Who is responsible for the cameras at Apogee?

TripleGrad · September 11, 2022

Serious question -- who "owns" the cameras at Apogee? I noticed during the SMU game that the quality was poor compared to the previous game on CBSSN (UTSA). I thought maybe CBS was responsible, but today the game looks just as bad on ESPN3. The sideline cameras aren't bad, but the main camera is located way down on the 25, and is fuzzy.

Is UNT responsible for these feeds? If so, we need to step up and get decent equipment. There's no excuse for having broadcasts worse than the regional high schools.

peanuts104 · September 11, 2022

Because this is an ESPN broadcast, I suspect it is ESPN. They didn't send their best.

GRN-WHT · September 11, 2022

This game is being produced by the athletic department with people hired by the athletic department and equipment owned by the athletic department.

You get what you pay for.

Monkeypox · September 11, 2022

4 minutes ago, GRN-WHT said:

You get what you pay for.

* head coaches excepted

El Paso Eagle · September 11, 2022

I'm sure we can expect another strongly worded letter from Wren with his action plan

aztecskin · September 11, 2022

Yeah the deal w ESPN+ is that the production is done in house. We don’t need 4K cams but these are weak. This particular broadcast is approaching UTEP level

Pavlovs Eagle · September 11, 2022

2 hours ago, El Paso Eagle said:

I'm sure we can expect another strongly worded letter from Wren with his action plan

Snowy · September 11, 2022

The cameras were really pathetic. Each one had different exposure. What appeared to be the "middle" camera had a dirty lens the whole game and was just by far the worst quality of the 3. It was honestly sometimes difficult the track the football when it was being thrown through the air the compression was that bad.

VideoEagle · September 11, 2022

As I told my wife, most church broadcasts look better. I can understand a lens smudge on a high mounted unmanned camera in the end zone that you can’t reach during the game. But all of the cameras should be matched better. This wasn’t a game at the old Texas Stadium where the sun forced massive adjustments as you went down the field. Every camera plugged into the switch should be matched before the game. You point every camera at the same spot on the field and adjust the exposure, the pedestal, and the gamma - in that order. If you can’t make in broadcast adjustments, you don’t touch the pregame settings. The sideline camera might look a little off when not shooting the field that way, but will still be fine for most shots. No two cameras even looked close. You have a person dedicated to pregame set up.

The was embarrassing for a school with a media art’s program.

C Rod · September 11, 2022

3 hours ago, VideoEagle said:

As I told my wife, most church broadcasts look better. I can understand a lens smudge on a high mounted unmanned camera in the end zone that you can’t reach during the game. But all of the cameras should be matched better. This wasn’t a game at the old Texas Stadium where the sun forced massive adjustments as you went down the field. Every camera plugged into the switch should be matched before the game. You point every camera at the same spot on the field and adjust the exposure, the pedestal, and the gamma - in that order. If you can’t make in broadcast adjustments, you don’t touch the pregame settings. The sideline camera might look a little off when not shooting the field that way, but will still be fine for most shots. No two cameras even looked close. You have a person dedicated to pregame set up.

The was embarrassing for a school with a media art’s program.

Well said. I have a Radio, TV, & Film degree from UNT and we definitely learned how to match exposure and white balance the camera so the color temperature would match across all TV cameras.

Steps involved

1. Set up camera and make sure it’s level on the tripod.

2. Clean the lens with a true lens cloth. Start in the center of the lens and in a circular motion work towards the outside of the lens.

3. Turn on all cameras and point them all at the big white logo at the 50 yd line.

4. Adjust the exposure levels so all camera match. Use the iris meter on the camera or in the TV truck to dial it in.

5. White-balance all cameras (Note, this will need to be done once before the game and once when the sun goes down, typically happens during a commercial break/halftime.)

6. Locate the pan and tilt knobs and loosen the friction a bit. Find the sweet-spot where the camera is supported but it still allows the camera op to pan and tilt smoothly.

Why this entry level information is now not being taught to the camera ops or the TV truck is beyond me.

Also we’re using TV camera equipment that is absolute booty cheeks for 2022-23. Yes we do need to upgrade to 4K cameras immediately. How we look on TV is important to recruits and fans. My guess is the TV camera equipment is from 2011 when Apogee opened. This is embarrassing.

Edited September 11, 2022 by C Rod

NorthTexasSportsNetwork · September 11, 2022

The cameras for CBSSN is brought in by CBSSN, not ours. I thought the quality was fine for the smu game, utsa being indoors with different lighting makes it look different.

UNT 90 Grad · September 12, 2022

I wish we had one of those spider cameras at Apogee. Assuming they fix the color/brightness, etc. on the cameras, I think a spider cam would bring a lot to the video presentation.

Rudy · September 12, 2022

Sounds like it should just be added to the poor game presentation. Maybe we can get DJ Question Mark to work on that instead of playing music over the PA that is completely inappropriate for a family environment.

keith · September 12, 2022

13 hours ago, C Rod said:

Why this entry level information is now not being taught to the camera ops or the TV truck is beyond me.

I’m sure it’s because they are being taught something else.

MeanGreenDan · September 12, 2022

10 hours ago, Rudy said:

Maybe we can get DJ Question Mark to work on that instead of playing music over the PA that is completely inappropriate for a family environment.

I'm usually pretty ok with it, but when I heard these fun lyrics with a bunch of kids sitting around me, I definitely felt differently.

Your man just left, I'm the plumber tonight, I'll check yo' pipes, oh you the healthy type, Well, here goes some egg whites.

Rudy · September 12, 2022

4 hours ago, MeanGreenDan said:

I'm usually pretty ok with it, but when I heard these fun lyrics with a bunch of kids sitting around me, I definitely felt differently.

Your man just left, I'm the plumber tonight, I'll check yo' pipes, oh you the healthy type, Well, here goes some egg whites.

Yep. I would prefer a more diverse playlist than just rap, but whatever. But when I heard that, I was amazed at how they allowed that to get played. It seem like the presentation in general has gotten even worse than it used to be the past couple of seasons.

Green Otaku · September 12, 2022

16 hours ago, UNT 90 Grad said:

I wish we had one of those spider cameras at Apogee. Assuming they fix the color/brightness, etc. on the cameras, I think a spider cam would bring a lot to the video presentation.

We can't even afford decent field cameras, what makes you think we could afford (assuming it's not rental only) a complex system like that?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0K3XUqZI9w&ab_channel=VirginiaTechAthletics

golfingomez · September 12, 2022

I've been complaining about our media production team for the past two years... beyond the in-game stuff, our post game recaps and production vids are really bad... we have a top notch RTVF Dept. on campus, meanwhile look at the edits in this video. it looks like a high school sophomore did this an hour before the project was due.

Edited September 12, 2022 by golfingomez

Pavlovs Eagle · September 12, 2022

6 hours ago, MeanGreenDan said:

Your man just left, I'm the plumber tonight, I'll check yo' pipes, oh you the healthy type, Well, here goes some egg whites.

Coffee Dj GIF

untjim1995 · September 12, 2022

1 hour ago, Green Otaku said:

We can't even afford decent field cameras, what makes you think we could afford (assuming it's not rental only) a complex system like that?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0K3XUqZI9w&ab_channel=VirginiaTechAthletics

Hold on a second--I've been overly reassured by many on this board that money IS NOT AN ISSUE. We are keeping SL because we believe in him, not because it would cost $1.3 million to replace him. I'm sure its the same with these cameras, too. Come to think of it, probably with landscaping issues, parking lot attendants, concession stand workers, etc.

We have two home games so far...less than impressive on just about any and every front imaginable.

MeanGreenTexan · September 12, 2022

1 hour ago, golfingomez said:

I've been complaining about our media production team for the past two years... beyond the in-game stuff, our post game recaps and production vids are really bad... we have a top notch RTVF Dept. on campus, meanwhile look at the edits in this video. it looks like a high school sophomore did this an hour before the project was due.

Yikes. Need to bring down Dave's calls. Just a tad loud.
There are random 1/2 second clips in-between some of the highlights that makes things very confusing (.54 mark & the following highlight, for example).

Rudy · September 13, 2022

5 hours ago, Pavlovs Eagle said:

https://youtu.be/Tmbiji_uP6c

Edited September 13, 2022 by Rudy

UNT 90 Grad · September 13, 2022

7 hours ago, golfingomez said:

I've been complaining about our media production team for the past two years... beyond the in-game stuff, our post game recaps and production vids are really bad... we have a top notch RTVF Dept. on campus, meanwhile look at the edits in this video. it looks like a high school sophomore did this an hour before the project was due.

This is better

MeanGreenTexan · September 13, 2022

10 hours ago, UNT 90 Grad said:

This is better

MUCH BETTER!

Not A Staffer · September 13, 2022

As an alum and a fan, I deemed that broadcast unwatchable. I quit watching after 15 minutes. Which is sad. If an active fan and alum can't watch, can you ever imagine a casual fan or even a recruits parents tuning in?

According to my sources, half of those cameras, tripods, and camera controls used are from when Apogee was built in 2011.

The money the Athletic Department has allocated to broadcast has been only at the bare minimum for quite some time. "Whatever gets us on ESPN3". A lot of duct tape solutions by dedicated alums over the years.

They only use student workers on broadcasts like these. Which, like stated above, you get what you pay for.

Now, my sources also confirm there will be a serious upgrade happening to their control room and cameras at some point during this year, but you may not see until early 2023 or next school year. Here's hoping for earlier.

Lastly, according to my sources, once NT joins the American, every football broadcast on ESPN+ will be done by an actual TV truck and NOT done by the athletic department. Which is a good thing.

#GoMeanGreen