Q-Ball remotely controlled pan / tilt / zoom equipment from Camera Corps recently
provided dynamic coverage of the Boston leg of the 2013 Red Bull Cliff Diving World
Series.
When the event was held in Boston, it drew more than 25,000 spectators who
watched the action from the only “urban cliff’ diving platform in the series. A Q-Ball
was mounted at the extreme edge of the platform that resided on the Institute of
Contemporary Art roof 90ft above Boston Harbor. Q-Ball supplied close-up coverage
of the divers while delivering the excitement, power and grace of the event to the
home audience in full HD.
“This is exactly the type of broadcast the Q-Ball was designed for,’ comments
Camera Corps MD Laurie Frost. “It enabled the Red Bull production team to achieve
shots that would have been extremely dangerous, if not impossible, any other way.
The production team was able to make full use of the platform-mounted Q-Ball to
capture close-up and follow shots of each contestant during the approach, launch
and descent.
“The Q-Ball provided footage from the center of the action without
requiring a camera team to operate in a dangerous and potentially distracting
location. Each dive was televised both live and in slow motion to capture the full
emotion of this extreme sport.’
As one of the most physically demanding sports, the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series
invites the best high divers in the world to launch themselves from a platform eight
stories above the water. Speeds clocked between 53 and 62 mph are typical and
this is where Q-Ball, with its high-precision motors, shines. Pan / tilt / zoom commands
from a Camera Corps PTZF joystick-based control unit are sent to the Q-Ball via a
two-way optical link from the Red Bull Production facilities, which in turn receive
broadcast-quality 1080i high-definition video. The operators were able to follow all
the diving action, from the approach and takeoff to the dive and entry into the
water, with no tracking problems.
The contest now moves to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil before the final in Krabi Province,
Thailand.
