Super Bowl LV on CBS to feature 120 cameras, AR graphics

Super Bowl LV, Feb. 7 in Tampa, will feature over 120 different camera angles on CBS along with a bevy of new specialized camera rigs.

The event will be the 21st Super Bowl for CBS Sports.

CBS Sports begins rolling out updated logo design following network rebranding

This year’s event unlike last year’s on Fox, however, will not be available in 4K due to production limitations brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The overall production will also continue the remote production model CBS Sports has used all season long for its NFL coverage, with replay operators working from home while other editors, graphics operators and show production personnel at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City.

Features of the broadcast include:

Augmented Reality – This year’s graphics package, which is expected to debut the new CBS Sports logo on-air, will unify the image of CBS with the motif of Super Bowl LV of sea and sand by using four augmented cameras. Animations, in-game graphics and augmented reality will continue to enhance the viewer experience. Utilizing the power of the Unreal Engine, embers and particles will light up the Tampa night during America’s most-watched event with detail never before seen on sports television.

Advertisement

Trolley Cam –  The Trolley Cam can speed from one end of the stadium to the other, ziplining along a wire and positioned to provide the viewing angle of a fan in the eighth row of the stands. The rig can travel up to 65 mph and will provide a look at the players from a vantage point not used in the history of the Super Bowl.

Venice Cameras – CBS will use several on-field cameras to capture a dramatic cinematographic feel. Two Sony Venice cameras will be used for the first time ever live at a Super Bowl.  The Venice, which is normally used for cinema-style applications like commercials and movies, will use full-frame imager shot in a short depth feel to give it that unique look.  The cameras, provided by Inertia Unlimited, will be operated on a traditional Steadicam rig, as well as a MOVI rig to capture the flare of the action in what has been described as a 3D video game look.

Movie Bird Crane – A 53-foot MovieBird crane, traditionally reserved for major motion pictures and television productions will be located on the upper concourse to give shots of the ‘Super Bowl Today’ pregame set, game action as well as serving as one of the many augmented reality encoded cameras that will be strategically placed throughout the stadium.

New Angles – Twelve cameras with 4K and 8K capabilities will be scattered throughout the stadium allowing the production team to extract close-up shots in the key moments of the game. The 4K cameras will be controlled robotically from high up in the stadium concourse levels while two Sony 8K cameras will be fixed on robotic gimbals slung to the stadium lower field. While past Super Bowls deployed 8K camera technology high up in the stadium infrastructure, CBS will debut this angle from near-field height for a unique view of the field.

By the numbers:

• 120 cameras total
• 18 robotic cameras
• 32 cameras embedded in endzone pylons
• 2 wireless pylon cameras along sidelines
• 19 television mobile units
• 3 Sky Cam / Fly Cams
• 1 Trolley Cam
• 1 Movie Bird camera
• 25 super slow motion angles
• 12 cameras with 4K and 8K production capabilities

CBS has experimented with other unique coverage during the 2020 NFL season including a broadcast on Nickelodeon.