NAB 2024 - Rumors and Wishes

ha, not anymore; that was like 2008-2020 or so, 50+ cameras, it was a good run. Once in a while afterwards I'd grab a new special toy for a shoot, nothing crazy.

But used to know all the specs for almost every camera made, in and out - but now I couldn't tell you one new feature the new BMs have.

I'm very much out-of-touch and don't plan on buying any cameras ever again, sometimes you just really know when you're def done.
 
I know what you mean NorBro. For me, since the industry has moved more towards cine everything, I have backed off how much I pay attention. I am not done working but would like one last video camera upgrade to take me out quite a few years. NAB was a disappointment to me from that point of view.
 
You can't blame the industry for giving us what we demanded. We had great prosumer camcorders, EX1, EX3, XHA1, 2/3 inch 3 ccd with global shutter, the Panasonics, the Canons, Sony, JVC, AF, stabilization, motorized zoom, ND. It was we who wanted cine, and the lengths we went to, Red Rock Micro, Letus, Brevis. Red came along with large sensor, Canon gave us 5DMkII, Panasonic GH2,3,5,6, and we flipped to mirrorless, and rigs, and boxcams. F55, FS7, FX9, FS6, A1, A7SIII. We got the great cine cameras we needed to film our epics, now where are they? I made some great cat videos, unboxing videos, filming in-demand, high value content from ants to ziplocks, but I still haven't had the time or money to get my crew and cast for a 3 1/2 hour Ben Hur presentation in Vista Vision, and it suddenly dawns on me, I may not get to it, darn! (But I sure do want that Ursa Cine-12K). I also want a Nikon Z8, but I want the Ursa Cine-12K more for its 16-stop DR. The ants need it, the unboxing videos for YouTube demand nothing less. I could get 1000 subscribers and pay for itself in 20-25 years. It's a no-brainer.
 
It is true but I thought they could do both. They do to some extent but the market has spoken towards cine and the companies have to pursue sales. Not blaming, just lamenting. For me, more folks will pay me for video than cine, so I still crave great tools. They are there, and I own them but want one last round of upgrades to take advantage of recent semiconductor advancements. It seems image quality really jumped up in the last five years. But I fear the companies do not feel like they can recoup the development of a killer video camera anymore. The Sony Z280 is the closest but it is quite large, heavy and $7,000. It was released in 2018. Buying now would seem like you missed a lot. They will probably show up eventually but I am getting old!
 
It's okay, and I don't knock your sentiment. I am just amazed with the toys we have now. Gimbals, cameras that fly, lidar, remote control video. There's something for everything. For a couple hundred bucks, nearly the look of a steadicam from a handheld gimbal. 3D cameras that hide themselves from the picture. I remember Paul Cronin and the lengths he went to fit gyroscopic stabilizers onto shoulder mount broadcast cameras to fly around in helicopters to shoot client videos in HD that now you can get with in 4K60 with a $1K drone. A 50 inch 720p Fuji plasma tv was $20k, and if you had a GR HD-1 JVC camcorder you could film for it in glorious 8-bit 720p30. Cell phones that shoot 8K. The James T. Webb telescope that lets us see almost all the way back to the beginnings of time. It's been 51 years though, since humans set a foot on the moon. Good luck with that one Gen Z, you still haven't equaled that feat until you've done it. Our pioneers were brave explorers.
 
The Z280 is a bundle of goodness for $6,950, a supercharged EX1. To me it looks worth every penny. 4K60, electronic variable ND, dual band Wifi, XAVC-I, BNC, HDMI, face detect AF, stabilization, SLog3, 17x zoom, a helluva lot of camera for that money, a camera that can do everything, eng, documentary. I would never say what you can't do with it, there's someone who can.
 
I meant "missed a lot of time" with the Z280, not that it isn't capable. Buying now, 6 years after release and possibly right before the Z290... I really need at least 20X optical on the zoom though (even with the digital zooming).
 
I love my Z280 and it has literally paid for itself multiple times over, just from stock footage alone. Everything else I use it for is just gravy. It still looks just as good as newer cameras (like the XF605 and XF705) and has almost all the bells and whistles you could ask for. It is a shrunken Z750. In fact, the Z280 and Z750 were my assigned cameras at the Sony's NAB booth and they had some of my footage playing on a 30-minute loop. Even I was surprised how good most of it looked, and I'd have been suspicious that it hadn't actually been shot with the Z280 if I hadn't shot it myself.

The two biggest upgrades I hope to see in the camera that replaces it are higher 4K frame-rates and the same Touch-Tracking AF system that is found on the FX6. I'd also like to have a longer duration picture cache and the ability to use picture cache and slow-mo at the same time. Currently the FX6 is the only camera that can do that. Other than those three upgrades, it is hard to imagine what the new camera will have on it to make it better.

I just got home from a week-long vacation to the Florida Keys and the only camera I brought with me was the Z280.
 
Zack Birlew said:
Hi, everybody, it's getting to be about that time for NAB 2024! Since the last thread was filled with great rumors, wishes, and neat ideas, what are everybody's thoughts for this year's show?

Looking back, it's surprising how many elements of my previous wishlist made it into actual products or at least got really close, like the L-mount Blackmagic Cinema 6K and the cinematic focus for the Fuji GFX100 II! Just in case, here it is again:



As for myself, I mainly would hope for a surprise from Blackmagic Design such as the Pocket 8K or even Pocket 12K but thinking further about things, I have a few ideas that would be pretty cool:

1. Blackmagic Pocket 8K or 12K - Everything great about the Pocket 6K but with updated sensor and, hopefully, a mirrorless mount system of some sort.

2. Blackmagic URSA 16K+ - A full frame version of the URSA 12K, most of the same features as before if not even better, and, again, hopefully a mirrorless mount of some sort.

3. Sony FX8 - An 8K version of the FX9 with all the improvements and features found in the newer FX6 models and below for the most feature rich high end Pro Sony video camera.

4. Panasonic EVA2 - An 8K version of the EVA1 with mirrorless mount and the same unique and very cool Infrared mode switch for specialized applications.

5. GoPro Cinema - An 8K GoPro with Prores RAW and/or BRAW built in with expanded video bitrate for professional applications.

6. Sony 8K Camcorder - Finally moving 8K into the video camera space and with night vision as well as all the other useful features we've come to expect from Sony's video line up to this point but at a 1"+ sized sensor format and with new external RAW recording as a big added feature for the highest end applications.

7. Sony RX0 Mark III - A fully upgraded Sony RX0 with all the great features of the previous models with, hopefully, a slightly wider lens and 10-bit 4:2:2 and external RAW 8K resolution, allowing for a unified 1"+ sensor line for 8K production. Also would have cage units for 360-degree or panoramic use for capturing background plates for VFX and virtual production scenes.

8. Fuji Medium Format Digital Cinema Camera - Using the GFX mount system, this new camera would be based on Fuji's medium format video features but be in 8K+ resolution and entirely based around digital cinema use for large productions and IMAX filming.
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Hello there,
That’s an exciting list of wishes and rumours for NAB 2024! It’s always fun to see how many of our hopes turn into reality. I’m especially intrigued by the idea of a Black magic Pocket 8K or even 12K—imagine the possibilities with that kind of resolution and a mirrorless mount!
For forums, you might want to check out DVXUSERs or BMCuser. They usually have active discussions around NAB time. Reddit’s r/cinematography and r/videography can also be great for real-time updates and community insights.
I’m looking forward to seeing what NAB 2024 brings! What’s everyone else hoping for this year?
 
CharlesPapert said:
We are through the looking glass, people.
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I, for one, welcome our new AI overlords

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Some of their other cameras made it on some big sets, but seeing something else than an ARRI/Venice or RED (less and less) as a true A camera on a larger-than-life picture would be nice.

Say, if it was announced Deadpool 4 will be filmed with the 17K and the 17K only (or in other words, 95% of it).

I've always wanted to see what the people at that level could do with something different, but it just never happened yet. [Other companies have made it as B/C/D cams or were A cams on some medium-sized nice movies, but nothing like a Deadpool, a Top Gun, etc.]

The 17K would be the PERFECT camera to try a blockbuster.
 
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