As the world focuses in on the excitement and drama of the Torino Olympic Winter Games Feb. 10 to 26, the high definition images televised by NBC will be captured with lenses supplied by the Canon Broadcast and Communications division.
Canon also will be provide on-site technical support to NBC throughout the duration of the Torino Winter Games, the sixth consecutive Olympics at which Canon has partnered with NBC.
According to Chip Adams, NBC director of venue engineering, the network will use a wide variety of Canon HDTV lenses to capture the action at the many venues of the Torino Winter Olympics. Shooting in winter conditions can be harsh, but despite the possibility of cold, wet weather Canon’s optics and digital technology have proven themselves under severe conditions.
All Canon HDTV lenses use the company’s Power Optical System. Combined with this is Canon’s Internal Focus (IF) technology for lower distortion, minimized chromatic aberration and advanced protection from dust and condensation.
In addition, Canon’s HDxs features for digital lens control, including eDrive for user-preset control of portable HDTV lenses and Optical Shift Image Stabilization, or Shift-IS on HDTV long field lenses.
The list of lenses that Canon is supplying to NBC for the Torino Winter Olympics includes the XJ25x6.8B IE-D DIGISUPER25xs HDTV studio lens. With a zoom ratio to 25X and a focal length from 6.8mm to 170mm, the DIGISUPER25xs features a next-generation digital servo system that makes possible such functions as a constant angle of view while focusing and a digital memory selection for a variety of servo pre-sets.
On hand in the studio will be the new XJ22x7.3B IE-D DIGISUPER22xs compact HDTV studio lens, which is designed for use with portable cameras. The DIGISUPER22xs directly couples to portable HDTV cameras without a traditional sled support apparatus and provides the performance of larger box-style studio lenses in a compact size.
Portable Canon HDTV lenses to be used by NBC include the HJ22ex7.6B IRSE telephoto ENG lens, the HJ11ex4.7B IRSE wide-angle lens and the HJ40x10B IASD-V long portable lens featuring Shift-IS. All three feature Canon’s eDrive feature, which is built into the company’s full line of e-HDxs zooms.
Long-field HDTV lenses will also be capturing the action of the Torino Winter Olympics from the OB mobile vehicles serving NBC. These include Canon’s XJ100x9.3B IE-D DIGISUPER100xs, XJ86x9.3B IE-D DIGISUPER86xs and XJ75x9.3B IE-D DIGISUPER75xs.
For more information, visit www.canonbroadcast.com.
