RAWVideo
Latest
Nikon Z6 and Z7 updates help portrait shooters and videographers
Nikon's new Z-Mount Z6 and Z7 cameras are getting some key new features they lacked at launch via an upcoming firmware update, the company announced. The biggest one is eye-detect autofocus that will lock onto a subject's eyes, rather than just their entire face. That will ensure that your subject's eyes are in focus rather than their nose, which can be a big problem on full-frame cameras with fast, shallow depth-of-field prime lenses. Nikon showed just how it will work in the short video below.
Blackmagic BMPCC 4K review: A pint-sized video powerhouse
The Pocket Cinema Camera 4K (BMPCC 4K) is Blackmagic's most desirable camera yet for budget filmmakers. Blackmagic has added features that video shooters have been demanding for years, and the price is right at a mere $1,300. But with powerful, video-friendly mirrorless cameras coming out seemingly every month, is there still a place for a dedicated cinema camera? As it happened, I was able to test it at the same time as the all-new and formidable Nikon Z7, Canon EOS R and Fujifilm X-T3 mirrorless cameras. After seeing those, and looking at what's missing in the BMPCC 4K, let's just say it's not for photographers who only dabble in video. For serious video creators, however, it's a different story. Demanding videographers will love the handling and usability, and it delivers where it counts in image quality. Best of all, it's cheaper than most video-capable mirrorless cameras.
Blackmagic's RAW video codec marries quality and speed
Following in the footsteps of Apple's ProRes RAW, Blackmagic Design has launched its own RAW video codec into a public beta. Blackmagic RAW "combines the quality and benefits of RAW with the ease of use, speed and file sizes of traditional video formats," the company says. It arrives today on Blackmagic's URSA Mini Pro cameras (in beta) and DaVince Resolve 15.1, and developers can grab the SDK for macOS, Windows and Linux.
Blackmagic's new $1,295 compact shoots 4K RAW movies
As it teased, Blackmagic Design has unveiled a 4K version of its popular portable RAW camera at NAB 2018. The Pocket Cinema Camera 4K packs a full-size, dual native ISO Micro Four Thirds sensor and can internally record 4K HDR RAW at 4,096 x 2,160 and 60 fps in 12-bit RAW or 10-bit ProRes. Best of all, it costs $1,295, nearly half the price of Panasonic's video-oriented GH5s, making it the cheapest 4K RAW camera available by a long ways.
Sony's SSDs can withstand the torture of capturing 4K
Aspiring 4K filmmakers who want the best quality can buy pro-level RAW video cameras on the cheap, or use a DSLR with an external 4K recorder like the Atomos Ninja 2. However, the SSDs on such devices often record and dump out high bit-rate 4K video multiple times a week, so they need to be much faster and more durable than the one on your laptop. That's where Sony comes in with its latest G Series Professional SSDs, which can write up to 2,400 terabytes without failing and use tech that prevents disastrous frame dropping.
Blackmagic now shipping its Production Camera 4K for $1,000 less than expected
So far, all of Blackmagic Design's cinema cameras have suffered through various shipping delays, and the new RAW-capable Production Camera 4K is no exception. But if you plunked four grand down to order one quite awhile ago, there's a double-shot of good news: It's finally shipping out and now costs $1,000 less. From now on, the 4K super-35 sensor, global-shutter equipped model is priced at $2,995 instead of $3,995, making it the cheapest 4K pro camera on the market right now. That may change when Panasonic's 4K Lumix GH4 starts shipping for (likely) less money and with footage that, while not RAW, also looks very promising. Either way, at least there's a choice -- there were exactly zero sub-$3,000 4K cinema cameras on the market a week ago.
A closer look at the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera
Okay, that's it. You've had enough of highly compressed video codecs that crap out on detailed shots and make decent color grading a pipe dream. Now that Blackmagic's $995 Pocket Cinema Camera (BMPCC) is RAW-ready, isn't it time to make the jump to higher bitrate video? Perhaps. The company's latest pint-sized weapon does produce magnificent images using a downsized version of its first Cinema Camera sensor, yes. But it's not quite as simple as laying down the money and raking in the 12-bit video. There are limitations to the camera itself, plus a steep learning curve and the likely need for further investment that could more than double the price of the camera. As you'll see, whether it's worth that depends completely on your needs and, particularly, your expectations.
Blackmagic Pocket Cinema camera now supports RAW video for better dynamic range
After releasing its $995 Pocket Cinema Camera last summer with ProRes422 support only as it warned, Blackmagic Design has finally unleashed RAW CinemaDNG video recording with a firmware update. The format losslessly compresses each frame like a .zip file to capture 1080p video from the Super 16mm sensor -- unlike ProRes422, which is a reasonably high quality but more compressed format. That'll preserve the full fidelity of the video stream, letting cinematographers save files with more dynamic range for increased flexibility during color correction. That's not to say that ProRes422 is shabby, as we saw from earlier footage -- but shooters who want RAW in a small form factor now have a way without hacking (and possibly bricking) a Canon DSLR.
