Gyeongnam Culture and Arts Foundation (GCAF), an active promotor of cultural and artistic diversity, has chosen Ikegami UHK-X700 camera chains for integration into the Gyeongnam eSports Arena. Four systems have been delivered to televise esports contests for terrestrial and satellite broadcast audiences throughout South Korean republic. The purchase was negotiated in partnership with Ikegami’s Korean distributor, Dong Hwa AV.
Korea is an esports powerhouse with the third largest market size in the world after the United States and China. The government has been supporting and promoting the esports industry since the early years of this century by organizing specific contests, establishing and operating a dedicated television production facility and building stadiums. GCAF is a public foundation located in Gyeongsangnam-do, southeastern Korea. It was established in 2013 to promote the region’s culture and arts, including event planning and management. The organization also provides educational programs to enrich the cultural lives of the country’s citizens.
GCAF chose Ikegami UHK-X700 cameras following careful tests of their ability to capture high quality low-noise images within the relatively dark light conditions which are usual in esport studio environments. The cameras enable the foundation’s production team to create and deliver high quality 4K-UHD content with consistent color rendition.
Ikegami cameras are used by many broadcasters around the world for their robustness, excellent imaging quality, versatility and easy operability. Ikegami customers in Korean include four terrestrial television broadcast stations as well as satellite broadcasting channels. The long-term performance stability of Ikegami cameras is especially highly regarded by Korean broadcasters and was an important aspect of GCAF’s decision to choose UHK-X700 cameras.
Ikegami Tsushinki will continue to provide products and long-term supporting services together with Dong Hwa AV which, with over 30 years of experience, is one of Korea’s most highly respected suppliers of broadcast-related systems and services.
The UHK-X700 provides the freedom to operate at 4K-UHD, 1080p or 1080i resolution in standard dynamic range or high dynamic range and standard or wide colour gamut. Content can be mastered in full 4K-UHD to ensure a long commercial lifetime for high-budget productions. The cameras can also be operated in multi-format workflows.
Designed for studio or outdoor applications, UHK-X700 cameras each incorporate three 2/3-inch CMOS 4K sensors with a global shutter which provides freedom from rolling-shutter distortion and flash-banding artifacts. The camera is uniformly balanced and has a low centre of gravity to ensure easy operation on a pedestal, tripod or shoulder.
Core of the Ikegami UHK-X700’s electronics is an ASIC chip which encapsulates a wide range of high-grade video processing functions into ultra-compact component dimensions. Optional high frame-rate shooting at up to 2x speed in 4K or up to 8x speed in HD can be performed via the BSX-100 base station for applications such as capturing fast motion in sport or stage events.
Measuring 340 x 243 x 149 mm and weighing 5 kg, the UHK-X700 comes with a B4 lens mount and has an optical sensitivity of F11 when operating at 4K/50p. The camera is designed for use at operating temperatures between -20 and +45 °C and 30% to 90% non-condensing humidity.
The UHK-X700/BSX-100 combination allows cameras to be securely linked up to 3,000 metres from their operating location, including power to the camera head. Simultaneous output in HD SDR and UHD HDR video formats is optionally supported, including mixed sources. 4K-UHD video is available as a 12G-SDI feed directly from the camera head, enabling the UHK-X700 to be integrated into a wireless system.
