Panasonic AG-HPX370 Case Study: Mountaineers' Sports Captured in P2 HD - Page 1

Mountaineers' Sports Captured in P2 HD Panasonic P2 HD Handheld and Shoulder Mount Camcorders Used for Mountaineer Sports Network, Coaching Analysis, Video Board Production The West Virginia University's (Morgantown, WV) Mountaineers football team, a perennial leader in the Big East conference, is capturing all this season's thrilling action with Panasonic P2 HD camcorders for usage ranging from video board display to a coach's show that airs on major sports networks to coaching analysis. WVU's Department of Intercollegiate Athletics has made a substantial investment in Panasonic P2 HD products, including high-end 2/3" HD camcorders (an AJ-HPX2700 VariCam Cinematography, AJ-HPX2000 and AJ-HPX500s), the AG-HPX370 shoulder-mount 1/3" HD camcorders configured for studio use, the AGHVX200A handheld camcorders, as well as P2 Mobile HD six-slot recorder/players. Chris Ostien, senior producer/director for the Mountaineer Sports Network (MSN), a multimedia operation operated by WVU that reports on and promotes the university's 17 varsity teams, including NCAA Division 1 and Big East Conference football and basketball, said that Panasonic P2 HD gear is the linchpin of a front-to-back file-based workflow. Collaborating with University Relations-Video, MSN is making versatile use of the VariCam 2700 for high-end recruitment videos, institutional television spots, providing highlights and programming to ESPN and other national networks and local stations, and more. During football season, the HPX500s see heavy field use, and are used handheld on the sidelines to capture footage for "Mountaineers 360" (the weekly coach's television show), for various video board productions (e.g., entrance video, kickoff video, moving headshots), and for features for the WVU athletic web site. The popular half-hour show with head football coach Bill Stewart airs on network affiliates across West Virginia, as well as on SNY, MASN and Fox College Sports. "Being able to change over to a broadcast lens with a zoom on the HPX500 has really impacted our capacity to cover sports," said Ostien. "The camcorder has also delivered superior performance in a variety of weather conditions." Off the field, Ostien recently used the HPX500 to shoot seven 30-second commercials and a long-form video for the Mountaineer Athletic Club, the school's booster organization. The commercials are airing in MSN programs, on the stadium video board and online. Ostien noted that MSN has just purchased an additional HPX500 and Continued on back