Cool video shot with Sony's Action Cam and a multi-copter. Watch for mult-kilo dollar 'crane' shots done on the cheap.



H/T to Grant Cunningham

Comparison: SDI vs analog component

With the announcement of TriCaster 40 v2 and it's new features a lot of people are looking at it with renewed interest but are hesitant because of the lack of SDI inputs. So I thought I'd do a little comparison between the two. I expected to see a little more noise in the analog signal but not much other difference.

Methodology: 

• Played NewTek's standard demo clips (mov format) in a DDR on the TriCaster 8000.
• Output both SDI and component analog signals at 1080i.
• Ran those two signals into inputs on the same TC8000
• Used an M/E to setup a split screen.
• Recorded the main out, the SDI input, the component input and the split screen from the m/e

This way I could compare everything with exactly the same number of compression cycles.

Results:

Any difference in noise in the images is completely overwhelmed by the mpeg compression artifacts.
My particular TriCaster's analog out has slightly more contrast than the SDI. I pretty much fixed it with a couple of clicks in the proc-amp.

Conclusion:

Don't sweat the SDI/component difference for quality reasons. To my eye the analog picture didn't look worse than the SDI just a little different. I suspect you'd actually see more of a difference between any two individual cameras then I was seeing between analog and digital.

I could detect a tiny bit of noise using static test signals but not with real world video. If you were coming in from a good quality camera and looking at the uncompressed video you might be able to see the difference but by the time it's compressed using even a very high quality codec you are going to be hard pressed to notice a difference.

See for yourself:
update: download a full res video sample

The first image is enlarged 200% the video was not proc-amped at all in these images.

 

Just so you know the SDI is on the left

Special Effects Legend Ray Harryhausen Dies

LA Times Obit

The 7th Voyage of Sinbad from 1958

NewTek NAB Recap

From around the web

3Play 4800 Changes Price Performance of Replay   The 4800 with it's social media features and basic switching capabilities is a game changer.

TriCaster 8000 New Features Maybe a dissenting view on the utility of the social media functions.

Replay No Longer Optional in Sports Production More on the 3Play 4800.

Compix CG For TriCaster Yet another big name is supporting TriCaster

NewTek NAB Special - Limited Time

From April 8-June 27, NewTek will offer TriCaster 455 for a limited-time purchase price of $9,995 for the base unit (a la Carte, no CS, no media drives), international pricing will vary. If you add the CS controller and a media drive you will save about $3000 over the normal bundle price. This is also a great way to get a backup unit.

  Give us a call at 1-800-692-6442 to take advantageof the deal!

TriCaster New Feature Preview from NAB

NewTek previewed some upcoming new features for some of the TriCaster models.Some highlights:

The TriCaster 8000 will be getting new animated frame stores. This will allow you to apply a video clip or animation to many elements in a VirtualSet.

TriCaster 40 will be getting animation store transitions and an improved multiviewer along with some new record formats. In fact the 40 is getting enough new features I'm surprised they didn't call it 2.0 and charge a bundle for it.

The Virtual Set editor gets the prize for the "Blow the Top of Your Head Off New Feature. Take a quick "shot" of a location with your smartphone (or presumably a real camera) and convert it to a virtual set with just a few mouse clicks.  Now we aren't talking about just a static background but a full pan, tilt and zoomable virtual set. The demo I saw even placed elements like a guard rail in front of the talent being placed in the virtual environment. Pretty amazing. I'm not sure how this is going to translate into sets for the TriCasters below the 8000 but I'll see what I can find out.

The really cool thing is these are all free upgrades. NewTek just rocks.

The Cool New 3Play 4800

NewTek just announced availability of the new 3Play 4800. This is their newest instant replay and more machine. The user interface has been completely revamped with the addition of multi-angle previews, the full TriCaster transition engine, a quick tagging function and a ton of other things. I've only seen a brief demo at the dealer meeting but I think 3Play users both current and future are gonna like it. Oh, and there will be upgrades available from other 3Play models.

 

Another big new feature is the ability to use the 3Play as a simple switcher. This makes it just about perfect for driving score board video displays since you won't really need a switcher. The social media features will be great in this situation too.

Features At A Glance:
• Redundant Capture
For intense action, redundant capture of up to 4 live video sources doubles up ISO recordings and protects all your assets. Need more angles? Standard mode lets you record up to 8 live video sources, simultaneously.
• High-end Visuals
Live animated, 3D-warped visual transition effects for switching and in-program editing, with custom animation creator and import of your own branded graphic elements.
• Live Replay Switching
Monitor all angles during replay, and transition between them video-switcher style—providing a completely finished replay segment within moments, animated transitions and all, to output to switcher, feed the video board, or upload to the Web.
• Interpolated Slow Motion
Get clear, crisp slow motion playback with standard HD or SD cameras (or both), achieved with a high-quality, super-resolution algorithm for sharper slow motion and dramatic stills alike.
• Social Media Publishing Easily distribute content to multiple social media sites in one pass—even during live production, for a unified, immediate brand presence