GE AR . PTZ CAMS
P ossibly the earliest adopter of what we might call networked remote broadcast was JVC, which launched the first camcorder in its Connected Cam system at NAB 2018. More recently, the range has grown to include PTZ cameras, with the KY-PZ400N and KY-PZ200N shooting 4K and HD pictures, respectively, new at the NAB Show 2022 in Las Vegas. They slip easily into traditional broadcast set-ups, with 3G-SDI and HDMI outputs and serial control interfaces. VIDEO OVER IP NewTek’s NDI protocol is now hugely popular among just the sort of audience that needs small, easy-to-instal PTZ cameras like JVC’s, and NDI comes up a lot in any discussion of the subject in 2022. JVC now optionally includes the efficient NDI HX protocol alongside its existing SRT video transport. There’s even USB connectivity on the 200-series, allowing the camera to be used in direct connection to a computer,
effectively as a webcam. As is often the case, JVC isn’t shy about offering not so much a laundry list, as a telephone directory of features. Even if we feel the need for a more conventional camera in the same ecosystem, we can reach for the GY- HC500 camcorder or GY-HC900, a full-size broadcast camera built to make experienced operators happy. BirdDog’s famous encoders were originally built to bring conventional cameras into an NDI world – a concept it continues with its Mini converter and 4K-capable models with HDMI or SDI connectivity. The company now offers a full range of PTZ cameras, all NDI-enabled, including the P4K with a large, one-inch Sony sensor behind a Carl Zeiss-branded lens. The theme running through recent PTZ cameras is that picture quality no longer plays second fiddle to the robot pan and tilt features, and BirdDog seems keen to push in that direction; it has the largest sensor we’ll discuss here. While BirdDog cameras and encoders are fully equipped
FLYING HIGH BirdDog has an
outstanding reputation – and this PTZ camera will only enhance that
with the appropriate selection of high-bandwidth SDI and HDMI connectors, the computer- networked approach brings a lot of ancillary benefits beyond simply being able to use existing cables. PTZ camera control, as well as things like voice communication, tally lights and even power, can be piggy-backed onto the NDI stream. The company’s platform for camera control is a Windows 10 computer, which sits on the network, running one of several apps. There is also a hardware PTZ keyboard – likely the tool of choice for anyone who prefers to be hands-on with real buttons and dials, operating either via serial device control or over NDI as appropriate.
VISIONARIES JVC’s KY-PZ400N and KY-PZ200N promise optimal streaming image quality
“BirdDog now offers a full range of PTZ cameras, all NDI-enabled, including the P4K”
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