Thoughts and questions from a (mostly) stills guy

[Mike 'Fireman' Ross]

Folks,

I've been peeking at the world of RED on and off for a few years. When I first read about the R1 I had two thoughts:

1. It's not really relevant to me. But...
2. These guys are mounting a revolution and they're going to win.

So I went and told my wife (a senior banker on Wall St.) 'BUY!' (the firm, not the camera!) - only to discover that all the capital was privately held. Bugger.

Move on three years... I'm shooting more video, and you have DSMC. I'm sold. I'm buying. I'm fed up hauling multiple systems up volcanoes. I look at the results from my Nikon D3 and wonder 'why can't I shoot video that looks like that?'. I guess now I can.

Questions:

1. I trust RED, they are professionals selling to professionals. If they think they can make a camera viable for professional still work that doesn't have an optical viewfinder, I expect them to make it work. But can anyone who has used a RED system for stills comment on this aspect?

2. I shoot a variety of different subjects - landscapes, up close & personal volcanic eruptions, and industrial interiors to name but three. Around 50% of the time the standard lens on one of my D3s is the 14-24mm F2.8 zoom, and I use every mm of both ends. So FX sensor is a non-negotiable must; crop factors are unwelcome and need not apply. Also, I have a very significant investment in top-end Nikon glass, which I will have to use. So I guess Scarlet FF with Nikon mount is the camera for me? What's the latest on delivery & pricing for that? From what I've gathered wading through other threads, Scarlet is fairly imminent?

3. HDR. Unless the nature of the subject precludes it, every shot I take is bracketed fivefold, to keep the option of HDR processing open. I haven't seen it mentioned, but I presume Scarlet has/will have the usual bracketing options in 'still' mode, in addition to the (very clever, WANT to play!) HDRx motion picture system?

Thanks!

Mike

 

[David Rasberry]

Scarlet at this point is a 2/3" format camera only. No 35mm full frame Red's have been mentioned in the last year. They are part of the next generation sensors and product line.
The S35/APS-H sized sensors are in the Epic series cameras. The former Scarlet S35 model is now an Epic-S with the addition of HDRx and the move to the larger Epic body platform, estimated to be around $12k+.

 

[Mike 'Fireman' Ross]

Thanks David, I was wading through pages of excitement about the Scarlet Fixed and Epic-S trying to discern what the story was with the Scarlet FF. I did go to the FAQs

http://reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?t=22619

but noted that they hadn't been updated in some considerable time! Perhaps someone needs to take on that task?

So I guess WRT my FX sensor the answer is 'not anytime soon' - probably not this year? But Scarlet Fixed should be on sale before the summer?

At $4750, Scarlet Fixed is cheap enough - cheaper than another Nikon body! - that I might just buy one to get used to RED workflow etc. - I'll call it my trainer cam for the FX sensor when that becomes available

Still interested in the other aspects of my questions, which remain relevant.

 

[Jeff Kilgroe]

Lots of us are anxiously anticipating the FF35 and medium format cameras that were announced long ago. They are the next generation sensor after Mysterium-X, originally dubbed Monstro (or Mysterium-Monstro). Jim commented a while back that he's seen a sample slice from that upcoming sensor and he seemed pleased with it.

It seems that with RED's latest policy regarding news and announcements, they won't say a word about any new product until it's for sure less than 6 months away. And all indicators seem to show that the next round of larger-sensor cameras should have a faster development process than Epic and Scarlet that are now so close. The newer cameras build on the same internal technology, ASICs, etc.. so a large chunk of what goes into those upcoming cameras has already been built.

Those outdated FAQs will probably get an update once we have finalized info on the new cameras and updated info on forthcoming camera models. To update now would be somewhat futile.

 

[PaulClements]

1. The EVF's from Red are good quality, and the Epic-S will use what look like good touchscreen monitors so you see the shot exactly as it'll appear. There is the question of battery power however. I suggested long ago for an option to install a single lens reflex mirror and optical viewfinder that is commonplace in the SLR world but it fell on deaf ears unfortunately. So when you're hiking up those volcanoes make sure you take lots of (Heavy) batteries and setup everything in your shot as best you can before turning the camera on because the processing power is far heavier than your average SLR.

2. As answered previously FF Scarlet is still a little while away. I wouldn't expect to see it in 2011 personally. As a guess I'd punt for mid 2012 - but that's just a guess and based only on my knowledge of Red's R&D for their products. Epic has been as long in the waiting as the Red One so don't expect Monstro sensor cameras to ship until the MX sensored Epic cameras are out in the world and the orders are beginning to dry up and Red move on to the next big beast. It's unfortunate that we aren't seeing an MX full sensor camera being released from the offset really since there is a big call for it. I don't think it would've effected sales of Monstro brains in the future as there will always be a large call to have the best and most upto-date product.

3. I've not heard bracketing mentioned before. But HDR should work well in stills just as well as in motion. You can go to +6 stops using HDR giving you around 18-19 stops.

 

[Piero Dellino]

Mike,

what do you mean by "personal volcanic eruptions"?

Piero

 

[Mike 'Fireman' Ross]

Paul, the still HDR workflow I currently use involves bracketing each shot 5 or 7 times, typical with 0.7EV between brackets. So a sequence might be +2.1, +1.4, +0.7, correct, -0.7, -1.4, -2.1. I'll then combine these images in the HDR render app - Photomatix Pro is my current poison. This is the kind of result I work for:

(yes I know there's muck on the bloody sensor - this was a rough cut prior to cleanup)

I'm not sure how well the HDRx™ system would work with this technique, since it doesn't offer you the chance to use 5 or 7 exposures! I just want to be sure Scarlet can auto-bracket five- or seven-fold as described above for still work.

Piero: ha ha, I get 'up close and personal' with volcanic eruptions (hence the name) (although I'm an actual fireman too, for my sins).

 

[David Rasberry]

Nice shot Mike.

What kind of camera are you using?

 

[Mike 'Fireman' Ross]

Nice shot Mike.

What kind of camera are you using?

Thanks. Nikon D3. That was Gullfoss, Iceland. 4AM in June! Had the place to myself for a couple of hours.

 

[Piero Dellino]

Hi Mike,

I was asking, because actually I am a volcanologist, and also an experimentalist, so I do make my own "personal eruptions", therefore I was curious about yours

cheers

Piero

 

[Mike 'Fireman' Ross]

Hah! Piero, I'm a fireman these days but my training (my degree) is in geology... that's where this started.

This is the kind of thing I do, only this guy did it better than me... with a Canon 5D MK2. I'd take a crack at this in 3K or better...

http://vimeo.com/groups/photomotion/videos/11673745

Mike

 

[Tom Lowe]

Mike, as Jeff mentioned, many of us are eagerly awaiting the full-frame Epic. My personal hope is that many of the kinks in the system are being ironed out now in the Epic X pre-production stage, so the FF35 will follow more quickly than many imagine.

 

[Mike 'Fireman' Ross]

Hi Mike,

I was asking, because actually I am a volcanologist, and also an experimentalist, so I do make my own "personal eruptions", therefore I was curious about yours

cheers

Piero

Well, you might like this....

White Island NZ, Nikon D3, 14mm, CS5/Photomatix Pro/Noiseware Pro