KitPlus | Articles

Review: JVC GY-HC900 Camera

JVC has a long history of developing relatively low price-point equipment, dating right back to its success in the 1970s with the VHS tape format. JVC products sometimes impact the broadcast mainstream but generally find greatest success in niche market segments such as news production where price and portability take priority over the no-comprise...

Submitted by Andy McKenzie

Published 16 July 2019

The World of 12G 4K/UHD Processing

Technology moves fast and when it comes to audio and video broadcasting, there is always room for improvements in audio and video quality and ease of production. One of the main goals of broadcasters and content providers today is to create an immersive experience for the viewers, giving them the feeling of being part of the viewed content. The 4K/...

Submitted by Varun Patel

Published 16 July 2019

NAB 2019 Highlights

The NAB Show in Las Vegas never loses its capacity to surprise. With NHK already transmitting in 8K and the Tokyo Olympics just a year away, this might have been the year that 8K equipment prices descended from the stratosphere to just plain expensive. The main trends at NAB 2019 were an increasing focus on HD-HDR, Media-over-IP and 4K. 8K was pret...

Submitted by Paul MacKenzie

Published 04 June 2019

Canon EOS C300 MkII Camera Review

Canon described the EOS C300 Mark II at its launch as 'a game-changer for creative film-making'. What interested me was whether the camera's impressive feature set, compact size and very aggressive price point matched the needs of the video production market. Key features At the front end of the camera is a Super 35mm CMOS sensor capturing Full HD...

Submitted by Andy McKenzie

Published 04 June 2019

Preparing for the holiday peak

The summer holiday getaway of 2018 hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons. A UK airport's non-functional departure boards left travellers unable to find their flights. Meanwhile, an airline cancelled over 2,000 flights due to a computer glitch. One European city closed its airspace entirely. Despite best efforts, staff struggled to cope with t...

Submitted by Jamie Adkin

Published 04 June 2019

NAB Intelligence

It\'s that time of year again. 06:30 on road bikes on the Las Vegas Strip with a merry bunch of folks who believe they look good in lycra. As we pedal West up the hill towards Red Rock there will be stories of the year just gone and questions about what to look for at the show. I, for one, will be attending the Devoncroft event to check up on who i...

Submitted by Bruce Devlin - new

Published 21 March 2019

Rotolight Anova Pro 2 User Review

The Anova PRO 2 is the fourth generation of Rotolight’s studio/location light, offering 70% more power output than its predecessor. It is claimed be one of the brightest LED lights ever launched in its class, delivering 10,700 lux at 3 feet yet consuming only 72 watts. Figure 1 shows the front with accessory mounting spigots (1), optional barn door...

Submitted by Andy McKenzie

Published 21 March 2019

The way forward in a changing world

The broadcast and media industries are evolving in all areas to adapt to the challenges of competition from OTT, changing user viewing habits, technological advances in image resolution, dynamic range and colour rendition as well as embracing new video over IP infrastructures. Test and measurement equipment manufacturers also have to evolve to supp...

Submitted by Alan Wheable

Published 21 March 2019

Grading BBC Sounds

The BBC has launched its new personalised music, radio and podcast app with a campaign that follows one listener’s journey from meeting Kylie Minogue in a lift to Idris Elba on a bus. BBC Sounds offers a single home for the BBC’s thousands of hours of audio content, including live and on-demand shows and special music mixes curated by artists. BBC...

Submitted by Simone Grattarola

Published 25 January 2019

Test, Measurement and Standards

Who are AIMS?The Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS), is a non-profit trade alliance that fosters the adoption of one set of common, ubiquitous, standards-based protocols for interoperability over IP in the media and entertainment, and professional audio/video industries. The members of AIMS are a group of like-minded industry manufacturers who...

Submitted by Alan Wheable

Published 25 January 2019

Bringing creative ideas to life

While the start of a new year is all about looking forward to the new possibilities and exciting opportunities ahead, indulge me for a moment in looking back to this time last year. CVP had just completed a management buyout and were planning how to take the company forward. We had an excellent foundation, a great team with the right skillsets and...

Submitted by Jon Fry

Published 24 January 2019

Battery Power Management

There are many obvious ways a modern battery is better than one that would have been common just a few years ago and is light years ahead of what was available a generation ago. In everything from form factor to battery life to charge time, things have vastly improved. Consider cycle ratings, an indication of how many times a pack has or can be use...

Submitted by Ross Kanarek

Published 24 January 2019

State of the Nation - November 2018

There is an interesting seminar called Size Matters at the KitPlus Show – organised by the publishers of this fine magazine – at MediaCityUK in Salford on 6 November. It’s a talk by cinematographer Alistair Chapman on the way that camera technology is changing, and in particular the size of the electronic device which creates the image is growing....

Submitted by Dick Hobbs - new

Published 09 November 2018

University and Mental Health

University study and mental health has been in the media quite a bit over the last year, and I’m sure there are many people wondering what is going on? The issues are complex, and I suppose the focus of employability off the back of a degree course has raised the stress stakes for a lot of young people. I’m only qualified to talk about this from my...

Submitted by Rhiannon Jenkins

Published 09 November 2018

Sony HDC-4800 Review

First announced at NAB 2016, the Sony HDC-4800 is a studio camera system capable of shooting 4K/UHD at up to 8x or full HD at up to 16x. With a price point upwards of £250,000 it is a very high-end product with a wide feature set. In Sony's own words, "This is the future of live production, designed to satisfy the storytelling aspect of modern spor...

Submitted by Andy McKenzie

Published 09 November 2018