MARTINEZ, GA.—Ken Moore Productions has recently expanded our broadcast and corporate production business. One of our mainstay assignments is shooting “Johnny Hensley’s Shag City,” seen throughout the southeast on Antenna TV, and also available for streaming at www.johnnyhensleyshagcity.com.
As a youth, Johnny Hensley wrote and recorded a song called “Shaggin’” that was popular on southeastern radio stations. In 2009, Hensley, by then a prominent real estate executive in Augusta, Ga., started his weekly television show promoting the resurgence of shag dancing and music. The show’s format is loosely based on Dick Clark’s “American Bandstand,” but offers only shag dancing.
From the onset, my colleague Mark Pittman and I have shot and produced more than 20 “Shag City” shows a year, travelling with Hensley to hugely popular shag dances held mainly in South Carolina and Georgia coastline cities, usually shooting four shows at a time. Prior to purchasing the AG-DVX200 4K handheld last fall, we’d shot “Shag City” with our three AGHVX200 HD handhelds, but the DVX200 has since become our main camera.
MAKING THE 4K MOVE
Company cinematographer Mark Pittman using the Ag-DVX200. The AG-DVX200 can capture 4K/UHD, HD and SD, including cinematic DCI 4K 4096x2160. The camcorder is optimized for 4K/HD production, with beautiful bokeh effects and a V-Log L curve (measured at 12 stops) emulating the natural grey-scale rendition of the VariCam 35. The camcorder incorporates a new 4/3-inch large-format MOS sensor with high sensitivity of f11, and offers variable frame rate recording from 2fps to 120fps in 1080p mode.
Fearing that we risked falling behind, we decided to make a 4K camera purchase. Not only was I very impressed with my first looks at the DVX200, it also seemed familiar in terms of operation and workflow. We could still use our reliable HVX200 HD handhelds, and the camcorders would work well together, which has proven to be the case.
Typically, we’ll cover a dance show with the DVX200 as our “A camera,” and one or more HVX200s. We’ll shoot 1080p (easy to FTP), but have been shooting some B roll in 4K. The DVX200 is very flexible on these shoots: as our main camera, we use it on a tripod, but can easily remove it for close-ups and other handheld work.
RANGE OF USES
Beyond the recurring “Shag City” assignment, we’ve used the DVX200 extensively to shoot commercials for the Hensley show and other local broadcasters. On the corporate side, we have used it to produce safety videos and, recently, a training video for a nearby Lowe’s home improvement store. We edit in Final Cut Pro and Sony Vegas Pro.
What else can I say but that the DVX200 has been a shagalicious investment for us and a decisive factor in our growth.
Ken Moore is the principal for Ken Moore Productions. In 2016, the company moved into a new studio in Martinez, Ga., and now boasts one of the largest green screens in the area. Beyond shooting “Shag City,” the company also fields a full slate of corporate and training videos and commercials, and works with the Augusta Film Office to help bring the movie industry to the Augusta area. He can be contacted atken@kenmooreproductions.com.
For additional information, please visithttp://info.panasonic.com/dvx200-camera.htmlor call 877-803-8492.
