New xMo Shines Under Stadium Lighting Conditions
The latest version of Inertia Unlimited’s xMo super slo-motion camera system made its World Series debut this year, giving Fox Sports a more integrated product that can simultaneously be used to capture both a live signal for air and a recorded signal for instantaneous replay needs.
Jeff Silverman, Inertia Unlimited owner, says the latest system has been a big hit with both Fox Sports and NFL Films and recent improvements to
Jeff Silverman, owner of Inrertia Unlimited, says the new xMo delivers the goods.
firmware and color issues are making for happy customers. But most importantly, he says, the new system delivers the goods in terms of performance during events under the big lights.
“We’re shooting at 540 frames per second and we’re at minus gain and aren’t wide open on the lens,” says Silverman. “All of those things are amazing considering that we are under normal stadium lighting conditions.”
With a typical X-mo package, video is sent back to the TV truck over two strands of fiber or can be recorded locally. Telecast Rattlers utilize one strand for video that is sent to a HD frame synch. The second strand is used for data control/shading of the camera.
The camera contains 6Gb of flash memory that acts like a buffer. At 720p resolution approximately 6,500 frames of video are available. Replays work from the camera by pressing a trigger switch either at the camera or the computer at the out point of an event. The practical length of what replay time is available determines the number of frames in the replay. Typically this length is or 18 to 30 seconds including head and tail. Upon triggering, normal output is interrupted and a replay is substituted. When the replay is complete, the camera returns on its own to capturing pictures.
One new feature that Fox Sports isn’t using during the World Series (but it did use during this past Sunday during Brett Favre’s return to Lambeau Field) is the ability for EVS operators to directly control the replays recorded on the hard drive. During the World Series, however, the cameraman is marking the replays.
