American Cinematographer - June 2014 - 103

turret that can be easily replaced by removing four bolts; the turret includes the
sensor, lens mount and lens-control
connections and can be upgraded when
new types of sensors are developed. There
are currently four models to choose from:
Ursa PL, Ursa EF, Ursa Broadcast B4, and
Ursa HDMI. The latter has no sensor, and its
lens mount is replaced by a cheese plate of
mounting points and an HDMI input,
allowing any third party camera to take
advantage of the Ursa camera body's
features.
Blackmagic Design has also introduced the Blackmagic Studio Camera,
which has been designed for live production and is available in 1080 HD and Ultra
HD models. Inside the tough and lightweight magnesium alloy body, the Studio
Camera features a large 10" viewfinder,
four-hour battery duration, talkback, tally
indicators,
phantom-powered
microphone connections and
built-in optical fiber and SDI
connections that let users
connect to a live production
switcher with a single cable.
The Studio Camera features an
active Micro Four Thirds lens mount that is
compatible with a wide range of lenses and
adapters. The camera also includes a builtin fiber-optic connection; the connection is
bi-directional and carries HD or Ultra HD
video with embedded audio, talkback, tally
and even camera remote control. The builtin talkback allows the camera operator and
crew to communicate at all times during
production using commonly available
headsets.
The Studio Camera's LCD is
extremely bright and has a very wide viewing angle, and the camera also includes a
large fold-up sun shield. Additionally, The
camera supports the tally SDI standard used

on Blackmagic Design's ATEM range of live
production switchers, and tally lights illuminate automatically with a light on the front
for talent, and a light above the viewfinder
for the operator. The operator-side control
panel allows instant access to focus, iris and
on-screen menu settings. On-screen menus
are overlaid on the viewfinder and slide on
and off as needed.
The Blackmagic Ursa retails starting
from $5,995, and the Blackmagic Studio
Camera retails starting from $1,995. For
more information, visit www.blackmag
icdesign.com.
Codex Brings Action Cam
Codex has unveiled the Codex
Action Cam, a compact, all-in-one digital
cinema camera and recording package for
2-D and 3-D productions. The camera is
designed for use as an action/witness/POV
camera system that can be used as a
companion to larger camera systems.
The Action Cam delivers a complete
high-definition shooting, capture, transcoding and data-management solution for situations that require a compact form factor
and low weight. The system comprises a
tiny camera head and a Codex Camera

Control Recorder that delivers full remote
control of the camera. The Action Cam is
capable of shooting 12-bit raw at up to 60
fps and resolves the common issues of syncing associated with small-format camera
solutions. Multiple camera heads can be in
sync with other main-unit cameras such as
the Arri Alexa.
Boasting wide dynamic range and
14-bit image processing, the Action Cam
incorporates a 2⁄3" CCD sensor, which
provides excellent light sensitivity, low
signal-to-noise ratio, temperature stability
and no visible fixed-pattern noise. A global
shutter means there is no distortion of fastmoving objects, making the camera great
for visual-effects applications. For lenses,
103

http://www.ovide.com/smartassist http://www.blackmagicdesign.com http://www.blackmagicdesign.com http://www.ovide.com/smartassist http://www.ovide.com/smartassist

American Cinematographer - June 2014

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - June 2014