NAB 2014: AJA Debuts CION: 4K/UHD/HFR/12-bit 444 Professional Camera (video)

AlexMaragos

AlexMaragos

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AJA Video Systems today announced CION, an entirely new professional camera capable of shooting at 4K/UltraHD and 2K/HD resolutions offering in-camera recording directly to the Apple ProRes family of codecs - including 12-bit 444 and offers the ability to output 4K raw data at up to 120 fps via 4x 3G-SDI outputs.

Momentum: AJA Debuts CION (video)
 
Thats the great, fantastic !

Internal SSD recording ¿? yess
Prores, 12bit and 4444, oaaoowwww
4k60p at default internal recorder, yesss
Optional 120 at 4K, yiaaaaaaaa
Portable design, yes


It look like the phantom, maybe a join or colaboration


At sub 9K, good
 
This camera looks sweet and pro at the same time…however there are a couple of things that bother me…
1. no integrated ND filters….big minus
2. only pl mount….an option for canon or nikon lenses would be great
3. 120fps in 4k only via 3g-sdi (I guess all 3-4 of them at the same time)…a 120fps internal recording is what we need…if it can’t be done in 4k…a 2k option would be great…and 4k option as an upgrade – but that marketing info is crutial at this moment…right here, righ now…

otherwise there is a lot to love about this camera…exciting times indeed…but please add internal nd’s, internal 120fps and you have an absolute winner…
 
Why does everyone make such a big deal about internal ND filters? How many pro shooters don't use a matte box?, Not to mention, I think my large Nd's are more likely better quality than what the manufacturers would use. I can see having ND in a prosumer cam, but a cinema cam,doesn't bother me a bit.
 
Yeah, cinema cams like the Epic = no ND. It would be a nice option, but it goes back to the Film camera mentality. There's no ND wheel on a Panaflex.
Often times though, I think makers like BMD don't do it because they don't have that kind of engineering experience and it adds a lot of trouble to the design.
 
sony f55....canon c500 both are cinema cameras and they both have internal nd's...because in real life shooting situatuion they do come very handy...
 
cckid said:
This camera looks sweet and pro at the same time…however there are a couple of things that bother me…
1. no integrated ND filters….big minus
2. only pl mount….an option for canon or nikon lenses would be great
3. 120fps in 4k only via 3g-sdi (I guess all 3-4 of them at the same time)…a 120fps internal recording is what we need…
Click to expand...
never thought i'd say this, but your comment makes me say: my, how times have changed.
 
maranfilms said:
Why does everyone make such a big deal about internal ND filters? How many pro shooters don't use a matte box?, Not to mention, I think my large Nd's are more likely better quality than what the manufacturers would use. I can see having ND in a prosumer cam, but a cinema cam,doesn't bother me a bit.
Click to expand...

Maybe cause they are pretty convenient? Not sure what you define as a 'pro shooter'. I make
my living 100% from my little production company. Not feature films and I'm not a millionaire, but
I bought a house with built in edit bay/studio, a car, all my production company gear and buy the
normal groceries and stuff as I have 3 kids. And I have shot with a matte box maybe 3 times,
Built in ND filters work just fine for me, maybe that makes me a 'non pro' shooter. And there certainly
are 'cinema cams' with built in NDs, from Sony and Alexa.

I mean I understand they are not important to you. That's cool. But trying to say they
shouldnt be important to 'pro shooters', kind of seems to imply your values are the 'correct'
or 'pro' ones. I think everyone has their own wants and needs. No offense intended, you
probably shoot slower paced and higher end stuff than some of us that want internal NDs do.
Good thing there are so many different good cameras out there!
 
This was exactly my thought too...and there is also a reason why arri amira included nd filters....and this is the folks aja is going for...
not million dollar budget movies that are beeing shot on alexa or red dragon...

alaskacameradude said:
Maybe cause they are pretty convenient? Not sure what you define as a 'pro shooter'. I make
my living 100% from my little production company. Not feature films and I'm not a millionaire, but
I bought a house with built in edit bay/studio, a car, all my production company gear and buy the
normal groceries and stuff as I have 3 kids. And I have shot with a matte box maybe 3 times,
Built in ND filters work just fine for me, maybe that makes me a 'non pro' shooter. And there certainly
are 'cinema cams' with built in NDs, from Sony and Alexa.

I mean I understand they are not important to you. That's cool. But trying to say they
shouldnt be important to 'pro shooters', kind of seems to imply your values are the 'correct'
or 'pro' ones. I think everyone has their own wants and needs. No offense intended, you
probably shoot slower paced and higher end stuff than some of us that want internal NDs do.
Good thing there are so many different good cameras out there!
Click to expand...
 
James0b57 said:
never thought i'd say this, but your comment makes me say: my, how times have changed.
Click to expand...

Times are changing, and they are changing fast...even for those of us in the industry it is sometimes difficult to catch up...I agree
 
I really like the possibility of this camera. These are excellent specs and a very handsome design from a strong company. If the IQ is good, this is a nice package at a very good price that is right in my wheel house on a year that I will be upgrading. Now about that removable lens mount ... ;)
 
Yes it seems to be lighter than the Blackmagic offering - the sensor though - we have to see its native ISO and 12 stops of dynamic range is decent if its allocated to the high lights.
 
dcarstens said:
Internal NDs are indispensable when shooting documentary/run+gun as a one-man-band.
Click to expand...

With how insanely sensitive cameras are now it really should be standard for cameras to have internal ND filters now for a couple of reasons.

1) Different sensors respond to IR pollution and color shifts in different ways. The internal ND's can be tuned to account for this
2) I'd rather have my ND behind the lens than in front. In front of the lens ND filters are going to change the characteristics of the lens more and tend to cause unwanted flaring.
3) The ND filters can be higher quality and more efficient because they only have to be as large as the image sensor, not as large as the front element of the lens.

I was shooting an indie feature last year on the F5 and we had the 2 stop internal ND active for most of the film just in order shoot at our desired stop of 2.8 That's what happens when you are shooting on a camera rated at 2000 asa.
 
It looks sweet for sure. But echoing what someone said earlier, while PL mount is great for purists / people with deep pockets, I think most people would benefit more from an EF mount or something with cheaper lenses. Since it is PL mount, I'm assuming that it's suppose to be a cinema camera more than anything, but then shouldn't it have more than 12 stops of DR in 2014 to be true cinema camera?

And yeah, no internal NDs can be a big workflow hit. Putting on a Matte box at all times can be a serious pain for a run-and-gun type deal.

But damn, it's so well thought out and it does look so beautiful.
 
Looks ***pre-alpha*** although it was demonstrated in much lower light than BM. From the rep "it's basically a KiPro with a sensor in front" let's see what happens when this is vetted by the community. Form factor like a big brick somewhat similar to the BM URSA.
 
gene_can_sing said:
It looks sweet for sure. But echoing what someone said earlier, while PL mount is great for purists / people with deep pockets, I think most people would benefit more from an EF mount or something with cheaper lenses. Since it is PL mount, I'm assuming that it's suppose to be a cinema camera more than anything, but then shouldn't it have more than 12 stops of DR in 2014 to be true cinema camera?

And yeah, no internal NDs can be a big workflow hit. Putting on a Matte box at all times can be a serious pain for a run-and-gun type deal.

But damn, it's so well thought out and it does look so beautiful.
Click to expand...

I had the same impression about the PL mount initially, although after watching the launch video it appears the lens mount is removable, which to me suggests the possibility of new mounts down the line. It would be stupid not to offer them. This camera seems like it's gunning to be the mortal man's Amira, and even that camera offers an EF mount.

Cannot wait to see more footage from this camera!
 
This will hurt RED the most. All the Scarlet guys who are waiting for the Dragon upgrades will instead buy this camera at the same price which they would have spent for upgrading. And they get industry standard protocols. It is great that one can shoot in prores.

If they can include an EF mount, then it will be good. Look forward to more footage.
Edit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0c_d_WUXs5Q The Aja rep in this interview says that they have left it to the third party manufacturers to create other mounts for the Cion.
 
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