LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y., OCTOBER 22, 2008 – The word “liberty” is defined as the condition of being free from restrictions. For Game Creek Video, a leading mobile production company, “Liberty” is not only the name of their new HD production vehicle, it also describes the truck’s capabilities for a wide range of production assignments. This is due in large measure to the variety of HDTV lenses it carries from the Broadcast and Communications division of Canon U.S.A., Inc. Game Creek purchased three Canon XJ86x9.3B IE-D and XJ75x9.3B IE-D long-field HD zoom lenses, three XJ22x7.3B IE-D compact HD studio lenses, and two HJ11ex4.7B IRSE wide-angle HD portable lenses for maximum flexibility in producing HDTV college football and NBA basketball telecasts.
“For football in particular, directors like to get in close and get the emotions of the players, coaches, and fans, so it’s a big plus to have lenses that can accomplish that and help tell the story of the game,” explained Pat Sullivan, president of Game Creek Video. “We’ve been using Canon lenses since we started this company in 1993. Their service is great, and the equipment is very reliable and durable, and it helps us create great images.”
Canon’s long-field HDTV zoom lenses are the most widely used lenses in HD sports and entertainment production. Lenses in this product line include the XJ100x9.3B IE-D (the world’s first triple-digit HD zoom lens) and the XJ100x9.3B AF and the XJ86X9.3B AF, which feature Canon’s unique Auto Focus technology to assist camera operators to instantly achieve exact focus at all times. These and Game Creek’s XJ86x9.3B IE-D and XJ75x9.3B IE-D long-field HD zoom lenses all feature specialized multilayer coatings on each optical element, advanced computer-aided lightweight design, heightened long-range zoom capabilities, and the HD optical precision that have made Canon a global leader in the field. A powerful image stabilization system is also built into all of these lenses to provide rock-steady images at telephoto distances. All of these long-field HD zoom lenses utilize Canon’s second-generation digital servo systems for improved ease-of-operation and superb tactile control of zoom, iris, and focus, precision repeatability of settings, and microcomputer compensation of lens-focus breathing (the inadvertent alteration of field-of-view when operating the focus control).
A lens category invented by Canon in 2006, the XJ22x7.3B IE-D is the industry’s first-ever compact HDTV studio lens. A high-end optical system squarely based upon Canon’s classic studio “box lens” design principles, the XJ22xs features a significant reduction in size and weight (13.4 lbs.), enabling direct mounting on today’s portable HD cameras (which typically weigh in at about 15 lbs.) for the creation of compact and cost-effective HD studio camera configurations (without the need for a traditional “sled” support apparatus). Although small in size, the XJ22xs compact studio HD lens features unique technology advantages such as Canon’s exclusive 16-bit optical encoders for fast zooms and easy integration of the lens into robotic camera systems. The XJ22xs is also equipped with an easy-to-read informational display for precise viewing of such operational settings as f-stop, focal length, and focusing distance.
In the portable HD category, the HJ11ex4.7B IRSE lens is among the widest-angle lenses in its class, featuring a focal length of from 4.7mm to 52mm (9.4mm to 104mm with built-in extender) and weighing just 4.3lbs. The HJ11ex4.7B lens is designed for producers and broadcasters seeking extremely wide-angle shooting with minimum chromatic aberrations and geometric distortion. The lens provides maximum mobility while still delivering high-contrast, and very sharp HDTV images. Canon's portable lenses all feature the highest-quality optics combined with a sophisticated and rugged optomechanical design based upon a compact and lightweight magnesium housing. They also embody the highly advanced capabilities of Canon's eDrive technology: miniature precision digital servo systems for zoom, iris, and focus that provide excellent operational control of each as well as enabling users to easily program settings of each with exceptionally high accuracy and repeatability, if desired.
In addition to image performance and operational features, the durability of all of Canon’s HDTV lenses was a major factor for Sullivan, who witnessed their reliability firsthand during a Game Creek Video January football assignment in Green Bay, Wisconsin. “We did the NFC Championship Game between the Packers and the Giants, and that was played in below-zero temperatures,” Sullivan recalled. “The Canon lenses performed really well, even though the wind chill was 24-below. I think you always anticipate that there may be some kind of compromise in your equipment in those types of conditions, but the good stuff always holds up well.”
For Sullivan and Game Creek, the relationship with Canon has been a particularly productive one, and they plan to continue it in the future. “We’ve had a long and successful relationship with Canon and their HD lenses,” Sullivan concluded. “We’ve benefited greatly from it, and I think they have too. Those are the best kind of business relationships to have!”
About Canon U.S.A., Inc.
Canon U.S.A., Inc. delivers consumer, business-to-business, and industrial imaging solutions. Its parent company, Canon Inc. (NYSE:CAJ), a top patent holder of technology, ranked third overall in the U.S. in 2007†, with global revenues of $39.3 billion, is listed as one of Fortune's Most Admired Companies in America and is on the 2007 BusinessWeek list of "Top 100 Brands." To keep apprised of the latest news from Canon U.S.A., sign up for the Company's RSS news feed by visiting www.usa.canon.com/pressroom.
# # #
†IFI Patent Intelligence Press Release, January 2008
All referenced product names, and other marks, are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.
