Antelope slows down skiing + golf

LMC LiveMotionConcept supplied multiple Antelope UltraSlowMotion systems plus various analysis tools for the Austrian broadcaster ORF for the Alpine Skiing World Championships in Schladming. It also supplied a wireless slo-mo system for the recent Ladies Masters European golf.

In Austria, it supplied the host broadcaster with two mobile production vehicles, one of which had two Antelope MkIIs UltraSlowMotion systems and one Pico PoV UltraSlowMotion on board.

The MkIIs systems were moved between the men’s and women’s slopes every day with the help of helicopters. During the event they recorded at up to 2,500 frames per second. Thanks to the new enhanced detail function, which is implemented in the latest version of the MkIIs CCU, it was possible to show even little details of the action during each skier’s run.

The Antelope Pico (pictured above) was mounted in the middle of the main grandstand to record crowd reaction at up to 340fps. This was the first time at a major FIS skiing event that this sort of emotional replay was shot at high speed.

A brand new version of the Pico will be available just before NAB. It’s based on an improved 2K high-speed chip and supplies live video output in all HD formats plus a de-flickered replay channel with up to 340fps.

LMC also supplied a special Antelope replay feed, which was delivered to the “ORF House” in Schladming using Riedel Communications’ MediorNet real-time fibre network. A huge LED Cinemascope display was used to show this impressive replay feed to spectators at the championships throughout the day.

The second LMC vehicle was in charge of the analytical content for the world feed and ORF’s national programme.

LMC supplied a Dartfish system to record the clean world feed, plus feeds of three isolated analysis cameras, to produce analysis clips as either Simulcam (where the races of two individual competitors are composited together to compare them side by side) or Stromotion (where a skier’s progress is seen as a sequence of stills composited together). The isolated camera feeds were pre-cut on a LGZ Replay System.

The finished analysis sequences were clipped on an EVS XT2HD system and played out both into the national ORF outside broadcast truck and into the two international OB trucks for the women’s and the men’s world feed signals.

LMC also installed a Paint Touchscreen in the ORF studio. Its switchable input gave the studio experts an opportunity to graphically enhance their in-depth analysis and actively step in and show where a split of a second might make a difference.

Ladies Masters on AIR

LMC also recently deployed an Antelope AIR for the second time at the Ladies European Tour golf finals in Dubai. The Omega Ladies Masters is the grand finale of the busy LET season.

LMC's CEO Felix Marggraff, who is also the Ladies European Tour TV director, used the Antelope AIR not just as a live replay camera but also to record graphic backgrounds or even to shoot features with the players.

“The Antelope AIR is a great camera to show not just technical aspects but also the beauty of the sports” said Dirk Glittenberg, CEO of U.COM Media, the production company in charge of all LET media coverage.

The Antelope AIR is the wireless version of the MkIIs and fully remote-controllable. Both HD-SDI video and full telemetry are received and operated from the TV compound. The camera operator has full freedom on the golf course and can concentrate on the images.

“It’s great that our cameraman does not have to fiddle around with triggering, shading or any other technical stuff,” said Marggraff, who has directed the live and highlight coverage for LET since 2009.

The Antelope AIR includes all the functions of the MkIIs, such as enhanced detail, multi matrix, de-flickering and intuitive remote and operating controllers.

The World Feed Live Production of the 2013 season will start at the South African Woman’s Open on 19April.

Related posts: Fan riot destroys 1st Antelope camera, Tiny HD camera blends in and World first ultra-slowmo PoV camera

By David Fox