Technology and Innovation

• DVCPRO HD: An HD codec developed by Panasonic that includes both 1 080i/p and 720p, but when going to tape or P2 card, the 1920×1080 signal is down-sampled to 1 280×1 080, and 1 280×720 is down-sampled to 960×720. This keeps the overall “size” of the HD signal small. Upon output to TV, DVD, etc., the signal goes back to its original sizes.
• P2: Professional Plug-In; a storage device developed by Panasonic as a low-cost alternative to a more expensive DVCPRO HD tape deck. Each card is about the size of a credit card and can store, as of early 2007, up to 8 gigabytes (GB) of video each. Lowel lights serve documentary, corporate, news, independent, student and feature filmmakers “round the globe with speed, agility, economy and adaptability. It’s what you’d expect from the world leader in location lighting.

AVCHD
The release of the AVCHD consumer camcorders! from Sony and Panasonic added more affordable| HD camcorders for both the hobbyist and pro-sumer. These DVD- or hard disk-based camcord-| ers include Sony’s new CMOS-sensor HDR-UX5 ($999) and HDR-UX7 ($1,299), both of which record footage to DVD. Both camcorders also feature 5.1 stereo surround sound.
Panasonic’s offerings include the HDC-DX1 ($1,399), which burns to DVD, and the HDC-SDll ($1,499), which records onto an SDHC memory j card. Both units have three CCD chips, which allow for improved color reproduction, and 5.1 stereo surround sound.
The AVCHD format specifications allow for 1080i, 720p and standard definition recording modes, although not every AVCHD camcorder supports all these shooting modes.