my letter to the Tennis Channel

Folks, this is what I wrote - if you can, please forward to any TV production sources / tour officials you can think of. We need better stuff on TV.

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Subject - camera angle

question - do you guys have control of the production of the matches broadcasted?

not to blame you guys, because every channel does the same thing.... as if the same camera man has been working at every tournament for the past 100 years.

every match is viewed from high behind the baseline - the worst angle to view a match on TV. it's a know fact that TV vastly under-represents the speed/power/athleticism of these world class players.

every fan who has been to a live tournament can realize that live tennis is MUCH more exciting to watch than on TV.

why? - TV does a TERRIBLE job, for the past 100 years.

The technology is available, why not use it for a change? gotta get that camera angle down to the court level.

once in a long while, a point is shown from that angle - unfortunately, the very next point, the 100-year old camera man takes over, and the whole thing becomes a flat, 2-dimentional, pong-like, boring back-and-forth type of thing again.

how about broadcasting the entire match from that angle? see how the viewers respond.

I bet you guys $5 that it will be vastly positive - now what will that do to your bottom line?

please give it a try - fans want it, you guys can profit from it - it's a no brainer win-win.

thanks,

a tennis fan.

I've been thinking this for years... If the camera was lower fans would be able to see the incredible amount of action on the ball. It would make the sport appear more skillful and less 2-dimensional. I don't understand why they want viewers to feel like they're sitting in the cheap seats.

interesting perspective, i agree.

the tennis channel has already dropped the ball on a number of things, i don't think it would hurt to try it out.

I wish they would show more early round action instead of reruns from the late 90's.

You are 100% right.
Plus you realize the players' movement much better.

I absolutely agree. The usual camera angle used for tennis compresses space and makes the ball look like it's going slower than it really is. Not only that, but the up-down dimension is huge in tennis and you only get to see it if the camera is near court level.

That angle can make some viewers dizzy

I wish they would show the Canada Masters live, not delayed by like an hour.....

you would lose so much court prespective by lowering the camera angle or height. imagine sitting court side, you cannot tell if a ball is in or out on the sidelines. i figure that since ALL broadcasters show this angle, its been researched to be the best one.

that' s a poorly constructed letter

But when they do that it's VERY hard to see the baseline of the player in the far court. I find myself sitting very close to the TV and very frustrated!

Didn't TW use a court view during the Vegas Tennis Channel Open a few years ago as an experiment? It was really good, if I remember.

For some reason, I doubt your letter is going to be taken seriously.

Hidious said:

For some reason, I doubt your letter is going to be taken seriously.

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thats why we need more voices.... not only to the tennis channel, but to as many ears as possible.

tacou said:

that' s a poorly constructed letter

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then write a better one, and send to as many people as you can.

sureshs said:

That angle can make some viewers dizzy

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True that... I like the angle as is... the last thing I want is to know a large camera is moving back and forth. Could prove to be a bulky distraction for players as well.

A lower angle would be nice, but it has to be from the center of the court still. Sometimes they show the court-side view from the corner. I hate that. They never cover the entire court.

deltox said:

you would lose so much court prespective by lowering the camera angle or height. imagine sitting court side, you cannot tell if a ball is in or out on the sidelines. i figure that since ALL broadcasters show this angle, its been researched to be the best one.

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I agree. Using a lower angle would be more effective in conveying the speed of the ball, its action across the court, but with that comes the sacrifice of an encompassing bird's eye view of the entire court. Personally, when the camera angle is lower I get frustrated because what's happening on the opposite side of the court gets obscured a lot of the time, like you're only getting to see half of the action.

Or maybe it's just something one gets used to after time? I don't know, using a lower angle definitely has its pros but I guess I like it the way it is.

dozu said:

I bet you guys $5 that it will be vastly positive - now what will that do to your bottom line?

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Dear Tennis fan,

We here at the tennis channel are already getting great reviews, and many viewers (such as yourself) subscribing to our service. As a result, we are already making great profits, with many new viewers joining us each day.

Now, please send us a check or money order in the amount of $5.00. Being that you already know where to contact us, as evidenced by your letter, which is obviously just trying to stir up trouble, we are sure we don't need to provide you with our mailing address.

Sincerely,

The Tennis Channel.

Low camera would be closer to the court and require much too much back-and-forth movement, which would in fact be dizzying. And don't be fooled by the fact that you don't get dizzy sitting and watching in those seats. Your eyes and brain collaborate to minimize the movement required so it's a very different experience than what happens with a camera. I suspect the people who do broadcasts have considered variations for many years and concluded what was feasible and what wasn't.

drakulie said:

Dear Tennis fan,

We here at the tennis channel are already getting great reviews, and many viewers (such as yourself) subscribing to our service. As a result, we are already making great profits, with many new viewers joining us each day.

Now, please send us a check or money order in the amount of $5.00. Being that you already know where to contact us, as evidenced by your letter, which is obviously just trying to stir up trouble, we are sure we don't need to provide you with our mailing address.

Sincerely,

The Tennis Channel.

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Dear Tennis fan,

Thank you for the letter. As a token of our gratitude, we have decided to broadcast more reruns for your enjoyment, along with increasing the repetition of the same 5 advertisments that we have been running for the past 5 years.

Sincerely,

The Tennis Channel.

^^^^LOL. Good point.