USER REPORT Macie Video Aligns With DSC Labs By Roger Macie
President
Macie Video Service Inc.
DEDHAM, MASS. Modern cameras make great pictures right out of the box, right? That's often true, but accurate alignment to a precision grayscale/colorbar is essential to achieve a consistent "look" and quality standard. I make my living lining up cameras and need the finest test standards available. I was fortunate to discover DSC Labs in the early 1990s when I started Macie Video. DSC had been making Combi OSGs (Optical Signal Generators) for twenty years, but Macie Video was one of the first to use Combis with DSC's unique Ambi (ambient light) illuminator. The extreme precision and consistency of DSC products helped me grow Macie Video to where we now align cameras for the networks, and more than 1,000 videographers. This would have been very difficult without the Ambi/Combi System. The design of DSC test patterns makes camera alignment intuitive using standard waveform monitors and vectorscopes. The individual calibration sheets for grayscales and colorbars give added confidence, but in practice are seldom needed. Aligning and documenting the characteristics of hundreds of cameras to Combi OSGs enabled us to develop the Macie Uniform Standard. Networks and shooters recognized the benefits of having cameras set up to this proven standard. We recently upgraded our Ambi and Combi OSGs to 16:9 with international 709 HD colorimetry. For convenience and to keep patterns current, we use DSC's automatic annual replacement program. To handle the increasing demand for consistent camera alignment, we have recently installed additional 16:9 Ambi/Combi Systems. FRONT- OR BACK-LIT?
Because front-lit charts typically exhibit high levels of surface flare and have low dynamic range, DSC traditionally produced rear-lit systems. However, aerospace video applications needed a small, high dynamic range test pattern. DSC accepted the challenge and developed CamAlign, a very different front-lit chart. Along with high dynamic range and sturdy construction, one of CamAlign's biggest benefits is true grayscale neutrality across the visible spectrum. This is hard to achieve, and unique to CamAlign.  At Macie we spend a lot of effort aligning cameras and dislike seeing shooters white balancing to a "whitish" piece of paper, t-shirt or truck. A couple of years ago I discussed this with Dave Corley at DSC, and in no time he sent back a prototype CamWhite, a spectrophotometrically neutral white balancing card. CamWarms followed with multiple levels of warming.
We wanted our clients to benefit from these handy little charts and now have DSC making custom Macie Video versions for us. Other makers now produce white and warm cards, but our tests show that these competitive cards don't have the technology and characteristics of CamWhite and CamWarm. CamFocus is the latest shirt-pocket test pattern inspired by one of DSC's European HD shooters. CamFocus features a unique BacKFocus pattern, designed to "pop" into focus more easily, with a calibrated CamWhite on the back. Simply hold the CamFocus card at an actor's eye level to enable faster, more accurate focusing, and use the other side for white balancing. At Macie Video, we sincerely believe that DSC charts help us to do a better job for our clients and that's what matters. Roger Macie is the president of Macie Video Service Inc. He has been a maintenance engineer for a variety of TV stations and video producers, and has more than 30 years of experience in broadcast video, camera and VTR service. Roger can be reached at fixer@broadcastvideo.com. For more information, contact DSC Labs at 866-372-5227 or visit www.dsclabs.com. (Reprinted with the permission of TV Technology)
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