Some of the world's most spectacular views are best seen from halfway up a wall of rock. That's a place where gear has to be reliable, whether it's crucial safety equipment or the cameras that let the rest of us experience the same dizzying panorama. It's also a familiar situation to alpinist Renan Ozturk, whose experience includes some of the steepest climbing challenges on the planet as well as documentary filmmaking and photojournalism covering everything from the freezing Himalayas to the African deserts of Chad.
Ozturk's connection to the outdoors, and the human stories that happen there, goes back to weeks spent camping in the great American national parks, painting from nature. It's perhaps no surprise to find his work featured in National Geographic, while his commercial clients range from active wear brands The North Face and Nike to Sony, Apple and Google in the world of technology. His documentaries have been recognized with screenings of Sherpa at TIFF and Telluride, and at Sundance, where the 2015 film MERU won an Audience Choice Award. Chronicling two attempts on Meru Peak in the Indian Himalayas, the film features fellow climbers Jimmy Chin and Conrad Anker, requiring documentary equipment to be hauled up the mountain's notorious Shark's Fin route.
From his base in southwestern Colorado, Ozturk runs production company Expedition Studios and specializes in remote, rugged locations. The beaches of Costa Rica's Mediterranean coast might seem relaxed by comparison, but on one recent commercial for a popular beer brand, things weren't quite as expected. The shoot looked like fun in the sun, as Ozturk describes it, but we actually had some of the some of the worst weather Costa Rica has had in six years of production. We dealt with constant rain, salt water and sand, which is the ultimate killer for gear.
We like to work small and light on top of mountains, at high altitudes and in extreme conditions, he continues. We've had really good results from SmallHD and Teradek kit from the beginning. I've seen how it all works together and how it gets better and better. In Costa Rica, Ozturk and his crew used Teradek's Bolt 3000 alongside the SmallHD 703 Bolt, which combines the display and Bolt receiver into a single unit that communicates fully with the Teradek RT lens control system.
With a camera package built around the RED Monstro, Ozturk used the MDR.X lens control receiver alongside the powerful MOTR.X and compact MK3.1 motors. As he puts it, One of the appeals of the MK3.1 motor is its size it's very small and lightweight, so it doesn't cause any issues on a gimbal. Meanwhile, the larger MOTR.X offers the ability to daisy-chain cables and keep the builds compact. Connecting one motor to the next also left ports free to connect the TOF.1 rangefinder, with the combined system capable of imperceptible micro-adjustments, maintaining perfect focus without visible corrections.
In some situations, though, only the practiced hand of a focus puller would do, and Teradek's integration with SmallHD became crucial. We were using the CTRL.3 hand unit on set, and the ability to have the on-screen overlays is very helpful, Ozturk confirms. You don't have to bounce your eyes between three different places, from the scene, to the screen, and then down to the controller as you would normally. It makes all the technical difference in executing difficult shots in constantly changing environments.
As if the beach sand and salt-laden ocean spray wasn't enough, ominous gray clouds gathered, spattering crew and equipment with rain and ensuring that both would both need to dry off multiple times throughout the day. The Teradek RT shrugged off the weather and made frequent lens changes easy. Cheaper systems, Ozturk says, are quite limited in their feature set. Being able to quickly change between lens maps is crucial for moving quickly and efficiently. Further, the ability to save lens maps and move them between controllers using the mobile app is unique to Teradek RT. It saves a lot of time during prep.
We're known for taking tools built for Hollywood sets and using them in harsh outdoor environments, putting them in places where the designers and manufacturers didn't expect them to go, Ozturk concludes, noting that familiarity remains key, no matter what the conditions. All this gear has become the gold standard, so people talk the same language and it all works together. Yes, we can be hard on our gear and this shoot was no exception, but everything survived with flying colors. These are burly tools.
teradek.com
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
08/05/2026
For the second straight year, Miri Technologies Inc. has been honored with a pair of coveted awards at the broadcast, media and entertainment industry's pre...
08/05/2026
Nine Alumni Nominated for Tony Awards More than 20 alumni contributed to this year's Tony-nominated productions.
May 7, 2026
By
Tori Donahue
Boston Co...
08/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/05/2026
Liberty University on why broadcast technology isn't just a technical invest...
08/05/2026
COW Jobs: UGC, On-Camera Video Content
Brie Clayton May 7, 2026
0 Comments
UGC, On-Camera Video Content
April 17, 2026Documentary Editor - US,......
07/05/2026
Journalists reporting on Sudan are working in one of the most complex and fast-m...
07/05/2026
Multi-year partnership positions Victory+ as a free home for Dallas Cowboys orig...
07/05/2026
From sideline reporting to directing and producing, the talented sophomore is building a well-rounded foundation for a career in live sports production
In the ...
07/05/2026
Cobalt Digital has received two Future Best of Show awards at NAB Show 2026. The COBALT blueCORE platform was recognized by TV Tech, and the COBALT PACIFIC ULL-...
07/05/2026
ESPN analyst Mina Kimes will host the televised semifinals and finals of the 202...
07/05/2026
Bitmovin has announced that MUBI, the global film streaming platform, has selected Bitmovin as its cloud VOD encoding partner. Bitmovin's encoding infrastru...
07/05/2026
NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises and the U.S. Soccer Federation have announced...
07/05/2026
Angel City Football Club (ACFC) and Victory have announced a regional broadcast partnership bringing live match coverage to fans across the greater Los Angeles...
07/05/2026
Spiideo has announced the launch of AI Highlights inside Spiideo Play, its automated sports production platform. AI Highlights combines video, event data, audio...
07/05/2026
Leostream Corporation has announced a unified remote access ecosystem for high-p...
07/05/2026
The Atlanta Dream has partnered with Victory to stream all locally broadcast Dream games for free, expanding the team's digital distribution strategy and g...
07/05/2026
Riedel Communications has announced the appointment of Marc Engroff as Chief Fin...
07/05/2026
SES and ARD, Germany's largest public broadcasting network, have announced a long-term extension of their satellite distribution partnership through 2039. U...
07/05/2026
UpLight Technologies delivers a flexible video and lighting system for a new televised sportLaunching the Pro Cheer League required more than creating a compell...
07/05/2026
Full Day Productions and GSE Worldwide have announced Spikes Under the Lights, a...
07/05/2026
Seit dem Start im Jahr 2023 hat DJ (Beta) das personalisierte H rerlebnis von 94...
07/05/2026
Da quando stata presentata nel 2023, DJ (beta) ha aiutato a definire un'esperienza d'ascolto pi personalizzata per 94 milioni di utenti Spotify Premi...
07/05/2026
Since launching in 2023, DJ (beta) has helped shape a more personalized listenin...
07/05/2026
Desde o lan amento em 2023, o DJ (beta) j ajudou a deixar a experi ncia de ouvi...
07/05/2026
From our earliest days, Spotify has been built on a simple principle: Great audio should be easy to reach. It's what's driven us to expand from music to...
07/05/2026
Asian and Pacific Islander artists continue to shape the global soundscape, pushing creative boundaries and connecting with fans worldwide. This Asian & Pacific...
07/05/2026
Company announce long-requested choir instrument
In the latest expansion of their Symphonic Elements series, UJAM have introduced an all-new vocal instrumen...
07/05/2026
Modular-inspired sound generation with digital control
Buchla have introduced Ziggy, a new compact synthesizer built around the company's complex oscill...
07/05/2026
Combines analogue voices with digital synthesis and sequencing
Polyend have announced Drums, a new hybrid analogue and digital drum machine that combines sy...
07/05/2026
Control surface now officially supports four DAWs
When Nektar launched the Panorama CS12 control surface, it worked exclusively with Apple's Logic Pro, ...
07/05/2026
In the first quarter 2026, SGL Carbon generated consolidated sales of 184.5 million, which was 49.8 million, or 21.3%, lower than in the prior year (Q1 2025: ...
07/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and Greenerwave achieve precise and fast ESA antenna characteriz...
07/05/2026
Two multi-role L3Harris products - the Red Wolf launched effects vehicle and SK...
07/05/2026
L3Harris will be developing key features of a secure and resilient digital infra...
07/05/2026
Alysa Liu and Shohei Ohtani Help Drive Viewership as 91 of the Top 100 Broadcast...
07/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/05/2026
Cobalt Digital Wins Two Future Best of Show Awards at 2026 NAB Show
Manufacturer Recognized by TV Tech and TVBEurope for Innovation in signal processing
Cobal...
07/05/2026
Software and hardware platforms, AI power and user-friendliness on show...
07/05/2026
Intinor will demonstrate its latest technical enhancements for the Direkt series at BroadcastAsia 2026. With a continued focus on reliable contribution and remo...
07/05/2026
Bitmovin has announced that MUBI has chosen Bitmovin as its cloud VOD encoding partner, replacing MUBI's legacy on premises encoding setup to improve scalab...
07/05/2026
Meet Graduates from Berklees Class of 2026 Members of this years graduating class reflect on their proudest moments at Berklee and look ahead to whats next.
...
07/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
Some of the world's most spectacular views are best seen from halfway up a wall of rock. That's a place where gear has to be reliable, whether it's crucial safety equipment or the cameras that let the rest of us experience the same dizzying panorama. It's also a familiar situation to alpinist Renan Ozturk, whose experience includes some of the steepest climbing challenges on the planet as well as documentary filmmaking and photojournalism covering everything from the freezing Himalayas to the African deserts of Chad.
