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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

NAB 2018: Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K

I have to say this stuff so far look better than anything I've seen from the Kinefinity Terra 4K which is rumored to be a similar sensor. Dynamic range looks on par with the Epic MX sensor which is very respectable. That combined with 4:2:2 HQ and 4K resolution and this is definitely a camera you can seamlessly integrate with other larger cameras when necessary.
 
Like you said, the dynamic range is 100% usable, and looks pretty good. Only time you notice is near the sun, where Dragon/Helium/Gemini would be able to hold more around that area, but that's not a deal breaker by any means. A few landscape shots looked soft, so I don't know if that was a 4k vs 8k thing that I'm used to, or diffraction, or just straight up out of focus.
 
Adam Montville said:
Like you said, the dynamic range is 100% usable, and looks pretty good. Only time you notice is near the sun, where Dragon/Helium/Gemini would be able to hold more around that area, but that's not a deal breaker by any means. A few landscape shots looked soft, so I don't know if that was a 4k vs 8k thing that I'm used to, or diffraction, or just straight up out of focus.
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4K should not be soft by any means. If you go to Blackmagic's vimeo page you can download the original uploaded files which are much less compressed. These videos are all graded by Blackmagic and passed through QC so they definitely have an extra level of care taken vs. videos graded by the end users.

Blackmagic was in charge of post on these videos so if shots were out of focus they probably would have been rejected.
 
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Shot at 1:18 was what stuck out to me. But reading the description it makes more sense "I love shooting directly into the light wide open". Wide open on Rokinon lenses. I have them, and avoid opening those lenses at all costs, so that makes me feel better about the camera's performance.
 

Vimeo Link: https://vimeo.com/286991335

Out of the model tests we've seen so far, I think this one does the best job of showing what the camera is capable of.
The only thing that stands out to me is the window detail at 1:23 and 1:30 affecting the bokeh.
Not a fault of the camera though, just felt a little unintentionally gritty.
 

There are also Prores files available on the Blackmagic website if you want to grade the shots yourself or judge the color.
 
Savannah Miller said:

There are also Prores files available on the Blackmagic website if you want to grade the shots yourself or judge the color.
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I was chatting with a friend about this one, and I think this is an example of where the Pocket 4K can potentially out-perform the bigger and more expensive cameras. Not completely in image quality, but in the footprint it has, and the ability to move the camera around easier and capture more unique and inspired shots. Especially with the sensor being so close to the ground in comparison to a DSMC body (although I suppose you could shoot upside down).
 
Brandon Veen said:
I was chatting with a friend about this one, and I think this is an example of where the Pocket 4K can potentially out-perform the bigger and more expensive cameras. Not completely in image quality, but in the footprint it has, and the ability to move the camera around easier and capture more unique and inspired shots. Especially with the sensor being so close to the ground in comparison to a DSMC body (although I suppose you could shoot upside down).
Click to expand...

GH5 IBIS might help in this situation as some shots are a bit shaky, but that probe lens is very slow so the increased sensitivity of the Pocket 4K might help too. John Brawley uses Blackmagic cameras, and while he may come off as a shill, Blackmagic cameras already do outperform other cameras at doing certain things.
 
A little disappointed it can't be controlled via any of the ATEM switchers. I hesitant to get any of the studios cameras for live productions because all of the footage I've seen of those cameras look like a camcorder. The "cinema" cameras all have the look that I like.
 
Some new news about the camera. 16.2ms rolling shutter makes it slower than the comparable Kinefinity Terra 4K and GH5s but still reasonably fast. Maybe this can be improved with firmware.



A non-english unboxing video:

 
The pocket literally shined brilliantly on a feature as a toss away c cam and came up with the fav images of the entire piece.
I’m sorry to have posted a while back on this thread that it’s a toy, please forgive me. Old Zeiss on these shot around its limitations is a winner. Don’t know what I was thinking there, it’s a micro beast. Too much koolaid it appears...

Quite opposite really it’s a unique tool in the quiver. Fond of the Ethic there as well, Resolve in and of itself is mindblowingly sublime software.


I will buy four and image a ULB thriller with pleasure, coverage will take on a new meaning...
 
It seams its starting to roll out. Here is another unboxing with English subs.
 
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