Why We Need a Better Camera by Gary Olsen, Media Developer and Public Affairs, Dubuque Community Schools
This is the camera we wish to acquire. It's the Sony XDCam PDWF 330L that records to blue laser optical disc. It's light-weight, high definition and multiple format capabilities make it the ideal camera for series television shows like the ones we produce. Click here to learn more about the Sony XDCam. The Dubuque Community School District makes extensive use of television technology in its communication endeavors. It makes sense in this day and age.
Most people, particularly those under the age of 35, prefer to get their news and information via television or the Internet. Our independent survey data confirms this. So when I began putting a communication strategy together I shifted the investment we were making in print and postage and put it into television and web technology. Video
Why We Need a New Camera and Why We Need This Camera... We currently have one camera we use for most of our shows... the JVC DR-DV5000 which was paid for through an educational grant we received four years ago from McKesson Corporation. In exchange for the $10,000 we were given, we produced a 20 minute video on emergency pediatric medicine for a Mercy Hospital. This was the organization that actually applied for and won the grant on our behalf. It was a good deal for all involved. Mercy got their video which they play for children upon admission to the hospital to lessen their fears of what will happen to them there; McKesson fulfilled their mission of giving money to worthy causes that address health education to young people, and the Dubuque Schools got a great camera. As good as this camera is, the time has come to begin looking at a new camera, one that can contribute more efficiency to our workflow. Also, now that we are distributing our shows on a fiber optic network, provided by Mediacom, there is a need for us to improve the overall image quality of our programs. With the proliferation of wide-screen, high-definition televisions, and with the mandatory transition to digital programming authorized by the Federal Communication Commission, it's only a matter of time before the technology changes, and we must endeavor to keep up with it. But the real advantages to this new camera is in its flexibility. It records multiple formats which will enable us to immediately post a video to the Internet at a quality level compatible with web broadcast. At the same time, we'll have a high quality version of the same footage available for high-definition cable. It's quite remarkable, and it will improve the productivity of our post production activities significantly. Every few years you need to buy a camera for the simple reason that parts wear out and it becomes more expedient to buy new technology. Plus, there couldn't be a better time than now to by this particular camera at this point in time. The Sony XDCam could be the perfect camera in how it enhances workflow and the handling of video files. That's correct, I said files instead of footage. This camera records to a hard drive rather than fragile video tape. The camera has actually fewer moving parts, and no part of the camera's recording device actually touches the surface of the disc media like a tape recording device does. Hence, there is little or no potential for wear and tear internally. The laser etches the data into reusable disc media, and the camera or a companion disc player can transfer the recorded data right to a computer for post editing. It's fast and efficient. And because the camera records in digital clips format, you can even edit clips together on the camera in any order for more rapid deployment of your finished program. This particular camera is becoming the broadcast industry standard, and this is another important reason why we chose the Sony PDWF-330L. Some of our shows are becoming so popular they are playing on state-wide cable networks. However, we have found that in order to distribute our programs to a wider audience, we must record them in a format that is compatible with the highest quality video platforms. The first question people ask me when inquiring about the rebroadcast of one of our shows is, "What's your format?" Many facilities can handle pro-sumer quality tape formats, but they do not like it. The quality they demand is just not there. Cheaper HD cameras record a "compressed" video in order to fit high definition data on inexpensive tape cassettes. However, the XDCam records to a virtually "lossless" format at its highest quality setting which is demanded by the broadcast industry. So if we want our programs to be distributed more widely, we need to look at a high-definition, high quality video format. This camera meets our needs now and in the future. Plus, an tangential benefit of shooting in HD will be high quality single frame images that can pass as printable photographs on our website and in our published materials. On a personal note: I've been involved in education in one form or another for most of my life. And I've been involved in media, from my early days in radio broadcasting to the Internet (from its very beginning). I've produced award-winning documentaries and series television shows for cable. This is why I'm so inspired to build on our already successful program. Television is a compelling medium. It communicates on many levels... the visual, the auditory and the emotional. And television conveys information and facilitates learning faster and more efficiently than anything else. It communicates across cultures and languages, and it can even teach those who are impaired or disabled. To not utilize what has become a ubiquitous part of our daily lives would be mistake. Television is more than just what you see on the screen. Television is the ultimate collaborative medium requiring teamwork, group problem solving, and copious amounts of creativity. It's what we need to be teaching students to prepare them for success and satisfaction as adults. Personally, I love being involved in television as it applies to education for this reason. Often, when I look through the lens at our students performing, presenting, or just being themselves, I often see magic happen. I capture things that tell a story better than I could ever put into words. We truly live in an exciting time of technological advances enabling us to tell interesting and informative stories and get them out there on the web or on cable television for the world to see and to celebrate. Gary Olsen is an award winning media developer for the Dubuque Community School District. He's the author of two books on technology and creativity, and he was named one of the top 40 Cable Leaders in Learning by Cable in the Classroom in 2006. He can be reached at golsen@dubuque.k12.ia.us References are available upon request. You can write or call Gary Olsen at 563-552-3032. Dubuque Community School District's address is 2300 Chaney Road, Dubuque, IA 52001.
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Our efforts in television production so impressed the executives at Mediacom Cable, that they instantly fulfilled our request for very our own cable channel in Dubuque. Channel 19 has just celebrated its first year of service to the community. Our shows are popular, and some of our more ambitious productions, like Kids in the Kitchen and The Garden Organic, are broadcast state-wide on Mediacom's Iowa subscriber's network. Our shows are seen in Des Moines, the Quad Cities, Waterloo, Cedar Falls, and communities throughout Iowa that are served by Mediacom, among the largest cable providers in the state. 
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