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Cinematographiliac
Times, o' they are interesting!
http://news.doddleme.com/sony-f65-camera-premieres-in-hollywood/
SONY F65 CAMERA PREMIERES IN HOLLYWOOD
September 7, 2011 By Chris J Russo
Last night I attended the “Hollywood Premiere of the Sony F65 Camera” at the DGA in Los Angeles, a preview of the manufacturer’s planned announcement later this week at the International Broadcasting Convention (IBC) in Amsterdam. It’s the latest camera from Sony that claims to be “true 4K and beyond” while boasting many other attributes that enable an open and inclusive workflow. Cinematographers, post-production professionals and several industry partners were in attendance, eager to examine the latest demo footage from this new camera on the block.Alec Shapiro, Sony Sr. VP Sales and Marketing gave opening remarks. “Aiko Morita (Sony’s co-founder) was a great fan of Hollywood. It was his vision over 30 years ago, to design a digital motion picture camera that would take all the qualities of a 35mm film camera and the creative capabilities and the functions of digital technology. We believe the F65, the world’s first digital motion picture camera with an 8K sensor that can derive true 4K resolution today, fulfills Mr. Morita’s dream.”It’s apparent Sony is making a valiant effort to create a fully integrated imaging chain, presenting this camera and reminding us they have more than 9,000 4K projector installed in theaters worldwide. “No other company can offer the lens to theater experience that Sony can,” says Shapiro.The presentation began with the impressive Sony demo, “The Arrival,” shot by Curtis Clark, ASC. The images, screened in the theater from a 4K projector, were beautiful and showed off the resolution, dynamic range and color reproduction of the F65. Exploiting gorgeous downtown Los Angeles night exteriors, the demo highlighted shadow detail with dramatic lighting, vivid color reproduction, and gave an overall sense of the kind of big-budget images you could expect from the F65.Sony has been manufacturing motion picture cameras for many years, beginning with the F-900, then moving on to the F-23 and F-35 cameras. The F65 is a significant breakthrough and game-changer in terms of: resolution (true 4K and beyond), dynamic range (14 stops), color reproduction (they claim it’s “wider than film”, but I’m not convinced of this), an open workflow platform, and affordability (currently priced at $65,000). Sony claims the camera’s “sweet spot” is 800EI, but has the range of 200 – 2000EI, and can also shoot hi and low-speed shutters from 1 FPS up to 120 FPS. The F65 records 16 bit linear raw files, has no internal processing and records onto SR memory cards that are available in various storage sizes. OTTO NEMENZ will be the first rental house to carry the F65 in Hollywood, beginning January 2012.It looks like ARRI’s Alexa camera may finally have some competition. The open and inclusive workflow allows you to record directly to SR memory cards, and similar to the Alexa, has a “negative direct to edit workflow”. The F65 can be immediately ingested into Final Cut Pro or AVID, and you’ll be able to work with Sony’s new SR codec (soon to be introduced) all through post-production. It’s also supported in DaVinci Resolve and FilmLight’s Baselight system. Two other features of this new camera is the introduction of a rotary shutter that will eliminate what’s known as the “jello cam” effect that you see in several C-MOS sensors, and the capability to communicate to and from the camera via WiFi from an iPad, laptop, or other hand-held device using free downloadable software.Three new shorts were presented to illustrate how the F65 performs in different environments and conditions, shot byKees Van Oostrum, Brad Ohlund and Paul C. Babin. They did a good job at capturing some really pretty images that showed examples of dynamic range, color, and motion capabilities with the new rotary shutter. There was something about the color rendition, especially in the short “In the Garden,” that honestly seemed a little off. Yes, this camera is truly impressive, but at the end of the day, the images feel a little too “clean.” Having years of experience studying emulsion and film technology, there is a feeling I get watching images from a digital format that is distancing, that still looks like video, and that sometimes can feel all too “real.” It’s an emotional response that perhaps one day, as I continue to fill my eyeballs with 4K digital images, will slowly dissipate. However, there is no doubt that the F65 is an extremely powerful capture medium that can produce exception high-resolution images. It seems perfect for television and commercial production. In this very interesting time of rapid technological change, the Sony F65 is poised to give everyone else in the race, a run for their money.
About Chris J Russo
Chris J. Russo is an award-winning writer-director whose films screened at Sundance, on Showtime, PBS, IFC, LOGO, and are available on NETFLIX. For the last decade, she’s enjoyed an exciting career with KODAK, working closely with studio execs, cinematographers, producers, directors and indie filmmakers on hundreds of TV and feature productions from Hollywood to Hawaii to Utah to the Pacific Northwest. She has moderated numerous film festival panels and filmmaker forums, using her in-depth understanding of production to help filmmakers understand capture mediums and workflows. Russo has recently left the corporate world to focus on her own creative career, while continuing to put her technical expertise to work as a Post Production Supervisor on feature films. When not immersed in the business of film, she can be found climbing 14ers, cycling centuries and catching waves.
http://news.doddleme.com/sony-f65-camera-premieres-in-hollywood/
SONY F65 CAMERA PREMIERES IN HOLLYWOOD
September 7, 2011 By Chris J Russo
Last night I attended the “Hollywood Premiere of the Sony F65 Camera” at the DGA in Los Angeles, a preview of the manufacturer’s planned announcement later this week at the International Broadcasting Convention (IBC) in Amsterdam. It’s the latest camera from Sony that claims to be “true 4K and beyond” while boasting many other attributes that enable an open and inclusive workflow. Cinematographers, post-production professionals and several industry partners were in attendance, eager to examine the latest demo footage from this new camera on the block.Alec Shapiro, Sony Sr. VP Sales and Marketing gave opening remarks. “Aiko Morita (Sony’s co-founder) was a great fan of Hollywood. It was his vision over 30 years ago, to design a digital motion picture camera that would take all the qualities of a 35mm film camera and the creative capabilities and the functions of digital technology. We believe the F65, the world’s first digital motion picture camera with an 8K sensor that can derive true 4K resolution today, fulfills Mr. Morita’s dream.”It’s apparent Sony is making a valiant effort to create a fully integrated imaging chain, presenting this camera and reminding us they have more than 9,000 4K projector installed in theaters worldwide. “No other company can offer the lens to theater experience that Sony can,” says Shapiro.The presentation began with the impressive Sony demo, “The Arrival,” shot by Curtis Clark, ASC. The images, screened in the theater from a 4K projector, were beautiful and showed off the resolution, dynamic range and color reproduction of the F65. Exploiting gorgeous downtown Los Angeles night exteriors, the demo highlighted shadow detail with dramatic lighting, vivid color reproduction, and gave an overall sense of the kind of big-budget images you could expect from the F65.Sony has been manufacturing motion picture cameras for many years, beginning with the F-900, then moving on to the F-23 and F-35 cameras. The F65 is a significant breakthrough and game-changer in terms of: resolution (true 4K and beyond), dynamic range (14 stops), color reproduction (they claim it’s “wider than film”, but I’m not convinced of this), an open workflow platform, and affordability (currently priced at $65,000). Sony claims the camera’s “sweet spot” is 800EI, but has the range of 200 – 2000EI, and can also shoot hi and low-speed shutters from 1 FPS up to 120 FPS. The F65 records 16 bit linear raw files, has no internal processing and records onto SR memory cards that are available in various storage sizes. OTTO NEMENZ will be the first rental house to carry the F65 in Hollywood, beginning January 2012.It looks like ARRI’s Alexa camera may finally have some competition. The open and inclusive workflow allows you to record directly to SR memory cards, and similar to the Alexa, has a “negative direct to edit workflow”. The F65 can be immediately ingested into Final Cut Pro or AVID, and you’ll be able to work with Sony’s new SR codec (soon to be introduced) all through post-production. It’s also supported in DaVinci Resolve and FilmLight’s Baselight system. Two other features of this new camera is the introduction of a rotary shutter that will eliminate what’s known as the “jello cam” effect that you see in several C-MOS sensors, and the capability to communicate to and from the camera via WiFi from an iPad, laptop, or other hand-held device using free downloadable software.Three new shorts were presented to illustrate how the F65 performs in different environments and conditions, shot byKees Van Oostrum, Brad Ohlund and Paul C. Babin. They did a good job at capturing some really pretty images that showed examples of dynamic range, color, and motion capabilities with the new rotary shutter. There was something about the color rendition, especially in the short “In the Garden,” that honestly seemed a little off. Yes, this camera is truly impressive, but at the end of the day, the images feel a little too “clean.” Having years of experience studying emulsion and film technology, there is a feeling I get watching images from a digital format that is distancing, that still looks like video, and that sometimes can feel all too “real.” It’s an emotional response that perhaps one day, as I continue to fill my eyeballs with 4K digital images, will slowly dissipate. However, there is no doubt that the F65 is an extremely powerful capture medium that can produce exception high-resolution images. It seems perfect for television and commercial production. In this very interesting time of rapid technological change, the Sony F65 is poised to give everyone else in the race, a run for their money.
Chris J. Russo is an award-winning writer-director whose films screened at Sundance, on Showtime, PBS, IFC, LOGO, and are available on NETFLIX. For the last decade, she’s enjoyed an exciting career with KODAK, working closely with studio execs, cinematographers, producers, directors and indie filmmakers on hundreds of TV and feature productions from Hollywood to Hawaii to Utah to the Pacific Northwest. She has moderated numerous film festival panels and filmmaker forums, using her in-depth understanding of production to help filmmakers understand capture mediums and workflows. Russo has recently left the corporate world to focus on her own creative career, while continuing to put her technical expertise to work as a Post Production Supervisor on feature films. When not immersed in the business of film, she can be found climbing 14ers, cycling centuries and catching waves.
