Playing the Gig for wireless links

Wireless links are aiming higher: with new standards proposed in the 60GHz spectrum that can handle uncompressed HD. Wireless bandwidths are increasingly crowded, but we want them to carry more information, particularly HD video. This applies as much to consumers as to broadcasters, which is why a multi-gigabit specification has just been released from the new Wireless Gigabit Alliance (made up of all the main WiFi chip manufacturers, such as Intel, Broadcom and Atheros, and device manufacturers).

The consumer proposal is for a low-power (about a quarter the power of WiFi), short range system (up to about 10m, line of sight – as the short wave signals can't easily go through solid objects), but as with WiFi in the 2.4 and 5GHz bands (which WiGig also supports), widespread adoption will bring down costs and could make it more affordable for use as camera links. The WiGig specification provides for data transfer rates up to 7Gbps, compared to the maximum 600Mbps transfer rate of the fastest 802.11n WiFi standard, although real life throughput would be a lot lower.

Sony's flagship TV set, the Bravia ZX5 (or XBR10), already uses a 60GHz Wireless link to connect to its control box, and there is an existing 60GHz WirelessHD initiative that is ahead in commercialisation, but doesn't have the support of the big chip manufacturers. The latest WirelessHD 1.1 specification aims for data rates of 10-28Gbps, and will support 3D and 4K resolution.

NHK on ice

The unlicensed 60GHz range has also been used for TV production. NHK experimented with 60GHz at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, using a COFDM wireless camera system but it required about 30 receive sites to cover the ice rink. "A conventional COFDM system used just a single pair of antennae to cover the same area," commented Dave Remnant (pictured right), Director, Acorn Technologies (sales@acorntech.co.uk), reseller for Quicklink, Boxx TV and Masthead Antenna Technology.

However, the 60GHz system had benefits: "There was no delay, because it had enough bandwidth, and the picture quality was excellent," but the set up time for that many receive points would make it impractical for most TV stations.

It would make more sense to him as a point-to-point system for a short line-of-sight connection. Although this wouldn't lend itself to mobile connections, it would be portable and have potential as a replacement for short-run, uncompressed fibre links, such as at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships (where cable has to go though public areas) or at the US Golf Masters (where microwave towers are not allowed because the organisers think they spoil the view).

There are uncompressed links already available using 60GHz, such as the Vubiq VuLink VL300 launched at NAB (which Acorn hopes to represent in the UK), with a range of about 150m in HD (1.485Gbps) or 350m for SD (with a pair of systems offering duplex communication). There is also an antenna option with increased gain that will go up to about 500m ("but you need very accurate line up").

It also has the advantage of being "impervious to fog, rain, dust and snow, which affects microwave transmissions," said Remnant.

"Because we are streaming pure uncompressed video, there is no need for additional processing at both ends of the link, which increases cost and latency," explained Mike Pettus, Vubiq’s CTO. "Remarkably, our system is actually faster than fibre – there is essentially zero lag time through the link."

Other options

The UK regulator, OFCOM, had been looking at using the 10GHz bandwidth for the 2012 Olympics in London, but so far the manufacturers have been resisting that, as 7GHz works well (as used by Link Research, the previous company Remnant helped found).

For general on-camera links there are also phone-based technologies, using 3G and 4G standards, such as from Quicklink, which can offer worldwide coverage, but limited bandwidth.

60GHz could have a place on location, giving the option of live, uncompressed links to an on-set editor and, importantly, to back-up disks, allowing productions to meet insurance requirements to have multiple safety copies of the video without any risk from corrupt data on the camera's own recording media (although as some cameras, such as Arri's Alexa, allow multiple recording systems to operate simultaneously on the camera, these risks can be addressed in other ways). Current MIMO-based wireless on-set systems, such as those from Boxx, Transvideo and IDX, are in the 5GHz band and have limited range, but some can handle 10-bit video.

By David Fox

Flashy Filter Forum founded

The new Filter Forum, which provides space for discussing lens filters, has won backing from Tiffen and the London Filter Company, who will be lending their technical expertise as well as sponsoring the site.

Terry Carey, MD of Tiffen International, sees the Filter Forum as a great opportunity for users "to get unbiased advice from world experts and the thousands of other filter users around the world. As never before, people today can shoot HD at low cost. A knowledge of filters will help make their results predictable and with the look they want."

"Motion pictures are always shot using filters, as is professional video footage and, perhaps to a lesser extent, stills photography," added Carey Duffy, LFC's Technical Director. Thanks to the Canon 5D and other HD DSLRs, many photographers are discovering HD and need to know how to get the most out of it. "In all cases sharing knowledge at this forum will help everyone to understand how filters can help them. This is unique. It’s going to help everyone."

It is a Flash site, so accessing it from a mobile device might be difficult, but the forums themselves are HTML, so should be viewable.

By David Fox

Hawk-Woods adapts to HD DSLRs

Hawk-Woods' new battery power adaptors for Canon's HD DSLRs will allow the cameras to be used with high-capacity broadcast batteries. The DC-5D adaptors for the Canon EOS 5D Mark II and EOS 7D cameras feature a cable mounted dummy LP-E6 type battery (as used in the DSLRs), which is linked to either a 2-pin D-Tap, or 4-Pin Hirose plug.

This allows the cameras to be powered from V-Lok (or other) types of battery when plugged into a suitable power output. This could be a rig mounted V-Lok plate, or stand alone V-Lok adaptor, like the Hawk-Woods VL-A1. This means that run-time can be increased immensely, especially for applications like time-lapse photography.

By David Fox

Kata aims to surprise and D-Light

The D-Light Capsules are Kata's latest range of bags for compact camcorders, the first of which is the new Capsule-183. It is designed to carry such camcorders as the Panasonic HPX-170, Canon XH A1s, or Sony EX1R, measures 54x30x25.5cm, and weighs up to 2kg (depending on configuration).

It has a TST RIB running down the middle of the bag and an Aluminium Skeleton stave that arcs across the mid section to provide structural protection, and are surrounded by Honeycomb Panels, Aeriform foam and RipStop fabrics.

The design is asymmetric, so that unfolding its two palm-shaped sides provides easy access to the camcorder. There is ample space for accessories, and the bag includes a Lens Pillow and Rain Cover.

Kata has also extended its range of bags for HD DSLRs, with the new Pro-Light Resource-61 shoulder bag.  It has a Double-Decker design, with a top compartment large enough for a working DSLR mounted on a support system (such as a shoulder brace). There is also a modular Cocoon Pouch for accessories or an additional DSLR body. The lower deck holds additional lenses and accessories. Kata says its going to add further HD DSLR bags in the near future.

By David Fox

Workflow efficiency on a large scale

Hogarth Worldwide is a revolutionary ad agency. It doesn't create advertising campaigns, but it does get them on our screens. It calls itself an ‘advertising implementation agency’, and relies on Media Asset Management and automated workflows to produce around 35,000 ads a month for different media platforms across Europe.

"Hogarth is a new breed of video production facility" that was only possible because low-cost systems from companies like Apple "enabled us be very efficient in a repeatable business" at a low cost, says co-founder, Mark Rhys-Thomas. "The tools suddenly got very good and we could produce a facility for next to nothing."

For more about this highly efficient, Final Cut-based agency, have a look at my article in the May issue of TVB Europe magazine: Workflow efficiency on a large scale

By David Fox

Winged Mercury accelerates CS5

The latest version of Adobe's Creative Suite should be a lot faster to use, not only thanks to workflow improvements but because its main broadcast applications are now all 64-bit and can access the new Mercury Playback Engine for video.

Mercury is "fast and fluid" and has been written from the ground up to make the most of going 64-bit (which allows access to all the RAM in the computer – rather than a 4GB limit per application). "It is leveraging RAM to its fullest and can run more streams of HD content," explained Jason Levine, worldwide evangelist for digital video products (pictured above). It also gains GPU (graphics processor) acceleration and "can run an infinite number of effects in realtime." Adobe has accelerated all of the most common effects, such as Gaussian Blur.

For the rest of my article about the video related aspects of Adobe's new CS5 from the May issue of TVB Europe magazine, have a look at: Winged Mercury accelerates CS5

By David Fox

Added dimensions for 3D

Two of this year's most interesting trends are 3D and DSLRs. One production company has already combined the two to make 3D time-lapse recordings. Site-Eye Time-Lapse Films has had to develop its own rigs and controller systems to shoot the 3D sequences, but the results are impressive and very compelling.

"Our normal time-lapse camera system is a DSLR controlled by some custom hardware and software, which all fits inside a security housing," explains Brian McClave, one of Site-Eye's owners. "We've done some extra programming to shoot both cameras at once, and automatically check the files between both to ensure everything is kept in sync." If one camera drops a frame, it deletes the corresponding frame from the other one too."

For the rest of my article in the May issue of TVB Europe magazine about Site-Eye and 3D Time-Lapse, have a look at: Added dimensions for 3D

The photo above shows one of Site-Eye's self-built 3D DSLR rigs in use.

By David Fox

HD DSLRs - the film look on a budget

One of the most exciting developments of the past year, for those whose ambition is larger than their budget, has been the introduction of HD DSLR cameras that offer large sensors and a huge range of lenses for less than the price of a Sony EX1.

It was notable that about half of all the cameras on show at the February Broadcast Video Expo in London were HD DSLRs – the previous year there had only been one (on the Canon stand). Low-budget filmmakers were the first to realise the potential, but now programmes you might have heard of are using them.

For the rest of this article, read my full piece on HD DSLRs from the May issue of TVB Europe magazine in: HD DSLRs - the film look on a budget

The photo above is of Rodney Charters, cinematographer on 24, and Sam Nicholson, 24's visual effects supervisor, who are quoted in the article about their use of HD DSLRs on the series.

David Fox

H.264 makes up 66% of web video

According to a TechCrunch article, H.264 is quickly becoming the de-facto standard for video being encoded for the web. Over the last year, H.264 use rose from 31% of all videos (Q2 2009) to 66% in Q1 2010. These figures are from Encoding.com, one of the world's biggest encoding companies, which encoded 5 million videos over the past year for the likes of MTV, Brightcove, Nokia and MySpace.

Over the same period, Flash-encoded video dropped from a share of 69% to 26% (for both Flash VP6 and FLV). Of course, a lot of the H.264 video ended up wrapped in a Flash wrapper, but it is fairly simple to offer H.264 both within Flash and by itself (for iPhones, iPads, other mobile devices and some HTML 5 compliant browsers, such as Safari, Google Chrome and the next version of Internet Explorer, IE9), which is why many sites already use it, such as YouTube (which represents some 40% of all videos on the web), and Vimeo (which hosts any UrbanFoxTV videos).

The fastest growing codec is Ogg Theora – which leapt from nothing to the dizzy heights of 4% in the between Q4 2009 and Q1 2010 (overtaking the aging and fast disappearing FLV format, which uses the old H.263 codec). Theora is a currently free, open source format (that might be challenged by patent holders), and is being adopted by some web browsers for use with HTML 5 video (Chrome, Firefox and Opera). However, Theora currently isn't as advanced as H.264 (it is based on the older VP3 codec). There is also the prospect of the new VP8 being offered as an open source codec – VP8 is being developed by On2 Technologies, which is now owned by Google. There is also the BBC's Dirac open format, which is wavelet based, and at least as efficient as H.264, but that hasn't really been adopted by anyone for web use (it can play back in VLC), although it has high-end uses within broadcasting.

Of course, these figures don't take into account the huge numbers of older videos on the web, which are predominantly Flash. However, as Steve Jobs says, Flash can be a bit of a resource hog – especially on older Macs, and if it were working on mobile devices it would drain your batteries fairly quickly. At present, no mobile phones use Flash (although there is a Lite version), but it is "coming soon" for Android (however long "soon" might take to arrive…). I usually run my browsers with Flash switched off, and it is rare that I want to view something using Flash that can't be viewed using HTML 5, but then I don't play Flash games or greatly miss having ads auto-play as I'm reading a newspaper article.

At the moment it looks like encoding H.264 is the best way of doing video on the web (with the option to wrap it in Flash or use HTML 5), just ensure you keep your original files for encoding in further formats in future.

UPDATE: There is an excellent article at Engadget by Nilay Patel, about H.264 patent licensing and who pays what to whom, and should you be concerned about it. Basically, there are some overly broad terms in the licensing agreements, but this doesn't seem to have any real implications for users (at least not before 2015, and maybe not after that either). The article is one of the best I've seen covering this subject and well worth a read.

David Fox

3D: Sony's twin lens reflex

Engadget has a photo of a possible prototype 3D camera from Sony, to compete with Panasonic's new 3D camcorder. The Sony model will be based on its PMW-EX3 camcorder and will offer changeable lenses, with on-board HD recording of 35Mbps XDCAM EX (MPEG-2, 4:2:0 files) to SxS cards. It will also output "uncompressed 4:4:4" via two HD-SDI connections (4:2:2 seems more likely to me, but 4:4:4 would be very nice indeed - and could be recorded on a Codex Digital recorder). It appears to use two sets of the EX3's three half-inch CMOS sensors. The lenses shown on the prototype are apparently very close together (an inter-ocular distance of 1.5inches/3.75cm), which would make this set up good for close up use in confined spaces. The camera was developed with Discovery TV.

There is no word on price or availability, but Sony will want to compete with the Panasonic AG-3DA1, and field testing is due to begin in July.

Related Posts: Panasonic 3D camcorder gets AVCHD, Ikonoskop goes stereo with 3D A-Cam, and Panasonic unveils HD 3D camcorder

Bag yourself a tripod

If you shoot video on anything more professional than an iPhone, then you'll probably have a fair bit of kit to carry round, and need something to support the camera while you are shooting. Now, what if the bag you use to carry everything could also, somehow, provide the support for the camera? That's what the people at Petrol Bags thought when they came up with their new Cambio Camera Carrier/Support System, which converts from a trolley bag into a sort of tripod.

It's not Petrol's first attempt to give its bags a support function. Have a look at the Petrol Pillow Staybag, which can provide support where using a tripod isn't possible (such as strapped to a moving car, on rocks or other uneven surface) where the camera rests on a pillow of Steadi-Balls that moulds to its shape and that of the surface it's on, with straps to attach the bag to the car (or whatever).

The Cambio has an extendable centre column (up to 142cm) that is usually used as the trolley bag handle (also useful for those of us that find most trolley bag handles too short). You can screw a tripod head into the handle (using a 75mm bowl), and it will support cameras weighing up to 4.5kg, including the head (so will take most budget camcorders – up to a JVC HM700 – and any HD DSLRs)

The wheels extend to the sides, and come with integral chocks to prevent movement, and you pull out a leg from the centre of the bag to create the tripod.

The Cambio will cost $699 for the bag, or $799 for a usable system including an easily attached lightweight micro-fluid head. For the same money, you could get a pretty good, lightweight, compact three-stage tripod and a separate trolley bag, and have greater flexibility. However, the Cambio can be taken as carry-on luggage, and with the ever greater restrictions being placed on airline baggage, that could be the deciding factor.

Have a look at Petrol's video of the Cambio in action to see how it works.

By David Fox

Motion slickness

Why would a battery need a motion detection sensor? To deploy a parachute if you drop it…. Or to keep you informed of earthquakes…. Or even so its little LEDs can glow red with embarrassment if you dance.

Apparently not. In fact, Anton/Bauer has added motion detection to its latest camera battery because it "significantly increases battery life".

The new 120 Watt-hour capacity Dionic HCX uses motion detection so that it can go into a deep sleep after two weeks without use, and then wake up as soon as you move it. This allows extended storage with "nearly zero capacity loss", and extends the overall life of the battery by mitigating lithium-ion battery self-discharge when the battery is not in use. 

Once Anton/Bauer integrates the Dionic HCX with its Battery Management System users will be able to program the length of inactivity needed prior to the battery going to sleep.

The 1.09 kg battery can also withstand high instantaneous current draws in addition to 10 amp sustained current draws, and can power a 40 Watt camera with a 20W light for more than two hours.

By David Fox

Cine lenses for HD DSLRs

Carl Zeiss is creating a set of prime (from 18mm to 85mm) and zoom lenses for HD DSLR cameras.

Its upcoming Compact Prime CP.2 and Lightweight Zoom LWZ.2 lenses will have interchangeable mounts that can be used with Canon EF, Nikon F, and PL-mount cameras.

The primes can be used on full frame cameras (like the Canon 5D Mark II), and will all open to T2.1 (although in the press photograph of the lenses, the 85mm is shown as a T1.5). However, the 15.5-45mm/T2.6 zoom lens can only be used with crop sensors (such as on the Canon EOS 7D – up to 24.9x18.7mm, a Super 35mm film frame). The zoom will weigh about 2kg, which makes it useful for Steadicam applications. Thanks to the interchangeable mounts, the lenses should be very attractive to hire companies, as they will cover a wide range of traditional cine cameras and HD DSLRs.

Prices are likely to be at least as much as many of the cameras they are fitted to, and they should be available from June.

Being designed for moviemaking, they will be a lot easier to use than stills lenses, especially for focusing, with longer focus rotation (making it a lot easier to be precise – particularly for manual use).

The iris opening in the prime lenses uses 14 high-precision blades, which stay consistently round and symmetrical over the entire T-stop range. This should translate into natural and pleasing out-of-focus highlights and a smooth bokeh (the ring around the blurred highlights). The lens design and tight tolerances are claimed to "ensure low distortion, high resolution and excellent colour rendition for sharp, punchy images."

By David Fox

DaVinci colour grades going cheap

Blackmagic Design is to unleash high-end colour grading at low end prices, offering the full capabilities of a DaVinci Resolve system as software for OS X at only $995. Its new Resolve version 7.0 basically does what previously took a system costing $200,000 upwards, although you have to provide your own Mac – and the DaVinci controller hardware (if you want it) does cost extra, although still a significant price reduction at $29,995.

DaVinci is the gold standard of colour correction and grading systems, used by most high-end facilities, and in the OS X configuration will be good enough for HD or even 2k work in realtime. For top-end use (such as 3D movies), the price has also dropped dramatically, from more than $800,000 to about $150,000 for a fully featured Linux multi-processor system. Blackmagic Design only bought DaVinci six months ago.

Certainly, for any Mac users that find Apple's Color software insufficient for their purposes, Resolve sounds like a fantastic deal. It should be available by July.

Have a look at the TVB Europe story for lots more information.

By David Fox

Canon fires out first 4:2:2 file-based camcorders

Canon has launched its first Full HD MPEG-2 4:2:2 50Mbps camcorders. The XF305 and XF300 record industry-standard MXF (Material eXchange Format) files to Compact Flash memory cards, making them very easily compatible with broadcast post production (all the major non-linear editing systems). Most rival cameras record 4:2:0, which offers half the colour information – making them less suitable for such things as greenscreen work.

The cameras have 18x L-series HD lenses, three 1/3-inch CMOS sensors and DIGIC DV III processors. They have two CF card slots, for continuous recording.

The sensors are claimed to offer "exceptional colour accuracy, wide dynamic range and low noise" and use high-speed data readout (2x speed) to minimise the rolling shutter skew common to most CMOS camcorders.

The 29.3mm "wide angle" F1.6 lens has zoom and focus rings with physical end stops, for more accurate control, plus an independent iris ring, and uses high-end optics and coatings.

The cameras have a 1.55 million dot electronic viewfinder with 100% coverage and a high-resolution (1.23 million dots) LCD that can be switched from left to right and, at 4-inches (10cm) is about the largest of any LCD in this class of camcorder.

The cameras will also offer slow and fast motion recording, with 20 speeds to choose from in 720p mode and nine in 1080p (normal recording speeds are 1080 50i or 25p, 720 50/25p (in the European versions).

Both models record 16-bit linear PCM audio at 48kHz, from either the integrated stereo microphone or via two XLR connectors. Power consumption is an admirably low 9W, and the cameras weigh about 2.7kg.

The only difference between them is for studio or multi-camera use, for which the XF305 adds HD-SDI output, Genlock input and Time code i/o. The XF305 should cost about $8,000, while the XF300 will be $1,300 less (list), with availability from June.

Related post: Canon's codec choice

By David Fox