AG-HVX202EN at Billabong Pro Tahiti
HD Paradise
By Mike Calvino
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| Andy Irons standing in the tube |
"Pack your bags! You're going to Tahitifor a month," says Billabong marketing manager and former pro surfer Luke Egan.
I immediately think, "Mmm, sounds like a dream job." I'm picturing myself lazing in a lounge chair by picture-postcard blue water, sipping drinks with small umbrellas, watching endless sunsets.
Then Egan quickly bursts my bubble by going on to tell me that two major broadcasters are sending TV reporters and that I will be shooting and cutting multiple packages with impossible deadlines for national news and, just for good measure, we also need to produce a feature movie that needs to be mastered one week after the competition.
The news needs content. The grommets need their DVD. By the sounds of it, I will soon need a break. I'd better forget the Hawaiian shirt and I start thinking about what serious broadcast gear I am going to take.
In many ways, the Billabong Pro Tahiti is bitter sweet. Nestled amongst shark-teeth volcanic green mountains, the villageof Teahupoois visually the most spectacular stop on the so-called "Dream Tour" of professional surfing.
The fishing village has no shops or hotels, but it's home to the world's most famous wave. Brutally beautiful, the left-hander offers perfect barrel rides over the razor sharp coral reef. The crystal clear water makes the waves even more spectacular and there is never a shortage of drama - the surfer will either have the best or most painful ride of his life.
What makes the event so unique is the so-called 'floating arena', which means everyone - from the surfers to the spectators - gets wet. Except, that is, the camera equipment, which has to stay 100% dry. Often the video team has to risk their own safety to ensure we get the shot and save the gear.
Did I mention it can often rain for days in tropical Tahiti?
So with all this in mind, we opted for the Panasonic AG-HVX202EN. As Teahupoo is mainly shot from a boat or jet ski on the edge of the reef, the camera's small size is perfect, .We also put one in an underwater housing, and have another roving for interviews and pieces to camera by the reporters.
We also chose the AG-HVX202EN because of its ability to shoot various formats as the reporters are from different television stations and may have different needs. The camera will allow us to select and quickly change between HD (which we choose for all footage to be used in the movie) and DVCPRO 50 (for newsfeeds and packages for broadcast). The ability to shoot different frame rates is also great, allowing us to shoot all interviews and lifestyle at 25p (because of the cinematic quality it gives to the pictures) and our action at 50 frames per second to capture the amazing energy of the wave and athletes.
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| Broadcast Camera AG-HVX202EN |
The time lapse function is also great, giving us an excuse to spend plenty of time taking in the surroundings. As storms, sunsets and waves rolled in, the AG-HVX202EN was ready.
Because of the seemingly impossible deadlines and competitive nature of the news, we are often sending back 3-4 stories per day to the networks who demand the highest broadcast quality. The equipment has to be fast and reliable. After all, jobs are on the line!
Four weeks into the competition and half way through the semi-final, I'm sitting on a boat on the edge of the reef with FOX SPORTS presenter Thai Neavewhen Australian title contender Mick Fanning suddenly jumps into the lead with a typically perfect ride.
"We have thirty minutes before the final, let's send back a story" Thai says casually.
We quickly shoot a piece to camera with Mick Fanning's next wave in the background and speed back in a jet ski to the shore and run to the edit suit.
The way in which P2 works with Final Cut Pro is seamless. I plug in the card and instantly a window opens with all my clips represented as thumbnails. No need to cue up tape to find what I need, just drag and drop. In record time I have all the clips I need on the timeline, quick edit, encode and off goes the story, straight to the FOXSPORTS server who immediately aired the story while we get ready to film the final.
This process is now being copied by news rooms around the world. The Billabong team is proud to be at the fore front of this remarkable technology.
The DVCPRO HD codec is amazing in its ability to capture such incredible images into such manageable file sizes, allowing us to quickly edit and master completely on laptops. The codec's ability to capture in 4:2:2 was also amazing at capturing the colour of the tropical blue water, the lush green of the vegetation, and of course represent true skin tones. 4:2:2 is also a dream for colour correcting and grading, allowing us to exploit the information still in the image and push our colours to richer than rich levels.
By the time the final is over Billabong Editor Jake Donlen amazingly has most of the feature film complete. "The footage looks amazing!" is the reaction of the crew standing around the laptop as he downloads the final clips and begins getting creative.
A week later the film is mixed and graded and ready to send to the DVDduplicators. Not much of a holiday, but the footage is world class. From beginning to end the feature was completed in just 38 days - all in HD. The new standard has been set in both speed and quality within the surf industry.
Despite the difficult environment, the challenging deadlines and the pressure to meet Billabong's high expectations, another event can be claimed as a success.
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