Blackmagic wins NAB 2015

Best of Show

Micro-budget and independent filmmakers had high expectations this year after the excitement of last year's breakthrough NAB, which saw the introduction of the Panasonic GH4, the first interchangeable lens 4K camera below $2000; the Sony A7s, the first full frame camera with UHD output; the AJA Cion, the first 4K Super 35 shoulder mount below $10K; and the bargain priced Blackmagic URSA, the first UHD production camera below $7000 with XLR mic inputs and a standard external battery mount.

Canon was the odd man out at NAB 2014, with no major new camera announcements in this category. Their floor display was a live demonstration of the overpriced 4K Canon 1D C, which was already several years old at the time of the show.

So, when NAB 2015 rolled around, more breakthroughs were expected from the major camera manufacturers.  Would Sony introduce a 4K A7000?  Would Canon introduce an interchangeable lens competitor to the GH4 below $10K?  Would Panasonic finally give us a successor to the AF100 - with the GH4's features in a camcorder body?  What did Blackmagic have up its sleeve?

As the smoke clears from the big press conferences and announcements on Monday, it seems that all of the major manufacturers have chosen to rest on their laurels - except Blackmagic.

Sony had nothing to show in this market segment this year - while Canon and Panasonic did have new offerings for micro-budget cinematic shooters, the $2499 XC10 and the "under $5000" AG-DVX200.

Surprisingly, however, both of these cameras turned out to have fixed lenses, and "smallish" sensors. A little disappointing in a marketplace that has shifted towards interchangeable lens, large sensor cameras.

Panasonic's timing was especially unfortunate. In a series of leaks overnight and early on the morning of the DVX200's rollout - Blackmagic pursued their now-standard NAB strategy. They posted banners with images of their new cameras around the convention center for bloggers to find and post on social media. Images of their major new camera leaked from their pre-announcement party. And they posted images and tech specs for their new camera before Panasonic had a chance to make their announcement (even now, the URSA Mini product page is up, while there is nothing official to be found about Panasonic's AG-DVCX200 outside of a stale press release).

By the time Panasonic held its press conference Monday morning, Blackmagic had stolen their thunder with buzz surrounding a camera that both outspec'd the DVX200 and undercut it on price.

But it wasn't just a well executed communications plan that won the show for Blackmagic - it was a new camera with features the market has been asking for; an affordable, lightweight Super 35 interchangeable lens camera with good shoulder-mounted ergonomics, built in XLRs with phantom, standard battery mounts and solid 4K codecs (to include losslessly compressed RAW) - all in a rugged body.

It is clear when you compare the specs between the new Canon, Panasonic and Blackmagic offerings in this class, that Blackmagic has delivered what many micro-budget filmmakers and 'cinematic videographers' have been looking for with the URSA Mini:

	Canon XC10	Blackmagic URSA Mini 4K EF	Panasonic AG-DVX200	Blackmagic URSA Mini 4.6K EF
Price	$2499	$2995	$4195	$4995
Sensor Size	1"	Super 35	Micro 4/3	Super 35
Lens Mount	Fixed	EF (add $500 for PL)	Fixed	EF (add $500 for PL)
Max Resolution	3840x2160	4000x2160	4096x2160	4608x2592
Max HD Frame Rate	60fps	120fps	120fps	120fps
Codec	MPEG-4 AVC	RAW or ProRes	MP4/MOV	RAW or ProRes
Shutter	Rolling	Global	Rolling	Selectable Global/Rolling
Mic Input(s)	3.5mm	2xXLR w phantom	2xXLR w phantom	2xXLR w phantom
Headphone Output(s)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
SDI Out(s)	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Storage	1xCFast 2.0 1xSD	2xCFast 2.0	2xSD	2xCFast 2.0
Stabilization	5-axis (HD only)	No	5-axis	No
ND Filter	Yes	No	Yes	No
Power Zoom Lens	No	No	Yes	No
Viewfinder	No (LCDVF)	$1495 option	Yes	$1495 option
Still Photos	12MP	No	8MP	No
Weight	2.29 lbs.	6.6 lbs.	5.95 lbs.	6.6 lbs.

No, specs aren't everything - it will be important to see images from these cameras in the hands of real shooters - but if the indie market wants a 4K RAW (or 10-bit ProRes), large sensor, interchangeable lens Super 35 camcorder with 160fps HD slow motion and a global shutter that can be either handheld or shoulder mounted without breaking the shooter's back (or bank account), then URSA Mini is pretty much the only game in town.

As regular readers know, I've been looking for a replacement for my trusty Panasonic TM900 camcorder for a few years now.  I want a large sensor, interchangeable lens camera with camcorder ergonomics plus pro mic inputs and a strong, gradeable codec to pair with my GH3, and later, my GH4.

I had almost settled on the $3995 UHD JVC GY-LS300 - but its weak 8-bit h.264 compression was a challenge - and made it difficult to sell my Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera, with its robust, gradeable 10-bit ProRes and CinemaDNG RAW.

URSA Mini solves this problem.  I can now sell the TM900, the Pocket Camera, the GH1, GH2, GH3 and all of my MFT glass - then buy an URSA Mini EF (plus a $599 Metabones EF to MFT Speed Booster for the GH4) and skinny down to two cameras and one lens system.

Farewell, BMPCC - we hardly knew ye

So, for offering lightweight Super 35 cameras that shooters can afford - and for solving my personal camcorder dilemma - the Blackmagic URSA Mini wins HCR's first annual "Best of Show" award for NAB 2015.

Working on the awards banquet - perhaps at NAB 2016.

As always, if anything here has helped you to make a purchase decision, please shop using the links above or the displays below and in the margins. And even if you're not in the market for a new camera, please comment and make suggestions below. It won't cost you anything extra, and it will help to keep these posts coming.

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New Panasonic GH4 v2.1 firmware update is great for Shogun & 25p shooters - everyone else, not so much

As you have probably read elsewhere, Panasonic released firmware updates v2.1 for the GH4 and v1.1 for the YAGH last night.   You can download these updates here.

Along with a couple of other minor fixes, the headline updates add timecode and a start/stop command to HDMI out when the camera and/or YAGH are connected to the Atomos Shogun.

Panasonic has also added 30p and 25p native output to HDMI at 1080p - a big deal for 25p shooters.

This is great news for owners (and potential owners) of the $1995 Atomos Shogun - and for shooters in PAL areas, especially Europe.

But it is a little disappointing for the rest of us.

While Panasonic fixes the GH4's compatibility issues with Shogun, other 4K camera manufacturers (e.g., Blackmagic and Samsung) are moving ahead with more substantive fixes and upgrades.  And the Sony A7s remains the only camera in this class with a LOG profile.

To stay competitive, Panasonic might want to aim the next GH4 update at fixing more fundamental problems for the entire user base - such as:

• Lack of a LOG profile.  GH4 shooters need a flat, gradeable profile we can dial in without having to memorize a bunch of sharpness, saturation, contrast and master pedestal settings. Without a LOG profile, the GH4 is less competitive with the Sony A7s and S-LOG2.


• Single, fixed 4K/24p frame rate. Blackmagic added 4K/80p to the URSA after release. 4K/60p for the GH4 would be nice, but I'd even take UHD/60p.


• Single, fixed autofocus speed. The GH4 needs a variable video autofocus speed control to make autofocus plane changes less jarring. Samsung added this feature to the NX1 after release.

In my view, firmware update strategy has become an arms race.  The manufacturer that can match or outpace its competitors in this race over time will maintain leadership in the marketplace.  Those that are slow to respond are likely to lose out to more agile companies.

The GH4 is a great camera, and still a very good value for the money, but Panasonic needs a more competitive firmware update strategy.

If the company isn't careful, the GH4 could become this era's "AF100" - a camera that invents a whole new category - and is then eclipsed by more agile competitors.

As always, if anything here has helped you to make a purchase decision, please shop using the links above or the displays below and in the margins. And even if you're not in the market for a new camera, please comment and make suggestions below. It won't cost you anything extra, and it will help to keep these posts coming.

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Which to buy - the $5499 Canon C100 Mark II or the $5995 Blackmagic URSA EF?

 VERSUS

When Canon introduced the Cinema EOS line back in 2011, they held a big Hollywood event, with expensively produced introductory videos and many of the luminaries of the industry in attendance.  They spent a lot of money and made a big deal of it - and rightfully so.  They were stepping into the big leagues of Super 35mm digital filmmaking with feature-rich and cinematographer-friendly cameras for pro Canon shooters who wanted to step up from DSLRs.

The price points for the new Cinema EOS cameras were high - but not unreasonable in a world where the competition was the then-aging Panasonic AF100 (with its small sensor and poor low light performance) and the newer Sony FS-100 with its strange top mounted LCD/viewfinder and boxy ergonomics.

And when the C100 was introduced a year later, it quickly became a DSLR upgrader's favorite - the only Super 35 camera you could buy below $10,000 with the compact form factor of a DSLR, but with no recording time limit, essentially no moire, built-in XLR jacks with decent pre-amps, a top handle and manual rather than menu-based controls of key camera functions.

And it was 100% compatible with the wide range of Canon EF lenses, which a lot of shooters had in their camera bags.

As a result, over the past couple of years, as the price for this camera dropped from the $6499 introductory price to the current $4499 (for the non-dual pixel autofocus version), Canon sold a lot of them.

But, over the past few years, the landscape has changed. Now we live in a world where $5995 will buy a Blackmagic URSA - an EF mount Super 35 camera with a global shutter and pro SDI out that records to UHD/60p 12-bit RAW.

In this world, it makes a lot less sense to announce a $5499 Canon C100 Mark II that records at a maximum 1080p resolution and 60fps frame rate to an 8-bit compressed codec - and doesn't fix the limitations of the C100's consumer HDMI output.

Nor, as far as I can tell, does it fix the C100's CMOS rolling shutter problem.

Admittedly, URSA is 10 pounds heavier, CFast cards are expensive - and shooting with a "big screen TV" in your face instead of a viewfinder is an acquired taste - but, for TV commercials and indie filmmaking, the URSA's feature set and image quality are competitive with the $20,000 C500 at the price point of a $5499 C100 Mark II with a Blackmagic HDMI to SDI converter.

To quote Filmmaker Magazine, the C100 Mark II "...would be an impressive upgrade — if this were coming out in December 2013."

Even leading C100 advocate and shooter Noam Kroll won't be upgrading.

So, above $10,000, value-conscious filmmakers will probably choose the "C300 killer", the $10,499 4K Sony PXW-FS7 with a 28-135mm f4 servo zoom instead of the $11,999 body-only 1080p C300.

While below $10,000, the $5995 UHD URSA seems to be a much better value for the money than the $5499 C100 Mark II.

If Canon fails to address the resolution/price gap with their competitors, Cinema EOS could very well find itself in the same straits as their DSLR line - where, led by serious shooters like Dave Dugdale and Caleb Pike, Canon shooters seem to be giving up on DSLRs and switching to mirrorless 4K (and 4K capable) Panasonic GH4s and Sony A7s in significant numbers.

As someone whose first video capable interchangeable lens camera was a Canon T2i, I still have hope that the company will step up to the challenge - but even if they don't, there are some great alternatives out there.

As always, if anything here has helped you to make a purchase decision, please shop using the links above or the displays below and in the margins. And even if you're not in the market for a new camera, please comment and make suggestions below. It won't cost you anything extra, and it will help to keep these posts coming.

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Side-by-side: Samsung NX1 4K vs Nikon D750 - which one for video?

The folks at Nikon Motion just posted this short, but well-executed side-by-side video comparison of the new Samsung NX1 and the Nikon D750:




It's an interesting test, but there are no real surprises here. As one might expect, the downscaled 4K from the NX1 out-resolves the D750 at 1080p - while the full frame Nikon delivers shallower depth of field than the "crop sensor" APS-C Samsung.

But the most exciting news is that early examples of the NX1 are starting to appear in the wild. Hopefully, this means that we will soon see comparisons between the NX1 and its real competitors, the Sony A7s and the Panasonic GH4.

It will be especially interesting to see how the NX1's new backlit APS-C sensor stacks up against the GH4's micro 4/3 sensor in low light. If Samsung has managed to combine the GH4's internal 4K recording capability with improved low light performance, the NX1 could be a formidable video camera.

Please check back over the next few days as we get closer to the official October 27th ship date for the NX1. I'll post the newest video tests and examples as they become available.

As always, if anything here has helped you to make a purchase decision, please shop using the links above or the displays below and in the margins. And even if you're not in the market for a new camera, please comment and make suggestions below. It won't cost you anything extra, and it will help to keep these posts coming.

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The Best Thing About the Release of the New Samsung NX1

It looks like Samsung has knocked one out of the park today with the introduction of their new NX1 - a $1499 body-only 4K APS-C mirrorless camera (already available for pre-order at Adorama, Amazon and B&H).

The headline specs for video are very impressive - true 4096x2160 4K at 24fps, UHD at 30fps, HD at up to 60fps; a headphone jack and ISO up to 25600 in auto and 51200 in extended mode (complete specs here).

Perhaps just as important as its ability to record to 4K internally (something the UHD-only Sony A7s cannot do at $1000 more - even externally) is the introduction of the new h.265 codec, which should allow high quality compression of 4K to manageable file sizes.  We'll have to see whether the video quality really holds up.

To be fair, the camera has some shortcomings.  It has no slow motion frame rates above 60fps, for example.

And there's one other caveat for event shooters.  It is limited to a 29 minute, 59 second maximum clip length worldwide - while the GH4's max clip length is around 220 minutes (outside of the EU).

That said, it's stunning that Samsung has been able to pull this off for $200 less than the list price of the GH4 - which brings us to the absolute best thing about the introduction of this camera - it puts pressure on Panasonic and Sony to lower the prices of their flagship 4K cameras.

This is not so good for those of us who have already invested in these cameras - but it is terrific news for shooters who have been waiting for prices to come down.

Here are some more pics of the NX1 to whet your appetite (courtesy Adorama):

Bottom Line Samsung has steadily improved the quality and feature sets of their interchangeable lens cameras. They have made a few missteps along the way (e.g., the interchangeable lens Galaxy smartphone camera), but they have also created the foundation for long term success - their own lens mount, a reputation for quality and service after the sale - and getting to market with new features before the competition. To sell their 4K TVs, Samsung is likely to put affordable 4K or UHD in every smartphone and camera in their product line.  And they have the cash flow from their smartphone business to do it.  If I were the other camera manufacturers, especially Canon and Nikon, I would be worried.
If anything here has helped you to make a purchase decision, please shop using the links above or the displays below and in the margins. And, even if you're not in the market for a new camera, please comment and make suggestions below. It won't cost you anything extra, and it will help to keep these posts coming.

For the latest deals, news, tips and techniques, please follow HCR on Blogger, Twitter and YouTube and circle us on Google+ Thanks for your support of the revolution!

Here's how to get clean low light footage from the Panasonic GH4

I have heard from several video shooters who are concerned about buying or renting the Panasonic GH4 because they have heard that it has less than stellar performance above ISO 800.

To address this concern, Sohail over at Borrowlenses (one of our terrific sponsors) has posted a great blog entry on shooting with the GH4 at night.

He makes the interesting point that low light and high ISO are not necessarily the same thing - and that with fast enough lenses, shooters can produce great footage with the GH4 for night exteriors.

As an example, here's some 4K footage he shot with the GH4 at San Francisco's Fishermans' Wharf using the Voigtlander 17.5mm f0.95 and a Sigma 18-35mm f1.8 (with Speed Booster). Cleanest shots are between ISO 200 and 400 :




As Sohail says - shooting with superfast lenses doesn't give the GH4 the incredible light-gathering capability of the A7s - but it does give shooters the ability to deliver clean low-light footage at reasonable ISOs.

And for budget-conscious shooters, the additional benefit is that a $1698 Panasonic GH4 with a $799 Sigma 18-35mm f1.8 Nikon mount lens is about the same price as a $2498 body-only Sony A7s.

Yes, you'll need a $429 Nikon G to MFT Speed Booster, but that's less than the cost of a decent lens for the Sony.

If you need a camera that can essentially see in the dark, the A7s is the better choice - but if you want internal 4K recording and you occasionally shoot in low light, the GH4 will do a terrific job.

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Cinoflex turns the Sony A7s into a cinema camera for a Chevy commercial test

On August 12th, Cinoflex introduced the new type-SA7s Camera System on their Facebook page. Priced at $2495, and designed for a $2498 camera, this rig plugs the Sony's amazing full-frame low light sensor into a standard cinema camera form factor for under $5000.  Straight from Cinoflex, here's the design philosophy behind the type-A7s (from the Sony Alpha Rumors comments section):

"...a camera needs to be balanced well-fore to aft, needs to have a mass with low center of gravity, needs to have mounting options for the camera department, needs to have one central power source for all items, needs to adhere to the Panavision and Arriflex standard of spacing and heights, and...very important, needs to adhere to the tradition and fashion that camera operators, camera assistants, and camera technicians have been accustom[ed] to in the last 40 or so years. The Cinoflex was designed from the ground up, to emulate and respect the traditional form of the best film cameras, form [sic] the ARRI 435 to the PANAVISION Millennium XL."

Even adding in the $1995 price of the upcoming Atomos Shogun for 4K recording, the total price of this setup would be less than the price of the $8995 Aja Cion.  And, of course, it would be a lot less than a RED Epic or Arri Alexa.

For commercial or indie shoots where light and budget are at a premium, this might be a good solution.

That said, it's still about $1000 more than the upcoming $5995 Blackmagic URSA EF, with its global shutter and built-in HD-SDI outputs.

Now - if they'd only build one for the GH4....(are you listening, Cinoflex?)

Choices, choices - it's a great time to be a filmmaker!

Panasonic GH4 "Range Wars" - Which Dynamic Range Test Do You Believe?

The $1699 Panasonic GH4 seems to elicit some pretty strong reactions. Opinions run the gamut from reviews like "Best Camera Ever?" to a "scientific" test called "Dynamic Range – Sony A7S vs. the others" where the results seem to confirm the testers' preconceptions, e.g,  "the rather videoish look and contrasty colors we can subjectively observe" from the GH4.

Here's the chart showing the results of this test (using the $3540 Xyla21 – 21 step Grayscale Combi-DX1):

GH4 CineLike Dynamic Range Test - Assessed as 10.9 stops by Cinema5D

The post describing these results gives us a few details about the methodology (e.g., the lens and ISO they used), but doesn't show waveforms or tell us which CineLike profile the testers used (this is important because CineLike V has less DR than CineLike D).

Fortunately, we can compare these results to other data-driven tests. The best I've seen is "Panasonic GH4: DR and Gamma, Timelapse, and More" from Adam Wilt writing for dvinfo.net.

Adam also used the Xyla 21 to test the GH4's Dynamic Range - but he tested it across various color and CineLike profiles. Here is his result for CineLike D:

GH4 Dynamic Range Test - Assessed as 11+ stops by Adam Wilt at dvinfo

Why the clear difference between the results of the two tests? Perhaps the Cinema5D testers used CineLike V instead of CineLike D. Or perhaps it was confirmation bias related to the subjective observations about the camera's "videoish" look.  Hard to know.

Personally, I don't see a "videoish" look from my GH4 unless I want it.  Neither do I see it from Phil Bloom's 4K Postcard from Phang Nha or Guillaume Le Berre's Kaydara.

That said, I really respect the effort the folks at Cinema5D put into this test, but in light of the significant difference with the dvinfo results, they might want to take another look at their conclusions.

Terrific GH4 vs A7s Shootout from Learning Cameras - and a Wakeup Call for Canon

This is the best comparison of the Panasonic GH4 and the Sony A7s I have seen to date, with insightful observations on features, ergonomics, lens selection and the importance of 4K in a 1080p world.

Here's the review:



As readers of this blog know, we are partial to the GH4 - but to be fair to the A7s, Dan doesn't mention the advantages of using the Metabones  EF to NEX Smart Adapter with the Sony. The Smart Adapter mitigates the A7s' lens selection challenge somewhat by opening up the possibility of using fast, wide Canon glass with image stabilization and auto-aperture.

He also leaves out any mention of the Sony's APS-C crop mode as a partial solution to the A7s' jello problem.

But these are minor nits.  Overall, I agree completely with his bottom line - at $1700 for a compact handheld 4K solution, the GH4 is the clear winner.

But beyond the competition between the two new kings of the mirrorless world, there is a deeper message from this shootout.

Two of Dan's quotes stand out as particularly bad news for a company whose cameras aren't seen in the video - Canon.  Dan says:

"Honestly, [4K] is making it tough to go back to 1080p", and

"Both of these cameras have redefined my view of what video should look like from cameras in this price range - they have just both stomped on [emphasis added] my Canon 5D3 and 70D so hard that it will be nearly impossible for me to pick them up and begin video shooting after seeing the quality these cameras were able to generate."

That's pretty tough language from someone who has thousands of dollars invested in Canon bodies and glass.

In my view, as more and more shooters get their hands on these cameras, quotes like these will start to become the conventional wisdom - and it will become more and more difficult to sell 8-bit 1080p mirror-box DSLRs for serious professional or enthusiast film-making.

Sony A7s Now In Stock and Shipping from Adorama and Amazon!

You have to give it to Sony. When they promise a camera on the first of July, they deliver it on the first of July! The amazing full frame Sony A7s is now in stock and shipping at Adorama, Amazon and B&H.

Some reviewers who've shot with it like it better than the GH4. Here's one of the earliest and best examples of what the A7s can do from W. Ashley Maddox of Missionary Films:




In an interview over on newsshooter.com, Ashley says, "The buttons took about an hour to get used to – compared to days that it took for me to get used to the Panasonic GH4’s buttons" and "Editing [A7s footage] was way easy compared to the GH4 and FS700 in S-Log 2. I found that the noise was low. And when there was noise, it had a natural grain look to it vs. the muddy blacks that I am seeing in the GH4".

For shooters who are accustomed to Sony menus, who really really want mirrorless full frame with great low light performance, don't mind buying an external recorder to get UHD, and who don't need 10 bit output or true 4096x2160 4K, this may be the right camera.

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First Sony A7s Reviews Rolling Out - Better than the GH4?

Even though my GH4 will be arriving soon, I am still interested in how well the Sony A7s performs. I was impressed by what I was able to see of this camera at NAB - but it's a challenge to know what a camera can really do without reports from the field (or, preferably, shooting with it yourself) - so I will probably rent one and compare it to the GH4 at some point.

But until we can get our hands on it, we'll have to settle for early reviews like this one from The Camera Store in Calgary:



I always enjoy Chris' reviews. Lots of energy - and he knows his way around a camera menu. But he's not a video guy, and, in my view, he misses a couple of significant issues in his short comments on the A7s versus the GH4.

He mentions the obvious stuff, of course - the A7s' unmatched high ISO capability and apparent DR advantage over the GH4 at 1080p - and he counterbalances this by mentioning the A7s' 1080/60p maximum frame rate, lack of internal 4K and lack of 4K 10-bit output - but, in my view, he glosses over a couple of significant differences between the cameras that many shooters care about.

First - both the EU and the non-EU versions of the A7s stop recording after 30 minutes. Followers of this blog and my forum comments know that I consider this to be a significant limitation. Many non-EU Canon, Nikon and Sony users buy these cameras expecting to be able to record religious services, wedding ceremonies, plays, lectures and other events - and are surprised when their cameras shut down after 12 to 30 minutes. This is not a deal breaker for most narrative and documentary shooters, but for people who want to get rid of their camcorders and carry just one camera (this is the Hybrid Camera Revolution, after all), this is a big deal.

The second major issue is that this is not a "world camera". Unlike the GH4, the A7s is region-locked, and does not allow switching between NTSC (60Hz) and PAL (50Hz) frame rates. Frustrating for shooters who travel extensively or who have clients or viewers in other regions.

And, of course, the GH4 is $800 less than the A7s (although, I wouldn't be surprised if the price gap narrows over the next few months).

All of that said, the proof will be in the pudding. Shooters are starting to produce some incredible 4K work with the GH4 (please see the "GH4K" group I moderate over on Vimeo). We'll see what the future holds for the A7s - it's still a tremendous camera.

As Philip Bloom just tweeted,

GH4 4K internal, A7s sees in dark. Both cheap cameras! Yet people still whinge? Never been a better time technology wise to be a shooter!!

— Philip Bloom (@PhilipBloom) June 27, 2014

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How to Record 4K with the Sony A7s - Without Waiting for the Atomos Shogun!

A lot of the excitement surrounding the introduction of the $2498 full frame video-centric "4K" Sony A7s at NAB a few months ago was a little muted when we discovered that the camera could only record 4K externally. But, we were told, the new $1995 Atomos Shogun 4K HDMI recorder was coming soon - and for just $4500, we would have an awesome 4K low light machine.

Well, filmmaker Yoshihiro Enatsu was unwilling to wait. He lashed up a $280 Blackmagic Design 4K HDMI-6G SDI converter and an $1895 Blackmagic Design HyperDeck Studio Pro, and created this incredible 4K video:



The setup is a lot bulkier than a Shogun, but the results speak for themselves. If you need 4K full frame right now, can get AC power into the field - and you don't want to spend the money for a $3495 Aja Ki Pro Quad - this looks like a workable solution.

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Sony Builds Anticipation for A7s with "Detailed Hands On" Video!

In the video below, Sony builds anticipation for the world's first full-frame camera with UHD ("4K") output. This camera records internally at up to 1080/60p and 720/120p compressed to 50mbps - a relatively low bit rate by modern standards. What really sets it apart, however, is the ability to record video at up to ISO 409600 (!). With this kind of light-gathering capability and external UHD recording, this camera should be the low-light/high resolution king. Here's the video:



I went to NAB very excited to see this camera - especially since I wasn't able to be there until Day 2 of the show. I watched the big Sony press event online on Day 1 and couldn't wait to get over to the Sony booth and get my hands on the camera. When I arrived, I was fortunate enough to get a chance to handle it and talk to a couple of Sony reps who had flown in from Japan. The high ISO sensitivity is real - and it produced great output on the show floor - but we'll have to see what the footage looks like once it's in the hands of shooters who don't work for Sony.

For those who need extreme low light sensitivity and the full-frame "look", but don't mind buying or renting an external recorder for UHD and don't need: 4096x2160 4K; 1080p slow motion; or 1080p bit rates beyond 50mbps, this may be the camera you've been waiting for. If it is, you can pre-order it for $2498 at Amazon or Adorama.

On the other hand, if you don't make movies in the dark, want to record 4K internally, and want 1080/96p slow motion and 1080p bit rates at up to 200mbps, you might be better off saving yoursefl $800 and ordering a $1698 Panasonic GH4.

And you'll probably have your camera sooner.

Sony Announces 4K Full Frame A7s - How Does It Stack Up Against the Panasonic GH4?

Sony unveils the A7s - a full frame, interchangeable lens 4K video camera

This is a big turnaround for Sony. A couple of months ago, in an article entitled, "Sony: Consumers aren't quite ready for 4K recording", Sony executives were quoted as saying, "Some competitors have already introduced 4K recording models so it is a point of differentiation that we don’t have at the moment but we see the need for it."

But with the firestorm of interest around the new Panasonic GH4 (and Sony's own FDR-AX100 4K camcorder), Sony seems to have changed its tune. At the end of today's press event at NAB 2014, Sony unveiled a new full-frame, interchangable lens camera based on the A7 - the A7s (high level specs on the slide below):



The headline number is clearly the ISO. In fact, the "s" in A7s stands for "sensitivity".  It is clear that Sony is going to make the case that low light shooters should buy this camera instead of the GH4.

But the rest of the specs aren't really competitive.  An optional XLR input doesn't match an optional quad 4K HD-SDI output. The A7s' slow motion will be a relatively lo-res 720/120p against the GH4's full HD 1080/96p.  The A7s' XAVX-S 50Mbps will certainly look nice, but if it is 8-bit 4:2:0, it won't grade as well as the GH4's 100Mbps 10-bit 4:2:2 HDMI output.  As for shooting LOG, the GH4's CineLike D will at least give S-Log2 a run for its money.

The elephant in the room, however, is price.  How much will this camera cost?  If, like the A7r,  it is a few hundred dollars over $2000 - I don't think they'll sell a lot of them.  If, however, it is closer to the price of the A7, the GH4 may have a fight on its hands.  Of course, that will kill A7 sales and create a lot of angry A7 owners.  It will be interesting to see what Sony does.

Really looking forward to getting to Vegas tomorrow!

EDIT: Just saw that DJ over at DSLRFilmNoob is reporting that the A7s cannot record 4K internally and that the price will be $2500.  If true, I don't think they're going to sell a lot of these cameras.

EDIT 2: The press release seems to confirm that the camera records 3840x2160 to an external recorder and 1080p to the internal card.  For cinema shooters who want DCI compatible 4096x2160 and prefer to record internally, this is a non-starter.  It looks like the GH4 is the winner on resolution, internal 4K recording and price.

EDIT 3:   Here's the first video shot with the A7s.  Compressed for YouTube and not downloadable:



 EDIT 4: Andrew Reid at EOSHD is reporting that Atomos has announced the Atomos Shogun external recorder for the A7s.  It will be "less than $2000" and will record the A7s' 8-bit 4K output as 10-bit ProRes.  So you'll need to add a ~$2000 recorder to the A7s' estimated $2500 price to get 10-bit 4K (transcoded from 8-bit).  That's a lot of money for a transcode.

If you've been waiting to see what Sony would do before deciding to pre-order your GH4, and this post has helped you make a decision, please pre-order through one of the links above or the display ads below. It won't cost you anything extra, and it will help to keep these updates coming. Thanks!

A Reminder of What Has Sony (and Canon) Worried - Adorama Reviews the Panasonic GH4!

Panasonic DMC-GH4 with DMW-YAGH Pro Audio-Video Interface - $3298
Click Here or on the Photo to Order 

While we wait for Sony NAB 2014 Press Event (less than an hour away as I write this), here's a reminder of why Sony is (may be) in such a rush to introduce a 4K interchangeable lens mirrorless camera - the enthusiastic reception that the 4K $1698 Panasonic GH4 is getting.

Adorama TV has just released another positive GH4 review - with example scenes from different shooting scenarios - to include recording to an Aja Ki Pro Quad (with the usual caveat that you can't tell a lot from YouTube compressed video).

And there's a lot more on the DMW-YAGH audio video interface (which the reviewer calls a "breakout box") and on the camera's ergonomics when it is combines with the YAGH and an external recorder.

Here's the video:



This is a great reminder of the high bar that Sony will have to clear if they want to compete with the GH4. With any luck, I can get my hands on both cameras at NAB and tell you all about it.

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World's First Full Frame 4K Camera? Watch Sony NAB Announcement Live!

Sunday Night, April 6th, at 2PM Pacific, 5PM Eastern and 10PM London time, Sony will hold its annual NAB Press Event. The rumor sites are pretty much all reporting that the company will announce an "A7s" 4K full frame video/still camera.

Full frame is nice, but we'll have to see whether the new camera's codec and connectivity measure up to the GH4's.

Sadly, I don't get to Vegas until Monday night, but Sony will live stream the event - so we can all watch it right here on HCR!


EDIT: Okay, okay - it's the world's second full frame 4K camera (after the very expensive Canon 1D C). That said, it is likely to be the world's first full frame 4K camera that many people can afford.