[Txlensman]

I regularly shoot (In the U.S.) for Discovery, History, all the alphabet news channels, and many national programs. BetaSP is still the preferred acquisition format, as requested by the networks. If you have Digibeta, sure they’ll want that, but I’ve never been turned down for a network shoot with my Ikegami HL-45 with a BetaSP back.

It is an incredibly reliable, time-tested, rugged and high-quality format. It’s amazing how manufacturers are so bent on changing the marketplace to new formats that they turn a deaf ear on what the mass professional marketplace is actually using.

From time to time, I hear some inexperienced people tell me that BetaSP is dead. Hmmm, then how come you can’t even touch a USED lower-end deck in decent shape (like an 1800) for less than $3,500 ?

I make a pretty good living shooting with my rig, and editing on my G-5 2.3Ghz quad proc, with DeckLinkSP 10-bit uncompressed component, on FC5 Studio.

I’ve been in the TV production business for over 20 years, and I’m much more interested in my creativity becoming productivity, than piddling with “fake” HD, 720P, or “experimental” acquisition formats.

Obviously at some point, all television and video will have migrated to true high-def digital, and tapeless acquisition and delivery formats will have stood the test of time and proven themselves. I’ll be onboard.

Until then, my Ikegami/BetaSP makes prettier pictures than any DVCAM or DVCPRO system I’ve seen.