dSLR Dad

Red Digital Cinema to Release Digital Still & Motion Camera in 2009

Jim Jannard is the founder of both Oakley and the Red Digital Cinema Company.  If you have not heard of RED, they are responsible for flipping the entire digital cinema industry upside down.  By shipping a camera with the best digital sensor in the industry while still offering a system whose components are entirely upgradable in the future.  After focusing all of their energy at the Cinema industry, Jim Jannard has dropped quite the bombshell on the Camera industry:

We believe, and are developing for late 2009, a replacement for DSLRs. Currently, we call it a DSMC (Digital Still & Motion Camera).

While (insert code name) is not a replacement for Epic or Scarlet, it is strategically targeted at the DSLR space. As Nikon and Canon release their 720P and 1080P, respectively, DSLRs with video capture… RED has a more advanced view of the future. We look forward to rapidly pushing the “big guys” along in feature sets and capabilities.

RED firmly believes in higher resolution, higher S/N, higher DNR, higher frame rates, smaller bodies, more system flexibility, and many more options as we move forward in camera development.

The strength of RED is in our sensor development program, REDCODE, and having no legacy platforms to deal with. That left us free to explore, develop and prepare to deliver a new platform. DSMC.

We think all our customers already know what the future will bring. They are just afraid to wish for it for fear of disappointment. Fear not. Sleep tight. RED is awake…..

…..If people are not stunned by the specs and design, I will retire… truly.

…..We believe it marks the end of DSLRs.

In a prior topic he states:

The primary advantage to RED is REDCODE. Compressed RAW at over 23.976 fps. This is a core invention of RED that’s full effects have not been seen yet.

The secondary advantage of RED is our sensor program. Some could argue that this is number one.

Mysterium “Monstro” is a sensor program that pushes the envelope past anything on the horizon. It will go into Epic, and another camera aimed squarely at the DSLR market. Epic ships with Mysterium-X and has a free upgrade to Monstro……..

Finally:

Future cameras will shoot ultra-high resolution stills and motion… :-)

We see the future very clearly… trust us (he said)…

dSLR Dad’s Take

The second generation Mysterium X sensor will be a 5K sensor of the same size as the current Mysterium sensor.  A 5K sensor in the video world translates to at least 5000 pixels of horizontal resolution.  By comparison, a 1080p High Definition image has a resolution of 1920×1080 pixels, which is slightly smaller than a 2K image.  RED has not yet released what the actual 5K resolution should be, but at 16:9, it should be at least 14-megapixel’s.  However, this will probably not be the sensor in the Digital Still & Motion Camera (DSMC) when it is initially released in 2009 due to the additional cost.  At 4520 X 2540 pixels, the Mysterium sensor still offers 12-megapixels of video goodness.

At 24.8 x 18.3 mm, both the Mysterium and Mysterium X sensors are comparable in size to the APS sensors found on a dSLR.  A sensor size that is used on the recently released Nikon D90, which also shoots HD video.  However, the Nikon D90’s D-movie mode will only record video at 1280 x 720 pixels, or 1.3K.  Think how nice it would be to shoot video at the D90’s full 12.3-megapixel resolution.  Now you start to understand the magnitude of the aforementioned statements by the founder.

What we are really talking about is a digital SLR camera that could record both video and stills at the same resolution.  A camera that could shoot high-resolution, high dynamic range images at a high frame rate of 60 or even 100 frames-per-second.  Now you are talking about a video camera in which you can grab an individual frame as your high-resolution still image.  A camera that could shoot a 7-frame HDR image in less than a sixteenth-of-a-second!  But what if this same camera also had a larger sensor in it’s future?

That, I believe, is RED’s next step.  To release the Montsro platform as a bigger full-frame sensor.  The Mysterium “Monstro” is RED’s third generation sensor platform that is planned for a 2010 release.  Jim Jannard states that “Monstro” represents the sensor that that removes all limitations in current sensor technology and that this platform (will) surpass all expectations.  He concludes:

We fully understand that our customers want resolution, maximum speed, incredible dynamic range, and low light capability. “Monstro” represents the final frontier in the digital vs. film struggle.

Their only current size constraint is the image circle of Full Frame 35mm film lenses. Red’s current cameras  use not only Panavision and lenses of their own design, but can also use those of Canon and Nikon mounts. While Red doesn’t necessarily make a comparable suite of camera lenses, they definitely have the capability to do so:

As far as glass is concerned… glass is easier than sensors. Just takes longer…

But perhaps the most exciting aspect or RED entry into the dSLR market will probably get lost by most articles you read on this.  RED treats it’s hardware system more like a computer, completely upgradeable. The current RED One Camera can be upgraded to not only the higher resolution Mysterium X sensor, but also the Montsro.  In fact, the EPIC hasn’t even been released yet and they are letting everyone know that “Monstro” will be a free upgrade.  You won’t find Canon or Nikon offering that.  Even their software is continually refined to not only improve the functionality of their designs, but also add new features.  It is the continual improvement over the life of a product that is Red’s best attribute, besides their awesome sensor technology.

Perhaps Jim states it best:

Everything in life changes… including our camera specs and delivery dates…

Yes, this is the beginning of a new era for sure.  I’m glad we all get to benefit from it.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 9th, 2008 at 4:13 AM and is filed under Cameras, News & Commentary. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.