RED records all its footage either onto a Compact Flash
card or RED’s disk drives. Currently the largest capacity of Compact
Flash cards are 8GB, giving you roughly 5 minutes of 4K footage. An equivalent
running time of a 400’ 35mm mag. Higher capacity 16GB cards are expected
by summer, which will give you 10 minutes per card depending on shooting
format, an equivalent of a 1000’ roll of film. Future cards will accommodate
a longer running time.
RED’s 320GB drives are robust hard disk drives
that interface with the camera and holds approximately 2-3 hours of material.
The term 4K refers to the image capture size or the amount of the image
sensor that is being used to capture the picture. RED’s Mysterium sensor
is 4096x2304 pixels or about 4000 pixels left to right or “4K”. By comparison
Sony’s high-end camera the Cine Alta F900 (HDCAM), measure 1920 x 1080
pixels. 4K is over four times the image size of HDCAM.
http://www.mammothhd.com/MHD_compformat2.html
2K is 2048 wide x 1152 in length = 2.36 mega pixels (Super 16mm)
High definition is 1920 wide x 1080 in length = 2.1 mega pixels (SonyF900)
720P High definition is 1280 x 720 = 1 mega pixels (Panasonic Varicam)
RAW is not video and it is not film. RAW is the unprocessed and actual information that is captured by the image sensor. There is no format conversion that “bakes in” a look that cannot be easily changed. HDCAM or DVCPRO both force your footage into their color space. Think of RAW as a negative that has yet to be put through telecine. Much of the RAW look can be created in post by a cinematographer and a professional colorist. RED calls this raw format REDCODE and RED records this in 12 bit raw files. The raw data RED records is created with a codec that is visually “lossless”. Therefore while color grading in post, it is possible to adjust exposure, white balance, gain/ASA and more without the loss of the original unprocessed data.
Still photographers have been working with RAW files for years and RED works in a very similar fashion. It gives an unprecedented amount of flexibility not seen before in digital motion picture cameras.
The camera has a color viewfinder and an on-board monitor. The director
and client will be able to view from a HD monitor via HD-SDI or HDMI
output on the camera. Any down converts for standard definition monitors
will need to be converted out of the HD-SDI signal.
The way currently is the LTO-3A tape back up with a hard drive for dailies and post. Hard drives are prone to failure, and although it is nice to back everything on two or three drives, there is no guarantee. The LTO-3A is a fast tape system developed with video in mind and is a proven archival method used by banking and financial institutions. Certain metadata, such as timecodes, can be found in the folders themselves. The cartridges each hold 400gig, which is usually a few days to a weeks worth of shooting depending on your schedule, and run a mere $45 per tape. They are virtually indestructible and have a shelf life of at least 30 years. Enough to make any producer happy. They connect via gigabit ethernet, look like an FTP site and the speed is the same as firewire 400. These can be considered to be master tapes for any digital file, any resolution, any size video. This may be the start of the end for Digibeta, HDCam, D5, etc. Smaller files will even play in real time. They are also forward compatible with gear up to generation LTO-6A which is due in spring of 2013. The Quantum deck rents for about $200-250 day.
Shots can be reviewed instantly from the in camera Compact Flash card or RED Drive. While viewing you are seeing a 720P out at REC709 color space. (Not RED Code 4K.)
The footage is downloaded from either Compact Flash cards or a Red Drive to a MacBook Pro where it can be viewed using RedCine or Final Cut Pro with the Red generated Quicktime reference movies.
Even if you are shooting for television output in high definition or standard definition, 4K has the same advantage as shooting 35mm film for television. This is where RED offers a groundbreaking image for a price point unseen before.
If you want the look and attributes of 35mm optics and depth
of field you need to use the camera’s full 35mm sensor. Shooting 4K is the
only way to achieve this. ENG cameras need a PL mount lens adaptor that require
2 additional stops of light to achieve this look. These adaptors are an expensive
rental and not always a practical option.
What if you don’t need all that data-- you still shoot 4K to get the look and
cinematic feel of 35mm and then output your 4K footage in REDCINE to 1080p
or 720p for your edit. This is called over-sampling. The more detail you start
with the better your final image will be. You get crisper, richer images when
you start big and downsize or over-sample the original.
With 4K you have an incredible amount of room to move the image in post, “zoom
in” reframe and resize with little to no discernible loss in image quality.
Shooting 3K or 2K will not give you the same size sensor, which will reduce
your image to be similar to 16mm film at 2K.
Another reason is to “future proof” your footage for archival reasons and preserve
the longevity of your work or footage library.
To get NTSC or PAL you simply downconvert in REDCINE to 720p and then in Final Cut Pro output to NTSC or PAL. The lowest quality the RED camera records at 720p. REDCINE does not output NTSC or PAL. So down conversion is the only way to get standard definition. But your standard definition will have the attributes of 35mm film not your typical standard def image.
RED ONE has four channels of uncompressed, 24 bit, 48KHz of CD quality audio that is synced to the picture. SMPTE time code is also supported so syncing to an external DAT is supported with RED.
The RED camera is about the size of a football. The body is 12.02” long, 5.20” wide and 6.34” tall. It is made of solid aluminum alloy and the body only weighs around 9 lbs.
Currently in 4K the camera will shoot 23.98p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p and 30p. When recording 2K you can shoot 50p, 59.94p and 60p. Future software upgrades will allow for 60fps in 4K and 120fps in 2K.
Think of 2K as shooting Super 16 or close to1080p. It will give you the same RAW image to work with but uses only one quarter of the sensor’s space. (2048 wide x 1152 in length) This means less data is recorded so your record times are longer, but using a smaller sensor target your depth of field increases to that of 16mm. This is a viable option if you don’t need 35mm depth of field or optics or would like to use 16mm or B4 mount lenses.
"Mysterium" is the sensor Red created to capture high-speed RAW images in 4K size. It saves material in the .R3D codec, which has been adapted by Apple. The codec uses logarithmic color space to increase the dynamic range, with wavelet technology, so the size is significantly smaller than traditional uncompressed video. This does require a lot of processor power so newer computers are required. The .R3D files are currently not possible to view in FCP so the camera creates high resolution Quicktime files for viewing and editing.
RED comes with a PL, “positive lock”, lens mount. This is the same
lens mount used on motion picture film cameras used in big budget feature
films. This mount allows for the use of the world’s best optics and lens
systems. Lens like Cooke S4, Zeiss Master Primes, Zeiss Super Speeds,
Optimo zooms and more can be used, as well as snorkel lenses, macro lenses,
swing shift lens and more. Anything with a PL mount can be used. If you
like the look of old optics like Baltars you can use them.
An important note though is that not all PL mount lenses will cover
the image area of the sensor when shooting Super 35 or 4K. Though they
can be used, some older 35mm lenses only cover what is known as Normal
35. 16mm lenses will only cover the image area used when shooting 2K.
In addition to the PL mount the camera can be adapted to a Nikon, Canon
or B4 mount for use of still or ENG style lenses.
RED has been rated at 320ASA. It has a very low signal to noise ratio of 66 decibels. You can increase the cameras sensitivity or “push” it upwards of 1000 ASA as needed but 320 ASA is the recommend sensitivity. An important note would be that the sensor is a native daylight balanced 5000K chip.
The lens and the light may be the two most important aspects of a quality
image. That doesn't change with RED. RED records RAW files very much
like a digital SLR camera. Though the “look” can be greatly affected
in post you still need light to be placed properly for your image to
look and feel right. You still need lights to color balance. The fundamentals
of lighting and photography are very much the same.
Technically speaking you still need to watch your high lights and shadow
detail. RED is far superior to traditional video cameras in the highlights
so you will see much more latitude. The camera likes to be exposed at
its rating of 320 ASA. Many people use light meters. Others use a waveform
monitor. All should use their eye. Many will say light for low contrast
and add contrast in post. It is more than ever important to build a relationship
with a good colorist, just like any good cinematographer would, as they
will be able to manipulate the color and exposure of the footage like
no other digital format.
The Red footage can be edited in Final Cut Pro HD in two different ways. Taking the footage from the camera directly into FCP, through the Quicktime reference movies is the fastest method. There are 3 sizes of reference movies and that determines the rough cut size. Processor power and the video board will determine how well the reference movies will look. These movies are playing from the original Red Raw files, so the on line will use the same EDL information. Pro Res files can be created in Red Cine or Red Alert, but this is a slower process and is not recommended with out a render farm or large amount of time before editing.
Post is an area evolving very fast to work with RED so check with your post house to assure they have the latest version in their chosen workflow. Apple will soon be able to finish a project in Color via FCP by accessing the .R3D files in the very near future.
There are different workflows depending on the final destination of the project.
The following are examples of versions of workflow, and alterations for specific
projects may be required. Check back to see how this is evolving.
For High Definition or Standard Definition finish in FCP:
Edit in FCP with reference movies. Pull the selected scenes into RED Cine with
either EDL numbers or CRIMSON, a software app using XML data. Do the initial
color look in Red Cine, one look to most shoots would be recommended. Export
your conformed shots to Pro Res Quicktimes and do a final color correction
in FCP or COLOR.
For High Definition or Standard Definition finish in Smoke, Fire or similar:
Edit in FCP with reference movies. Pull the selected scenes into RED Cine with
either EDL numbers or CRIMSON, a software app using XML data. Do a flat color
in Red Cine. Export your conformed shots to .dpx folders and import to Smoke
or Fire. Make the final color correction on the .dpx files (still in logarithmic
color space) and do any effect here.
For Film Finish:
Edit in FCP with reference movies. Pull the selected scenes into RED Cine with
either EDL numbers or CRIMSON, a software app using XML data. Do a flat color
in Red Cine. Export your conformed shots to .dpx folders and import 2K or
4K to Smoke or Fire. Make the final color correction on the .dpx files (still
in logarithmic color space) and do any effect here. Export DI to the specs
of your Film processor.
For Scratch finish:
Scratch is a RED Raw native app that will take your EDL from FCP and conform
and color correct 2K, 3K, or 4K images and export in your preferred format.
Edit in FCP with reference movies. Export and EDL for Scratch. Finish on
Scratch.
The crew for a RED camera production will basically be no different from most film productions. You will still need grips, electricians, hair, make-up, etc. If you are use to working on motion picture film productions your camera department will have the same number of crew. At a minimum, your camera department will need a dedicated (and experienced) 1st AC/Focus Puller and likely a 2nd AC. The change is in the Loader position. This job is now filled by what is called a Data Management Technician who is responsible for handling the downloading, backing up and reviewing of the camera’s data (footage) as it is shot and preparing it for the post house. The size of the camera crew from here will depend on the complexity of your job. More cameras will require more consideration to on-set workflow efficiency. Focus pulling will be a skill that will continue to be of utmost importance when shooting in 4K.
“It looks like film. However, if you finish and screen at 4K, the result is like shooting in 65mm, like the old epics used to do. It’s pretty exciting, and will have a major impact on indie filming – but we could see no reason why you couldn't use these cameras for any type of movie. I'm seriously considering using RED for The Lovely Bones.”
Peter Jackson, director, Lord Of The Rings & King Kong
“I have had the opportunity to test the RED ONE camera over the past few weeks, including a direct comparison to the same film I shoot on 24. All I can say is that I am totally amazed. Revolutionary might not be a strong enough word to describe what RED is doing.”
Rodney Charters, Cinematographer, 24
“We're shooting RED side by side film. We scanned the film 4k and took both into the Baselight, compared them and then did a filmout of both. When we screened side by side, we literally could not tell the difference. In fact, most people picked the RED ONE footage as film because of a greater dynamic range in the highlights than in the 5218 [a low grain, high sensitivity Kodak film stock]. It's not enough to say it is the best digital image out there. The fact is, finally, we can intercut digital with film. It looked remarkably better than the filmed images. I thought I would never be able to say that.
Jon Farhat, VFX Supervisor, Wanted
“Shooting with RED is like hearing The Beatles for the first time. RED sees the way I see. Someday I hope to find out exactly how Jim and his team made something so technologically advanced seem so organic, so beautifully attuned to that most natural of phenomena, light.”
Steven Soderbergh, director, Solaris, Ocean's 11 & Traffic