Video

NAB 2012 wrap-up.

 
Blackmagic announced a hard-to-believe camera featuring a 2.5K image sensor, 13 stops of dynamic range, built-in SSD recorder, popular open standard uncompressed RAW and compressed file formats, compatibility with quality EF and ZF mount lenses, and LCD touchscreen monitoring.

• Adobe Premiere Pro CS6 is out with and enhanced 64-bit playback engine that can handle 5K resolutions, and higher, new trimming options, compatibility with Mac touchpad gestures, a Warp Stabilizer that was previously confined to After Effects, and expanded multicam editing for more than four cameras. Taking a page from its sister app, “the audio oriented Audition, Premiere Pro CS6 offers a redesigned and more functional audio mixer. Adobe also introduced SpeedGrade, a film finishing and color grading app, and Prelude, for ingesting, logging, and transcoding.

• Autodesk announced Smoke 2013 for the Mac, a new version of what the company is now calling video editing software and at users of Apple’s Final Cut Pro or Avid Media Composer who want high-end editing and finishing tools in one app. The new price is “only” $3495, down from $14,995 for the 2012 version.

• Panasonic announced a bittersweet firmware update for the AG-AF100 that provides 1080 50p and 60p modes. That’s the sweet part. The bitter? They want users to pay $300 for the upgrade.

Panasonic AF0100

Canon announced the 1D C ($15,000), which has the same chassis and still shooting features of the EOS-1D X ($6,800), and captures 4096 x 2160 8-bit 4:2:2 video to a CF card at 24 fps. Unlike the X, the C swaps a headphone jack for the X’s PC sync.

• The higher-end Canon EOS C500 ($30,000) offers the same ISO range as the C300 (320-20,000) and requires a dedicated external recorder, but captures in two full-RAW flavors: 4096 x 2960 (for motion picture), and 3840 x 2160 (for 4K TV). Both of these modes offer 10-bit 4:4:4 at 60 frames-per-second. There are two additional RAW option, 4096 x 1080 or 3840 x 1080 resolutions, which are also 10-bit 4:4:4, but at 120 fps. The camera also offers

compressed RAW at 2048 x 1080 and 1920 x 1080 with either 12-bit or 10-bit 4:4:4 60p. Unlike the C300, the C500 doesn’t not have focus assist, or built-in ND filters, or XLR inputs. Feeling a bit confused? Me too.

• Never shy from the spot light, RED announced a Dragon sensor upgrade, which is set to bring 6K resolution to EPIC and Scarlet cameras later this year The upgrade will cost EPIC owners $6,000.

RED Epic

• Canon showed a prototype 30-inch 4K reference display, but no word on pricing or when it will be commercially available.

• Nikon announced a brand new D3200 with all the usual bells and whistles: 24.2-megapixel APS-C size (DX-format) CMOS sensor, full 1080p HD video in 24p or 30p with full-time autofocus, all for $700. The pictures I’ve seen are all in a terrible cherry red.

• Sony announced the Alpha A57 DSLR camera (US$745 body only) featuring a 24.3MP CMOS image sensor, 10fps, and a 3-inch 921,600-pixel Xtra Fine LCD screen and full HD 1080p video (AVCHD) at 60 fps or 24 fps, competing directly against Nikon’s D5100 and Canon’s EOS Rebel T3i.

Blackmagic Camera

Blackmagic Design Cinema Camera

Blackmagic Design Cinema Camera