DP Nicholas Donnelly Calls On Wisycom For Global Productions

Industry-established cinematographer Nicholas Donnelly has called on Wisycom's RF solutions for his studio and field work.

Mr Donnelly is known or his work on high-profile TV documentaries and wildlife shows.

Included in his arsenal are Wisycom's MTP40S Bodypack Transmitters and MCR42S and MPR30-ENG Broadcast and Film Receivers.

"Last year, I had my Wisycom gear with me in five different continents; they were essentially all over the world," he said. "The projects ranged from wildlife shoots to scripted documentaries to traditional programming and ran the gamut from studio work to extremely remote locations. I have had [the gear] to the North Pole, where it was -40 degrees Farenheit (-40 Celcius), and I have used it in the Sonoran Desert, which occasionally got as hot as 115 degrees Fahrenheit (46 Celcius) during the day, and it worked flawlessly through all of it."

Mr Donnelly typically works as a single-op in the field and incorporates Wisycom into his run-and-gun rigs in conjunction with the RED 8K HELIUM camera.

"The MPR receiver is light enough that I can use it on my gimbals without it affecting the balance," he explained. "In the studio, I use the two-channel MCR, slotted directly onto my ARRI ALEXA camera, with just a single wire, which is nice."

He added: "We have a variety of big mixer bags in which the Wisycom is integrated into the Sound Devices 664 mixer-recorder itself. Since there is no need for cables or individual power supplies, this setup is beautiful for us. The 664 has a 'Super Slot', which our Wisycom receiver goes directly into, with all the connections and power integrated. It's simple to carry around, or toss into the back of a Jeep, and go wherever you need to go.

"I picked Wisycom for its wideband frequency, which I think was the first offering of its kind, and for its universal compatibility with other products," he continued. "Investing in architecture of this nature is tough for anyone – whether a freelancer or major network – so you want it to be as worthwhile as possible. With Wisycom, we are able to integrate it with our existing equipment, which enabled us to break out of the chains of the 'block system' and from being locked to just one manufacturer."

The DP has been building his collection of Wisycom equipment since 2016, having accumulated 60 transmitters and 50 receivers.

His work in the field has taken him to some of the most challenging and remote shoots across the world. Mr Donnelly has worked on more than 30 National Geographic films in his role as cameraman, and he concurrently serves as equipment manager and technical consultant for all of the channel's productions.

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