Blackmagic Design enters full-frame and L-mount arena with new Cinema Camera 6K

Blackmagic Design has launched its first full-frame camera, the Cinema Camera 6K, in a portable form factor. This is also its first L-mount camera, enabling use of lenses from Leica, Panasonic and Sigma. Its full frame 6K sensor can shoot most popular cinematic aspect ratios, at 36 fps in 6K or 120 fps in 1080 HD. The Cinema Camera 6K is available now for US$2,595.

Blackmagic Design, known for its high quality cinema cameras and broadcast gear, has just introduced the Cinema Camera 6K, featuring the first full-frame – and largest – sensor in its lineup. The Cinema Camera 6K has a portable and self-contained design, but also enough connections to support custom rigs.

The new 36 x 24mm, 6K 6048 x 4032 sensor is almost three times larger than the Super 35 sensors found in most other Blackmagic cameras, which enables shallower depth of field and a range of cinematic aspect ratios, from the full 3:2 open gate to anamorphic 6:5 to the classic Super 35. It also has a very wide dynamic range of 13 stops for capturing more details even in very bright or dark parts of the scene, and low noise at up to ISO 25,600. Frame rates range from up to 36 fps in 6K, 60 fps in 4.8K and 120 fps in 1080p HD.

 

The Cinema Camera 6K can be used standalone and handheld, thanks to its lightweight carbon fiber composite body, a multifunction handgrip with dedicated quick-settings buttons, four built-in shockproof microphones, and a very bright, tilting 5-inch HDR touchscreen. An optional viewfinder accessory can be added for US$500, as can a battery grip that extends shooting time to 3 hours. Files can be saved either to an internal CFexpress card (another first for Blackmagic) or to an external SSD via USB-C. Other external connections include a 3.5 mm headphone jack, dual XLRs for professional microphones, ethernet control via USB-C, a full HDMI port and a 12V DC power inlet.

Camera Features

Effective Sensor Size

23.10mm x 12.99mm (Super 35)

Lens Mount

Active EF mount.

Lens Control

Iris, focus and zoom on supported lenses.

Dynamic Range

13 Stops.

Dual Native ISO

400 and 3200

Shooting Resolutions

6144 x 3456 (6K) up to 50 fps
6144 x 2560 (6K 2.4:1) up to 60 fps
5744 x 3024 (5.7K 17:9) up to 60 fps
4096 x 2160 (4K DCI) up to 60 fps
3840 x 2160 (Ultra HD) up to 60 fps
3728 x 3104 (3.7K 6:5 anamorphic) up to 60 fps
2880 x 1512 (2.8K 17:9) up to 120 fps
1920 x 1080 (HD) up to 120 fps

Frame Rates

Maximum sensor frame rate dependent on resolution and codec selected. Project frame rates of 23.98, 24, 25, 29.97, 30, 50, 59.94 and 60 fps supported.

Off-speed frame rates up to 60 fps in 6K 2.4:1, 120 fps in 2.8K 17:9 and 1080HD.

Built in ND Filters

Four position ND filter with clear, 2‑stop, 4‑stop and 6‑stop IR ND filters.

Focus

Auto focus available using compatible lenses.

Iris Control

Iris wheel and touchscreen slider for manual iris adjustment on electronically controllable lenses, iris button for instant auto iris settings on compatible lenses.

Screen Dimensions

5” 1920 x 1080.

Screen Brightness

1500nits

Screen Type

LCD capacitive touchscreen.

Metadata Support

Automatically populated lens data from electronic EF lenses. Automatic recording of camera settings and slate data such as project, scene number, take and special notes. A 3D LUT can also be embedded in metadata of Blackmagic RAW files.

Controls

Touchscreen menus on 5 inch screen. 1 x Power Switch,1 x Record Button, 1 x Stills Button, 1 x Scroll Wheelwith push integrated into handgrip, 1 x ISO Button, 1 x White Balance, 1 x Shutter Button, 3 x software configurable Fn buttons, 2 x ND filter button, 1 x Focus Button, 1 x IRIS Button, 1 x High Frame Rate (HFR) Button, 1 x Zoom Button, 1 x Menu Button and 1 x Playback Button.

Timecode Clock

Highly accurate timecode clock. Less than 1 frame drift every 8 hours.