Adam Langdon wrote:I've been going back through old threads about the release of new cameras, and gathering my thoughts on them. (this is more of a 'my journey' thing, if you don't want to read, haha.)
The first time I got my hands on a Blackmagic Design camera was the Ursa Mini 4k. We shot some green screen projects on it and it was fantastic in well-lit scenes. So when I moved to the URSA Mini 4.6k, I was amazed at how much cleaner it looked...and with a base ISO of 800! Plus all that dynamic range.
Then the URSA Mini Pro came out with internal NDs and I was amazed at the ability to move so much faster. THEN the G2... ~8ms readout speed?!?! Plus those frame rates.... I was sold.
The Pockets were all great, and the 6k sensor was really nice.
GEN5 Color!!! wow, what a time to be alive and be in the business of making moving images.
And then, when the URSA Mini 12k came out, it was $10k, and all the sudden I wasn't upgrading just yet. Even after the price came down, I couldn't see a reason to upgrade. Then I got my hands on one and truly loved the image. There's a quality about it, that is just...better than the UMPG2. I was shooting in 8k for interviews and boy was I going through data. I decided to set the 12k up as a true cinema camera and only use it for 'big time' projects. But then, I wasn't using it much. There were great commercials I filmed with it. Clients loved the images and editors didn't mind BRAW only shoots.
When the L Mount 6k FF was announced, I preorder it. "Finally," I thought, "I'll put my full-frame cinema glass to full use!" And yes, the images looked fantastic. Shot about 6 months worth of projects and was thrilled with the results and set aside the limitations of low light and rolling shutter.
But then I had a feeling BMD was going to release something soon. SO, I sold my friend's 12k for him while it still had value (approximately $4500 used, but the money went to him not me, haha).
Prior to the Livestream, I made a list of features I would deem 'worth the upgrade'
- Crazy amount of resolution
- Has to have at least 15 Stops of Dynamic Range
- Internal ND filters of some kind
- Faster readout times, better than or equal to the 12k s35
- Take CF Express Media or something just as fast
- Has to be around $10k
And what do you know, they released a BEAST of a camera. The Ursa Cine, that checkmarks ALL on my lists except the price. I was off by $5k.
So, I guess, in summary, there's been improvements to the Cinema line of Blackmagic cameras for a long while, and I have moved up with each release. But not this time, I think. At least, not yet.
I ended up selling my 6k FF and a FF zoom lens that I was using and went back to the Pocket 6k Pro for most of my small-time documentary work and purchased a used UMPG2 for larger client work. All in all, I paid the same amount for two great cameras that can do two different jobs for the price of one L Mount FF Pocket-style camera rigged up with cage and all... that I HATED rigging up. The Pyxis just isn't for me and that's ok.
I'm gonna have to see if the Ursa Cine is feasible in the coming year. Freelance work is so random and rewarding and uncertain. I honestly DON'T see BMD lowering the cost of the Ursa Cine ever. Maybe for the Ursa Cine G2, but really, it's just out of my price range right now.
/rant
Great journey!
I'm slightly similar. I started with the original Blackmagic Cinema Camera 2.5K back in 2013. Loved the image. I treated it like Super 16mm Film and got amazing results. Went back to rewatch "Rosary" the Troy Ramey Music Video released a decade ago. Beautiful!
Even then CinemaDNG RAW was a lot to handle as 30-min was around 256 GB worth of data. Luckily by 2015 Compressed CinemaDNG came to the the 2.5K and 45-min now was around 256 GB. But then I got the original URSA Mini 4.6K.
The Original URSA Mini 4.6K was an amazing camera. I just rewatched "Bolero Beach" which I released 7-years ago today. So much great footage from that camera. CinemaDNG was a little better to handle thanks to more compression options in the UM4.6K and 4:1 CinemaDNG would get you around 30-min worth of footage in 256 GB, which made it like shooting the original 2.5K again in terms of data.
Then the URSA Mini Pro G2! Oh boy. This was the best camera hands down. Most versatile because it had all the features but still could shoot HD ProRes for the clients that needed it. But the internal ND was amazing and prompted me to not want a camera without internal ND ever again. I loved having the option to shoot up to 120 FPS full sensor. The rolling shutter was fantastic because the sensor readout was so fast.
Then I got the Pocket 6K when I sold my UM4.6K to be a B-Cam. It was fine. But never was a fan of the form factor or the downgraded features compared to the UMPG2. So I got the Pocket 6K Pro when it was announced. Modified it to PL and eventually sold the Pocket 6K. Still the P6KPro couldn't compare for me to the UMPG2. But it was fine enough as the B-Cam I needed at times.
I haven't the funds to buy the URSA Cine 12K, but I would love to shoot on one. It checks every box I have asked for over the years in terms of upgrades and improvements. The only thing missing is the Video Assist Camera Control... but, I suspect that is coming in a future Video Assist release.
Still, for clients still asking for ProRes I need to use the other cameras. And, sometimes clients still don't like the size of ProRes and prefer we shoot Sony or Canon for their compressed codecs. It is what it is for the paid client work. But when the client has no issue with us shooting BRAW then it is a fantastic thing.
I can't wait to see what the future holds with Blackmagic Cameras. My hope is for eventually the PYXIS for fit as the perfect replacement for the URSA Mini Pro G2 by having better frame rates and bringing back ProRes recording for those clients that need it. As a lower cost option it is needed. Otherwise, I'm fine with the URSA Cine line never having ProRes and staying with BRAW.
It's been a fantastic 11-years of using Blackmagic Cameras for me. And, I'm sure the future years will continue to be fantastic when using Blackmagic Cameras.