Newbie to 4K and Raw need questions answered

[abreu-canedo]

Bryce,

I really don't know what your work is, nor your preferences in shooting styles, etc... Any suggestion would have to take a lot in consideration. But, it sounds like you really want 4k. There are many cameras out there that will do 4k, now. But they do it poorly...at 8bit 420.

If I were in your shoes, looking to upgrade, I would be hesitant about going 4k. Sure, the BMPC is a great beginner option for 4k acquisition. However, have you thought about the BM Pocket camera? It can be purchased used for like $600. It shoots 2k, which is not 4k, but but it is what the Arri Alexa captures and any film you see on theaters is projected at 2k. Plus, the pocket camera can shoot RAW or ProRes.

You can then buy a nice speedbooster ULTRA, extra batteries, and a few cheap but nice lenses for it...I recommend nikkor AIS lenses from the 1980s. This is gonna give you stunning images, it's gonna provide a great platform for you to grow, then, when you are making awesome images you will already have the money to upgrade...because if you use that little camera to it's maximum potential, people will be paying you good money to use it!

But if you reallly just need 4k for whatever reason, great options have already been mentioned.

 

[deltoidjohn]

Think of it like getting raw ingredients, flour, sugar, etc. Process them one way and you have cookies, process them another way and you have bread. If you shoot with a baked in look and not raw, you'll just get cookies and it's hard to turn cookies into bread after the fact.
The downside to shooting raw? It takes up a lot of space to store all those bits and ingredients in the cupboard. It also takes a skilled baker some time to convert them into something delicious and good looking.

That's the best description of RAW vs compressed codec I've ever heard haha!

 

[Razz16mm]

There are multiple issues with a move to a 4k production chain.
Compressed video codecs require less data space and less transfer bandwidth, but MUCH more processing power from your workstation to edit efficiently. A compressed video codec is not video, it is a data file storage format like a .zip file. Your computer has to decompress and reconstruct the file into an uncompressed video stream to edit it and display it. Pretty much 100% of that decoding process is handled by the CPU, not the GPU. 4K may be twice the resolution of HD/2K, but it is four times the data to deal with, compressed or not. Four times the encoding and decoding load for a computer or four times the data bandwidth for uncompressed video or raw footage. Do you have a 4K monitor? Do you have fast raid arrays for moving and storing the data? Can your combination of computer and NLE handle the footage well enough for efficient editing?
Non of this addresses anything about image quality, which is a separate consideration from mere resolution. Low end cameras mostly shoot some form of 8 bit 4:2:0 long GOP AVC compressed video internally. If you want to get into a decent level of quality 10 bit 4:2:2 is the preferred choice along with a digital intermediate grade i-frame codec like Prores, DNXHD/HR that is recorded by some cameras or by external recorders.