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Why is Red so special?

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Dear Red-Users

I've being trying to discern why RED is so special. From what I've gathered it produces 4K *Soon to be 5k*, for an affordable price when compared to its competitors.

What I've yet to work out what is 4K video and why is it so special?

Sorry if this is not the right place for this, but I'm a curious person and just wanted to know what the fuss was all about!
 
Not a bad question.
Mr J would answer this best.

But ill give you a few reasons, Quality.

The future is not 1080p so you are prepping for the future.
Movie theater screens are not 1080p either so you want a better bigger image.
In the future theaters will move into 4K digital projectors your movie will look that much better when it goes.
Technology is always advancing and improving.
RED sets the bar for all others, they are so innovative that major camera companies are copying them. And RED has not even been in the camera game for more than a Decade.
Youve already hit some main factors affordable price.
It shoots a codec that is very malleable and very elastic in color grading the 13+ stops of High Dynamic range is unbelievable.
The support you get from RED is UNTOUCHABLE BY ANY COMPANY anywhere flat out.
Heres an example if you call this number (949) 206-7900 chances are very high that you will speak to a human whos located here in Southern Cai and he or she will likely answer your question.
If your question is something they need more time on they will get back to you.
That is some of the most helpful service anybody can offer. From simple questions to complex they HELP.
The software support and advancements are highly appreciated by post guys.
The capabilities of shooting 120fps and more on the EPIC is extremely powerful.

Today right now you can try but cant really beat a RED MX camera in so many ways.
And the Epic far more superior to any camera ever made by leaps and bounds so if you can get your hands on an EPIC there is nothing else to consider you will just be disappointed.

Some guys throw the ball to where the receiver is at.
RED throws the ball to where the reviver is going to be. Someone from RED told me that... actually it was Jim J. I hope he does not mind i put that up.

There are so many more reasons but I am certain others will chime in and give you some great reasons.
 
If you have ever shot raw stills with a DSLR and graded them in an app like Photoshop Lightroom you will begin to understand the difference between Red and video.
Red brings you much closer to the gold standard of 35mm film as an acquisition medium and gives you much more creative freedom to manipulate your footage after it is shot.
 
4k also has about 6 times the number of pixels HD video does.
5k has 60% more than 4k, making it more detailed than the best 35mm motion picture fIlm frame.
RAW also outperforms RGB by a mile, on a track that's 1.1 miles long. It's the digital equivalent of film negative.

But what really separates RED from the competition is their philosophy of thinking like a customer, and striving to give us the very best cameras possible instead of just the minimum they can get us to pay for, just so they can do it again next year.
 
1) RAW motion capture in general REDCODE specifically.
2) Camera system Flexibility / Modularity
3) Resolution
4) Accessibility - Price/Performance.


It is the first system that has parity with film or is superior to film in every major performance criteria. The highest levels of performance used to cost what is equivalent to a house now it's cost something like motorcycle.
 
It's not only those 4K pixels that made RED thé big hit.

It was the fact that it was in many cases a real film-competitor (resolution, dynamic range a bit less, but not bad, a RAW workflow, 35mm sensor, ...) that gave a very high quality image at a price that was reserved for low-end broadcast camera's. It was a very good digital cinema camera with an affordable RAW workflow - also revolutionary, and those camera's often came at price points of 70.000-200.000 dollars.
Selling the body for 17.500 dollars attracted many people, also people that used to shoot with much lower-end camera's.
 
Dear Red-Users

I've being trying to discern why RED is so special.

This is an easy one. Because they are inspired by what they do and that inspires me.

They try to deliver the best possible technologies at the best possible price points. They strive to put their best effort forward in everything they do and do not withhold innovations from their customers.

You may not need all of that technology for what you do. There are jobs where I do and jobs where I don't. But either way, I am always happy shooting a RED camera because I know it was designed with that degree of intention.

Also - because they have built a community here which is a great place to learn how to improve at your craft, at a very high level. Even if you are already operating at a high level. There is always higher. That is why we love to make images.

Do you need more reasons?
 
- RAW workflow that was editable and color correcting on a desktop computer.
- Huge files that where easy to work with (think 4k dpx VS 4k R3D)
- Low budget that could have hand on high end quality without compromising the future standards (4K RAW since build... (12 when I started))
- Being able to developp the raw with the help of free, easy to use, comprehensive downloadable software.
- Acess to the CEO and the rocket scientists behind RED... with some personal request that where discussed widely and openly on the forum.
- Request that where allways added for the best interest of the user.
...

RED ONE sucess is due to more than a piece of great hardware at a low cost.

Patrick

PS: even if the learning curve of the REDbeginnings was a bit with ups and downs... we will remember the REDstory as a sucess story.
 
use 35mm glas while shooting raw onto a cf card.

five years ago, such a cam was impossible.
five years ago, something similar did cost 10 times more, did take 10 times more storage to back up and did need a drive as huge as a truck to capture the images.

red today: affordable, no compromise, filmakers tools.
thats what it is about :)

just imagine you could suddenly afford to buy a plane and could afford to fly around with it...somthing similar happened to cameras, but instead of getting a plane you get the USS Enterprise
 
Some guys throw the ball to where the receiver is at.
RED throws the ball to where the reviver is going to be. Someone from RED told me that.

That usually results in a touchdown!
 
Some guys throw the ball to where the receiver is at.
RED throws the ball to where the reviver is going to be.

It is great to see that you are all so passionate about what sounds like an amazing piece of technology. I'm not a cinema-photographer, I've never really played with video! But I understand the principals of RAW shooting in stills and about the quality of 35 mm film over digital, which is one of the reasons you've got me even more excited.

Should I ever cross over into video, I know what I'll be striving for!
 
It is great to see that you are all so passionate about what sounds like an amazing piece of technology. I'm not a cinema-photographer, I've never really played with video! But I understand the principals of RAW shooting in stills and about the quality of 35 mm film over digital, which is one of the reasons you've got me even more excited.

Should I ever cross over into video, I know what I'll be striving for!

Its cinematographer not "cinema-photographer"

If you don't have one, get one of the new DSLR's with video.

The video they produce is pretty bad, but I am an advocate of them as good learning tools for the film/digital cinema production environment.
 
Everyone's answering the question "why do the things Red is doing differently matter" (ie "why is 4K important") when the real question we (or more accurately, Arri/Sony/Panasonic/Canon/etc's customers) should be looking at is "why isn't anybody else doing these things?"
 
Nothing beat red at just quality/price. All red products, camera and lenses are fantastic quality and value for the price. You can argue some of us are fanboys just because we got the hardware, but for many of us red have really help us get that extra edge in the business. If you are a good red owner/operator/DIT you have sooooo much work it's crazy.
 
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