Introducing Blackmagic Production Camera 4K

• Includes UltraScope software for live scopes via the built in Thunderbolt connection.

See first page in this post

Thank you !

-On the Bmpc4K official feature page, Ultrascope isn't mentioned as "included" , just as "supported" but on the B&H sale page , they list it in "software included"... So do we get an ultrascope version with the Bmpc4K? If not, how do we get it without the hardware?

It is included and you can download it for free even without a purchase on the Support page. Just select a camera and your OS from the dropdowns. Download the most recent firmware package (currently 1.4) and that will install the Blackmagic Camera Utility, Media Express, UltraScope, and Disk Speed Test software. More information is available in the Readme document.

-I ve read somewhere that the sensor calibration may lead to a 800iso native sensitivity after all. What is the official blackmagic statement about it? Do we still in the "quite less sensitive than the bmcc" side?

Don't know the answer to this one, but I'll ask.

-Do we have an approximate release date for the compressed raw feature? Before end of october? Before end of the year? Or more like spring 2014?

No, sorry. We typically don't announce release dates for firmware updates and we very rarely will share what's in an upcoming firmware update. If the past is any indication, the BMCC had several firmware updates within the past year, usually about 2-3 months apart.

Hello christine!
When we get to see the footage out of this camera? any indication? if there's any chance to see it before it gets to shipping next month?

P.S : It is quite sad to see that this subject have turned into debating a release date instead of information seeking.

There's nothing new to be learned about the camera, everything seems to have been said already (somewhere in this forum). So the only thing that keeps bored forum visitors entertained is the release-date-puzzle.

I was about to create a new topic for this footage question.

I'm 55th on my list here in Paris and want to know if i have to wait the 4K until next summer and keep my low resolution 5dm2 for VFX works, or give up the BMPC4k for the BMCC EF right now, which is appear to be the most reasonnable solution actually.

Maybe you guys won't show anything and it's your right but it mights be interesting to let us know your plan.

korv

give up the BMPC4k for the BMCC EF right now, which is appear to be the most reasonnable solution actually.

If you don't really need the 4K for your work, you might be better of with the 13 stop 2.5K camera anyways. At your position, european list, you probably won't wait until next summer, but i wouldn't plan to film Père Noël in 4K either...

Quick questions:

-What about the SDI output rumor? Is the camera going to be compatible with HD (or even less) resolution monitors?

-Cable connections technology rookie question: Does 6G-SDI need any "new generation" SDI cables or will it work with the standard ones?

- Will the camera be able to record in ProRes in 4K, or will ProRes only be for 1080p? (this seems clear on the website, but there are also rumors about that)

Thanks!

Quick questions:

-What about the SDI output rumor? Is the camera going to be compatible with HD (or even less) resolution monitors?

-Cable connections technology rookie question: Does 6G-SDI need any "new generation" SDI cables or will it work with the standard ones?

- Will the camera be able to record in ProRes in 4K, or will ProRes only be for 1080p? (this seems clear on the website, but there are also rumors about that)

Thanks!

Based on previous statements by BMD staff it seems very likely the BMPC-4K will be compatible with both 1080 HD-SDI and 4K 6G-SDI devices.

I don't believe special BNC connector cables are required for HD-SDI. I don't know about about 6G-SDI, but I suspect good quality HD-SDI cables will be adequate for cables runs of typical length.

Concerning ProRes recording resolutions: The camera is announced to be able to record 4K and 1080p ProRes HQ. Whether it can also record compressed CinemaDNG when it starts shipping remains to be seen.

In any event, I guess we'll see what the camera actually does once it starts shipping -- hopefully "soon".

-

Blackmagic Cuts BMCC Price to $1,995


By Beth Marchant / Aug 2, 2013
Blackmagic Design today announced several key software upgrades to anchor products like DaVinci Resolve, HyperDeck Studio Pro, ATEM Production Switchers and the recently introduced ATEM Production Studio 4K live switcher, as well as a price reduction for the anticipated 2.5 K Cinema Camera. In a letter sent to customers this morning, Blackmagic Design founder and CEO Grant Petty cited the need to reduce camera build costs in order to "allow access to digital filming to a wide range of cinematographers and photographers." The new price for both the EF and MFT models is US$1,995.
Petty called the announcement "one of the proudest moments of my life," and went on to suggest that filmmakers might invest what they saved buying one of Blackmagic's cameras into superior lenses and other kit. Technically speaking, he added, "The advantage of the 2.5K sensor is it has enough resolution to eliminate the bayer resolution loss of a[n] HD sensor, but when shooting RAW it produces files that are not too big to sotre and work with easily." Petty said that all orders already placed but not yet filled would be honored at the new price.
The company has begun shipping its even more affordable Pocket Camera, itself with several key updates that include one-touch focus when using an MFT lens. This feature will also be added to the 2.5K Cinema Camera, along with new de-bayer processing, in a software update "coming soon."
While Blackmagic's Production Camera 4K is close to shipping, Petty underscored the need for more time. "Our first batch of sensors was delivered only this week, so we have not been able to complete the software for the camera," he said in his letter. "We expect to start shipping in about 3 to 4 weeks."
Other software updates Petty announced included 6G-SDI output and Ethernet remote control support for HyperDeck Studio Pro; ATEM Switcher Software 4.1.1, which lets users to save the state of the switcher as an XML file; and Avid MC 7 roundtripping in DaVinci Resolve 9.1.5. The company has added 1080p progressive video formats to the ATEM Production Studio 4K, including 23.98, 24, 25, 29.97, 50 and 59.94fps, giving users infinite device input options.
Petty's biggest surprise came at the close of his letter with the introduction of Splice, a new online community in the Vimeo tradition where Blackmagic users can share their stories. Petty says the site will feature everything "from feature films, shorts, TVCs and documentaries" and highlight the work of DPs, colorists, editors, visual effects artists and post houses.
- See more at: http://www.studiodaily.com/2013/08/blac ... XkW48.dpuf

http://www.studiodaily.com/2013/08/blac ... community/

Can anybody confirm this?

Wow such huge price drop!
Unbelievable!

Hi sambak, I think you're on the wrong topic. This is for the Cinema Camera, not the Production Camera 4K. And it's been on this forum in 3 or 4 different topics already

Pre-ordered my BMC 4K few days ago, number 3 on the queue in London.

Pre-ordered my BMC 4K few days ago, number 3 on the queue in London.

Unlikely. There's no "the queue" in London or any other city, there's only a (great) number of vendors each filing their own lists... Don't expect your camera this year!

Pre-ordered my BMC 4K few days ago, number 3 on the queue in London.

Best joke I've heard this week!

Pre-ordered my BMC 4K few days ago, number 3 on the queue in London.

Yep, that can't be possible. 1003 would be just a bit more reasonable. Preorders have started from what, April, May? Something like that.

I still hope I'm number 3 in queue in Greece though (preordered within the first days of June), here the indie filmmaking community is too small. Put aside the crisis - few people will risk buying a camera that hasn't yet been released. I hope I'm one of the ten people who risked in the whole country. haha.

Just kidding. I think my area will be one of the last ones to be served, actually.

My bad...said it wrongly....number 3 in THEIR shop

I spoke with a couple of vendors round here and all of them they seems to be quite confident to receive the camera by the end of August/September....let's see how it goes

Don't get me wrong: i really _hope_ you (and we all) get the cameras sooner than later... yet i have my doubts, and reasons for them.

Hi All,

Long time reader, but this is my first post.

I am number 4 on the pre-order list for the Production Cam 4K at ProActive UK.
Graziano Guardiani, just wondering... from which reseller did you pre-ordered? The thing is that the guys from ProAV don't have a clue when they will receive the first batch of cameras. And I am really considering canceling and make a purchase for 2.5k MFT from BH. At least in US you can find them in stock.

Anyway... Hello from Romania to everyone, it's a pleasure to be part of this large community.

Cheers ( or how we say.. Noroc! )

Hi Bogdan,

Why B&H for a 2.5K and not Marcotec Romania? I have one from them and I am totally satisfied.

Hi Bogdan,

Why B&H for a 2.5K and not Marcotec Romania? I have one from them and I am totally satisfied.

MFT in stock in Romania? Very unlikely and hard to believe. I am waiting since February for a BM camera (pre-ordered MFT initially, and switched for the 4k later on, in april, hoping that this time will be delivered on time - july-). But then again, it was postponed, and I really can't afford to wait any longer.

For the Cinema Camera, I am interested in MFT mount only, due to the flexibility it offers. And seems like in EU is a rare piece of equipment since you cannot find it readily available.

and BH because it turns out to be cheaper now, with the price drop, and having a trip to US by the end of the month gives me the opportunity to bring it with me when I come back home.

Hi Bogdan,

Why B&H for a 2.5K and not Marcotec Romania? I have one from them and I am totally satisfied.

Oh..and btw...MFT is not even listed in the online catalog.

Not on the Romanian site, but they have it. Talk to Valentin Tintea. For the moment they have not updated the prices.

Hi All,

Long time reader, but this is my first post.

I am number 4 on the pre-order list for the Production Cam 4K at ProActive UK.
Graziano Guardiani, just wondering... from which reseller did you pre-ordered?

I got mine from Tyrell.ie

BMD: Yes we will ship the camera in July. Believe me I will correct my mistake that I've done last year.
Me: Are you serious? I can't believe you, say it's a jock!
BMD: it's a Man word "July" you will get you camera.
Me: Yaaaay, <Went to the reseller in my hometown and pre-payed full cash for the camera>.
Me: "I will do different things in this summer vacation. First thing is (Get my BMPC)."

April >>> May >>> June
Summer in the door, the weather became hot, and waiting for my camera making more hot like standing near to the volcano!!

July
Started visiting Blackmagic Forum every day, and check for what are people saying about the shipment.
July's 1>>>>>>20
BMD: We have an event
Me: Finally they will release it.

July, 25
People in different website & BMD forum: "BMD said:Ok we have a problem in this, this, this, and this. so we will ship it very soon in next few weeks."
Me: Oh My God, I have to wait again, for a month!! summer vacation will finish soon.!, No it's a jock I know some people may cheat on us to drop this company.!!

August, 01
BMD changed the date from the main website.
ME: OMG, that gossip was correct!!!, Ok I will wait for a month.
BMD: "Our first batch of sensors was delivered only this week"
Me: What??!!!, are you serious? if they just received it last week, what happened all the time from past few months from NAB 2013 until now, are they focusing on the BMPCC only, what about BMPC?

August, 05
I'm writing this Message

I'm not angry for anything happening with you. problems are our life's destiny.
We cant take it away, but we can reduce it.

@ Christine Peterson ... Hello Christine.

I believe that you folks have been messing with the new, yet to be released, Mac Pro (beta) - I believe I heard this from my friends at Apple. I was wondering. Will BMD be making recommendations regarding the best hardware set-up to support Resolve 10 and a BMPC4K camera workflow? This might be very helpful to those of us making the big 4K leap of faith and splurging for beefier machine to manage the processing of 4K footage.

Thanks,

Scott

For the Cinema Camera, I am interested in MFT mount only, due to the flexibility it offers. And seems like in EU is a rare piece of equipment since you cannot find it readily available.

It's not rare at all. Not anymore. Every reseller here in Italy has the MFT in stock.
But I preordered the 4K so I have to wait

For the Cinema Camera, I am interested in MFT mount only, due to the flexibility it offers. And seems like in EU is a rare piece of equipment since you cannot find it readily available.

It's not rare at all. Not anymore. Every reseller here in Italy has the MFT in stock.
But I preordered the 4K so I have to wait

I beg to differ. Just finished an extensive search of all the official BM dealers in the EU (listed on their site) and every and each one of them had the Pre-Order tag written all over it. I want the MFT camera, not the EF one. And after waiting from February at my UK reseller, cancelled and decided to buy it from the US.

Right now I have a hole where my camera should be (like many people). All accessories have turned up. I have considered the C100, but I'm holding out for the spec of the 4k cam.

I was hoping for some footage by now. I may have to go ahead and reorder the BMCC 2.5K MFT. Come on BM, shoot us a few frames so I can make a decision before the week's out.

Wish in one hand, and spit in the other.

Basically = When a person wants the impossible.

Wish in one hand, and spit in the other.

Basically = When a person wants the impossible.

Argh. I saw this topic on the top of the list after so many days (due to your post) and for one moment, I felt my stomach burning - I thought there would be some good (or bad) news.

Same thing here, I even bookmarked this page 16, changing it soon to 17 .

Maybe we should just give up on getting footage, a proper release date and the camera all together?
August might just be July all over again.

Maybe we should just give up on getting footage, a proper release date and the camera all together?
August might just be July all over again.

Oh no, don't be so pessimistic. BM can't help such a long delay once again.

give up the BMPC4k for the BMCC EF right now, which is appear to be the most reasonnable solution actually.

If you don't really need the 4K for your work, you might be better of with the 13 stop 2.5K camera anyways. At your position, european list, you probably won't wait until next summer, but i wouldn't plan to film Père Noël in 4K either...

For me 4K is nice but its the global shutter that convinced me. Also a colleague of mine was crying happy tears over the 6G out. Before cancelling the 4k you should go through all ups and downs of both cameras. They're both great machines but if you can't wait and bmcc works best for you, you're a lucky guy with a camera less than a week from now.

Likewise global shutter is the big appeal for me also and the sensor size / field of view

give up the BMPC4k for the BMCC EF right now, which is appear to be the most reasonnable solution actually.

If you don't really need the 4K for your work, you might be better of with the 13 stop 2.5K camera anyways. At your position, european list, you probably won't wait until next summer, but i wouldn't plan to film Père Noël in 4K either...

For me 4K is nice but its the global shutter that convinced me. Also a colleague of mine was crying happy tears over the 6G out. Before cancelling the 4k you should go through all ups and downs of both cameras. They're both great machines but if you can't wait and bmcc works best for you, you're a lucky guy with a camera less than a week from now.

Global shutter will be awesome, but I'm getting this camera for the sensor size to work with my current glass; and, that when you reduce the 4K down to 1080p or 2.5K ... theoretically, the picture should be close to "noiseless" and super sharp, plus I won't have to deal with the significant crop factor. No more Neat Video and massive render times! YAHOO!

Global shutter will be awesome, but I'm getting this camera for the sensor size to work with my current glass; and, that when you reduce the 4K down to 1080p or 2.5K ... theoretically, the picture should be close to "noiseless" and super sharp, plus I won't have to deal with the significant crop factor. No more Neat Video and massive render times! YAHOO!

Sorry to burst the bubble, the most you will gain by down sampling is a 3db-6db off the noise floor. Roughly equals 1-2 stops. So no, will not completely eliminate the need for the neat video.

Global shutter will be awesome, but I'm getting this camera for the sensor size to work with my current glass; and, that when you reduce the 4K down to 1080p or 2.5K ... theoretically, the picture should be close to "noiseless" and super sharp, plus I won't have to deal with the significant crop factor. No more Neat Video and massive render times! YAHOO!

Sorry to burst the bubble, the most you will gain by down sampling is a 3db-6db off the noise floor. Roughly equals 1-2 stops. So no, will not completely eliminate the need for the neat video.

And this is why we need some stills from the camera, if not outright footage. The original BMCC had a very nice organic grain, expecially in comparison to some bigger options out there. I am personally hoping for similar performance from the 4k sensor, with even finer grain to boot upon downsampling. Otherwise, I'd warn everyone that NeatVideo renders may be dreadfully long.

Of course, I am referring to this video as I don't own a Blackmagic camera yet!

Well that's a disappointment ... Noise reduction needed on down-sampled 4k. Hmmm. Even with proper exposure?

Hopefully, the sensor characteristics of the 4k will be similar to that of the 2.5k. Ryan's test above is quite illuminating. I think the BMCC beat the Epic and the Alexa regarding under exposure noise in blue and green channels.

Well that's a disappointment ... Noise reduction needed on down-sampled 4k. Hmmm. Even with proper exposure?

Hopefully, the sensor characteristics of the 4k will be similar to that of the 2.5k. Ryan's test above is quite illuminating. I think the BMCC beat the Epic and the Alexa regarding under exposure noise in blue and green channels.

My apologies if i caused any confusion. My statement was not relating to any particular camera, but was rather an observation on the possible noise lessening achievable by going from UltraHD to 1080p.

My supplier phoned the UK distributor at 09:00 this morning and was told that they expect delivery to them by the end of this month with delivery to the supplier early Sept...we'll get our cameras mid-Sept if that's the case...so a consistent line so far - since the line changed from July to Aug. Will it be consistent only until the next deadline is reached? Will enough be delivered to fulfil orders?

Until then I remain camera-less....the tool of my trade.

uk.linkedin.com/in/jamescullen

I don't think anyone will see footage or the camera before IBC2013.

That's for sure.

Cheers

pro

Will enough be delivered to fulfil orders?

Not immediately, that's sure. We can expect BM to organise the rollout of the 4K camera the same way they did with the Pocket CC (and would have with the 2K5 camera if there hadn't been sensor problems): they'll most likely start with a few items sent to the largest distributors and then gradually ramp up the production. But it might takes months until they reach saturation (that is: all preorders are fullfilled, cameras start to be "in stock") - depending on the quality of the yet-to-be-made-public demo footage.

But i'd stay sceptical of any timetable until we see the first "official" footage.

I don't think anyone will see footage or the camera before IBC2013. That's for sure. ...

Well, no, not "for sure".

BMD has said they expect to start shipping the BMPC-4K before IBC2013 starts.

BMD usually makes available sample footage for a new cam at about the same time the cam begins initial shipping.

So, there's a good chance sample BMPC-4K sample footage will be available before IBC2013.

No guarantee, but a real chance. At least I hope so!

Cheers.

-

BMD usually makes available sample footage for a new cam at about the same time the cam begins initial shipping.
-

Hm, I don't know about the Cinema Camera, but this is totally not the case for the Pocket Camera. John Brawley uploaded his first test with the Pocket almost three months ago, whereas the camera actually started shipping two/three weeks ago...

Well, I think we over-analyze this anyway. Let's just... wait.

BMD has said they expect to start shipping the BMPC-4K before IBC2013 starts.

-

Well, do you really think they give away the surprise of the new 4K footage for nothing? They need something to reveal on IBC, that is what marketing is all about. I believe that we will see sample footage after IBC2013. And maybe if we are really lucky they will tell us that after IBC2013 the 4K BMPC is shipping.

But who knows? maybe they announce a 6K camera and drop the price of the 4K by half!?



Cheers

pro.

Well so IBC is getting closer. No 4K footage

I will attend to the IBC on Monday to check it out again... I even hope they have the 4K on display......

*Wishfull thinking?

Well so IBC is getting closer. No 4K footage

Another two weeks. Would be very nice finally to see good BMPC4K footage (even on the iPad)! I know that's silly but I want to judge the image quality as it is viewed on the web assuming it won't be anything shown in a cinema at that time. Then again a 4K projection at IBC would be a great introduction to the footage. I should join BMD marketing.

Rick Lang
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