(Blank)
Cutaway shots which are used to cover the visual part of an interview or narration. The term is often used in TV news.
What is B-Roll ?
Microphone pickup pattern whereby sound is absorbed equally from two sides only. [See omnidirectional, unidirectional.]
What is Bidirectional ?
Generic term for wide variety of video image manipulation devices with perceived mysterious or "magical" capabilities, including proc amps, enhancers, SEGs, and TBCs.
What is Black Box ?
Video image imperfection characterized by blurring of color borders; colors spill over defined boundaries, "run" into neighboring areas.
What is Bleeding ?
Camera move above or below subject with aid of a balanced "boom arm," creating sense of floating into or out of a scene. Can combine effects of panning, tilting, and pedding in one fluid movement.
What is Booming ?
Illumination from behind, creates sense of depth by separating foreground subject from background area. Applied erroneously, causes severe silhouetting. [See fill light, key light, three-point lighting.]
What is Back Light ?
Binary numbers are a BASE TWO SYSTEM. In this system, any decimal number can be stored as a series of ones and zeros.
What is Binary Numbers ?
A composite color video signal comprised of sync, color burst and black video. Used to synchronize (genlock) other video sources to the same sync and color information. Black burst generators are used in editing systems "lock" the entire facility to a common signal ("house sync" or "house black").
What is Black Burst ?
A unit of data comprising of 588 BITS. There are 7350 BLOCKS in each second of information on a Compact Disc.
What is Block ?
Consecutive Block Errors. Burst Errors are usually the result of fingerprints, contamination, scratches, or voids, etc. The maximum value of any single burst error must not exceed 5.
What is Burst Error ?
Accessory for video lights, two- or four-leaf folding flaps that control light distribution.
What is Barndoors ?
A measurement of the stresses within the polycarbonate substrate of a Compact Disc. These stresses are introduced during moulding process. Philip's Red Book states the maximum allowable birefringence is + 100nm. (nanometers).
What is Birefringence ?
Voltage in a video signal which corresponds to black
What is Black Level ?
Bits per Inch, usually referring to magnetic tape recording density.
What is BPI ?
Music or music libraries in which a one-time fee enables the buyer to legally use the music in many productions without paying additional licensing or "needle drop" fees.
What is Buy Out ?
The most common broadcast quality video format. Also Betacam SP, the enhanced version.
What is Betacam ?
An abbreviation of BINARY DIGIT. The elementary unit for digital storage. A BIT can be either a 1 (one) or a 0 (zero).
What is BIT ?
Also known as the pedestal, it is the voltage level produced at the end of each horizontal picture line which separates the portion of the video signal containing the picture information from the portion containing the synchronizing information. This voltage makes the electron beam "invisible" as it moves to draw the next visible line.
What is Blanking Level ?
(bayonet fitting connector) Durable "professional" cable connector, attaches to VCRs for transfer of high-frequency composite video in/out signals. Connects with a push and a twist.
What is BNC ?
The obsolete home video format. Lost the format battle to VHS even though it was slightly superior. The cassette size, however, went on to become BETACAM.
What is Betamax ?
The process of recording a black burst* signal across the entire length of a tape. Often done before recording edited footage on the tape to give the tape clean, continuous video and sync and to insure there is no video already on the tape.
What is Black a Tape ?
The horizontal blanking interval is the time between the end of one scan line and the beginning of the next. The vertical blanking interval is the time between the end of one video field and the beginning of the next. Blanking occurs when a monitor's electron beam is positioned to start a new line or a new field. The blanking interval is used to instantly reduce the beam's amplitude so that the return trace is invisible. The screen goes blank for a fraction of second. (See VERTICAL INTERVAL SWITCHING)
What is Blanking Interval (Horizontal & Vertical) ?
An overhead pole device used to position a microphone close to the actors, but out of the shot. A FISHPOLE is the portable version.
What is Boom ?
A unit of digital data comprising eight BITS.
What is Byte ?