are now at...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 June 2012