Stills and video continue to merge with new rumored cameras

With the Nikon D90, we got 12mp with 720/24p (albeit at 5 minutes at a time). Now the new Canon 5D replacement is rumored to have 1080P and over 20mp. Red has jumped in with their in development "DSMC (Digital Still & Motion Camera)" which according to Jim Jannard, will either be a DSLR killer and revolutionize SLR shooting or he'll retire. Let's not forget the Ikonoskop A-Cam DII with 1080p at 1-60fps in RAW (DNG) format.

As moving and still picture cameras continue to meld into one, it'll be interesting to see how it develops. It's almost like the camera manufacturers are seeing how travelling with 2 rigs is so difficult that they went along to build a 2 in 1 camera.

Now lighting/strobes is the last hurdle.

On occasions I am already mounting a pair of diffused greenforce tristar plus heads (30 watt equivalent) in addition to a couple of Z-240's. The greenforce heads do not provide adequate w/a coverage but for fast portrait work when the Z-240's are unable to recycle quickly enough and for creative modelling they deliver. Whilst a strobe / video light combination is not yet available, mounting a pair of each would already seem to be a practical proposition...

The mind boggles! Will they make a housing for the Red DSMC? Will I have to learn Final Cut or Edius as Wagsy would suggest? Should I sell my D700?

Which new HID / Strobes to buy?

Well seeing how a few strobes have LED lights in them already, it's not unreasonable to expect a round tube strobe with a brighter LED or HID light head with a bigger external battery. The light from the DS200 is pretty decent for a dive light. Pump it up with modern technology (LED, HMI or something) and it should be bright enough for video.

As this technology progresses; what are the inherent problems of merging video and DSLR cameras? I imagine sensor heat is one. Will different sensor designs be more adaptable than others. For example does Sony's new 24MP design with A/D convertors for each pixel have any inherent advantages as this technology is adapted?

Well since CMOS is so popular, the rolling shutter effect is going to be the biggest problem. CCD sensors with global shutters alleviate the problems but then it picks up other problems like heat and power consumption.

Obviously the issue of memory space and codec will be also crucial. MJPEG isn't the best codec for video and once you move to bigger codecs like RedRaw, a 16GB card fits about 8-10 mins, which isn't a lot. It'll be interesting to see how the format codec will move. MPEG4 is awesome for its size but isn't up to cinema grade by any means. But if it is good enough for HD like BluRay Discs, then AVCHD and other H264 based compressions schemes will lead the charge, especially once processor chips increase in power.

Even simple things like viewfinders will be different. Video demands LED/LCD monitors, SLR mirrors are too slow and fragile for video work. I know a few SLR guys would like peaking display for focus instead of relying on their presbyopic eyes. So many functions from each discipline can work well together if melded well.

Well with the D90 and 5DMkii out, I think the biggest problem is for Wetpixel to keep this DSLR vs video segregation. After all the time spent on separating the 2, Eric will have to meld them again.

I read the RED DSMC thread yesterday, and aside from the notorious Pawel Achtel doing what he does best there, I saw very little other than a lot of bragging and fanboy flag-waving. RED claims what distinguishes them is superior sensor tech and REDCODE. I don't see how REDCODE could make a DSLR obsolete though. RED's sensor technology may be advanced by DSLR standards but it is not large by DSLR standards. I know that the founder considers the D3 and 1DS3 as targets, but how he's going to destroy them with a cropped sensor that also does video is interesting. I'm skeptical.

My idea of what one of these should look like is a two piece system. The first piece is a light box, no mirror/optical finder, sensor, storage, power, and no controls. The second box is an electronic control unit which could be a computer in a tethered, studio environment. A portable control unit would also exist naturally. Upgradability would be improved and alternate lens mounts would be possible. A pole cam would be as easy as adding a longer tethering cable. Underwater would be interesting as well, since the control unit wouldn't have to be housed, it could have its electronics installed in a submersable shell instead. That might make an underwater solution remarkably compact. This design lends itself well to stereo recording as well.

Still, I think in order to make an SLR obsolete as RED is claiming, they have to outdo the SLR at the SLR's strengths. They may have the greatest sensor designers in the world, but if they are using an upcoming 25MP sensor as was rumored in the thread, it's still smaller than 24x36. That doesn't provide DNR or DOF control compared to today's best. If anyone can do this it's RED so it will be interesting to see what they are up to.

Regarding lighting, think of the smallest acceptable underwater video light then add a circular strobe tube to it. These devices will need more battery than strobes currently have today.

How will RED support all the lens and strobe protocols necessary to interchange with systems, and if not, how will RED make SLRs obsolete with an all-manual solution or one that has no lens lineup?

Craig

While I'm as (if not more) skeptical as you are about Jim's claims, the one who made Red, while still having not delivered a complete product with a workflow (I consider Red a beta camera), he has had the film industry in a bit of a flurry. I mean the film Jumper "was shot" Red, according to the website but in reality only for like one scene and a half shot by Doug himself during pickups.

If they really have sold over 2500 beta cameras, then they've done pretty well as far as a small company goes. Hype is always good for marketing. I must say I'm quite impressed with the 3k resolution 4K redraw the camera shoots. For underwater unfortunately, there's no advantage since port development has hampered resolution to the point where even a HDV cam can compare, if not for dynamic range.

Pawel causing trouble...where? where?

Reminds me in January this year I saw this here Casio Exlim Pro EX-F1 which can shoot 60 fps in Burst still mode and up to 1200 fps in video (lower res the higher frame rate).

I have no ise for something like that. I have a boredom factor that pops into going thouigh 100 photos taken in an hour let alone 300 shots taken in 5 minutes !

Looking at this from a stills photography perspective, I would like to see a this merging of technologies as a way to capture multiple high res images in a fraction of a second. Possibly something that turns the sensor on and off in rapid fashion to eliminate shutter and mirror issues, then combining the images in camera (or in post) for massive dynamic range low noise images. Till something like this starts to take shape this technology does not really have any major attraction from a still photographers perspective

That's sounds great for ambient or continuous light photography but it's not going to work with strobes. Such a technique could also be used to expand depth of field. For macro, continuous lighting is more of a possibility.