Blackmagic Design Ultimatte 12 4K

The Ultimatte 12 4K is a new revision of the Ultimatte 4K hardware. There is a number of changes incl. a 2.2“ LCD which can be used to monitor sources, and access the hardware menu. The hardware menu allows access to the Ultimatte 12 4K IP settings, and includes input status for checking reference and video input connectivity. Also new are buttons and rotary dial for menu navigation and selection; detachable rack ears; slightly smaller size in terms of depth, measuring approximately 222mm from the front of the rotary dial to the back of the BNC connections; plus a smaller power consumption of 45W compared to 72W of the previous model.

Ultimatte is a leader in the field of green or blue keying background removal in the TV news industry - its hardware guarantees seamless integration of presenters and reporters into virtual studios in real time! Ultimatte 12 is not only the world's best keying product, it is also a very powerful compositing processor for real-time TV graphics processing. Ultimatte 12 includes all-new algorithms and high color accuracy, great mask edge processing, improved color separation, and enhanced features to suppress keying background to foreground color bleed.

12G-SDI
With the advanced 12G-SDI interface, Ultimatte 12 users have the ability to work in HD resolution and upgrade to Ultra HD as soon as they need it. And thanks to high internal processing accuracy, excellent image quality is achieved in both HD and Ultra HD resolutions. In addition, the product is compatible with virtually all professional SD, HD and Ultra HD equipment, so it can be used immediately with existing cameras

Ultimatte 12 can create the perfect composition of presenters to any background, whether users will be using fixed cameras and static backgrounds or automated virtual studio systems. News about weather, sports or world events will now be able to be presented in cinematic quality! The Ultimatte 12 is also ideal for pre-visualization in TV or film production: it allows actors and directors to see the virtual set and props while filming with keyed backgrounds


Affordable
The Ultimatte 12 is affordable - so users can now use more cameras and increase the quality of their shows! In multi-camera productions, where each camera occupies the scene from a different angle, there is often variation in the colour uniformity of the green or blue keying background. However, the keying software built into the overheads uses the same settings for each camera, which affects the quality of the masks as each camera captures the keying background differently. Ultimatte 12 completely eliminates this problem by using innovative technologies and, thanks to its affordability, allows to equip each camera station with the highest quality keying module. This makes Ultimatte 12 a versatile solution for live news, weather, sports, virtual studios, etc

Perfect picture
Completely new image processing algorithms, high internal color accuracy, automatic mask creation and parallel processing of different parts of the image guarantee high performance and excellent image quality. It's as if several Ultimatte modules were processing the same image at the same time! Colour gradients are perfectly smooth, as are the edges of keyed objects - including problematic hair. All thanks to brand new, precise algorithms that guarantee perfect image quality in HD and Ultra HD

Ultimatte 12 features new colour information processing functions. Thanks to improved algorithms for detecting color gradients, edges and transitions, the process of removing keying backgrounds is minimally destructive to foreground colors. The color overlay reduction and tinting features also handle problematic dark areas and semi-transparent objects. Ultimatte 12 will stand up to very difficult cases, such as scenes with green key backgrounds and a presenter with light yellow clothing. Unlike other solutions, Ultimatte 12 produces sharp, photorealistic images with bold colors

Augmented reality
The popularity of augmented reality technology is on the rise. Presenters interact with semi-transparent objects - virtual tables, charts, etc. Integrating colored, semi-transparent objects is very difficult using standard keying tools and produces unrealistic results. Ultimatte 12's innovative technologies bring a new "realistic" layer mode allowing you to add semi-transparent objects with a correct mask to the foreground of the scene. The colors of the objects are preserved and the result is a completely realistic scene composition

Automatic adjustment
Ultimatte 12 also brings automation to the setting of keying parameters - at the touch of a button, over 100 parameters are automatically adjusted! Of course, even in these cases, users must ensure good scene lighting and white balance for the cameras. Keying at the touch of a button greatly speeds up and simplifies the entire setup process. Users can then concentrate more on other aspects of filming

Remote control
The Ultimatte 12 can be controlled via the Ultimatte Smart Remote 4, a touchscreen remote with an Ethernet interface and the ability to connect up to 8 Ultimatte 12 units without the need for a router or hub. The Smart Remote 4 is equipped with buttons for direct control of important Ultimatte 12 parameters - such as loading and saving presets - as well as a touchscreen for setting all other functions. In addition, Ultimatte 12 users have the ability to create their own remote control solutions via a simple, text-based protocol and Telnet interface

Ultimatte..
Ultimatte is the leader in removing the green or blue keying background in the TV news industry - its hardware guarantees seamless integration of presenters and reporters into real-time virtual studios. Almost every TV presenter today presents in front of a keyed background, and the Ultimatte brand has been a leader in this field for the last 40 years: its software and hardware creates the optimal composition of presenters with backgrounds consisting of weather information, stock market charts, etc. TV operators today are creating complex virtual studios including guests, panelists, sports commentators and more. This is where Ultimatte technology comes in. Ultimatte technology uses image processing with 4:4:4:4 sampling and offers advanced mask creation tools allowing precise separation of subjects and keying backgrounds. Users are provided with mask edge correction features, direct and indirect illumination tools, features for suppressing keying background color bleed into the foreground, and more. Since its founding in 1976, Ultimatte has garnered not only experience, but numerous awards, including an Emmy and an Academy Award!

Sky News relies on Ultimatte 12
British TV channel Sky News is using Blackmagic Design's Ultimatte 12 keying system to create a virtual studio for its news show Sunrise. Sky News' sports, weather and other morning news segments rely on Ultimatte's cutting-edge features for edge detection of complex areas (hair, etc.) and colour correction to ensure natural skin tones of presenters and guests. Take a look behind the scenes in the new video