No two stations have the same needs when it comes to studio cameras. One may shoot for posterity; another for breaking news. Whatever the operational requirement, there's a price-point and feature package on the market. Mount Mansfield Television's WCAX-TV, a CBS affiliate in Burlington, Vt., is just getting ready to turn on its HD news signal. In preparation, Chief Engineer Joe Tymecki "considered literally everybody" as he was shopping for new HD studio cameras. "We were looking for a small-format camera because wanted to reuse all our robotics. The Panasonic native 1080i AK-HC3500 slid into place of our existing standard-definition cameras. When the time is right, it will be almost incidental to turn them to HD." At a list price of $56,000, the Panasonics require an investment from stations, but Tymecki said it's worth it. "The Panasonic is by far the cleanest picture I've seen from an HD camera. Within our budgetary constraints, we try to make the best picture we possibly can."
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