Freelance director and producer Tony details his use of BirdDog PTZ cameras and an NDI workflow, powered by a Netgear AV switch and TriCaster, to produce a live six-camera outdoor concert with minimal cabling and operators. This setup, which earned him a Silver Telly Award for Directing, highlights the efficiency and reliability of NDI-based production for various events. He advocates for the single-cable setup and seamless integration provided by BirdDog and Netgear products.
The immediate takeaway is that a six-camera live concert can be built and run with just two operators when PTZ cameras, NDI, and PoE are combined. Tony’s setup also shows how BirdDog cameras, Netgear’s M4250 switch, and a TriCaster can fit into one networked workflow without SDI-heavy cabling. For streaming and live events teams, the relevant signal is the repeated use of this setup across concerts and hybrid conferences, plus Tony’s emphasis on low-light P240 performance. Watch for whether he keeps specifying the M4250 with built-in NDI and BirdDog profiles in future productions.
BirdDog's P240, the camera at the center of this Silver Telly-winning concert production, was introduced in August 2022 with an updated Sony Exmor R broadcast sensor designed for increased light sensitivity. The P240 launched with Full NDI 5.5 support, SDI, HDMI, and SRT output options, plus BirdDog Cloud 3.0 integration for remote productions, priced at $2,995. The camera's 40x optical zoom and 130dB true WDR make it suited to outdoor concert environments where lighting conditions shift rapidly, which aligns with Tony's emphasis on low-light performance in this production.
BirdDog's broader PTZ lineup extends beyond the P240 into 4K territory. The P4K, announced at IBC 2019, features a 1-inch Sony Exmor R CMOS sensor with 14.4 million pixels and full bandwidth NDI output, targeting broadcast applications, sports, and remote studios. The P4K supports 10-bit end-to-end workflows via NDI4 and includes BirdDog Comms, a free audio intercom system, along with PoE for single-cable operation covering video, audio, comms, tally, and power. This positions BirdDog's range as a scalable option from HD live events like this concert up through 4K broadcast deployments.
The NDI ecosystem that supports BirdDog cameras relies on compatible switching and networking hardware. The TriCaster used in this production accepts NDI as a native input protocol, eliminating the need for capture cards or SDI-to-IP converters between camera and switcher. Netgear's M4250 switch, also part of this workflow, provides PoE power delivery and AV-optimized traffic handling that keeps NDI streams prioritized on the network. Together, these components demonstrate that a complete multi-camera live production can run over standard Cat5/6 cabling with no baseband video infrastructure, a configuration that reduces setup time and crew requirements for touring and one-off events.
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