Ever at the forefront of adopting new production technologies, Leo Ticheli Productions (Birmingham, AL) recently purchased the Panasonic AG-AF100 large imager HD cinema camcorder to support its award-winning, full-service content creation. Nationally recognized for its production work in the areas of automotive, and healthcare, LTP was the first all-digital facility in Alabama and a noted pioneer in HD acquisition.

LTP has utilized the AF100 on a variety of corporate projects including a segment for the city’s annual "Paint the Town Red" benefit for the Red Cross in which video was projected on downtown buildings, and training vignettes for the BBVA Compass bank and Mountain States Health Alliance. Company principal Leo Ticheli has also utilized the camcorder to shoot aerials and a pitch video for a regional advertising agency.

Targeted at the film and video production communities, the AF100 delivers film-like shallow depth of field and the wider field of view of a large imager, with the flexibility and cost advantages of a growing line of professional quality, industry-standard micro 4/3-inch lenses, filters, and adapters. The full HD 1080/720 production camera offers superior video handling, native 1080/24p recording, variable frame rates, professional audio capabilities, and compatibility with SDHC and SDXC media.

“The Canon 5D is a great still camera but a terrible motion picture camera,” said Director/Cinematographer Ticheli. “The aliasing and moiré can completely kill a shot, and the ergonomics are horrible. It can overheat and shut down, and that’s after it has degraded the image quality.”

“The AF100 overcomes every single liability of HDSLRs,” he continued. “There is no observable aliasing and moiré. The camcorder is lightweight with a small footprint, and with its built-in interchangeable lens mount, it can take virtually any cine-style or still lens. ”

“The depth of field is similar to that of 35mm film cameras,” Ticheli said. “The AF100 affords the full range of cinematic requisites, including variable frame rates, digital audio recording, customizable scene files, focus assist and Synchro-scan. The color LCD monitor and electronic viewfinder are standard, and the built-in ND filter is a tremendous time-saver, facilitating many more shots in a production day. And with all this comes professional connectors, like uncompressed, 4:2:2 HD-SDI out.”

“We’ll continue to shoot with higher-end—and more expensive—cameras, but the AF100 is really, really good, ideal for a small, fast-moving crew,” he added.  “It's certainly doing a few jobs that would have gone to a RED, because the AF100 is less expensive and handy to use.” 

For more information about Leo Ticheli Productions, visit www.ltpro.com.

About the Panasonic AG-AF100

The AF100 incorporates a large 4/3-inch, 16:9 MOS imager (with an imaging area just slightly smaller than 35mm cinema film) that minimizes skew with fast imager scanning, and incorporates an optical low pass filter for elimination of aliasing and moiré. The camcorder records 1080 at 60i, 50i, 30P, 25P (Native) and 24P (Native), and 720 at 60p, 50p, 30p, 25p and 24p native in AVCHD’s highest-quality PH mode (maximum 24Mbps). The AF100 also records in AVCCAM’s HA (17Mbps) and HE (6Mbps) modes, 1080i only. Ready for global production standards, the camcorder is 60Hz and 50Hz switchable. Equipped with an interchangeable micro 4/3-inch lens mount, the AF100 can utilize an array of low-cost, widely-available still camera lenses as well as film-style lenses with fixed focal lengths and primes. Variable frame rates (VFR) are available in 1080p, selectable in 20 steps from 12p to 60p at 60Hz and 20 steps from 12p to 50p at 50Hz. The camcorder has a built-in stereo microphone and features two mic/lines, switchable XLR inputs with +48V Phantom Power capability. For more information, visit www.panasonic.com/broadcast.

About Panasonic Solutions Company

Panasonic Solutions Company empowers people whose jobs depend on reliable technology. The company delivers collaboration, information-sharing and decision-support solutions for customers in government, healthcare, education and a wide variety of commercial enterprises. Products and services within the company’s portfolio include Panasonic Toughbook® mobile computing solutions, projectors, professional displays (including both plasma and LCD), and HD and 3D video acquisition and production solutions. As a result of its commitment to R&D, manufacturing and quality control, Panasonic is known for the reliability and longevity of its products. Panasonic Solutions Company is a Division of Panasonic Corporation of North America, which is the principal North American subsidiary of Panasonic Corporation (NYSE: PC).

All brand and company/product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of the respective companies. All specifications are subject to change without notice. Information on Panasonic Solutions Company’s full line of products can be obtained by calling 877-803-8492 or at www.panasonic.com/broadcast.