The All-Digital Camcorder — The Arrival of Electronic Cinematography

Laurence J. Thorpe Laurence J. Thorpe is vice-president of Broadcast Camera/HDVS at Sony Corp., Montvale, N.J., where he is responsible for product planning and marketing of Sony's studio and portable camera products. Thorpe began his engineering career in 1961, at the BBC Designs Department in London. Five years later, he joined the Broadcast Division of RCA, Camden, N.J., where he held a number of executive positions until he left in 1982. Among his accomplishments there were the development of studio switchers, distribution equipment, telecines, and studio color cameras. He was responsible for a number of new developments in studio cameras, for which he currently holds ten patents. In 1982, he was appointed director of studio project management at the new Sony Broadcast Co., responsible for market development of the Sony HDVS system. In 1994 he was elevated to his current position. Thorpe has presented many papers at SMPTE conferences, many of which have been published in the SMPTE Journal. He was the recipient of the Journal Award in 1989 and 1991, and he was presented with a Journal Certificate in 1994. A Fellow of the Society, Thorpe was the featured speaker at the Fellows Luncheon during the 137th SMPTE Technical Conference in New Orleans, held in September 1995.