Blackmagic Design has announced its Camera 1.5 software update which adds new 12-bit Log CinemaDNG RAW recording to the Pocket Cinema Camera. The CinemaDNG Raw lossless compression works like a ZIP file where the Raw files are compressed during 1080p recording without the loss of any part of the image. This allows videographers to capture files with wider dynamic range for increased flexibility during color correction.
Imagine if your DSLR, and indeed all affordable cameras had very small sensors, and could only shoot JPGs; highly compressed and in a limited colour space. Imagine if only very expensive medium format cameras could shoot raw with large sensors.
That’s been the case till recently in the world of video. Small sensors, no depth of field to speak of, restricted colour space, and baked JPG type images. Not a pretty picture – literally.
Now a small Australian company, Blackmagic, has a series of moderately priced cameras that can shoot raw video. We have been working with the Blackmagic Cinema Camera in MFT mount, and our First Impressions report is now online.
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Blackmagic Designs has announced it is shipping its Raw-video-shooting Pocket Cinema Camera and is reducing the price of its original, larger Cinema Camera. The Pocket Cinema Camera is built around a ‘Super 16mm’ sized sensor (12.5 x 7mm) and can shoot Apple ProRes 422 (HQ) or lossless compressed CinemaDNG 1080 footage at 23.99, 24, 25, 29.97 or 30p. Meanwhile the company has knocked $ 1,000 off the price of its original, 2.5K resolution Raw-shooting Cinema Camera model.
The revolution in the cinema / video segment of our industry continues. Blackmagic, a respected video equipment manufacturer out of Australia, is about the ship its Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera.
If you’re a meat-and-potatoes still photographer, why should you care? Well, maybe you shouldn’t. But if you’re a film / video creator of any stripe this is another major step toward the democratization of high quality production equipment at an amazingly low price.
And if you’re one of the major camera makers, well, it’s time to wake up and smell the coffee. Here’s a relatively small Ozy company trumping you all by producing a video camera that shoots raw video for under $ 1,000, including an active Micro Four Thirds mount and a touch screen. Be afraid!
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Blackmagic Design has announced the Production Camera 4K, a Super-35 format, 4K-capable camera with global shutter for smooth panning and image motion. The company says it will cost $ 3995. It can capture footage in Apple ProRes 422 HQ or losslessly compressed CinemaDNG Raw – promising 12-stops of dynamic range. The camera is built around a Canon EF mount and an internal SSD recorder to cope with the data rates. Blackmagic says it will be available from July 2013.
Digital video site www.newsshooter.com is at this year’s NAB show in Las Vegas, and has been taking a look at the new Pocket Cinema camera from Blackmagic. The Pocket Cinema Camera is a small, compact 4K video camera with a Micro Four Thirds lensmount and an eye-opening MSRP of $ 995. Click through to see newsshooter’s video, straight from the floor at NAB.
Blackmagic Design has announced a pocket-sized 1080p movie camera capable of 422 ProRes capture with promises of lossless CinemaDNG to be added via firmware. The Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera uses a Super 16 crop (around 12.5 x 7.4mm), of the sensor used in its existing camera, and an ‘active’ Micro Four Thirds lens mount, giving full aperture control of native lenses. The camera can capture footage in Apple’s 10-bit 4:2:2 ProRes format Blackmagic promising to add the open, lossless CinemaDNG Raw standard later. The company has said this will cost just $ 995 and be available from July.
Olympus has issued a press release confirming JK Imaging and four other companies have formally signed-up to the Micro Four Thirds standard. JK Imaging announced last week that it would be offering MFT cameras under the Kodak brand. Australian company Blackmagic Design, which already offers a movie camera with a passive Micro Four Thirds mount and is rumored to be working on a fully compliant version, also joins. The other three signatories are less consumer-facing.
Blackmagic Cinema Camera, DaVinci Resolve and Avid DNxHD at NAB 2012.mp4