Blackmagic Design further optimizes the algorithm of its Ultimatte digital composer

Ultimatte 12 includes new algorithms, now with 12G SDI technology for UHD content, in addition to innovative colorimetry, it offers exceptional edge processing, greater color separation, extraordinary color fidelity and better removal of excess green or blue.

Blackmagic Design has unveiled at IBC 2017 the new Ultimatte 12, a digital composer that is ideal for overlaying professional-quality images, adding augmented reality elements to any shot and creating virtual scenarios.

The new Ultimatte 12 is not simply a digital composer, but a cutting-edge processor designed for the new generation of graphic artists that allows images to be combined in real time. It includes new algorithms, plus innovative colorimetry, and offers exceptional edge processing, greater color separation, extraordinary color fidelity and better removal of excess green or blue.

Advanced 12G SDI technology gives users the ability to work with high-definition images while also being prepared to process UHD content. The treatment of each subpixel in particular allows us to obtain textures with unparalleled quality. In addition, it is compatible with a wide range of equipment, so it is possible to connect it to all types of cameras.

Ultimatte 12 allows you to create authentic compositions and works with both fixed cameras and static backgrounds as well as automated virtual sets. This way, you can present weather reports, sports programs, news bulletins and news about the entertainment industry with cinema-quality overlays. In addition, Ultimatte 12 is ideal for television or film productions, as it offers actors and directors the advantage of being able to see in the recording studio the virtual sets that will replace the green background in front of which filming takes place.

It should be noted, on the other hand, that the reasonable price of the device (around $10,000) offers the possibility of purchasing units for a greater number of cameras, in order to achieve superior quality. For example, during live shots with multiple cameras filming from different angles, green or blue backgrounds may vary slightly. The compositing tools offered by the switchers use the same parameters for all units, which compromises image quality and overlays, as there is a slight difference in the way each camera captures the color green. Ultimatte 12 solves these problems with extraordinary technology and at a reasonable price, so it is possible to have one unit per camera and create overlays of unprecedented quality. This is ideal both in virtual studios and when broadcasting news bulletins, weather reports or sports programs.

Augmented reality

Augmented reality is a concept that is gaining great popularity. Now the person on air can interact with various elements, such as computer graphics, screens and other translucent colored objects in any type of television program. With a common composer, it is practically impossible to add these types of elements, and the image does not look real, since it is very difficult to extract the green or blue background of a semi-transparent object without affecting its original chromaticity. However, Ultimatte 12 has a revolutionary composition mode that allows you to superimpose them on the background image without any problems. This means that the colors can be seen through these objects, and it is even possible to glimpse a person walking behind them, making the final composition very realistic.

On the other hand, Ultimatte 12 technology provides the possibility of analyzing a scene and automatically configuring more than 100 parameters to achieve extraordinary compositions in just an instant. Obviously, users should still check that the lighting is adequate and that the white balance on the cameras is correct. The device has a special button that allows overlays to be performed quickly and with minimal effort, allowing cameramen to concentrate on the quality of the program.

Outstanding algorithms, wide internal color space and automatic mask generation make it possible for Ultimatte 12 to process each part of the image independently. This is equivalent to using several composers simultaneously in the same overlay. It is possible to adjust subtle edge details in those areas where it is most necessary, for example, around the hair, as well as soften the transition from one color to another in objects present in the scene. The mathematical processing of each subpixel allows you to obtain unparalleled quality, both in HD and UHD.

New features

Ultimatte 12 also offers new features for processing edges and reflections, to remove the background and soften transitions between different hues without affecting other colors. Optimized algorithms provide the ability to remove excess green or blue from any element, even in dark areas or through transparent objects. In this way, the device allows to maintain and reproduce tonalities with a fidelity that other composers are not able to achieve, for example, an intense yellow against a green background. Unlike other composers, Ultimatte 12 offers rich colors, lifelike images and unprecedented sharpness.

It should be noted that the device is controlled by an Ultimatte Smart Remote 4 panel. This includes a touch screen that allows you to manage up to 8 units connected in series through an Ethernet network, so it is not necessary to use a matrix switcher. Likewise, the panel has buttons to apply default settings and save them, as well as a touch screen that offers easy access to each of the parameters. Furthermore, users can also create their own customized control solutions as the device operates using an open text-based protocol. In this sense, its compatibility with Telnet makes this task easier.

Grant Petty, CEO of Blackmagic Design, highlighted that "for the last 40 years, Ultimatte has been the best quality composer on the market. We are very happy to be able to make all the technology it offers available to users. Ultimatte 12 is not simply a device for overdubbing, but an electronic composer designed specifically to meet the needs of the television and film industry."