TV Technology - January 7, 2009 - (Page 16)

NEWS More CONTINUED FROM PAGE 15 lightweight tripod/fluid head assemblies that they can quickly deploy on breaking news stories. Miller Camera Support developed its Sprinter II tripod with quickrelease levers on the legs. “With one motion you can release both stages of the legs,” said Jason Karpowich, regional sales executive for Miller’s U.S. operation, “so you can set the tripod up in a matter of a few seconds.” Single stage and two-stage Sprinter II tripod combinations are available in lightweight, high strength carbon fiber or in durable and cost-effective alloy tubing. A mid-level spreader utilizes a center-hub adjustment to provide solid leg support at any height. fischer connectors cable assembly Miller provides its Arrow fluid head in three models to span the camera range from smaller, H(DV) camcorders to the larger HD camera and lens packages. “They are really machined to zero tolerance,” said Karpowich. When Cartoni developed its Gamma System fluid heads, it knew that news cameramen were constantly adding and removing wide-angle adapters on the front of the camera, changing batteries on the back, and otherwise shifting the center-of-gravity the head would have to balance. So the company provided a 100mm sliding range to its base plate to allow the shooter to quickly re-balance the payload on the head. “It’s an infinite counterbalance, infinite fluid drag, and provides a plus or minus 90-degree tilt,” said Manios of Ste-Man. “It makes it easy to adapt to any camera package up to 35 pounds, and any shooting condition.” The Gamma head features a 100mm tripod bowl fitting, and can be combined with a number of Cartoni tripod models. I Integrated connector and cable systems I Off the shelf or customized cable solutions Know-how in low voltage, high voltage, coax/triax, fiber optic, fluid and hybrid Cable termination, overmolding and heat shrinking techniques Testing process ensuring optimum reliability Rugged cable solutions, ideal for harsh environments Complete range of accessories: reels, panels, sleeves and caps I I I I I Sachtler SOOM Call 866.961.7926 today to speak with a product specialist about your application. Helping you design a better interconnect solution www.fischerconnectors.com Fischer Connectors, Inc. 1735 Founders Parkway Alpharetta, GA 30009 Tel: 800.551.0121 Fax: 678.393.5401 mail@fischerconnectors.com With Sachtler’s SOOM, a news photographer has a flexible camera support system to meet the variety of needs he faces each day. “The SOOM lets him put the camera higher, lower, and in more tight quarters than with competing tripods,” said Camera Dynamics Ahmadi. The SOOM looks like a standard tripod, but with its telescoping centerpost, it can raise the camera to a lens height of over eight feet. The tripod’s mid-levels spreader can be used as a baby tripod of its own, providing a lens height of from eight to 19 inches. The center-column can be removed from the tripod and used as a monopod in tight setup situations. “You would think all of this functionality would be bulky and heavy,” said Ahmadi. “But the SOOM system, featuring all 4 functions, weighs just over 11 pounds, and less than 16 pounds with the Sachtler FSB 6 fluid head. And it collapses to 37 inches for easy carrying and shipping.” Because news photographers have the need to use a tremendous range of camera configurations, with and without teleprompters, battery packs, oncamera lights and so forth, Vinten developed its Vision 11 fluid head with a wide payload range. “You can put anything from a small, H(DV) style camera, all the way to a full-sized HD camera, and anything inbetween,” said Ahmadi of Camera Dynamics, which markets Vinten product in the United States. “With its wide sliding plate range you can quickly change the center-of-gravity balance to add a teleprompter or other accessory.” The Vision 11 features Vinten’s Perfect Balance counterbalance system with a digital readout, backlit drag knobs for its and the LF (Lubricated Friction) drag system, and an illuminated leveling bubble. Designers of Manfrotto tripods and fluid heads knew that much of a news photographer’s day is spent as pack mule, carrying his gear from place to place. “For news stations you want something to be pretty durable and lightweight,” said Wayne Schulman, video product and sales manager for Bogen Imaging, which markets Manfrotto products in the U.S. The company provides a wide range of carbon-fiber tripods and professional fluid heads to allow the cameraman to match his camera support equipment to his individual camera package, so he’s not carrying the extra weight of a system with too much payload capacity. While a news photographer will be sent to get a beauty shot on a nice, sunny day, he really earns his stripes when the weather becomes the story, and his gear better be designed for those conditions too. So when Shotoku designed its SH100 fluid head for the ENG market, they knew what the head would face in the field. “Before coming to market, the head successfully endured a multitude of brutal performance and reliability tests, and proved that it could excel in any type of shooting situation,” said Naoki Ebimoto, president of Shotoku Broadcast Systems. Shotoku’s SH100 fluid head The SH100 provides a full 90degrees of tilt while supporting a payload range of from 17-33 pounds, with a fluid drag control to easily adjust the head from low to high torque. Shotoku provides an SH90 for lighter weight camera packages, and the SH120 for heavier, EFP camera packages. I 16 January 7, 2009 • TV Technology • www.tvtechnology.com http://www.fischerconnectors.com http://www.tvtechnology.com

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TV Technology - January 7, 2009 NFL Enters a New Dimension Mobile DTV Looms Large in 2009 Contents A ‘Flexible Framework’ Doing More With Less ‘X’tra-Streamlined Finish Line in Sight for BAS Transition Ahead of the Relocation Curve DTV Transition Survival Guide ENG and the Lines of Communication DTV Transition Survival Guide Who Do We Really Work For? Obama to Expand Internet Access The Wizard Takes a Holiday The Solid-State Disk Revival To Light the Ear... or Not Hulu Gets It Right—the First Time User Reports—Video Servers & Recording/Controllers Reference Guide Product Showcase Classifieds Marketplace TV Tech Business

TV Technology - January 7, 2009

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