[mythtv-users] OT: HD and sports

[Brian Wood]

Jacob Steenhagen wrote:
> I really think a part of the problem is that (as far as I know) they use 
> the same cameras and production staff to broadcast the HD and SD version 
> of the game. After all, it's a live game and to have different staff for 
> each format almost doubles your required staff. It's not like a movie 
> where they can shoot in HD and then evaluate each shot when they put it 
> on a "fullscreen" DVD to determine which parts of the picture to cut 
> out. So what ends up happening is that the "additional" portions of the 
> HDTV on the left and right never show anything important, because if 
> they did, the SD sets wouldn't pick up on it. I even notice that with 
> the score boxes at the top of the screen. The score, time, etc. is all 
> in the center and the far left/right only show a solid color. Perhaps 
> that will change in the semi-near future and they'll just show the SD 
> broadcast in letterbox.

Certainly true in some cases. In others, particularly high-profile large 
market games, the HD feed is completely separate, although directors do 
have to remember that a consumer TV set might be converting aspects.

Kind of like in the early days of color, you had to be careful. 
Sometimes the graphics department would come up with a "fantastic" 
multi-color graphic, that was totally unreadable in monochrome.

Actually, due to the large number of monitors required, many of the 
monitors in a TV control room are B+W, as are the viewfinders on TV 
cameras (allows for better focus). Color viewfinders are strictly a 
consumer item, and the pros just laugh at them.

beww