Flying cameras and Shunyi sightings

Owned and operated by an Australian-based company, the FlyCam is also known as the “Ball” – a point to point camera system that flies across the racing venue on a cable.

FlyCam operator Damian Doucette shared some insights about the camera with World Rowing.

WR: How did you come into this business?
Damian Doucette: I started with the rigging as I used to be a climber. We flew a person in a chair on ropes with a camera to take shots.

WR: What is the FlyCam?
DD: The camera we have here is a lightweight one. Only three exist in the world and we have two of them. It’s a brand new technology which has been in a functional state for about a year and actually this is the third event that we have done with it. This is the very first application in rowing but we have been filming canoe/kayak for the past three years.

WR: How does the camera work?
DD: The camera is flying above the racing venue on a 900m cable which is a medium size for us. It can travel up to 160 km/h, which is necessary for shooting motorsport racing. At the rowing it goes up to 50 km/h, enough to turn around and go ahead of any boat. It can pan in 360°, tilt and roll. We use a wide angle lens to go right into the action. It’s the combination of all these capacities that makes it so dynamic. Five different gyroscopes are built in and are the axes of stabilisation. The camera is water resistant (the builder also makes some for marine use) and it is battery operated. It transmits the signal through a wireless frequency.

WR: How is it operated?
DD: Two people are operating it: One pilot who positions it across the line and therefore gives the speed and an operator who points the glass. The operator is the one who monitors what the “ball” is looking at to get the most out of it. Do you want to have a go and try to control it?

WR: It’s really difficult to control with the joystick. It moves three dimensionally and is very sensitive to any movement. How long does it take to get used to operating?
DD: It takes a couple of years in front of the screen to be able to handle it at the best. You must also take into account that it regularly changes and improves. Imagine the stress when you go live in front of millions of people watching TV!

WR: How is it broadcasted?
DD: The images are sent to Beijing Olympic Broadcasting, BOB, through optical cables to the truck where the director then chooses the images which are broadcasted. I see the director as a painter, the screens with the different views are the colour palette and the FlyCam offers him more lively colour.

WR: The battery needs to be replaced before the start of the races, that’s Andrew Butcher’s job. How do you get to the camera?
DD: Here is luxury: we have a “cherry picker”, a crane that takes me to the camera. Often, I have to climb to it.

WR: And how high is the ball?
DD: At the finish side, it’s about 15.5m high. At the other side of the cable, about 12m and in the middle 3m above the water.

WR: How long does the battery last and what is this microphone?
DD: The battery can last up to 6.5 hours but we play safe and change it just before racing. The microphone is to give some noise reference to the sound technicians.

KEEP OFF THAT TAN

It’s hot, in the high 20s Celsius, but the Chinese volunteers are wearing their jackets. Why? Because they don’t want to get a tan. World Rowing was told by one Chinese volunteer, “For Chinese people white is beautiful, I don’t want to get dark. But there are exceptions, dark skinned people like basketball players are handsome!”

WHO WAS AT THE ROWING

Prince Albert II of Monaco came back again to watch his favourite rower in the single, Mathias Raymond.

Lena Adelshon-Liljeroth, sports minister of Sweden came to cheer for the two single scullers; Lassi Karonen who won his semifinal and Frida Svennson who missed out on making the Final in her semifinal.