Filming the World from the Air
Skyworks is a UK based independent production company specialising in top end high definition aerial filming.
We have produced well over 100 factual programmes for international broadcasters including the BBC, ITV, Discovery and the Smithsonian Network. Our television productions range from series about history, landscape and heritage to observational documentaries.
In the UK, we are best known for our Wainwright Walks programmes for BBC2 and Railway Walks for BBC4, as well as numerous regional productions for ITV.
Skyworks' imagery has been used in many well-known productions, such as Simon Schama's History of Britain, BBC2's Restoration and BBC1's Mountain.
We are a world leader in the production and supply of HD aerial footage and operate the world's largest HD aerial archive with well over 50,000 aerial HD clips accessible online. All our footage is shot from helicopters equipped with specially mounted cameras using gyroscope stabilisation systems.
By matching the latest technology with some of the world's most experienced aerial Directors/ Cameramen, Skyworks is able to deliver some of the best quality aerial HD footage available.
Our mission is to film the whole world from the air – with most of Europe, America and South Africa already covered, we are well on our way. Plans are already in place which will lead to the filming of China and India.
Our latest area of expansion is the establishment of projects in digital content production. We are working with a number of collaboration partners to develop interactive content, both supporting and independent of our other projects.
If you are interested in finding out more about any of our projects, or in ordering DVDs of any recent programming, please visit our Broadcast page.
The HD Advantage
Advantages of using HD Aerial Imagery
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HD Aerial Technology
Skyworks shoots all its aerial video in top-end High Definition. Sony’s HDCAM SR field recorder and the Cineflex aerial camera system provide the ultimate aerial package of stability, portability and picture quality. High Definition is now being used more and more in the world of television, as the number of broadcasters transmitting it increases. Once seen it is hard to go back to Standard Definition – the difference in quality is dramatic, particularly with aerial images where there is so much detail in each frame. HD resolution is five times better than SD. In the world of films and commercials, once the preserve of 35mm, High Definition is increasingly being chosen as the shooting medium, since it offers a more practical, flexible and cost effective method of achieving imagery that is comparable in quality to film. Even when a film or commercial is shot on 35mm, it is still better to shoot the aerials on High Definition, due to the exceptional stability, quality and flexibility of the gimbal – the images can later be seamlessly converted to 35mm. |
