Looking back at the last three telecasts of this road trip, many thoughts and emotions come to mind.
Each of the past three games has ended in an exciting fashion. Wednesday night, the home team won with a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth. The home club won the game on Thursday night with a come from behind 2-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning off of the Cy Young candidate for the team we cover. And last night, the home team won the game with another come from behind base hit in the bottom of the ninth inning.
Televising these types of victories can be very exciting.
I know that the TV production teams for the respective home teams were very excited. Our TV production team had a front row seat in witnessing their excitement because we were in the back end of a dual feed.
A dual feed is a situation where the home club’s TV production team is in charge of the primary coverage of the game. This production team is allotted their full complement of equipment which can include 7 – 10 cameras and 6 – 8 replay machines. Depending on the venue, the visiting TV crew is given 2 cameras and 2 operators, 3 cameras with 3 operators, 3 cameras (which include the booth camera) and 2 operators. The back end of the dual also has 3 replay machines.
The team we televise is in first place in the Division and, with nine games to play, has a magic number of 5. It is just a matter of time before this club clinches the title.
The victorious team from Wednesday night had already been eliminated from contention. The ball club that won the last two contests is still in contention, but is hanging on by a thread.
For last night’s telecast, our feed had two cameras and three tape machines. The cameras were located at low first (camera 1) and tight centerfield (camera 6). We shared camera 4 (centerfield) and camera 2 (high home) from the primary feed. In a dual feed situation, there is no audio communication with the shared cameras, however, when the secondary feed of the dual is using these cameras, there is a green tally light in their viewfinder. When the primary feed is utilizing a camera there is a red tally light in the viewfinder. When the Director of the primary dual feed gives a camera a command and there is a green tally light in the viewfinder, what is the operator supposed to do? Obey the command and whip on the secondary feed or wait until the light is off, thus disrupting the flow of the main feed? For this reason, I do not make myself available to all the cameras from the main dual feed. I utilize the two main cameras (2 and 4) and basically cut a four or five camera show depending on the venue.
Other Directors have their own philosophies in dual situations. Some take all the available cameras and “cut” their own game. I have heard these same Directors also complain of the “jump cuts” and “whip pans” that occur in these situations. A “jump cut” is when the visiting feed goes from one feed to the other and, in the process, a brief camera shot is on line before the next shot is taken. A “whip pan” occurs when a camera shot repositions from one shot to another while on line.
Every Director has different thoughts on covering the game in a dual situation. I believe that taking the “program” feed from the home coverage when the ball is in play and then cutting in my cameras after the play offers a cleaner show. A cleaner show means less “jump cuts” and “whip pans”.
Last night, our telecast also included a commercial reel. Commercials ran from the truck about seventy percent of the time, so for 70% of the telecast, we had two replay machines.
I believe our production team “covered” the game as good as we could, but it can be frustrating knowing how good the coverage could have been.
The philosophy of the dual feed is that everyone covers the game the same when the ball is in play. Cutting the action when the ball is in play encompasses only a small fraction of game “coverage”. It is the shots that lead up to the “ball in play”, that “set up” the replays of the “ball in play” and it is the shots out of the replays that are most important in game “coverage.”
For example, let’s say that there is a runner on first base with a right handed batter at the plate. Usually, this means that camera 1 (low third base) has the runner at first and camera 5 (low first base) has the responsibility of the batter. The batter gets a base hit and the base runner goes from first base to third base. During the “coverage” of the play, the Director will go to the high home camera (camera 2) when the ball is hit, to a shot from camera 1 of the runner rounding second, back to high home which is following the ball. The next shot the Director takes is an example of a difference of coverage.
If I am the primary feed, my next shot is the runner arriving at third base from camera 5 (low first) followed with the player who got the base hit at first base with camera 1 (low third). The reason for these shots is that I am now shooting these players straight on. If I stay on camera 1 for the runner at third base, I am now shooting the back of his head. If I shoot the runner at first from camera 5 (low first) it is a profile shot. In a dual feed situation, the back of the head shot and the profile shot may be all a feed has so these shots must be taken. These shots may constitute “coverage”, but better shots mean better coverage.
Another example of how “coverage” is affected is the pitcher shot. When a right handed pitcher is in the stretch, the low third base camera (camera 1) shoots the face straight on while low first (camera 5) shoots the back of the head. It is just the opposite for a left handed pitcher. During a pivotal part of a game, tight face shots are most effective in building up the moment. If the Director is unable to go from straight-on tight face shots of the two main combatants, the pitcher and the batter, then the essence of the moment cannot be ultimately captured.
Being the production team in the back end of a dual feed can be very challenging. Like many other aspects of our business; crews, trucks, and venues, TV production crews take pride in recognizing the situation, adjusting, and providing the best coverage possible.
The pride in a job well done is diminished when we know the “coverage” could have been better.
Each of the past three games has ended in an exciting fashion. Wednesday night, the home team won with a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth. The home club won the game on Thursday night with a come from behind 2-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning off of the Cy Young candidate for the team we cover. And last night, the home team won the game with another come from behind base hit in the bottom of the ninth inning.
Televising these types of victories can be very exciting.
I know that the TV production teams for the respective home teams were very excited. Our TV production team had a front row seat in witnessing their excitement because we were in the back end of a dual feed.
A dual feed is a situation where the home club’s TV production team is in charge of the primary coverage of the game. This production team is allotted their full complement of equipment which can include 7 – 10 cameras and 6 – 8 replay machines. Depending on the venue, the visiting TV crew is given 2 cameras and 2 operators, 3 cameras with 3 operators, 3 cameras (which include the booth camera) and 2 operators. The back end of the dual also has 3 replay machines.
The team we televise is in first place in the Division and, with nine games to play, has a magic number of 5. It is just a matter of time before this club clinches the title.
The victorious team from Wednesday night had already been eliminated from contention. The ball club that won the last two contests is still in contention, but is hanging on by a thread.
For last night’s telecast, our feed had two cameras and three tape machines. The cameras were located at low first (camera 1) and tight centerfield (camera 6). We shared camera 4 (centerfield) and camera 2 (high home) from the primary feed. In a dual feed situation, there is no audio communication with the shared cameras, however, when the secondary feed of the dual is using these cameras, there is a green tally light in their viewfinder. When the primary feed is utilizing a camera there is a red tally light in the viewfinder. When the Director of the primary dual feed gives a camera a command and there is a green tally light in the viewfinder, what is the operator supposed to do? Obey the command and whip on the secondary feed or wait until the light is off, thus disrupting the flow of the main feed? For this reason, I do not make myself available to all the cameras from the main dual feed. I utilize the two main cameras (2 and 4) and basically cut a four or five camera show depending on the venue.
Other Directors have their own philosophies in dual situations. Some take all the available cameras and “cut” their own game. I have heard these same Directors also complain of the “jump cuts” and “whip pans” that occur in these situations. A “jump cut” is when the visiting feed goes from one feed to the other and, in the process, a brief camera shot is on line before the next shot is taken. A “whip pan” occurs when a camera shot repositions from one shot to another while on line.
Every Director has different thoughts on covering the game in a dual situation. I believe that taking the “program” feed from the home coverage when the ball is in play and then cutting in my cameras after the play offers a cleaner show. A cleaner show means less “jump cuts” and “whip pans”.
Last night, our telecast also included a commercial reel. Commercials ran from the truck about seventy percent of the time, so for 70% of the telecast, we had two replay machines.
I believe our production team “covered” the game as good as we could, but it can be frustrating knowing how good the coverage could have been.
The philosophy of the dual feed is that everyone covers the game the same when the ball is in play. Cutting the action when the ball is in play encompasses only a small fraction of game “coverage”. It is the shots that lead up to the “ball in play”, that “set up” the replays of the “ball in play” and it is the shots out of the replays that are most important in game “coverage.”
For example, let’s say that there is a runner on first base with a right handed batter at the plate. Usually, this means that camera 1 (low third base) has the runner at first and camera 5 (low first base) has the responsibility of the batter. The batter gets a base hit and the base runner goes from first base to third base. During the “coverage” of the play, the Director will go to the high home camera (camera 2) when the ball is hit, to a shot from camera 1 of the runner rounding second, back to high home which is following the ball. The next shot the Director takes is an example of a difference of coverage.
If I am the primary feed, my next shot is the runner arriving at third base from camera 5 (low first) followed with the player who got the base hit at first base with camera 1 (low third). The reason for these shots is that I am now shooting these players straight on. If I stay on camera 1 for the runner at third base, I am now shooting the back of his head. If I shoot the runner at first from camera 5 (low first) it is a profile shot. In a dual feed situation, the back of the head shot and the profile shot may be all a feed has so these shots must be taken. These shots may constitute “coverage”, but better shots mean better coverage.
Another example of how “coverage” is affected is the pitcher shot. When a right handed pitcher is in the stretch, the low third base camera (camera 1) shoots the face straight on while low first (camera 5) shoots the back of the head. It is just the opposite for a left handed pitcher. During a pivotal part of a game, tight face shots are most effective in building up the moment. If the Director is unable to go from straight-on tight face shots of the two main combatants, the pitcher and the batter, then the essence of the moment cannot be ultimately captured.
Being the production team in the back end of a dual feed can be very challenging. Like many other aspects of our business; crews, trucks, and venues, TV production crews take pride in recognizing the situation, adjusting, and providing the best coverage possible.
The pride in a job well done is diminished when we know the “coverage” could have been better.
posted by Cutting The Game at 7:58 AM
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