When you look at modern end zone video camera towers you will find that most end zone camera towers are about 20ft high. Some manufacturers, like Hi Pod, make a great play on the fact that their camera towers are 30ft high, but most of the top end zone camera systems, like Hi Rise Camera, have kept their towers at just 20ft.
Is there any advantage to having an end zone camera tower that is 30ft high? Is there any reason why most sports video camera towers are 20ft high? Here’s why 20ft is such a magic number in the world of end zone video systems.
20ft Is the Sweet Spot for the Camera Angles
The reason that teams use video camera towers is that the elevated view from an end zone camera tower provides a much better view of the field of play. At 20ft, you can see the whole pitch. You can follow the play and you can capture footage of positioning as well as the on-the-ball action. A 20ft end zone camera tower provides the optimum angle for this. Once you go beyond 20ft, you gain only an extra degree or two of angle for every five or ten feet of extra height. If you were to compare video footage from a 20ft tower and a 30ft tower, it is very unlikely that you would be able to see any difference at all.
20ft Is a Safe Height
Designers of end zone video equipment must balance portability, safety and functionality when they design their systems. A camera tower needs to be able to be erected dismantled easily. It needs to be lightweight, so it will be easy to carry. On top of that, an end zone camera must be safe. 20ft is the height of a video camera tower that allows manufacturers like Hi Rise Camera to meet all those criteria. If you make a camera tower much higher than twenty feet, it could be dangerously unstable. You are also adding extra weight to the end zone camera in return for little gain in camera angle.
20ft Is the Perfect Height for a Sideline Camera as Well
Many schools and small sports teams can’t afford the luxury of separate end zone and sideline camera systems. The video camera tower they purchase must be versatile enough to be used in different positions and for different sports. It must also come with the necessary equipment to safely anchor the tower on indoor courts as well as on outdoor pitches. A good quality 20ft end zone video system will work equally well as a sideline camera for soccer, or as a camera tower for basketball. 20ft is widely accepted as the optimum height for a sideline camera as well as for an end zone camera.
A 20ft end zone video camera tower has all the advantages of the elevated camera position. It doesn’t, though, have the disadvantages that a much taller camera tower would have. You might think that a 30ft end zone tower would provide better camera angles. The truth is, though, you probably wouldn’t even notice that difference on video footage. When you add to that the extra cost, the extra weight and the potential loss of stability, it’s a trade-off that most people do not think is worth making. That’s why most of the best end zone camera towers are 20ft high.
