Broadcast News

Bookmark and Share
06/01/2020

High-End TV Wildlife Series Innovates With Sony BRC Remote Cameras

News Image
Normally spotted in a pristine studio environment, the Sony BRC Series PTZ remote cameras have found a new application documenting the heart-warming story of beautiful lynx cats in a Russian forest.

Screened for the first time by BBC2 over Christmas 2019, Snow Cats & Me tracks some of the world's most elusive and beautiful cats as they're rewilded after a life in captivity. To make it possible, the series’ producers turned to Sony BRC Series PTZ remote cameras as an ideal tool to capture unique close-up footage of these rare mammals.

Produced by Oak Island Films and Hello Halo TV, the two-part series pushes creative and technical boundaries to present an intimate portrait of animals in the wild. "The way we've used remote cameras on this production has been really innovative," said Ted Oakes, Managing Director of Oak Island Films who produced the two-part programme with Hello Halo TV. “"his was a tricky challenge: the Sony BRC cameras helped us capture amazing footage that expresses the unique character of these beautiful animals in their natural environment."

Shot over several weeks in a remote Russian forest, the project presented some unusual challenges to Series Producer Jonny Young: "When we first heard that we’d be filming these famously shy and elusive cats in dense undergrowth in a Russian forest, our hearts sank," recalled Jonny. "Added to that, we were told by the scientist in charge that these formerly captive cats were being rehabilitated back to the wild – and we'd need to stay well away lest human contact continued to harm them."

"We needed a creative solution to get intimate footage of the cats in an enclosure that was a huge forest site full of long grass, bushes and trees. Through our production kit supplier Visual Impact in Bristol, we asked Sony how we could remotely film lynx in 4K and HD – but from a distance of 50m away through the trees!"

"Sony suggested its BRC series remote PTZ (pan tilt zoom) cameras for the project," said Jonny. "While they're normally used in a clean, dry studio environment, we needed a reliable 4K camera that would not only withstand being left in a forest for three weeks at a time but could be operated away from mains electricity.

"The BRC cameras were perfect for us. Once we'd weather-proofed the cameras and powered them with 12-volt lorry batteries, we set them up them in spots where we knew the lynx family would likely hang out in. From a distance, presenter Gordon Buchanan could watch and record the most intimate behaviour of our lynx mother Koshka as she nursed and protected her two young kittens Ivan and Aliona. The BRC cameras were sometimes inches away from these amazing cats who were completely oblivious to us watching them.

"The only hiccup we encountered while shooting was when the mischievous lynx kittens decided to chew through the cables running to and from the cameras! It became a daily battle of presenter versus kittens to keep our cables buried or taped well out of reach. We simply could not have made the series without this remote camera system.

"This was a totally innovative application for BRC cameras that have never been used like this before for a wildlife show."

Complementing the BRC cameras, the production team also used the Sony RX0II 4K point-of-view camera to document Gordon’s daily challenges rehabilitate the lynx back into the wild.

"The RX0II was mounted backwards on Gordon's main camera to capture his reactions as he filmed," explained Jonny. "It certainly stood up quality-wise against the rest of the footage – we were really pleased with the results in the edit. Its inconspicuous size and weight meant we captured plenty of off-the-cuff moments from Gordon. The RX0II really allowed us to film Gordon's journey without a crew crashing through the undergrowth alongside him."

www.sony.net
VMI.TV Ltd

Top Related Stories
Click here for the latest broadcast news stories.

09/09/2024
Amagi To Showcase Advanced Live Remote Production Capabilities
Amagi is to showcase its latest innovations in live remote production, ground-to-cloud migration, and streaming at the upcoming IBC2024 in Amsterdam.
27/10/2017
Agile Remote Cameras Launches New PTZ Cameras & Controller
Agile Remote Cameras has announced the launch of two new PTZ cameras, each with a unique modular design, plus a desktop camera controller. The ARC360
06/09/2006
BBC Outside Broadcasts’ Special Cameras Team Pioneers HD Onboard Cameras
BBC Outside Broadcasts Special Cameras team recently pioneered HD onboard camera systems for the first time at Goodwood Revival Meeting. The meeting h
07/02/2024
Marshall Cameras Compatible With Quicklink Remote Studio Solution
Marshall Electronics has announced that its CV730 30x UHD60 NDI PTZ camera is compatible with the Quicklink Remote Studio and ST250 multi-camera remot
06/02/2024
Marshall Cameras Compatible With Quicklink Remote Studio Solution
Marshall Electronics has announced that its CV730 30x UHD60 NDI PTZ camera is compatible with the Quicklink Remote Studio and ST250 multi-camera remot
02/09/2021
Agile Remote Cameras Now Part Of MRMC
Mark Roberts Motion Control (MRMC), a Nikon company, has announced that Agile Remote Cameras, the Winchester-based manufacturer of the highly-regarded
08/04/2019
Sony Unveils Latest 4K PTZ Camera Offering At NAB
Sony has unveiled its latest 4K pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) camera offering at the 2019 NAB Show. The IP-based BRC-X400 camera, the first in Sony's PTZ range
26/11/2014
NRK Invests In Sony XDCAM Cameras
The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK) has bought new Sony XDCAM cameras to finish its transition to High Definition (HD). The cameras will be u
08/10/2024
Multidyne To Unveil Two Cinematic Workflows
MultiDyne Video & Fiber Optic Solutions returns to NAB New York this week with two cinematic workflow demos that show the strength of MultiDyne's prov
12/11/2018
JTV Acquires Additional Hitachi 12 Z-HD6000 Cameras
Jewelry Television (JTV) leverages an omni-digital strategy designed to elevate their customers' experience through digitally-driven touchpoints inclu
10/06/2024
Canon Europe To Offer Firmware For 4K Remote Cameras
Canon Europe is to offer firmware for 4K remote cameras and remote camera controllers intended to improve the functionality and performance of functio
06/03/2023
TNDV Invests In Sony 4K/HD Cameras
TNDV has made its second large capital investment in Sony 4K/HD cameras to support increased demand for Sony-driven 4K workflows. With its recent purc
13/07/2021
JVC Introduces New PTZ Remote Cameras
JVC has unveiled three new PTZ remote cameras, designed for reliable remote IP production for education, corporate, live events and sport applications
01/06/2016
Five Panasonic AW-HE130 Remote Cameras Installed At The Royal Academy Of Music
Five Panasonic AW-HE130 remote cameras have been installed at the Royal Academy of Music. The remote cameras will allow the Academy to record, live st
14/10/2014
Remote Control And 4K Cameras - Bradley Engineering's IBC2014
Bradley Engineering's stand was one of the busiest at IBC with visitors arriving to test-drive the remote-controlled cameras and queueing with questio