ES Broadcast Hire’s new fleet of Fujinon UA107x8.4BE UHD lenses were in the thick of the action at the recent 2018 European Men’s Handball Championship, helping to deliver coverage to more than 125 countries.
With the tournament taking place in Croatia, eight Fujinon UA107 lenses were used as part of a 17-camera HD production covering games at all four stadia, in Porec, Varazdin, Split and Zagreb, before moving to Zagreb for the knock-out stages and final. The lenses were deployed on high-speed cameras to capture every detail for slow motion replays.
The Fujinon UA107x8.4BE lens is a UHD box lens with a focal length of 8.4-1,800mm (using the lens’ built-in 2x extender) and 107x zoom capabilities. The huge focal range means it offers maximum flexibility for sports and live events. The UA107 complements other UHD lenses in Fujinon’s UA range of professional broadcast lenses, such as the UA14, UA22, UA27 and UA80, all of which can be hired from ES Broadcast Hire.
EVS XT4K servers also in use
Eight Vinten Vector 750 tripod heads and HDT-2 heavy duty tripods were also required for the handball coverage. Slow motion replay was provided using two EVS XT4K production servers.
Two-time World Champions Spain won their first European Championship with a 29-23 victory over Sweden in the final. Hosts Croatia defeated the Czech Republic 28-27 in the fifth-place game.
Fujinon UA107 lenses proving popular
The Fujinon UA107 lenses have proven popular since their arrival at ES Broadcast Hire in late November 2017. The lenses were also at Thialf ice arena in Heerenveen, Netherlands, in January for the KNSB Dutch All-Round and Sprint National Speedskating Championships.
The lenses are also being used at the XXIII Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea, including the opening and closing ceremonies. The opening ceremony for the games took place earlier today (Friday 9th February).