Televising The Revolution

There are countless bytes of precious memories and critical data stored on optical discs every day but the average user has no idea just how sensitive the media can be. The following is an extract from the NIST’s Quick Reference Guide to optical media care. A good starting place to learn how to care for your optical media:

1. Handle discs by the outer edge or the center hole. Do not bend the disc.
2. Use a non-solvent-based felt-tip permanent marker to mark the label side of the disc.
3. Keep dirt or other foreign matter from the disc.
4. Store discs upright (book style) in plastic cases specified for CDs and DVDs.
5. Return discs to storage cases immediately after use.
6. Leave discs in their packaging (or cases) to minimize the effects of environmental changes.
7. Open a recordable disc package only when you are ready to record data on that disc.
8. Do not touch the surface of the disc or use adhesive labels.
9. Store discs in a cool, dry, dark environment in which the air is clean. Do not expose the disks to bright sunlight for extended periods of time.
10. Remove dirt, foreign material, fingerprints, smudges, and liquids by wiping with a clean cotton fabric in a straight line from the center of the disc toward the outer edge. Do not wipe in a direction going around the disc.

THE NIST LIST

The National Institute of Standards and Technology or NIST has researched the matter and publishes several excellent references on the subject of proper care and handling of CDs and DVDs.  Following the link will direct you to the NIST Website where you will find Special Publication 500-252, October 2003, Final. This publication carries a wealth of information for use, storage and care of optical media.

There are no absolute assurances that information will always be readable on any media but much can be done to minimize data loss and the expense of recreating material lost to issues as controllable as improper storage or writing a title on the face of the disc just to name two. -33-

 An important part of any production is assuring that what you are seeing is what is going to air, tape or disc. Because one observer may see a particular color differently than another, the best way to assure you are getting proper color and luminance levels is with a Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope. All is not lost if you are in a situation where these devices are not available.  Here is an alternative method for quantifying color through the use of standard test patterns from The Society Of Motion Picture And Television Engineers (SMPTE) and the use of optical viewers.

1. Assure that the monitor is in its normal viewing environment. Avoid any direct reflections in the monitor screen.
2. Turn the monitor on and let it stabilize for about 15 minutes.
3. Send a known standard video signal to your monitor, like SMPTE Bars.
4. Lower the color level to a black and white image. Observe the black and white bars to ensure they do not look slightly tinted.
5. Reset the chroma or color control to bring back the color image. Some monitors have a detent in the control. When set to the factory default a tactile detent will be felt while operating the control.
6. While observing SMPTE Bars on the screen, adjust the brightness control for proper black level. Adjust brightness while observing the level of the 3 small black bars at the lower right of the screen. Stop when the lightest bar at the right is barely visible.
7. Now set the contrast control (sometimes called picture) for proper white level. One way to find this point is to first turn the contrast all the way up. As this is done the white bar at the lower left on the screen will brighten and flare. At this point, turn the contrast control slowly back down, reducing the bloom until the white square itself just begins to respond.
8. If the monitor has a “Blue Screen” switch, switch it on. If your monitor does not have a blue screen switch you can use a Wratten 47B filter to observe the screen. Only the four color bars containing some blue signal (gray, cyan, magenta and blue) and their sub-bars should now be visible.
9. Adjust the color saturation with the same chroma or color control used in step 5 until the gray and blue bars (the bars at the far left and far right) are of equal brightness. Then adjust the Hue control (Sometimes called Tint or Phase) until the cyan and magenta bars are of equal brightness. Now these four bars should be of equal intensity, and the other three bars should be entirely black. This is the correct adjustment!
10. Now turn off the blue only screen. Bars should now appear normal. Visually recheck black and white levels and that the bars are correct in hue and color. Yellow should appear yellow not reddish or greenish and magenta should be just that — not purple or pink.

That’s all there is to it. -33-

 A Reader Asks:

I notice a distinct chirping or buzzing in a defined, rhythmic pattern in the audio portion of my production. What causes this and is there anything that I can do to prevent it?

Many issues can cause chatter or noise in audio systems. Some of the most frustrating to deal with lately seem to be coming from portable wireless devices.

Cell-Cell-Cell

Cellular communication can be the source of this interference when a subscriber is using their wireless device near some speakers or poorly shielded audio cables, controls and other equipment that can resonate radio frequencies (RF). One of the biggest causes is shielding, or lack thereof. What is happening is poorly shielded gizmos can act like an antenna picking up the cell phone’s generated frequencies. At a very basic level, you are hearing someone’s telephone communication.

Some telephone networks cause more electronic noise than others because of things like, how often they communicate with devices, the frequency bands they use and how much power the device emits. 

The amount of noise caused by cell phones and networks when near sensitive audio devices is related to how efficiency the telephone communicates with the network and stays connected. Some telephones need to talk with the tower more often than others.

Experts say that the interference is an intrinsic part of cellular technology and not much can be done to prevent it. We live in a very noisy world from a radio frequency standpoint.

Fixes

Solving the issue is not easy. One thing that will help is to do away with copper cabling all together and install fiber optic cable but other hardware is still open to the problem. The best way is to insist that everyone within the production’s proximity turn-off his or her cellular devices. Not set to vibrate-Power-off completely! All well and good unless you pull up your mobile production unit near an offending system’s cell site.

Part of the responsibility lies with the manufacturers to provide better shielding and systems in their own devices. Part of the responsibility lies with audio and video system installers and designers to address this problem and design-in better RF shielding to prevent or at least minimize impact.

Try This

• Experiment with wire dress
• Be sure all shields are soldered
• Use quality cable.
• Use quality connectors 
• Maintain a totally balanced audio system
• Have a good maintenance program -33-

What the heck is a Ditty Bag? In production parlance and as listed in this column it is a kit of useful items used in television and film production. The ditty bag can contain a group of handy items to have at one’s disposal. The items may vary depending on personal choices.  

IT’S IN THE BAG

• Felt marking pens
• Erasable felt-tipped markers
• Make-up powder puff (for erasing marker)
• Air blowing bulb
• Flashlight
• Lens tissue and lens cleaner
• Magnifying glass
• Scissors
• Masking tape
• Tweezers
• Orange sticks
• Pencils and ballpoint pens
• Screwdrivers
• Assorted brushes
• Rubber bands
• Black cloth
• Tools
• “C” clamps 3-in. (7.5 cm)
• Spring clamps
• Scriber
• 1/4 x 20 screws 1 - and 2 1/2 - in.
• 3/8 x 16 screws 1 - and 2 1/2 - in.
• Washers
• Dental mirror
• Magnifier
• Canned air
• Dulling spray
• Black Wrap
• Light Meters
• Calculators
• Stopwatch
• Electrical tape
• 1″ camera tape
• 2″ gaffer tape
• White Gaffer’s Tape
• Black camera tape
• Medical Tape
• Double Sided Stick Tape
• 1/2″ or 1″ paper tape
• 1/8″ or 1/4″ chart tape
• Spike Tape
• Transfer tape (also called snot tape)
• Trickline
• Clothes Line
• Grease pencils (China Marking Pencils)
• Chalk for actors’ marks
• Wipes–large and small
• Spare batteries (AAA, AA, C, D, 9-volt)
• Spare flashlight bulbs
• Small plastic storage bags
• Trash bags
• Spray cleaner
• Rags/paper towels
• Mole foam  (or similar)
• Freezer Bags with zipper seal
• Non-lubricated Condoms - In humid environments or in rain, this will help keep microphone elements dry. It can also be stretched over transmitters to keep rain out.
• Alligator Clips
• Spring Clothespins
• Rubber Bands
• 50-foot cloth measuring tape
• Stopwatch

The list is endless. As you are building yours remember that when it comes to the production environment you cannot be over prepared. -33-

 Footnote: All information mentioned herein is for the consideration of the reader and any use of the mentioned items is at the risk of the user. The author is not liable for any complication due to usage. Generic and/or Brand names are not an endorsement and other items may be substituted at the user’s discretion.