Yes and no. One of the most requested features from Canon for its popular DSLRs is the ability to record the HDMI feed coming out of the camera. Nikon has delivered on this feature request, and the D800 and D4 both deliver a clean HDMI feed without any text that allows you to bypass the internal codec and get a clean 1080p 8-bit 4:2:2 image. The first reviews for the Canon T4i were with pre-production cameras, and some had been reporting that the HDMI was completely clean. This could have been chalked up to beta firmware, but now there are real production cameras in the wild and we have a final verdict on whether or not we can record that signal.
Sebastian over at cinema5D had posted that Johnnie Behiri was using the camera and had confirmed that the HDMI was clean. There were issues, however, and the image wasn't quite working correctly. He was using a pre-production camera so I didn't think it made sense to post until people were able to test this using final cameras. Johnnie posted this video of footage (which looks rather nice, and recorded in-camera):
We now have word from online rental company Hire a Camera that the HDMI is indeed clean. Unfortunately, that's where the excitement ends, because the image does not fill the entire screen. Much like the 5D Mark III issue I had talked about in my review, the T4i does not fill the entire screen in liveview mode (but I would assume that it does in playback mode since this is the way that the Mark III works). Here is what the T4i can produce from its HDMI while recording:
Unfortunately that red dot is on screen, so it must be cropped out if you want that final image to be usable. What's the final resolution after cropping? Much lower than 1080p -- 1527 by 868. Also of note, that if anything is changed during recording, the overlays come back on screen and would certainly ruin the recording. The only question that remains is what that final signal is -- whether we've got progressive or interlaced.
I don't think anyone really expected this feature to make its way into bottom-end camera, but it would have been quite the selling point. It seems like all of the new cameras from Canon should be able to output the entire 1080p image while recording, but it's possible that the image processors can't handle anything above that window-boxed image. The 1D X should be capable since the 1D C can do it (and they are virtually identical internally), but that camera has been intentionally crippled and does not have clean overlays and a full 1080p signal. What does Canon gain from crippling these cameras? For one thing, it seems that their video and photo divisions are trying not to step on each others' toes, and there's no question that the margins are far higher on video products.
The only hope that we have is for hackers like Magic Lantern to find the code for full 1080p out of the HDMI and enable it, while also removing the overlays. We should know sometime in the next 6-12 months if this is a possibility as Canon will surely release at least one firmware update for the T4i. At the moment, Magic Lantern for the 5D Mark III is in its infancy, but we will know soon enough if that window-boxed 1080p signal can be made full screen and recorded.
What do you think, would you have bought a T4i just for the ability to record the full 1080p HDMI signal? Let us know in the comments.
Since its premiere at NAB back in April, the Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K has been one of the most anticipated cameras of the year. Yet, while the specs and preview videos have been one thing, the real test of a camera’s abilities would undoubtedly come from the very video professionals it was designed for.
To give a glimpse into the real-world experiences of those who might benefit the most from using the URSA Cine 12K for their various projects, we chatted with working videographer Tanner Fowler about his first reactions to using the Cine 12K for his run-and-gun sports videography work.
Check out our full interview with Fowler below.
Editor's note: the following interview is edited for length and clarity.
No Film School: Tell us a bit about your background in film and video.
I'm a cinematographer based in Denver. I work mainly in the sports documentary field, but I do a lot of different things, from commercials to short films, narrative, and music. So, being out here in Denver, we don't have a lot of feature-length film work going on, so you have to pick up all the projects you can. I freelance for NFL teams, college football teams, sports documentaries, Red Rock shows and live concert films.
NFS: Tell us a little bit about your camera history. What have you been shooting on throughout your career?
Fowler: When I got into the film world, I was working in sports broadcasting on tv trucks for ESPN and Fox Sports. I was using older Sony broadcast cameras, and switched over to the Panasonic GH5 for creative work. During college I upgraded to the Blackmagic Ursa Mini Pro G2. That camera was very ahead of its time when it came out. It was one of the only cameras out there that was shooting 4.6K 120p in a RAW format.
I was super impressed with the specs on that camera back in 2017. Since then, I've used a wide range of everything like REDs, Arris, or Sonys. Every week, it's something different. That’s just the world of cinematography.
I've had my Ursa for quite some time and really liked everything about it, there were several things I wanted to change and upgrade with it. After awhile, I knew it was time for a new camera.
NFS: When did you first hear about the URSA Cine 12K, and what were your initial thoughts and hopes for the camera?
Fowler: One of my friends had gone to NAB this year, and he called me up and said, " Hey man, you’ve got to check out this new Blackmagic camera they have on display. It's the Ursa Cine 12K.”
I immediately went to watch Blackmagic's keynote on it and I was like, “This has everything I’ve wanted in a camera for a long time!” The price point was just incredible compared to similar specs of other large format cameras.
I started to do some more research but there was hardly any footage from this camera out there. Blackmagic had some DPs that they had sent the camera to and obviously, that stuff looks really amazing, but I do a lot of work that's not in a studio lit environment. Run and gun documentary style work, so I really wanted to see the camera in that sort of environment. I was going on YouTube two or three times a week, searching for ‘Ursa Cine 12K’ and then clicking on the upload date to see the newest footage out of this thing. Finally I started to see some footage pop up, and I was like, “Wow, this image and some of these camera tests are looking really amazing.” I decided to order it and give it a try! I picked it up about two weeks ago.
NFS: Now that you've gotten your hands on the URSA Cine 12K, how have you found it so far? What have been some of the highlights of using the camera for your sports videography?
Fowler: My initial reaction after opening it up was that the build quality was really impressive. The buttons and ergonomics are quite well designed, and the backlighting on all of the buttons looks fantastic. Compared to my Ursa G2, it’s about 25% larger. It's a large camera, longer than the ARRI 35, but not as tall. Similar in weight.
The first time I got to put it to use was at an SEC college football game about two weeks ago, and I took it out of the box the night before, built it out in about 5 minutes and was ready to shoot.
I threw a 12mm Laowa Zero Distortion lens on, started shooting. Getting full use of the open gate sensor on a wide lens was really incredible. One of the first things I noticed was when pointing the camera at a subject standing outside, I could see them perfectly exposed along with all of the details in the sky in the background.
I’d have been using the Arri 35 a lot recently on an Amazon Prime documentary show, and it felt like I was looking at the screen of that camera. There’s so much dynamic range and the image looks really fantastic.
Speaking of the camera screen, that five-inch display is unbelievable. I thought, I would be rigging up a monitor to this thing pretty often but honestly, I don't know if I'll be using a monitor too much because the screen on the operator side is massive. I had a producer standing next to me during the shoot looking at the secondary side monitor giving me feedback while I was shooting as well.
The new eyepiece is absolutely fantastic. I have the old Blackmagic eyepiece and it’s got all of the same looks as that one, but upgraded. I've been really spoiled the past two years using some of the Arri eyepieces which are just absolutely unbelievable, but I think this Blackmagic one is the only thing I've ever seen that comes close to it.
It has great camera control options built in and settings that you can customize. I have used it to track fast action like football and basketball already and had no problems! My only comment about the eyepiece is that the image on the inside feels a little small. It feels like it could be magnified 25 to 50% to fill the black space. It feels like you're looking at a small screen inside this giant black area.
NFS: Which mount did you opt for, and how have you approached powering the camera for your on-location shoots?
Fowler: I opted for the B-mount system as I have been using that with the Arri 35 and have had no issues. I was considering a v-mount system, however, some of the capabilities of the camera are limited without 24 volt power. I’ve used this camera in a multitude of environments from outdoor sporting events to indoor arenas so far. It holds up really well in varied lighting however I still wouldn’t use this camera in a low light situation. At around 2000 iso, you already start to see fine noise show up. Anything above that I wouldn’t use it for.
There are a couple of bugs that definitely need to be ironed out. There are issues in the menu and bugs in the output of the SDIs. This camera get significantly warmer than most cameras I’ve used. Multiple times when I’ve gone to change the battery, I’ve turned the camera off, swapped the battery, and the camera wouldn’t come back on. I had to leave the battery off of the camera for at least 30 seconds in order to get it to power back on. I’m not sure what kind of bug that is but it’s happened four to five times.
NFS: What would be your ideal rig for the URSA Cine 12K for your work moving forward?
Tanner Fowler: As far as documentary shooting goes, I love using the cannon cine servo zooms like the 17 to 120 and 25 to 250. I added a midi 49 cheese plate and top handle so I could mount additional accessories. I mounted the Blackmagic eye piece there and use Blackmagic's shoulder mount as well. I may add the five inch Blackmagic monitor in the future so I can get added camera control. As for batteries I’m using the core 150s B-mounts. My camera came with the 19mm shoulder mount, but I wish I could have selected the 15mm mount with this kit as I don’t really use 19mm that often.
NFS: Do you edit and grade your own footage? How have you found the production to post-production process with the Cine 12K footage that you’ve been shooting?
Tanner Fowler: I'm usually just a camera operator or a cinematographer, but I edit and color my own stuff as well for certain projects. I've edited this camera both in Premiere and in Resolve. I shot mostly 8K/9k on this camera so far and my m2 MacBook Pro has no problem editing Blackmagic RAW. Resolve handles it super well. Premiere handles it pretty well. The 12K footage, you do start to see a little bit of jumpy footage. but if you drop it down to a quarter or a half resolution, I had no trouble editing the 12k footage.
As far as the footage goes, I'll say Blackmagic's always had a problem with any kind of low-light stuff, and I think that problem continues with this camera. Even with a bigger sensor, I wouldn't push this thing past 2000 ISO. The noise does look more natural and film-like compared to other Blackmagic cameras I’ve used. And if you don’t like a noisy image, I found that adding a little bit of de-noise really cleans up this camera.
NFS: Alright, the ultimate question is: Would you recommend the URSA Cine 12K to other filmmakers or video professionals? And if so, what types of projects would you possibly recommend it for?
Tanner Fowler: Yeah, I think this camera would be fantastic for documentary film work and running gun-style work as well as narrative work. The image that comes out of this thing is amazing. There are so many options to customize this camera. I’m sure Blackmagic will be pushing updates to this camera to make it even better in the future as well. However, if you’re looking to save storage space, then this camera is not for you. Filming a single football and basketball game day took up nearly one TB of space filming in mostly 8k/9k. Even with the large file sizes I managed to move all footage off the camera via Ethernet in under 20 minutes. It’s an extremely heavy camera, I’d compare it to the Arri Amira/ Alexa. It does feel nice and balanced with a lens in it.
Overall, I love the camera and I think it’s going to make some pretty big waves in the film world in the next few years.
Yes and no. One of the most requested features from Canon for its popular DSLRs is the ability to record the HDMI feed coming out of the camera. Nikon has delivered on this feature request, and the D800 and D4 both deliver a clean HDMI feed without any text that allows you to bypass the internal codec and get a clean 1080p 8-bit 4:2:2 image. The first reviews for the Canon T4i were with pre-production cameras, and some had been reporting that the HDMI was completely clean. This could have been chalked up to beta firmware, but now there are real production cameras in the wild and we have a final verdict on whether or not we can record that signal.
