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Camera Shading

I would love the ability to do camera shading (color balance, gain, iris shutter etc) from a CCU. I know that PTZOptics camera have shading control via the remote and OSD. However, during live broadcast especially ones that can go all day. Having the ability to perform camera shading is critical as light changes. Whether this be built into a PTZ controller as a all in one solution or a separate ccu unit. This ability is very much needed. PS. have we tested PTZOptics with third party CCU like the skaarhoj RCPv2?

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Hi Jason,


Thank you very much for submitting your feature request for more fine tuned control capabilities via a "controller."


This is a request, at it's core, is something we have been watching grow and I can say we are working on a solution to address the concern.


I do not currently have a date when the solution will be made available, beyond in 2019, but it is currently in development.



We have not had the fortune to test the Skaarhoj RCPv2 with our cameras but would imagine that Skaarhoj would need to program the profiles for our cameras on the RCPv2 before they would be able to talk.


I know that our profiles were added to other standard joystick controllers from Skaarhoj but am unsure if the profiles are universal to all Skaarhoj equipment.


I know Skaarhoj responds well to end-user requests for such integrations and uses it to drive their road maps so I would suggest it as worth submitting as a update if-not already implemented.



If you have any other questions you believe I can address here please feel free to follow up.


I hope this message finds you having a fantastic day.

Matthew thank you for this information. I would love to see an ip camera control solution and joystick ptz all in one option. I know that professional broadcast seperate joystick control from ptz movement. However, for "one man band" operations or for house of worship installs working with volunteers an all in one option is more convenient. Thanks again for the update. PS. Do you offer beta testing? I would love to be a beta tester

Hi Jason,


Absolutely my pleasure.


Hopefully what we're working on is going to hit most, if not all, of the "desires" people have expressed from a "one-man-band," I love how that term applies, solution for control.


Unfortunately for the control solutions we do not offer any traditional beta testing; I will keep you contact info on-hand so that if the opportunity arises I'll be sure to reach out and see if you are still interested / have time.


If you have any other suggestions, general ideas or concerns please come back and let us know.

I would like to inquire about progress regarding shading controls for PTZOptics cameras.  I too am accustomed to broadcast cameras in a mobile production environment with full CCU (camera control unit) capabilities to control iris, pedestal, gamma, RGB gains, shutter, etc. smoothly and on the fly with dedicated controls.


I recently spent a few moments with a PT-Joy-G3 controller connected to a PTZOptics 30x SDI camera and found the IRIS+/- buttons rather counter-intuitive. If I pressed IRIS- the video levels decreased immediately and drastically, but  when I subsequently pressed IRIS+ the video levels did not change. I could only return the video to an almost acceptable level by pressing AUTO EXP. When I pressed IRIS+ from AUTO, the levels immediately and drastically decreased again. I saw no way to fine-tune exposure and subtly adjust the image manually with the IRIS buttons. When in auto exposure, the majority of the scene looked reasonably well exposed except that foreground faces were slightly overexposed with some clipping in flesh-tone highlights. The camera was going live in about five minutes, and I had no time to investigate further. I simply set it back to auto exposure and told the TD, "That wasn't what I expected." I have been searching the web for detailed information regarding controlling iris with the PT-Joy-G3 and have been disappointed thus far.


If iris control is accomplished through a few relative large steps rather than smooth variable control from fully closed to fully open - that is quite disappointing. If enabling manual iris control disables any gain settings applied in auto exposure mode - that is disappointing as well. Either situation results in an exposure shift that cannot be used for making a subtle exposure correction for a live shot. Using the OSD to make adjustments isn't practical for live use either. Have you ever tried shading cameras for a live outdoor event when clouds frequently and intermittently block the sun? It requires continuous and smooth adjustment that cannot always be made while a shot is in preview.


Perhaps a better approach might be a smoothly variable auto exposure compensation mode that would allow auto-exposure to handle large shifts in light intensity while simultaneously allowing an operator to trim that exposure when auto doesn't get it just right.


The Iris buttons on the PT JOY G3 should just cycle through the available Iris positions for the camera. These are available via the On Screen Display of the camera as well. The PT JOY G3 puts the camera into a manual exposure mode once you press the Iris + or - button, and you would have to press the auto exposure to get it back to auto. The thing is, if you go from auto to to manual you will go to what Iris position it was at when it was put into auto, it wont keep the position of the iris in the auto position and allow you to adjust it from there. 


I will pass along these comments to the engineering team, thank you for your feedback. 

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