Is 2/3" going to be enough?

[David Battistella]

You are assuming an ENG shooter would have to deal with R3D files. Perhaps they could use the H.264 module or record the HD monitoring feed?

-michael zaletel

So the point of REDCODE RAW, the cornerstone of the RED program is........ ??????

see where I am going with this?

David

[Kenneth Elkington]

You are assuming an ENG shooter would have to deal with R3D files. Perhaps they could use the H.264 module or record the HD monitoring feed?

-michael zaletel

When you price it out under this setup, this starts being a little impractical compared to other ENG cams out there.

[Brigham Edgar]

Exactly David, i don't believe Scarlet will be at all ideal for ENG situations...even though some will use it there. It has to be fast turnaround, baked in look, easy fast acceptable edit format and codec etc etc. I may be proved wrong but this i don't believe where Scarlet is aimed for at all.
It is aimed at maybe EFP market where 2/3" is heavily used and does not have the fast easy turnaround issues like ENG based work.

But this goes away from the idea of Scarlet being a camera designed for low budget features, commercials etc. A production camera rather than a news camera. This is the market where it is being aimed at, this is the market that FF DSLR's are hitting in a major way and this is where my question and the debate leads. Considering this and the reason for it being the FF and pricepoint advantage over quality, will Scarlet even with it's image quality, feature spec and comparable price-point be enough to sway a market that have grabbed the FF sensation with both hands and run with it?
My feeling is NO, as despite a generally awful image quality while asthetically pleasing to most, so many image problems and limitations it is the price and FF that makes it a huge success. If i were RED and still not even at the prototype stage of Scarlet i would be shelving the 2/3" and going straight to a FF sensor option. They want to be cutting edge and pushing the limits, well times have changed since that now long ago announcement of Scarlet. It could still be used for everything that the 2/3" would be but i think the bar has been set that FF is the BIG factor. 2/3" is still very very acceptable and will be for many productions and for as long as we can see in the future but FF is without doubt much preferred and this has been proven by Canon. And my god, this video function was an afterthought by Canon...wait till they get serious and then look out! Considering we could still potentially be 6-12 months away from Scarlet that leaves plenty of time for a much improved FF DSLR to hit the market.

[David Battistella]

When you price it out under this setup, this starts being a little impractical compared to other ENG cams out there.

ENG camera's do what they do very, very well.

David

[Kevin Marshall]

And I want to be really clear. I am not "anti" anything. Just asking questions out loud here. The FF Scarlett has a place for sure. I am just not sure where the 2/3" fits, that's all.

I understand - same points I've heard from some of the people I work with/for. They're all totally valid - I really can't argue any of them.

I think the student/amateur/hobbyist thing is a big one. Low-cost enough to justify purchase, rather than constant rental for every gig.

As for the difference in quality between the S35 and 2/3" varieties, I guess that goes back to the whole "good enough" can of worms.

I'd also like to throw in that modularity/upgradability is definitely a factor here. Just because I may buy a 2/3" kit doesn't mean it will be that way forever. Everyone's gotta start somewhere.

[David Battistella]

I also have to add that I am not one of those folks who have seen the mini primes or the mockups of the fixed Scarlett, etc, so I so not have a sense of the compactness of the system (if that is what it's true selling point is).

So I will wait and see. I am sure I will utter the word "cool", when I see it up close.

Based on what I have seen with EPIC, I can imagine taking that camera to the end of the earth and capturing 5K. That is very cool.

David

[Pietro Impagliazzo]

I'm not opting for a FF sensor.

Firstly I think FF is just too much, in terms of DOF. Secondly 2/3" gives you high speed on a budget.

Fixed lens @ T2.4 is a great compromise, we haven't heard final specs on the focal length range, that should be the last information so we can make up our minds.

2/3" is also awesome in its cinema flavor if your budget is a little bigger. For the price of a S35 brain alone you get a 2/3" brain with Miniprimes. If one wants cine-style manual primes that's the way to go.

[Stephen Gentle]

If 2/3" is enough for the Sony F23, then it should be enough for most people...

I really don't think that the DSLR is competitive to Scarlet. If you're willing to put up with a crap codec, alising/moire problems, rubbish audio inputs and little to no modularity, then by all means shoot a 5D or 7D... But there will always be plenty of people who share RED's 'No compromises' attitude, and Scarlet is perfect for that.

2/3" is way easier to focus anyway, especially in low light when you need to open up. 120fps at 3K is nothing to be scoffed at either...

[michael zaletel]

So the point of REDCODE RAW, the cornerstone of the RED program is........ ??????

see where I am going with this?

David

Because everyone wishes they had more resolution later on. Being able to shoot 3k RAW for the future while at the same time getting your job done quickly with H.264 or HD to Disk has a tremendous upside.

We shot a 500 hours of documentary live-streaming reality in Vegas 5 years ago and the only way to do that was via Firewire standard definition out. The HVR-Z1U let us do that while at the same time recording 1080i HDV to tape. That footage will be on the History channel 30 years from now because we were able to put HD to tape while at the same time streaming 480x320 live to the web over Verizon modems on custom designed laptop backpacks. A first.

www.i4vegas.tv

-michael zaletel

[David Battistella]

..while at the same time getting your job done quickly with H.264 or HD to Disk has a tremendous upside.

-michael zaletel

Why would I transcode h264 (which I would have to do anyway) if I could transcode right from the R3D?

Prores module or a direct to edit codec makes sense in your argument, sorry H.264 needs to be turned into something to edit with. (same as other systems that use that codec)

David