WFSB-TV, the CBS affiliate in Hartford, CT, recently purchased eight Panasonic AG-HPX300 P2 HD shoulder-mount camcorders as part of its ongoing transition to tapeless newsgathering.
The station, owned by the Meredith Broadcast Group, had already begun shooting news, a daily magazine show and HD promos with Panasonic AG-HPX500 and AG-HVX200A P2 HD camcorders. Last year, Panasonic Broadcast announced that it signed an agreement with Meredith Broadcast to supply P2 HD solid-state camcorders group-wide to its 12 stations producing local news.
The new AG-HPX300 is a 10-bit, 4:2:2 professional HD camcorder, featuring individual frame AVC-Intra recording, native 2.2-megapixel imagers and variable frame rates. Incorporating a low profile shoulder-mounted design, the 1/3in AG-HPX300 P2 HD camcorder offers interchangeable lens capability but comes standard with a 17x HD Fujinon lens
Prior to upgrading to solid-state P2 HD camcorders, WFSB-TV had been shooting news with Panasonic DVCPRO tape-based models. Currently equipped with the eight HPX300s, four HPX500s and two HVX200As, the station has assigned seven HPX300s to ENG and one HPX300 to the production of a daily magazine show. Three HPX500s are assigned to ENG and the fourth to shooting station promos.
WFSB edits news with Grass Valley Aurora Edit and Edius 5.1.2 software, and edits promotions with Avid Media Composer workstations. The station also uses Grass Valley K2 Media servers for ingest and playout.