It's got a face only a mother could love (reasonable people can disagree), but Blackmagic's just-announced and long-awaited 4K successor to their Pocket Cinema Camera is still fascinating. Here's why -- along with the ONE thing I wish they'd included...
Read moreBlackmagic 4K Video Assist: Basic 4K Recording Wrapped in a Robust All-Metal Case with Beautiful Screen, Excellent Touch Interface
If you're looking for a 4K recorder/monitor combo unit for your hybrid mirrorless or DSLR, Blackmagic's 4K Video Assist deserves to be on your short list. It has a bug that needs to be addressed (see below), but the price, display, build quality, dual card slots, dual batteries, and dead simple touch interface make it a unique value in the market.
Read moreBlackmagic OS 4.0: The New Standard in Sub-$5,000 Video Camera Software User Experience [NAB 2016, Episode 5]
I was blown away by the new software user experience (UX) of Hasselblad's H6D, and now Blackmagic delivers a dramatically enhanced software UX in its URSA Mini, a dedicated video camera. Call it the new standard in sub-$5,000 dedicated video software UX, confirming that a sea-change in usability is underway. It's about time.
Read moreBack to the Future: Blackmagic Design’s New Micro Studio 4K is a Mashup of their Studio Camera 4K, a GoPro Hero and the Legendary Hasselblad 500C – and an Indication of Where Cameras Should Go Next
Blackmagic sent me their brand new Micro Studio 4K camera but at first I didn’t know what to make of it. Clearly, it’s aimed at work-a-day pros capturing high-end live events (like, for example, Elton John’s “All the Hits” world tour [link]). Which has nothing to do with me. I was about to send it back with a simple “I’m not the right person to review this -- for Chrissake, they’ve got a guy with a freakin’ soldering iron in the brochure to take advantage of a programmable port -- when I realized I was looking at a new branch of an older evolutionary tree: the modular camera system. Heck, I can write about THAT.
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