To experimental opera and theatre director Robert Wilson, high-definition action doesn’t necessarily mean fast.
Working with DP James Callanan, Wilson used a Canon lens (4.7mm to 52mm focal range) on a Sony HDW-750 HD camera to photograph movie stars, artists, writers and other notables for “Video Portraits”, a new HDTV series for Voom HD.

The idea of the series, produced by Voom HD Lab, is to reduce physical movement to an absolute minimum. The series explores the artistic and technological boundaries of high-definition video and will air on Voom's visual arts channel, Gallery HD, beginning in January.

Callanan said he chose the Canon HJ11x4.7B HD-EC zoom lens because sharpness or image acuity was vital for projecting the images of a large-screen projector in a gallery.

In the meantime, Fujinon had another kind of action in mind when it released its new XA88x8.8BESM HD telephoto lens. This glass features 88x magnification with a focal length of 8.8mm to 777mm telephoto-making it the widest long lens available today, the company said.

It is available with Fujinon’s Precision Focus Assist (PFA), a feature that addresses precise focus issues in HD production stemming from the format’s shallow depth of focus and the lack of size and resolution in camera viewfinders.

Designed for sports, the XA88x can capture images from wide-angle to long-range close ups in 16:9, 4:3 HD or SD.