Broadcasting House, Salford Quays & TVC

Tracking camera technology certainly sounds very similar to what someone at the Beeb sent me as a link for being used in BH. Looked like it could produce amazing shots and some directors will use it till its full potential I'm sure. Will try and find the link.

Why would you need three tracks in the same space though?

In the space we're talking about, I'd go with a ceiling mounted track anyway, there's a bit to much clutter at floor level to get clean shots unless the camera is a long way up.

Wold ceiling tracking be more likely to cause lighting issues?

Depends on where the lights are

This is ((very) roughly) where I'd install a track :-
http://home.vis-is.co.uk/data/grabs/studioetrack.jpg

That desk looks very small for a news channel desk. Also, wasn't the general consensus when the nationals went back to an oval desk that this was a good move? As ugly as I think the current-type desks are, I suspect they're a lot more functional than one of those. I wonder how it compares to Newsnight's 2006/8 desk?

Also, it looks like they're moving towards a lot of reds and oranges, looking at the colours on that set, the more orange-tinted Breakfast titles and the video currently showing on the ring-thing above the newsroom.

you can fit 4 monitors in the small round desks and 6 in the larger ones, they only come in 2 sizes...

That one is the same size as Midlands Today's

I was meaning more from a seating guests perspective, than the use of screens. Even if you only had the one presenter, surely you'd struggle to fit more than two or three guests around it? Unless it's bigger than the picture suggests.

You can fit guests on it, but you can see their legs...

The renders of the set seem to suggest a wider semi transparent, partly lit surround to the central pillar of the table. Probably sufficiently opaque to act as a modesty shield, but still make the desk seem smaller than the old ones.

It seems the majority of the tracks are for moving the video wall, looking at the renders there seems to be a wall not present in this photo, presumably because it's behind where the video wall currently is. Also, is that a camera in the very top left of the picture, or just a light?

http://i252.photobucket.com/albums/hh24/justjoshhh/bbcwnset.png
How is the background image (the shot of London) produced? Is it a projection or a screen?

Dont be silly... the video wall does not move. Those three tracks look like they have stoppers on them before they hit the set... so definitely for cameras (more than one on each track?), with fixed camera positions in between... remember this is a few months from air so its not finished yet, but i also doubt they need what you suggest is a missing wall.

I think if there was a ceiling mounted camera it would be a case of duck or grouse... especially if they were remotely controlled from the gallery... that studio doesnt really offer much in the way of head clearance. I also dont think this "clutter" you speak of will be a problem for the cameras and it is ludecrous to suggest they wont be capable of adjusting to an adequate height.

I'm going to assume based on renders that Studios B & C have similar tracks.

As for the Desk supposedly "not being big enough" we've seen from the renders that two presenters can get around it quite comfortably... and for guests ... I'm going to assume they will be filmed from different angles. In a similar way to the Daily Politics/This Week at Millbank before the refit. So could there also be hidden camera positions behind the videowall looking through the gaps between the plasma screens.

The only issues would be with programmes like Dateline London or when News had three or more guests in, but there is a big Virtual Studio and B they could use if that were the case. They dont have to be in E all day... and with three other studios they could use i'd be a bit miffed if they did.

Somebody else said they appeared to be using more yellows and oranges... they are quite obviously just testing the lighting.