Panasonic HD studio and production equipment bought for tpt PSB channel

Panasonic HD studio and production equipment purchased by Twin Cities
Twin Cities Public Television has invested in Panasonic high definition equipment with the purchase of two AK-HC931 720p studio cameras, an AJ-HDC27 VariCam HD Cinema camera and an AJ-HD1200A DVCPRO HD VTR.
One of the most watched PBS affiliates in the nation, Twin Cities’ tpt channel is based in St. Paul, Maine and operates six digital stations in addition to analogue channels tpt2 and tpt17.
The AK-HC931 SD/HD cameras are being installed in the station's recently-upgraded studio and control room. According to Scott Rivers, the station's Engineering Manager, the multi-standard AK-HC931 was selected because it meets the station's technical parameters for an advanced studio camera, specifically for the HD production of two weekly, live shows, ‘Almanac’, a popular public affairs program now in its 20th year, and ‘Almanac from the Capitol’.
Rivers said: "The Panasonic AK-HC931 studio camera looked superb and the cost was reasonable. The variable frame rate capability of the 720p VariCam was critical for our HD field acquisition needs, as it will let us make our documentaries, many of them headed for national broadcasts, look like film."
Tpt's AJ-HD1200A will be teamed with an editing system utilizing Apple's Final Cut Pro HD software, which means that material shot with the station's VariCam can be transferred losslessly via the VTR's IEEE 1394 interface.
The native DV-HD high definition files footage is then instantly available for real-time editing. All footage maintains its camera-original quality, because the IEEE 1394 FireWire interface transfers camera-original quality HD content on their desktop.
The AK-HC931 features three, high-performance 2/3" 1 million pixel (1280 x 720 progressive scan) IT CCDs. The compact camera also features a standard 480i SD output and provides an economical path for stations requiring programming in HDTV.
Panasonic's AJ-HDC27 VariCam replicates many of the key features of film-based image acquisition, including 24-frame progressive scan images, time lapse recording, and a wide range of variable frame rates (4-fps to 60-fps in single-frame increments) for "overcranked" and "undercranked" off-speed in-camera effects. The VariCam also features CineGamma software that permits Panasonic's HD Cinema camera systems to closely match the latitude of film stocks.
A not-for-profit educational, civic, and cultural resource, tpt presents original productions for US national and state broadcasting.
(SP)