The cameramen, producers and directors for NBC Sports. While everyone has their opinions on the commentators, it is pretty hard to argue with the beautiful photography, good editing and innovative use of technology such as the “strobocam” used in diving and the unique digital image overlay of gymnastic routines to bring us a view of the sport that is MUCH better than being there. Really quite remarkable and surely an enormous undertaking.
Can you imagine the production facility? An enormous amount of sports that must be covered from multiple angles with many cameras and many happening simultaneously. Incredible.
I like that camera that races around the bends on the track with the athletes like a rabbit. I wonder how all the different networks keep from tripping over themselves? It would seem that they might be sharing some of the equipment.
On the HD broadcast they did a little blurb about the IBC (International Broadcast Center). The building is the 3rd largest in all of Greece. Over 13,000 media members work there each day, over 3000 of which work for NBC. It really is quite impressive.
Where I live there are 3 different stations broadcasting the Olympics, and they all show the same pictures from the same cameras (although one might show Rowing while another shows Basketball). Just different commentaries.
That’s why I’m not so sure it’s all NBC - there is probably one network that films everything (probably something from the IOC), then sells it to the major networks. If that’s NBC - congrats to them, but for some reason I doubt it’s them.
I worked on the Goodwill Games, editing. That was pretty minor compared to the olympics. We werent even doing HD at that time.It was a massive undertaking. Also the people working in the IBC would work 16-20 hour days for a month straight. Needless to say the rap party was over the top.
The host nation is required to provide a world feed of every event at every venue. Licensed broadcasters are free to use these feeds as they choose. In addition, many broadcasters, such as NBC, have their own cameras at certain sites to provide their own feed. What you saw were probably world feeds.
The host nation is required to provide a world feed of every event at every venue. Licensed broadcasters are free to use these feeds as they choose. In addition, many broadcasters, such as NBC, have their own cameras at certain sites to provide their own feed. What you saw were probably world feeds.
From what I understand, NBC produces the world feed and the cost of those rights is also the Athens 2004 Olympics’ greatest source of revenue.
I believe that NBC does not have the actual production being done in Greece. The production, I believe, is being done out of the Elbow Beach club in Bermuda, believe it or not. Apparently they wanted all of their actual production to be done in a safe place and Bermuda was the choice. Elbow Beach has been closed to the public for much of the month of Aug, and NBC folks are everywhere.
Apparently the “feeds” or what ever you call them are all going to Bermuda with everything we seen on NBC being done there and beamed on for network broadcast.
Note, all of this is at least 2nd hand and I don’t know any of the terms or lingo…I do find it quite interesting.
It would seem that they might be sharing some of the equipment.
I know in photography they are called ‘pool’ photographers in that they are part of a general ‘pool’ that others then have access to. You’ll see this at a lot of large events as the number of good shooting positions and the amount of space available is often limited. So they’ll have the pool photographers in place and then license the content to the various media outlets interested in it.
I could see them having a simliar deal for video as well.
I agree wholeheartedly. I may not always agree with some of the fluff or commentary, but the overall production is remarkable. I also really enjoy listening to Bob Costas.