KitPlus | Articles

Keeping it real

by Will Strauss Issue 92 - August 2014 With Sky buying into an immersive video start-up, and the BBC trialling content on an Oculus Rift headset, virtual reality could be about to move from simply sets and studios to a whole new realm. Once residing purely in the realms of science fiction and, latterly, video gaming, it appears that virtual reality...

Submitted by Will Strauss#

Published 01 September 2014

Looking to the Cloud for broadcast business success

by Tom Donoghue Issue 87 - March 2014 More and more, todays highly competitive and rapidly evolving marketplace is ruled by consumer demand for seamless anywhere, anytime, any-device access to high-quality content. Broadcasters are learning quickly that competitive advantage is all about finding new ways to engage audiences and attract advertisers...

Submitted by Tom Donoghue

Published 01 April 2014

#TVFUTURES

by Rhiannon Chislett Issue 86 - February 2014 Since I last wrote we have accomplished a lot more work within our projects. In December we submitted our 20-minute documentary about local traditional businesses, which has resulted in achieving distinction grades and we have also progressed dramatically with our IPTV project. Before Christmas we were...

Submitted by Rhiannon Chislett

Published 01 March 2014

Review: DaVinci Resolve 10

by Toby Tomkins Issue 85 - January 2014 Colour grading for me is about the final sculpting of the image, in terms of colour, tone, texture and composition. My goal as a colourist is to push the colour, tone and texture to reflect the desired emotion and story of the image. I choose DaVinci Resolve to be my metaphorical chisel because it has a tools...

Submitted by Toby Tomkins

Published 01 February 2014

Ask the experts with Shotoku

by James EddershawIssue 82 - October 2013 Shotoku has been around for quite some time, but for those who may not be familiar, can you explain who you are and what you do?Shotoku Broadcast Systems is an international leader in the manufacture and marketing of a full range of camera support products including manual and robotic pedestals as well as v...

Submitted by James Eddershaw

Published 01 November 2013

KFX Aurora LT remote head

Issue 81 - September 2013 Released just over one year ago the KFX Aurora LT remote head has rapidly become a very popular on set tool for long run shows and day playing alike. Camera Operators and grips love how easy it is to get ready and rental houses love the ease of maintenance and the quick return on investment that they are getting. The key t...

Submitted by KitPlus

Published 01 October 2013

Dick Hobbs gets up to speed with ESOMPS

The UK communications regulator Ofcom has issued a consultation document on the prospects for a technology called Earth Stations on Mobile Platforms, or ESOMPs. My first response to the consultation is that they should get a better acronym. An ESOMP is a small communications device which is attached to a mobile platform: a train, a plane, a ship or...

Submitted by Dick Hobbs.

Published 01 October 2013

4K is bigger than size alone

by Bob PankIssue 79 - July 2013 It seems that numbers are a great eye-catcher and 4K was everywhere at NAB, and will be at IBC too. Here, of course, we are talking about a TV system with four times the number of pixels of HD, namely a picture area of 3840x2160 for TV, or for cinema 4096x2160. At the recent BeyondHD conference in London discussion a...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 August 2013

Televising Swan Lake in live 3D from St Petersburg

by Tim HighmoorIssue 79 - July 2013 Stereoscopic television may still be in its infancy as a home entertainment medium but it is thriving in the cinema world. Freed from domestic distractions, cinema audiences are ideally placed to give their full attention to the images on the big screen. On Thursday 6 June 2013, the Mariinsky Ballet company in Ru...

Submitted by Tim Highmoor

Published 01 August 2013

A cinematic makeover with Blackmagic Design

With the announcement of Blackmagic Cinema Camera at NAB 2012, Mark Linnhoff, a France based cinematographer, began to see the future of filmmaking in a new light. “Finally, an affordable acquisition tool that doesn’t compromise on image quality,” he recalled. “When I got the camera, I carried out some tests with a series of Carl Zeiss ZF.2 and Nik...

Submitted by Mark Linnhoff

Published 01 July 2013

Increasing creativity and functionality with Q-Ball

By Jim Daniels, technical director, Camera CorpsTell us more about Camera Corps and its position within the industry…Camera Corps was founded almost 20 years ago to offer broadcasters video system design and rental services. Having focused on rentals from the very beginning, we have provided high-volume cameras, pan-and-tilt heads and tracking syst...

Submitted by Jim Daniels

Published 01 July 2013

Learning to love IT with Dick Hobbs

There are three clearly defined levels of activity at NAB. There is the buzz which someone is trying to get going, there is the stuff which people are actually trying to buy, and there is the latest collection of buzzwords and catchphrases which provide endless entertainment for those with a love of language. This year, for instance, we were all to...

Submitted by Bob Pank#

Published 01 June 2013

Tv-bay questions with Richard Hooking

Richard Hookings Q&A for TV-BayDifferent Animals - The Polecam Full Rig owner opHow did you get in to the Broadcast business?When I was 12 I went to a Michael Faraday lecture; they were demonstrating the latest TV technology of the day– how they made Superman fly with green screen, how they did the weather - I got the bug, and from then on I wanted...

Submitted by KitPlus

Published 01 April 2013

Getting to grip with it with Mark Scotton

By Mark Scotton, sales manager for Cameragrip. Getting the right equipment to ensure you add value to your production can be difficult, especially when there are so many products available that all seem to be offering different solutions. Creating moving shots can be done in a variety of ways by using products such as jibs, cranes, tracking dollies...

Submitted by Mark Scotton

Published 01 March 2013

4K or not 4K, that is the question

Peter Savage goes all literary to show how our industry draws on Shakespeare and Keyne. 4K or not 4K, that is the question. Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of a much larger workflow Or to take arms against a sea of other formats And by opposing end them. 2K, to sleep No more--and by a sleep to say we end That format,...

Submitted by Robert Howard

Published 01 March 2013