BMPCC4K - Why No 2K DCI?

Curious to know, why can't the Blackmagic Cinema Camera 4K record at 2048x1080? This seems like such an obvious format that this camera should support. Seeing that it can already record 4096x2160, 3840x2160 and 1920x1080, it seems like such a glaring omission not to include 2048x1080.

It's just kind of strange that we have the option to shoot the 2K equivalent of UHD, but not the 2K equivalent of 4K...

Agree 2K should be there.


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Well, it's 4 times better, just in terms of sharpness/resolution. Plus the option to crop all you want. And any 4k image can be easily downscaled to 2k.

So, I guess the question is: WTF?

You don't always want/need to shoot files that are 4x bigger, Joe.

Joe, what you are saying is what I’ll be doing. This is just a request to have the option of shooting BRAW 2K in camera as I’ve been doing with the URSA Mini 4.6K. It’s a Cinema Camera so it would be nice to support both 4K DCI and 2K DCI in camera. Although everything I do for clients hits the web, not the Cinema, the web is happy with 2K deliverables.


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I agree it's an oversight and should be added. But I wonder what the Venn Diagram is of people who need 2K DCI deliverables and people who wouldn't be shooting and down-sampling 4k for higher quality, even if the option to shoot 2K was there?

I could see "Eh, anyone who needs this is going to shoot 4k anyways, devote the development resources somewhere else" being a not unreasonable call, at least during development crunch.

My concern is when I’m recording a performance for over two hours, being able to record 2K is feasible. When recording 4K, I’m restricted to a shorter duration, because I can’t stop an event to load another card when I might need to. Sure I can do it at some point, but not in the midst of what’s happening onstage etc.

On the URSA Mini 4.6K, I can load two CFast 2 cards and record without any worries. On the BMPCC4K, I might need to swap in another card, but you cannot do that without shaking the image being recorded. So I want 2K but will have to use HD instead.

See what I mean?


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My concern is when I’m recording a performance for over two hours, being able to record 2K is feasible. When recording 4K, I’m restricted to a shorter duration, because I can’t stop an event to load another card when I might need to. Sure I can do it at some point, but not in the midst of what’s happening onstage etc.

Rick, you know what to do then

Record to an 1 TB-SSD in BRAW 5:1 (244 mins) or 8:1 (390 mins) and there's plenty of duration available.

Thanks, Thomas. There is a silver bullet to cure my ailment!

Just waiting a bit to test with the Wise CFast 2 and SDXC before I decide between their 500GB and 1TB SSD. Leaning towards 1TB since that handles any daily capacity need I can foresee currently, especially since I have two CFast 2 256GB cards for overflow.


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I have two CFast 2 256GB cards for overflow.

If a man can afford these, he can afford anything, Rick!

Wish that was true, Thomas!


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5 months later, and I still wish the BMPCC 4K (and 6K) could shoot in 2K DCI ProRes, instead of just 1920x1080. It's such an odd oversight that this resolution isn't already an option.

Not a huge deal I guess, because I mostly shoot full resolution anyway. But I just think it's an odd omission.

Thomas, five months later and I now have a Wise CFast 2 1 TB card and a Wise Portable SSD 1 TB drive so I’m ready to tackle any shoot given the quality of BRAW Q5/5:1 and ProRes 422 HQ or CinemaDNG 3:1 and ProRes 444.


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5 months later, and I still wish the BMPCC 4K (and 6K) could shoot in 2K DCI ProRes...

I’m hopeful we shall see 2K DCI and 2.8K 17:9 in firmware 6.6 for the BMPCC4K in the next month or so.


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In addition to your requests, I'd like BMD to take a page out of RED's playbook when it comes to braw and offer more options for HFR.

We have 4K60 on one side and HD120 on the other. In between it would be cool to have whatever resolution the camera could support at 72 (75) in windowed braw for example.

In addition to your requests, I'd like BMD to take a page out of RED's playbook when it comes to braw and offer more options for HFR.

We have 4K60 on one side and HD120 on the other. In between it would be cool to have whatever resolution the camera could support at 72 (75) in windowed braw for example.

Agreed! On the 6K for example, windowed 4K at maybe 80-100fps would be pretty sweet. I guess it depends if (1) the sensor could handle it and (2) could the recording media handle the data rates?

That makes sense. We may see that in future firmware releases. On the URSA Mini there are ranges of maximum frame rates so it’s not always just 30, 60, 120 fps.


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Hey, its 2024 and still no 2k resolution in ProRes!

Is there a forum for requests?

The only forum for Feature Requests is the DaVinci Resolve forum specifically for feature requests.

We’ve asked for a 2K recording option for almost five and a half years. BMD has made a very large number of feature changes to the BMPCC4K in that timeframe, particularly in release 7.3, which we appreciate very much. However no 2K options for recording.

When I want to deliver 2K, I usually shoot 2688 x 1512 and then adjust in post to:
2048 x 858 (2.39:1 aspect ratio) or
2048 x 1080 (1.8926 aspect ratio) or
2048 x 1152 (16:9 aspect ratio).

I always reframe in post to improve the composition over the original recording and to match the visual flow of the additional camera in a multi-camera shoot. So the extra pixels recorded are a blessing in disguise.

Ok, but I want to record the whole sensor in 2K. 2688 x 1512 is windowed.

Ok, but I want to record the whole sensor in 2K. 2688 x 1512 is windowed.

Me too. Until then, I just handle it by compensating with focal length adjustments and using F8 Lens tool on iOS. A pretty sweet tool.

You don't always want/need to shoot files that are 4x bigger, Joe.

Worth pointing out that 12:1 BRAW in 4K DCI would only be 18% more bandwidth than ProRes 422HQ in 2K DCI, and you're getting 12-bit precision, 4:4:4 colour, and 4x the resolution for that bump. I know that those might not be material improvements for some clients, but if you're targeting a 2K DCI master then there's a good chance you'd probably still benefit from the better colour and bit depth.

My feature request would add both full-sensor 2K DCI and cropped as well as other Super 16 aspect ratios.

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