Help me justify EX-1

[cgbier]

My boss surprised me today with the news that I'll have $15,000 available for equipment thanks to a grant from NOAA, and asked me to put together a budget. My first thought, of course, was a brand new Sony EX-1.
To get the budget approved by the Feds, I'll have to come up with a solid justification - drooling doesn't count.
My first point would be that we want to create and deliver a product that would be suitable for national broadcast (the EX-1 is about minimum specs for PBS).
What else could one bring up to get that cam?
The justification will be read and signed off by some pencil pusher in DC who most likely won't have a clue what I'm writing about.

Ehm, no, I'm interested in some red vaporware, I have a video to produce.

[Duke]

Uncompressed audio to capture the full depth and texture of music. Full XLR to avoid audio interference.

Better low light capabilities than other cameras in its price range due to a larger sensor, and at the same time approximately 25% more picture data.

A superior codec at 35 Mbps to avoid artifacts, and full raster sensor and file format to avoid aliasing and moire.

As light weight and portable as cameras with much less resolution. MFX files are designed to be universally editable unlike AVCHD.

Capable of being gen locked with an EX3 for multicamera shoots. Capable of connecting a Nanoflash for even better resolution in noisy images like sparks or waves.

The most cost effective camera for delivering superior image quality. (The most bang for the buck.)

[Lunchbox]

AFAIK, It won't take any third party battery. If you do, the whole camera just won't power up. However, we do have generic battery that will work with the Ex1/Ex3

http://lacolorshop.com/products/item.asp?id=u65
http://lacolorshop.com/products/item.asp?id=u95

[cgbier]

Duke, thanks for all the info!

Taky, sorry, no business there. Boss doesn't let me buy generic... I have built one of your Comers into the budget though.

[Lunchbox]

dang.. worth a shot =)

[cgbier]

Good try, Taky

That's what I could come up with as a draft:

As aquaculture is a growing industry world wide, we are the opinion that our project will find interest even outside the CNMI. Therefore, we aim to produce our video in internationally accepted broadcast quality. We are choosing the Sony EX-1R as our camera. It is the least camera that fulfills the minimum specifications set forth by PBS (http://www.pbs.org/producers/redbook...on_8_20_07.pdf). The tape less format has the advantage that there are no more moving parts in the camera anymore. In our tropical climate a point that can never be underestimated. The workflow is much more efficient than with the tape-based HDV format we have used so far. Instead of a 1:1 transfer time with tape, our videographer can drag and drop his footage into the computer within a few minutes. As the camera is also to be used to document the fact finding mission to Thailand, we save to transport bulky and sensible tapes. The hard case is meant to safely transport the camera on trips.
The chosen camera can ingest uncompressed audio. For broadcast quality a basic requirement. To get superior sound without any background noises, we need to have a microphone on a boom pole. The chosen kit enables us to do so.

[antman]

Looks good, Nice job CG!!

[cgbier]

Thanks, Antman. I'm crossing me fingers that it goes through... April 2 is the deadline for grant submission (it is pre-approved already). By May, we will know more.

That EX-1 seems to be quite a babe.

[The Next Scorsese]

Congrats! I hope you get it.

I also want an EX-1.

[shoestringconcerts]

Good try, Taky

That's what I could come up with as a draft:

that flows horribly
i would seek out someone to edit it. i have a friend who could probably edit that and make it sound right for about $50. she is a professional book editor and does that kind of stuff all day every day.

[shoestringconcerts]

aquaculture is a growing industry world wide, we believe our project will find interest outside the CNMI. We are aiming to produce our video in a format that is internationally accepted for broadcast. For this we need a camera like the Sony EX-1R. It is an affordable camera that fulfills the minimum specifications set forth by PBS (http://www.pbs.org/producers/redbook...on_8_20_07.pdf) for broadcast. The tape less format has the advantage of no moving parts and in our tropical climate that can never be underestimated. The workflow is much more efficient than with the tape-based formats we have used to this point. We will be using the camera to document the fact finding mission to Thailand. The camera comes with a protective hard case making it safe for travel. The Camera records uncompressed audio which is important for achieving broadcast quality sound. We have also requested funding for a microphone and boom pole essential for quality sound.

[Lunchbox]

That was 9 months ago.

[cgbier]

Thanks, but too late.