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Tips for covering a Hockey Game with a DVX200
- Thread starter greytail
- Start date
Greg Smith
Veteran
I've covered a fair amount of NCAA-level hockey, but always did it with at least three cameras with live operators, and a switcher.
Hockey action is fast, so one of the 60p modes is needed for sure. You don't say whether you want to shoot in UHD or HD in your message. I'd want to do this with a fluid head tripod and a remote controller for the servo zoom. You'll probably be jamming it to the limits of its speed in many cases, but there are times when slow, smooth zooms are just the thing to follow the action from one end to the other. Auto focus makes sense but probably won't always be fast enough to keep up with the action -- the DVX200 has a big lens with heavy elements to move and the focus is accurate but not always lightning fast. But doing it manually would probably be much, much harder. I would use manual iris and color balance and set a good general exposure for the arena before you start. The surface of the ice itself is very close to pure white and should probably come out somewhere around 85 - 90 IRE on the WFM. Remember that the DVX200 lens is around f/4 over much of its range. Don't use an aperture bigger than this or you'll get underexposure when you zoom in. That may mean you will need to add some gain or use the High Sensitivity mode. Auto exposure, I think, would change levels too much depending on what is in the shot -- a shot with a big expanse of bright ice would probably cause it to stop down and underexpose the players and their uniforms. If the lights are decent, color and exposure shouldn't vary too much across the ice. Some of the rinks I've shot in have had terrible lighting in terms of levels, though, and they sometimes use sodium- or mercury-vapor lights that can produce very unflattering colors. The bigger or newer the facility is, the more likely you'll find reasonable lighting. If you have enough light, using a faster than default shutter speed may help make the action look a little sharper. Don't go too far with this to avoid a strobing or stuttery effect, though. (I probably wouldn't go less than 90°, or 1/250 at 60 fps.)
Keeping up with the puck is a challenge even for professional broadcasters. Any chance you can get a second camera and (if you don't have another operator) set it for a wide shot? There will be times you will miss the action and it would be great to have that to cut to when you don't have the right close shot on the primary camera. Three cameras (a wide shot from each end including the goals), and one in the center that you use to follow the action, would be an excellent setup.
Is this for public consumption, or is the goal to produce a "game tape" for the team to study? The expectations are certainly more relaxed if only the participants are going to view it. Shooting for a general audience requires much more thorough coverage.
- Greg
Hockey action is fast, so one of the 60p modes is needed for sure. You don't say whether you want to shoot in UHD or HD in your message. I'd want to do this with a fluid head tripod and a remote controller for the servo zoom. You'll probably be jamming it to the limits of its speed in many cases, but there are times when slow, smooth zooms are just the thing to follow the action from one end to the other. Auto focus makes sense but probably won't always be fast enough to keep up with the action -- the DVX200 has a big lens with heavy elements to move and the focus is accurate but not always lightning fast. But doing it manually would probably be much, much harder. I would use manual iris and color balance and set a good general exposure for the arena before you start. The surface of the ice itself is very close to pure white and should probably come out somewhere around 85 - 90 IRE on the WFM. Remember that the DVX200 lens is around f/4 over much of its range. Don't use an aperture bigger than this or you'll get underexposure when you zoom in. That may mean you will need to add some gain or use the High Sensitivity mode. Auto exposure, I think, would change levels too much depending on what is in the shot -- a shot with a big expanse of bright ice would probably cause it to stop down and underexpose the players and their uniforms. If the lights are decent, color and exposure shouldn't vary too much across the ice. Some of the rinks I've shot in have had terrible lighting in terms of levels, though, and they sometimes use sodium- or mercury-vapor lights that can produce very unflattering colors. The bigger or newer the facility is, the more likely you'll find reasonable lighting. If you have enough light, using a faster than default shutter speed may help make the action look a little sharper. Don't go too far with this to avoid a strobing or stuttery effect, though. (I probably wouldn't go less than 90°, or 1/250 at 60 fps.)
Keeping up with the puck is a challenge even for professional broadcasters. Any chance you can get a second camera and (if you don't have another operator) set it for a wide shot? There will be times you will miss the action and it would be great to have that to cut to when you don't have the right close shot on the primary camera. Three cameras (a wide shot from each end including the goals), and one in the center that you use to follow the action, would be an excellent setup.
Is this for public consumption, or is the goal to produce a "game tape" for the team to study? The expectations are certainly more relaxed if only the participants are going to view it. Shooting for a general audience requires much more thorough coverage.
- Greg
Thanks for that advise!
I will be shooting in HD by myself. The shoot is for is for a game tape which they will upload to Youtube. I may have a second DVX200, but if so it will be unmanned.
Where do I place myself given this situation? Mid way and up half way in the stands? If I do have two cams, where would you suggest I place the unmanned one?
Will the zoom range of the DVX200 be sufficient?
What is the typical renumeration for single cam coverage?
I will be shooting in HD by myself. The shoot is for is for a game tape which they will upload to Youtube. I may have a second DVX200, but if so it will be unmanned.
Where do I place myself given this situation? Mid way and up half way in the stands? If I do have two cams, where would you suggest I place the unmanned one?
Will the zoom range of the DVX200 be sufficient?
What is the typical renumeration for single cam coverage?
Greg Smith
Veteran
I will be shooting in HD by myself. The shoot is for is for a game tape which they will upload to Youtube. I may have a second DVX200, but if so it will be unmanned. Where do I place myself given this situation? Mid way and up half way in the stands? If I do have two cams, where would you suggest I place the unmanned one?
I think right on center ice about halfway up is exactly right. It depends on how deep the bleachers are, I suppose, but you want to be high enough for an unobstructed view without spectator's heads or the glass blocking it. If you go just far enough that your widest angle includes all four corners of the ice, I think it will be about right.
With one other camera I would probably place it near one end of the ice and pretty far up in the stands, zoomed to where it, too, can just see the entire rink. Higher up but directly behind your main camera is another possibility.
Will the zoom range of the DVX200 be sufficient?
It's not lavish for sports (which love long lenses), but I've gotten by with less in the past. I think you'll be OK.
What is the typical renumeration for single cam coverage?
No idea, sorry. When I used to do this it was part of my salaried job (and a long time ago). Probably came to about $10 an hour!
- Greg
For the game tape, you probably want to cover the whole or, at least, 2/3rd ice (ask the coaching staff what they want to see ... some teams are more compact defensively but will counter quickly; others will always stay compact), which would make the individual players look minuscule. This is one of those moments when one may want to shoot in 4K, so he can zoom in on the action in post. Hypothetically, even a 720p type of a zoom-in is good enough. Televised hockey - and soccer and football too - cuts off a lot of off-the-puck/ball stuff that isn't deemed pertinent to the viewer but is very pertinent to those studying the action from the coaching perspective.
As Greg mentioned before, a basic hockey coverage has three cams - on the red line and behind each net, each half way up the stands. The zoom is then used on counters but it's a bit different when the team transitions into the attack with 2-3 skaters than into the defense with everyone including the goalie having a role to play. With only one cam, try filming a full rink practice first, to see where you must zoom in and where you must cover more territory.
As Greg mentioned before, a basic hockey coverage has three cams - on the red line and behind each net, each half way up the stands. The zoom is then used on counters but it's a bit different when the team transitions into the attack with 2-3 skaters than into the defense with everyone including the goalie having a role to play. With only one cam, try filming a full rink practice first, to see where you must zoom in and where you must cover more territory.
greytail, did you shoot the game yet?
I will be putting the DVX200 on 7 or 8 hockey games in the next week and will report back here if you don't mind.
Thank you for your tips, Greg. I usually use auto iris with exposure compensation and switch to manual for dramatic changes where there is no ice, such as bench or penalty box shots. And I usually use manual focus, especially when shooting through glass, seams, or screening because autofocus will hunt on the foreground occlusion. I am very interested in exploring your tips for manual exposure at f/4. I've been really enjoying using AC90s on 1080p60 1/20th for hockey, but it has presented issues with high-gain in low-lit rinks. I'm very hopeful that the DVX200 will improve my "game."
Good luck, greytail!
I will be putting the DVX200 on 7 or 8 hockey games in the next week and will report back here if you don't mind.
Thank you for your tips, Greg. I usually use auto iris with exposure compensation and switch to manual for dramatic changes where there is no ice, such as bench or penalty box shots. And I usually use manual focus, especially when shooting through glass, seams, or screening because autofocus will hunt on the foreground occlusion. I am very interested in exploring your tips for manual exposure at f/4. I've been really enjoying using AC90s on 1080p60 1/20th for hockey, but it has presented issues with high-gain in low-lit rinks. I'm very hopeful that the DVX200 will improve my "game."
Good luck, greytail!
Greg Smith
Veteran
To be honest, I've never shot hockey with a camera that had auto-focus. Mostly 2/3" broadcast cameras. Small sensor cameras like the AC90 are a lot more forgiving when you're trying to cover action and focus manually. With the DVX200, focus will have to be more precise -- and I think the auto-focus may do a better job overall than trying to manage it manually while also following the action. It won't always be perfect, probably, but just a higher hit rate all things considered. If it doesn't work you can always switch back to manual. There is an auto-focus speed control setting in the DVX200 menus. It sounds like something you might want to experiment with to get the best results. I decided to kick mine up a notch after my first experiments -- and that was just with general subjects, walking through a crowd and so forth, not fast sports action -- so I think it's worth looking into.
I'm glad to hear that you could get decent exposures at all with the AC90, even if at the expense of using high gain in some cases. That bodes well for success with the DVX200, which should be at least a couple of stops more sensitive overall. Based on my experience with it so far, I wouldn't hesitate at all to use +6 dB gain, or even 12 if really necessary.
- Greg
I'm glad to hear that you could get decent exposures at all with the AC90, even if at the expense of using high gain in some cases. That bodes well for success with the DVX200, which should be at least a couple of stops more sensitive overall. Based on my experience with it so far, I wouldn't hesitate at all to use +6 dB gain, or even 12 if really necessary.
- Greg
Greg Smith
Veteran
Sorry to hear that! Doing these sorts of gigs is good experience for other types of shooting if nothing else. I wound up covering hockey and baseball for the local state university and I'm not even in any way a sports fan, but it sure did help refine my skills. (Never did get the hang of directing baseball, though. It requires a deep understanding of the tactics of the game that I just didn't have a good feel for.)
- Greg
- Greg
Greg, I agree with you that shooting ice hockey will develop skills for other types of run and gun shooting and teach a workshop on this at a broadcast school.
I ended up using Scene 5 with chroma dialed back up to 0. I used your approach to manual iris (5.0) and gained up to 12 dB with reasonably good result.
MF is a must for us. When a foreground player or on-ice official skates or stands to partially block the shot, I need to be able to keep focus on the action. I will try tweaking some of the intelligent auto settings but I don't have much hope for this in our environment which often puts us down low shooting through the glass and a mass of foreground players.
Importantly, I found a big issue with the Find Ring Drive control of manual focus and report on it in detail here.
I'll post back here with some stills from a game soon.
I ended up using Scene 5 with chroma dialed back up to 0. I used your approach to manual iris (5.0) and gained up to 12 dB with reasonably good result.
MF is a must for us. When a foreground player or on-ice official skates or stands to partially block the shot, I need to be able to keep focus on the action. I will try tweaking some of the intelligent auto settings but I don't have much hope for this in our environment which often puts us down low shooting through the glass and a mass of foreground players.
Importantly, I found a big issue with the Find Ring Drive control of manual focus and report on it in detail here.
I'll post back here with some stills from a game soon.