Paul Leeming
Well-known member
- Joined
- Dec 29, 2006
- Messages
- 2,360
- Reaction score
- 3
- Points
- 38
- Location
- Osaka, Japan
- Website
- www.visceralpsyche.com
Hi all,
I thought you would be interested in a quick report from the recently held InterBEE event held in Tokyo, Japan, since this is essentially the vipers' nest as far as movie cameras goes, being Sony's homeland!
First, my personal opinion on the camera, now that I've seen and played with one up close (a combination of Ted Schilowitz's personal "no name" camera and Serial #0020, from Silverado I believe).
This is almost becoming cliché, but it's true - believe the hype. Red is the real deal.
Those who insist on finding fault with it will always do so no matter how polished it gets. For the rest of us, this camera is essentially a near perfect symbiosis of form and function. It's solid, rugged, well designed and engineered.
The LEGO concept of accessories is fantastic - they fit almost anywhere, in any combination. The software UI is clean and functional as well as being intuitive in its operation. It also looks like it lives in the 21st century, not the 1980's as some other cameras look (no names, no court martials!).
The EVF image is amazing (the example I looked at had the blue colour cast bug but I know that's being solved as I write this so no biggie). The button on the LCD to flip between image outputs is very, very useful while there is only one output enabled at once. The focus assist (which is now a graph at the bottom of screen plus a height/thickness adjustable cross bar to get the vertical axis pinpointed) is fantastic for those shooting solo, and can be operated from the EVF as well.
The 18-50mm Red Zoom is a good workhorse lens for the money. I agree with a few posters that it could do with some smoothness tweaking in the rotating elements, but the image quality is fine. I imagine once you get a good follow focus on there it won't be a big issue for most people. Those who need the absolute best will hire Cookes, Zeiss et al and won't care either way.
Some tidbits of info I gleaned from Ted which may or may not have been posted (I didn't see them anywhere, hence this post):
- The RedDrive 320GB module will have two Hitachi 7200rpm 160GB 2.5" laptop drives inside.
- To clean the sensor, Ted uses a Delkin SensorScope first to see if it needs a clean, then if yes uses a SensorSwipe with PecPads and Eclipse sensor cleaning fluid (classic, NOT the newer E2 formula).
- Red 4K displays/projectors are a LONG TERM goal, so don't get too excited about them in the near future.
- Support for other NLEs is coming, but they want to get the Apple and Assimilate workflows solid first. Buy a Mac for the best workflow right now (I'm saying this as a die hard PC person, but you shouldn't let fanboyism interfere with sound business judgement, and Macs, like it or not, represent the best option right now for on set workflow).
- There will be a small helper app to verify media transfer integrity (as in being able to copy the CF card contents to another drive and checksum verifying that they are identical). This is very important for client confidence with a tapeless workflow!
- The RedFlash module is essentially being held back until they can get the price/performance ratio right. This is around the 96GB/under $5000 mark.
- The ExpressCard slot is still being thought about, more so now that Sony are shipping cameras using the format, which will hopefully drive down prices and push increased capacities faster (as well as speed improvements). CF remains the best bet though in the near term.
- Panavision in LA have ordered some cameras to Panavise. (I'm guessing they have some contact already with Steven Soderbergh, since he is using Panavision anamorphics on his current feature. That's my guess only, not necessarily fact.)
As for the reaction in Japan....
This is just my subjective opinion, but I have a feeling they don't quite know what to make of this American upstart company.
I think this is partly because of the fact that most information is in English, which means they need to be good at English to read about it, or they need to be friends with someone who speaks the language natively and is up to date on the forums etc.
The other reason is that Red's development philosophy, of being an engineering company over a multi-national conglomerate (like a lot of Japanese companies are), is a bit too non-conventional for them. Someone said to me that they like having a solid manual for everything, with locked down features and an established workflow. Japan values conformity so I can see why Red would scare them in some regards.
That said, a few companies have put down reservations, mostly (I think) on a basis that it's a no risk proposition to reserve on the chance that it is as good as people claim it to be, and if it isn't, then it's no big loss to the company.
There are true believers here too (if I can call our group that) who have mostly reserved a single camera for themselves or their smaller production companies. These guys see Red for what it truly is and want to be on the leading edge of progress. They are passionate about the camera and are probably seen as mavericks for their stance.
NHK received a demo from Ted as well and apparently ordered three cameras right away, with an option for a LOT more if they are happy with those three.
One thing is for sure as far as my own company is concerned - Japan is going to be an interesting market to crack with the camera, and since I am the first in Japan to get one I'll no doubt be posting a lot of initial information on how it goes probably in late December, or more likely January.
Hope you enjoyed this little blog on Red hitting Japan! Here's a couple of photos taken at the 4K screening session ("Crossing The Line" ROCKS btw!):
A big thanks to Ted Schilowitz for your time and friendship; your support is much appreciated and it was great chatting with you over the week!
Cheers!
Paul
I thought you would be interested in a quick report from the recently held InterBEE event held in Tokyo, Japan, since this is essentially the vipers' nest as far as movie cameras goes, being Sony's homeland!
First, my personal opinion on the camera, now that I've seen and played with one up close (a combination of Ted Schilowitz's personal "no name" camera and Serial #0020, from Silverado I believe).
This is almost becoming cliché, but it's true - believe the hype. Red is the real deal.
Those who insist on finding fault with it will always do so no matter how polished it gets. For the rest of us, this camera is essentially a near perfect symbiosis of form and function. It's solid, rugged, well designed and engineered.
The LEGO concept of accessories is fantastic - they fit almost anywhere, in any combination. The software UI is clean and functional as well as being intuitive in its operation. It also looks like it lives in the 21st century, not the 1980's as some other cameras look (no names, no court martials!).
The EVF image is amazing (the example I looked at had the blue colour cast bug but I know that's being solved as I write this so no biggie). The button on the LCD to flip between image outputs is very, very useful while there is only one output enabled at once. The focus assist (which is now a graph at the bottom of screen plus a height/thickness adjustable cross bar to get the vertical axis pinpointed) is fantastic for those shooting solo, and can be operated from the EVF as well.
The 18-50mm Red Zoom is a good workhorse lens for the money. I agree with a few posters that it could do with some smoothness tweaking in the rotating elements, but the image quality is fine. I imagine once you get a good follow focus on there it won't be a big issue for most people. Those who need the absolute best will hire Cookes, Zeiss et al and won't care either way.
Some tidbits of info I gleaned from Ted which may or may not have been posted (I didn't see them anywhere, hence this post):
- The RedDrive 320GB module will have two Hitachi 7200rpm 160GB 2.5" laptop drives inside.
- To clean the sensor, Ted uses a Delkin SensorScope first to see if it needs a clean, then if yes uses a SensorSwipe with PecPads and Eclipse sensor cleaning fluid (classic, NOT the newer E2 formula).
- Red 4K displays/projectors are a LONG TERM goal, so don't get too excited about them in the near future.
- Support for other NLEs is coming, but they want to get the Apple and Assimilate workflows solid first. Buy a Mac for the best workflow right now (I'm saying this as a die hard PC person, but you shouldn't let fanboyism interfere with sound business judgement, and Macs, like it or not, represent the best option right now for on set workflow).
- There will be a small helper app to verify media transfer integrity (as in being able to copy the CF card contents to another drive and checksum verifying that they are identical). This is very important for client confidence with a tapeless workflow!
- The RedFlash module is essentially being held back until they can get the price/performance ratio right. This is around the 96GB/under $5000 mark.
- The ExpressCard slot is still being thought about, more so now that Sony are shipping cameras using the format, which will hopefully drive down prices and push increased capacities faster (as well as speed improvements). CF remains the best bet though in the near term.
- Panavision in LA have ordered some cameras to Panavise. (I'm guessing they have some contact already with Steven Soderbergh, since he is using Panavision anamorphics on his current feature. That's my guess only, not necessarily fact.)
As for the reaction in Japan....
This is just my subjective opinion, but I have a feeling they don't quite know what to make of this American upstart company.
I think this is partly because of the fact that most information is in English, which means they need to be good at English to read about it, or they need to be friends with someone who speaks the language natively and is up to date on the forums etc.
The other reason is that Red's development philosophy, of being an engineering company over a multi-national conglomerate (like a lot of Japanese companies are), is a bit too non-conventional for them. Someone said to me that they like having a solid manual for everything, with locked down features and an established workflow. Japan values conformity so I can see why Red would scare them in some regards.
That said, a few companies have put down reservations, mostly (I think) on a basis that it's a no risk proposition to reserve on the chance that it is as good as people claim it to be, and if it isn't, then it's no big loss to the company.
There are true believers here too (if I can call our group that) who have mostly reserved a single camera for themselves or their smaller production companies. These guys see Red for what it truly is and want to be on the leading edge of progress. They are passionate about the camera and are probably seen as mavericks for their stance.
NHK received a demo from Ted as well and apparently ordered three cameras right away, with an option for a LOT more if they are happy with those three.
One thing is for sure as far as my own company is concerned - Japan is going to be an interesting market to crack with the camera, and since I am the first in Japan to get one I'll no doubt be posting a lot of initial information on how it goes probably in late December, or more likely January.
Hope you enjoyed this little blog on Red hitting Japan! Here's a couple of photos taken at the 4K screening session ("Crossing The Line" ROCKS btw!):
A big thanks to Ted Schilowitz for your time and friendship; your support is much appreciated and it was great chatting with you over the week!
Cheers!
Paul
