At NAB Show 2022, Sony Electronics is unveiling and showcasing broadcasting, production and cinema innovations aligned with leading industry trends in the Imaging, Internet Protocol (IP), Cloud and Visualisation realm. Sony will be exhibiting in booth #C10901 and virtually at pro.sony/nab.
“The last few years have redefined the world as well as our industry,” said Theresa Alesso, president, imaging products & solutions Americas, Sony Electronics. “Our customers have relied even more heavily on technology to help connect and collaborate, as well as to facilitate remote operation. At NAB Show, we’re looking forward to reconnecting with the industry, shining a spotlight on Sony’s transformation, sharing our latest technologies and highlighting trends including the cinematic look and virtual production as we work together to innovatively prepare creators for the future.”
Building an Extensive Lineup of Imaging Options
Users continue to seek camera choices at every level, capability and price. With the introduction of the new HDC-3200, Sony is building out its portfolio and filling in the gaps with a more affordable 4K system, ensuring users have an option that provides everything they need, without paying for capabilities that aren’t required. The HDC-3200 is a fiber based, cost-effective system camera that shares many of the features common to Sony’s HDC-series including a 2/3” type 3CMOS image sensor with global shutter, 4K and HDR and support for numerous signal formats. The HDC-3200 is compatible with the existing lineup of Sony viewfinders, large lens adapters and IP transmission systems. It is planned to be available in May 2022.
Sony is also introducing two new large lens adaptors, the HDLA-3505 and HDLA-3501. The robust HDLA-3505 can be used with the HDVF-EL70. It has an LCD panel that allows for assignable settings at the press of a button and simple monitoring via SDI Input. The HDLA-3501 complements the new HDC-3200, providing a cost-effective 4K system. It is designed to operate with the HDVF-L750 viewfinder and enables easy access to the camera head while supporting rear panel operation. Both options offer Sony systems cable-less interface and instant attachment to and detachment from the camera. It is planned to be available in June 2022.
In addition, Sony’s PVM-X series 4K, HDR monitors available in 18-, 24- and 32-inch sizes, will see new enhancements with the Version 4.0 firmware release scheduled for August 2022. New features include: two new optional licenses to support signal conversion and 3D LUT Output, timecode and audio output capabilities will also be added to the enhanced monitor output. The firmware will also feature in monitor display, parallel remote and chroma up as well as support for closed captioning.
With cinematic storytelling on the rise, the VENICE CineAlta camera is continuing to see action in feature films, sports, and live multicam productions.
Thanks to the success of the Original VENICE, Sony has expanded its lineup of Cinema Line with the introduction of the flagship VENICE 2 camera. The VENICE 2 features a new 8.6K full-frame CMOS image sensor, internal X-OCN and 4K Apple ProRes 4444 and 422 HQ recording with a smaller body. The VENICE 2 has an impressive 16 stops of dynamic range, extreme low light capability, highlights that roll-off, and natural skin tones. In addition, the VENICE 2 has a Dual Base ISO of 800/3200, 8 stops of built-in ND filters, and is now shipping.
The HDC-F5500 system camera with Super 35mm 4K CMOS global shutter image sensor also enables creative expression with a cinematic look. Featuring shallow depth of field, high frame rate capability of 4K 120fps, and the ability to seamlessly systemize with other Sony system cameras, it has been used on marquee sporting events and the most influential motion picture and music awards events, among others.
To complement our imaging solutions, Sony is updating its UWP-D 4th generation wireless microphone series: the URX-P41D dual channel receiver and convenient UWP-D27 package. The new portable receiver offers simplified functionality, user-friendly features, and digital audio interface via the SMAD-P5 MI (Multi Interface) shoe adapter, compatible with many of Sony’s camcorders.
In addition, Sony’s flagship PXW-Z750 4K HDR shoulder-mount camcorder, which will be on display at NAB, has been embraced by the reality community. It was recently selected by CBS’s Survivor, one of reality television’s longest running and most celebrated programs, alongside Sony’s FX6 among others, for a total of nearly 50 of Sony’s cameras. Sony’s technologies have been an intrinsic part of Survivor’s production from the start, as they’ve adopted new formats and resolutions. Now, the PXW-Z750 will play a pivotal role in their HDR-ready production of Season 43, which is planned to debut in the fall.
Connecting and Managing Networks Through the Power of IP
Sony is building out its portfolio of solutions that allow content creators to design, deploy and manage environments that are on-premise, across a geographical region or in the cloud. Nevion, a group company of Sony’s VideoIPath media orchestration platform recently announced it is adding broadcast control including tally distribution, salvos, alias naming, endpoint grouping and destination monitoring. This enables simple, cost-effective support for the complete production lifecycle, ideal for managing IP-based broadcast facilities, virtual routing, production trucks and mobile units. Additionally, the update includes support for Sony’s NS-BUS IP-based management protocol to the extensive list of equipment interfaces already compatible with VideoIPath, including Sony hardware panels and connection management to Sony’s SDI-IP converters and XVS series switchers. Sony also offers a powerful solution for production orchestration and facilities management: Live Element Orchestrator.
Enhancing Capabilities, Flexibility and Workflows in the Cloud
Cloud is increasingly important in providing secure accessibility, streamlining media workflows and facilitating enhanced collaboration. Sony’s Ci Media Cloud Services, an ecosystem of cloud-based applications built for media organisations to collect, organise, collaborate, deliver, and archive media assets, has been continuing to enhance its offerings to create a more valuable solution for several applications.
For post-production, Ci’s Workflow app provides functionality for a secure VFX pull workflow that enables VFX frames to be automatically delivered to VFX houses by simply submitting an edit decision list (EDL) to Ci. Productions must first upload original camera files (OCF) to Ci where preview proxies are created. To initiate the VFX pull workflow, an EDL is submitted to Ci. Ci locates the referenced OCF and converts the referenced clips to the desired output format. The generated frames are dynamically provisioned to the VFX vendor who is notified when delivery is complete. Benefits of the app include increased speed and lower operational costs, and it helps solve common ownership and accessibility challenges.
Ci’s improvements for collaboration, which can benefit editing and sports users, among others, includes in-app commenting, clipping and livestreams, which simplify the way creative teams review and collaborate on content and allows for quicker publishing to social media. Ci is also integrated with Sony’s Hawk-Eye technology to receive live streams from sports venues, allowing officials to review, mark up and collaborate on decisions in near real time, regardless of location. This workflow makes content readily available to licensees and rights holders.
Additional enhancements to Ci include a Ci mobile iOS and Android app for viewing content as well as an Apple TV app for screening content, more granular control of BYOS3, 6 times faster livestream ingest and Japanese localisation.
Camera-to-cloud capabilities enable more freedom and flexibility for efficient productions from the field or front lines. Sony’s next generation camera-to-cloud solution, C3 Portal (C3P), offers cost-effective file operations by tightly integrating Sony acquisition devices and remote operations. C3P enables remote camera control, remote file access and secure, efficient transfer of files to Ci, or the destination of your choice. C3P’s new mobile app enhances the file transfer process through the use of cameras and mobile devices. Flexible metadata workflows support custom and automated metadata tagging of camera clips, resulting in simplified search and identification for fast content retrieval.
Sony is continuing to build on its suite of Cloud Services with the development of infrastructure and live production tools which will allow for an efficient transition from on premise to cloud.
Visualising New Worlds
Virtual production has transformed the worlds of broadcast and cinema by offering new ways to bring the virtual and physical worlds together in real-time. This revolutionary technology combines cinema cameras, LED displays, and game engine technology to increase freedom, flexibility, and efficiency on set.
Sony’s Crystal LED B-series has been custom designed for virtual production. Our B-series is scalable, available in a 1.26 or 1.58 mm pixel pitch, and allows productions to build LED volumes to the size and resolution that meets their needs. With incredible brightness, each panel features the anti-reflection coating, 170-degree wide viewing angle, and a wide colour gamut.
Combined with the Sony VENICE camera series, these technologies allow content creators to enjoy consistently accurate and flexible colour matching between the camera and wall and incredible resolution and dynamic range that creates realistic images.
To better serve the virtual production community and other emerging markets such as eSports, Sony recently launched a dedicated group that brings together the expertise and resources from across Sony’s imaging business to help identify and solve customer needs, while developing new standards.
Additionally, Hawk-Eye has introduced the first iteration of its new solution Hawk-Eye Replay, a product suite that serves as a high-performance, cost-effective, remote clipping, replay and highlights solution. Following the success of ‘Every Shot Every Hole’, Hawk-Eye’s award-winning golf production technology, this new offering combines with the company’s optical tracking and data platforms to create a powerful production solution.
Tackling Trending Topics
From Sunday, April 24 through Tuesday, April 26, Sony will be hosting live presentations in booth #C10901 and livestreaming at https://pro.sony/nab. Topics include imaging, IP, EDL Pull cloud workflow, connecting cameras to the cloud, virtual production, drones and more.
