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MillimeterUndersea 480p
Nov 1, 1999 12:00 PM, Dan Ochiva
An ambitious, eight-hour history of Earth's animal life, The Shape of Life may be the first nature film series to use an HD DV format, in this case Panasonic's DVCPRO50 480p system. The series is a co-production between National Geographic Television and Monterey, California-based Sea Studios Foundation. It is also the latest push in executive producer Mark Shelley's 15-year-long endeavor to bring the best video technology to his undersea documentaries. "The DV format affords us the means to buy our own HD gear," says Shelley. He and his crew capture their stories with AJ-PD900WA camcorders.
"We were pretty early in the use of video for natural history production," continues Shelley, who moved from 16mm to Betacam in 1983. He says video brought great benefits underwater. With longer-running camcorders in waterproof housings, Shelley could afford to shoot continuously and wait for that "magic moment" to happen.
For interviews with scientists and other "dry land" work, Shelley still feels that Super 16 delivers a better image. But for extensive underwater scenes, the 480p camcorders are his tool of choice.
"I saw the [DVCPRO50] cameras off to the side at NAB two years ago. Last year I jumped at getting one," says Shelley, who considers the format a viable alternative to shooting in the more costly HDCAM format. He will up-rez the final edited version to full HD resolution. From that, Sea Studios will derive other HD formats (such as 720p and 480p), as well as standard-resolution 625/525.
Innovation on The Shape of Life goes beyond camera choices; lens designer Martin Dohrn created a unique lens for close-up work in sea-water tanks. Though somewhat similar to a snorkel-type lens, the Megascope's optics combine both a macro capability for capturing tiny creatures (smaller than an inch) and a wide angle with an extreme depth of field. Viewers will fly around Shelley's subjects and experience the smallest of details without losing the critters' context.
