Progress in Lens and Cameras: 2010–2020

Abstract

The decade 2010–2020 saw fast-paced developments in professional lenses and cameras—moving on the fronts of both broadcast television production and digital cinematography. The long-established 2/3-in. image format made a surprisingly smooth transition from two decades of high-definition television (HDTV) to 4K ultrahigh definition (UHD)—although, behind the scenes, this posed significant challenges to both lens and image sensor developments. The 2/3-in. B4 lens–camera mount standard remained a foundation for this transition. The decade bore witness to extraordinary international standardization activities that produced the parameter values for 4K UHD and 8K UHD for production and international program exchange—closely following with allied standards on high dynamic range (HDR) and wide color gamut (WCG). The current hesitancy in the U.S. to inaugurate 4K UHD delivery services propelled camera manufacturers to introduce broadcast television cameras that are multiformat—switchable between HD and UHD and between 2K and 4K digital cinema initiative (DCI)—and also multipurpose in being able to switch between HD colorimetry and WCG, and between HDR and standard dynamic range (SDR). Optical manufacturers applied major resources into developing 2/3-in. 4K broadcast television lenses. Meanwhile, amidst this uncertainty, 8K UHD broadcasting became a major agenda in some Asian regions, and the attendant developments in lenses and cameras significantly contributed to technological advances in the parallel 4K systems. The year 2010 saw the transition from the first generation HD/2K Super 35-mm digital cinematography lenses and cameras to 4K acquisition systems. New international manufacturers arrived in both arenas, and vigorous competitive activities escalated the pace of their respective technological developments. Within this decade, the full promise of HDR and WCG became evident for moviemaking and episodic television production. Within this same time span, the extraordinary emergence of the over-the-top (OTT) tech giants into the world of content creation, and international distribution, soon witnessed an upsurge in both the quantity of high-end scripted content and high expectations in quality .