The BBC has chosen Sony XDCAM models PMW-350 and Sony PMW-500 for its next generation of electronic news gathering shoulder cameras, writes Adrian Pennington.
These cameras will be used for BBC national and regional news and current affairs programming such as Newsnight.
According to BBC the selection followed a procurement process which involved a thorough assessment of all the available cameras in this market-sector.
A statement said: “To help drive down costs and ensure best value, BBC Procurement used an online eAuction involving a variety of manufacturers and resellers to make the final selection Through this process the Sony PMW-350 and Sony PMW-500 cameras were selected.”
The cameras and associated peripherals will be supplied by Creative Video Productions.
The first units will be rolled out early in the New Year and the aim is to complete the deployment within about 12 months.
An internal memo to BBC staff about the decision noted: ‘The reality is that the BBC is far too complicated for a single approach to work. Newsnight is different to daily news which is different to regional news. There are some basic things we need to get right – but in general our approach will be to involve crews, reporters and producers in developing the best ways to use them.’
The memo went on to say that now the camera choice has been made, it makes sense to standardise the video editing application used in the field. “The aim will be to move to FCP 7 over the next year” it stated.
