KitPlus | Articles

4k is a reality for live production

Some aspects of the broadcast industry move exceedingly quickly; new cameras are launched seemingly daily, shows are commissioned and shows are axed but the overall pace of the industry remains pretty steady. Would it shock you to hear that NHK in Japan first built its own 4K prototype camera in 2003? (At this point, it's worth clarifying that we'r...

Submitted by Liam Laminman

Published 01 April 2016

Camera Operation and Training Part 1

by Peter Leverick Issue 110 - February 2016 Question: What is the difference between a Videographer and a Broadcast Cameraman?Answer: About £150/day without kit. This is a borrowed joke from an old friend of mine (name withheld, but thank you John), who was answering a facetious enquiry from a Lighting Director about his own job title compared to m...

Submitted by Peter Leverick

Published 16 March 2016

Focus Technology in 2016 and Beyond

by Lisa J. Whelan Issue 110 - February 2016 With the advance of larger camera sensors, faster lenses and complex lighting systems, the role of the 1st AC (Assistant Camera) is more demanding than ever. Fortunately, the world of focus technology is developing new and innovative ways to step up and meet these demands head-on. Out of FocusHistorically...

Submitted by Lisa J Whelan

Published 16 March 2016

Perfect Horizon Camera Stabilizer

by Brian Uranovsky Issue 110 - February 2016 PERFECT HORIZON CAMERA STABILIZERThe Perfect Horizon is an innovative camera stabilizer for land and sea, and regardless of bumpy rides or rough waves, this stabilizing device keeps your horizon perfectly stable. The Perfect Horizon (PH) won an ACADEMY AWARD as well as an EMMY for Engineering and Scienti...

Submitted by BRIAN URANOVSKY

Published 16 March 2016

Saving your laptop from spills

by Beth Zarkhosh Issue 109 - January 2016 Saving your laptop from spills!Whether you\'re a wedding videographer or a small production company, we all know the stress of the edit process, nothing adds to that stress more than the full destruction of your PC or Mac. So its the New Year and youre finishing off that last bit of mulled wine from over Ch...

Submitted by Beth Zarkhosh

Published 21 January 2016

Post Production Companies Protection

by Leighton Chenery Issue 109 - January 2016 The UK Post and VFX industry has some of the most skilled and creative talent in the World attracting work from all over the globe including many of the biggest movies from the US. We all know, however, that problems are not a rarity and whilst nobody might be to blame, you may end up having to make a di...

Submitted by Leighton Chenery

Published 21 January 2016

How to solve a problem like 4k

with Peter Savage Issue 108 - December 2015 A lack of standards and content is holding back sales of 4k television sets and, until that situation changes, there is very little the consumer electronics business can do about it, writes Peter SavageSince the late 1960s and early 70s, when we began to ditch our old black and white TV sets in favour of...

Submitted by Peter Savage 2

Published 15 December 2015

Why you might regret automating QC workflows

by Bruce Devlin Issue 107 - November 2015 In todays electronic media environment, broadcasters and content owners live and die according to the quality and versatility of their media assets. Not only do consumers expect the best quality viewing experience, but they also expect that viewing experience to be possible on the widest range of devices, a...

Submitted by Bruce Devlin

Published 01 December 2015

Ground breaking production tool

with Stefan Lange Issue 106 - October 2015 NEO¢, the latest product from British LED manufacturer Rotolight, is a revolutionary on-camera or location LED lighting fixture designed for the most demanding of professionals. NEO¢ includes several industry first features that set it apart from the field, notably amongst which is an arsenal of Cinematogr...

Submitted by Stefan Lange

Published 01 November 2015

The key to stability

by Mark Scotton Issue 106 - October 2015 Moving shots dont just enhance video production, they bring it to life and allow the viewer to experience what they are watching. This isnt something new, but the options we now have available to bring productions to life are more varied and readily available than ever before. No longer do you need a Hollywo...

Submitted by Mark Scotton

Published 01 November 2015

Sony PXW-FS5 Review

by Alister Chapman Issue 106 - October 2015 I was lucky enough to get some hands on time with a prototype FS5 in Amsterdam at IBC. In case you havent heard about it, the PXW-FS5 is a compact interchangeable lens, super 35mm camcorder from Sony that can record in HD or UHD 4K. It shares many of the features of the already incredibly popular PXW-FS7...

Submitted by Alister Champman

Published 01 November 2015

The future is smaller, more powerful batteries

by Steve Emmett Issue 106 - October 2015 High-quality cameras are getting smaller and lighter all the time, making them suitable for new applications. Nearly every production we see today includes shots acquired by drone and gimbal mounted cameras. The batteries required to power these cameras have to meet new criteria. They must be able to withsta...

Submitted by Steve Emmett

Published 01 November 2015

Chasing ratings

by Dick Hobbs Issue 104 - August 2015 As everyone is no doubt aware, the BBCs core structures are being investigated at the moment as part of the renewal of its charter. The political bodies set up to do this are made up largely of anti-BBC people, so we are in for interesting times. I have a view on the BBC and its funding, and maybe one day in on...

Submitted by Dick Hobbs.

Published 01 September 2015

How we got live streaming to work for us

by Larry Jordan & Megan Paulos Issue 103 - July 2015 We originate three hours of live programming from our studios every week. In fact, everything we do is designed for live web streaming. For the last several months, we have been exploring a number of options that would enable live video streaming with live audio mixing and support an unlimited nu...

Submitted by Larry Jordan#

Published 01 August 2015

4k storm chasing

by Alister Chapman Issue 103 - July 2015 15 years ago I got my first big Broadcast Commission. It was to produce a 1 hour special on Tornado Chasing vacations. Yes, people pay to go on storm chasing holidays. In 1999 this was a new thing, today its a booming business. Ive always been fascinated by natural extremes and filming tornadoes seemed like...

Submitted by Alister Champman

Published 01 August 2015