Should I wait till after NAB to buy a camera?

[Kendall Scott]

So here is my situation, my next project is on Jun 3. The three cameras Im looking at right now are the Scarlet-W, Scarlet-D, and Epic-D
I want to buy a DSMC2 camera such as the scarlet w but my concern is that it might take a while before I actually get it.
My main concern with buying a DSMC camera such as the epic dragon is that if I buy it now the price might drop after NAB. I dont want to spend $30K on an Epic-D only to have the price drastically reduced a few weeks later.
Should I wait till after NAB or is it a safe bet to buy a camera now?

 

[Marc Wielage]

I'd say don't buy anything, and instead rent a camera. Try it out for a while and make sure you're going to get enough work to justify spending a lot of money for it.

The camera itself is only a small part of the full camera package. A full PL-mount lens set could cost several times more than a camera, and you still need a great head, a tripod, various mounts, matte boxes, storage, batteries, and on and on and on. Consider it merely the engine of a car: you still need a windshield, a dash, a steering wheel, a transmission, tires, and so on.

Cameras become obsolete over time, but lenses tend to hold their value for a long time. Same with tripods and heads.

 

[Matthew Quinn]

I would think even if you wait till after NAB, you will be able to basically walk into a red store and buy an Epic and walk out with it so i wouldn't worry there. I would advise getting on the list for Scarlet-w tho.. and if it doesn't get allocated in time, do like i said, or place an order for another camera like the epic as a back up. The Bomb Squad reps are very helpful.

 

[BRANDON JAMESON]

Sure , why not.

 

[shashbugu]

So here is my situation, my next project is on Jun 3. The three cameras Im looking at right now are the Scarlet-W, Scarlet-D, and Epic-D
I want to buy a DSMC2 camera such as the scarlet w but my concern is that it might take a while before I actually get it.
My main concern with buying a DSMC camera such as the epic dragon is that if I buy it now the price might drop after NAB. I dont want to spend $30K on an Epic-D only to have the price drastically reduced a few weeks later.
Should I wait till after NAB or is it a safe bet to buy a camera now?

Very few products announced at NAB ship within two months. Buy the Scarlet-W now and prep for your project. Yes Red might come out with a 16K camera, the 6k Epic Weapon, or even normalize the magnesium-W price, that will still not be beneficial to you. Think project first.

 

[Jeff Kilgroe]

You can wait until after NAB, but then what are you waiting for? There will be some new stuff announced at NAB, but not so much as far as cameras go. Most of the camera makers have already shown their hands and stuff that gets announced at NAB usually has a habit of actually being available at or near NAB the following year. So I don't see much point waiting to buy a camera...

OTOH, waiting is not a terrible idea at this point since we're less than 3 weeks away. Not so much in terms of camera options, but you may find other new things you would rather spend your money on instead. May influence your camera decision in terms of which RED model you buy... RED will probably have something special in terms of options or pricing at NAB. But if they have a surge in orders, you may not get your camera in time for your job at the beginning of June. Then you have to rent or come up with a different solution, which could negate any savings you had from NAB pricing. They're taking in a lot of Epics as trade-ins, yet I don't see much in terms of those cameras coming back to market. I wonder what's becoming of them?

I hope that makes the waters a bit less murky for you.

 

[M.Halsell]

........$30K on an Epic-D.....price drastically reduced a few weeks later....
[/COLOR]

RED is not going price position to hurt itself. How would RED gain by a steep price reduction on the Epic-D? If not already in the queue, unlikely you wlll have a shooting kit by June 3.

 

[Marc Wielage]

And bear in mind that a lot of stuff announced or shown at NAB may not ship for 3 or 6 or 9 months, or maybe won't ever really ship. It's sometimes a way to showcase product concepts that may or may not really happen.

 

[Elsie N]

Consider a used Epic Dragon. After going through RED's ownership transfer process, it will probably be on a par with a new camera while having that new-car-off-the-showroom-floor depreciation built in to the price.

This should give you assurance for your June needs. But if you are thinking longer term, the Scarlet W should still be in your hands before June and you then have the extra benefits of the Weapon platform.

 

[Grant Smucker]

RED is not going price position to hurt itself. How would RED gain by a steep price reduction on the Epic-D? If not already in the queue, unlikely you wlll have a shooting kit by June 3.

Didn't the Scarlet-W just come out for significantly less that the Scarlet-D?

 

[Matthew Quinn]

yep

 

[Scot Yount]

I'd say don't buy anything, and instead rent a camera. Try it out for a while and make sure you're going to get enough work to justify spending a lot of money for it.

The camera itself is only a small part of the full camera package. A full PL-mount lens set could cost several times more than a camera, and you still need a great head, a tripod, various mounts, matte boxes, storage, batteries, and on and on and on. Consider it merely the engine of a car: you still need a windshield, a dash, a steering wheel, a transmission, tires, and so on.

Cameras become obsolete over time, but lenses tend to hold their value for a long time. Same with tripods and heads.

This

 

[Christoffer Glans]

I'd say, go through your production needs. What type of things do you do? If you absolutely want an edge in image quality and deliver high end footage, a 4K+ camera with enough DR will work great. If you have needs for a robust high quality and easy post production workflow, a Red cameras is good. Other cameras are also good, but the actual price (for post production) of shooting some of them RAW is higher than shooting RAW on Red.