Ikegami announces a new addition to its range of broadcast-quality cameras. The UHL-F4000 is a compact and lightweight 4K HDR camera with very low power consumption. Designed for use in applications such as aerial video capture and studio robotics, it is capable of capturing broadcast quality colour video across an extremely wide range of night or daytime conditions. Image adjustment capabilities include haze removal, backlight correction and digital zoom.

Television production service provider HD BROADCAST, based near Mainz, has invested in Leader LV5600 waveform monitors for installation in its new UHD OB2 outside broadcast production vehicle. The instruments will be used to ensure precise matching of incoming signal feeds and to maintain the highest possible video and audio signal quality through to the transmitted output. Six units were supplied by Leader Europe distribution partner LOGIC Media Solutions.

"UHD gives content producers the ability to deliver a level of picture quality akin to the real-world live experience," says HD BROADCAST MD Constantin Novotny. "The initial challenge production teams face is to ensure every camera is fully aligned and matched to any others being used, not least in terms of colour temperature. Using the LV5600 instruments we can check those parameters quickly and accurately both in terms of signal levels and chroma vectors."

"Each LV5600 also includes a very useful tool for checking that the captured image is in perfect focus. This is especially valuable given the tremendous amount of detail UHD can resolve. The instruments also provide the measurement capabilities needed to handle additional parameters such as high dynamic range and wide color gamut."

Magewell -- the award-winning developer of innovative video interface and IP workflow solutions -- has expanded its support for the Mac platform with a new SDK for the company's popular PCI Express capture cards and plug-and-play, external capture devices. Available immediately, the SDK lets third-party developers directly access the advanced capabilities of Magewell capture devices in their macOS and OS X software applications.

Ikegami Electronics Europe (www.ikegami.de) announces a new addition to its range of broadcast production equipment. The BSX-100 is a 3G fibre base station offering a coherent upgrade path for broadcasters and production companies as they progress from SDI to IP, from standard dynamic range to high dynamic range and from high definition into HD/4K dual-format workflow.

The BSX-100 is fully compatible with Ikegami Unicam HD system cameras, including the HDK-99 and HDK-73. It will also support Ikegami's future 4K-native cameras. In its standard form, the base station provides 3G-SDI/HD-SDI HD output.

SMPTE ST.2110 Media over IP interfacing is available as an option for use across 10GbE and 25GbE networks. Also available as an option is a 4K output software key allowing use of HD cameras in a variety of configurations which include simultaneous production in HD and 4K resolutions. Complementary 12G-SDI / 3G-SDI quad link interfaces are also available. This approach allows 3G camera systems to be integrated into 4K environments easily and cost-efficiently.

The Ikegami BSX-100 provides full support for Hybrid Log Gamma in conformance with ITU-R BT.2100 which is the international standard for HDR. Wide colour gamut is also supported.

AVer Information Inc., an award-winning provider of video conferencing solutions, has announced a collaboration focused on creating video conferencing technologies that work seamlessly with Microsoft software. AVer Video Collaboration Solutions for Microsoft will be a complete line of AVer USB video conferencing products developed and certified with Microsoft Teams in mind. These AVer products will feature HD cameras, professional-grade speakers, far-field microphones, and will easily connect to any Windows 10 PC via a single USB cable.

Streaming solutions innovator StreamGear Inc. is proud to announce that its smartphone-empowered VidiMo handheld, live production system has been honored with a 2020 Special Edition Best of Show Award, presented by Digital Video following the NAB Show Express digital experience.

VidiMo -- short for Video director on Mobile -- turns a smartphone and HDMI video source (such as a camera) into a full-fledged, virtual production and transmission studio, enabling a single operator to produce multi-source, television-style shows that can be streamed live, recorded or both. Offering an easier way for both video professionals and enthusiasts to create and stream engaging, high-quality, live productions, the new hardware-and-app combination enables anyone to become a multi-camera producer, social media video star or citizen journalist.

Aiming to help inspire the increasing number of people in lockdown turning to cooking and baking, AEG collaborated with video production company Monarki Stockholm and Scandinavian Photo to help produce a multicam live stream cook-along show.

AJA Video Systems has announced Ki Pro Ultra 12G, a new single-channel 4K/UltraHD recorder and player or four-channel HD recorder, featuring 12G-SDI connectivity with a host of unique and powerful features. Ki Pro Ultra 12G offers single-channel 4K/UltraHD up to 50/60p recording and playback to and from Apple ProRes or Avid DNxHR, with flexible connectivity options including 12G-SDI, HDMI v2.0 and optional Fiber input and outputs. Alternatively Ki Pro Ultra 12G provides up to four channels of simultaneous HD recording up to 1080 50/60p with independent ProRes profiles per channel. Ki Pro Ultra 12G is available today through AJA’s worldwide network for $3,995 US MSRP. For more information, visit: www.aja.com/products/ki-pro-ultra-12g.

Leader Electronics announces the addition of MaxFALL and MaxCLL HDR metadata error logging tools for production studios, postproduction suites and media laboratories working with SMPTE ST.2086 metadata to grade high dynamic range video. This new feature complements the recently launched SER31 Colorimetry Zone Display ‘real-time’ false-colour display plug-in module. It is fully compatible with Leader ZEN series broadcast test and measurement instruments which comprise the LV5300, LV5350 and LV5600 waveform monitors plus the LV7300 and LV7600 rasterizers.
With this enhancement, Leader ZEN series instruments allow operators to ensure that the MaxFALL and MaxCLL HDR metadata accurately reflect the content of their productions by specifying limits for MaxFALL and MaxCLL values. The integral Cinelite Advanced light meter can be used to locate out-of-range pixels and confirm their values both on the picture display and on the waveform monitor.

MaxFALL Metadata - Maximum Frame Average Light Level – defines the maximum average light level, in nits, for any single frame within an encoded HDR video stream or file.

KitchenFish LLC, the video production company responsible for the nightly broadcast coverage of the South Carolina Education Lottery, is using a new FOR-A HVS-390HS video switcher for its productions. Located a few blocks from the state capitol, the KitchenFish studio hosts the nightly lottery drawings, and also supports live shots of state and local officials for national news outlets. The switcher was installed on April 14 and used for that evening’s production.

“We need to show all these graphics and video inserts simultaneously, and the new FORA switcher gives us a lot of flexibility,” said Jim Simmons, chief engineer for KitchenFish. “Price made a difference, but reliability is the one thing that has to be foremost, because we don’t have a second chance.

As of May 2020, Trickbox TV is officially 10 years old. The company provides multi-camera solutions for a variety of broadcast projects and hosts its own central London studio overlooking Tower Bridge. Experienced in live streaming, they have recently branched out with a successful Virtual Events service.

Reflecting on the decade, Trickbox’s Founder and Managing Director, Liam Laminman, commented, ‘Trickbox has had an eventful life so far. From our beginnings in the wake of the financial crisis to celebrating our tenth anniversary during a global pandemic, we’ve adapted to the challenges that have come our way. Trickbox’s successes have been in the experiences we’ve gained by working on many different projects and alongside an amazing team. We’ve built a strong network of clients and suppliers and we’re looking forward to the new decade and the opportunities yet to come.’

Trickbox TV has worked on projects with many big industry names; BBC, ITV, Sky, Netflix, Vodaphone, The Financial Times and Oracle.

Magewell has released a new upgrade for its award-winning Ultra Stream family of live streaming encoder hardware that further enhances the devices' exceptional ease of use and versatility. Available in all new units and as a free firmware update for existing customers, version 1.3 adds flexible new recording modes alongside expanded streaming protocol support and various minor refinements.

Magewell's Ultra Stream encoders make live streaming remarkably simple even for non-professional users, enabling them to record or stream high-quality video with one click using on-device buttons, a browser-based web interface or an intuitive smartphone app. Designed for users who want to stream but may have minimal technical knowledge, the compact devices are ideal for addressing the increased need for live streaming created by today's stay-at-home and social distancing restrictions.

Leader Electronics is pleased to announce a new addition to its team with the appointment of Neil Coles as European Regional Development Manager. Based in London, he will be working directly with customers and via the Leader network of distribution partners to extend the company's presence across the continent.

"Neil is a popular and highly respected member of the broadcast industry with a good knowledge of the creative and commercial aspects as well as the technology on which our customers depend," comments Leader Europe Managing Director Koichi Fukagawa. "His areas of responsibility will include promoting the wide range of test and measurement solutions to the existing Leader user base and helping increase our share of the broadcast, digital film and web-TV market."

"Accurate, repeatable and cost-efficient test and measurement are essential in the highly competitive sphere of content creation, postproduction, storage and distribution," Neil Coles adds. "I am delighted to be joining a company which is clearly living up to its name as a world-leading producer of innovative, intuitive and affordable instrumentation. Leader has already made significant advances in the OB market which we see as an area with considerable growth potential both into the 4K UHD domain and, longer term, into 8K Hi-Vision."

Since 2002, the Parliament of Catalonia has produced an institutional television feed as a free public service and educational resource for its citizens and media organizations. Overseen by a tight-knit team of in-house broadcast and engineering specialists, the Barcelona-based Parliament manages all aspects of production and delivers 150 hours of live video content on a monthly basis. Located within the historic Ciutadella Park, the Parliament’s production facilities include eight meeting rooms, seven television control rooms, two dedicated audio studios, a master control room and an editing suite, housing all video equipment required to distribute up to six program feeds to broadcasters, closed-circuit television and web streaming channels. Critical to broadcast operations are a range of AJA solutions for recording, frame synchronization and conversion, including the file-based Ki Pro Rack capture and playback device, the dual-channel FS2 framesync/converter and AJA’s versatile lineup of Mini-Converters.

Leader LV5350 portable waveform monitors and LV7300 rasterizers have been chosen as reference test instruments for broadcast television coverage of a major football tournament scheduled to be held next year in Cameroon. The games are scheduled to take place in January and February at city venues for live transmission across Africa and around the world. The instruments are being provided by Leader Europe's Brussels-based distribution partner Studiotech SA.

"The LV5350 encapsulates in a compact and portable unit all the features OB and studio gallery colorists need for matching multiple camera channels," says Studiotech's General Manager Nicolas Tardieu. "Live stage and sports events send adrenaline levels very high for TV production teams as well as the contestants. Dependable and easy-to-navigate tools are essential. With its integral multi-view monitor screen, the LV5350 is exceptionally easy to configure and control. The LV5350 and LV7300 incorporate practically every reference tool OB technicians need for live signal evaluation plus the drill-down facilities required during initial system line-up and continuity checks."