This year¡¯s IBC was a big event for Blackmagic Design, with the company announcing significant additions across several product lines, as well as the acquisition of the VFX software maker eyeon, substantially strengthening Blackmagic¡¯s hardware and software offerings.
The popular Cinema Camera and Production Camera 4K will now both be available with PL lens mounts. This enables the use of professional cinema lenses without the need for PL-mount adapters, which can put stress on the EF or MFT mount models. The combination of the solid aluminum chassis and PL-mount provides the strength needed to hold heavy cinema lenses, while retaining the camera¡¯s compact form factor. With the introduction of these new models, prospective buyers now have five different models from which to choose. The original Cinema Camera is available in MFT, EF, and PL mounts, with 2.5K resolution, 13 stops of dynamic range, and a rolling shutter. The Production Camera 4K, available in EF and PL mounts, offers Ultra HD resolution, 12 stops of dynamic range, and a global shutter. Both cameras give you the choice of recording in CinemaDNG RAW or ProRes to a single removable SSD drive.
Left to right: Passive MFT mount, EF Mount, PL mount
Also new to the Blackmagic family is the pioneering MultiView 16 multi-viewer, which lets you monitor up to 16 sources in split-screen layouts of 2 x 2, 3 x 3, and 4 x 4. It operates natively in Ultra HD, but each input features a full-frame re-synchronizer so you can combine SD, HD, and Ultra HD at the same time. In a 2 x 2 split, images will appear at 1920 x 1080 resolution, and in a full 4 x 4 split they¡¯ll still display at 960 x 540.
Added to the Videohub lineup of mixed-format routers is the new Smart Videohub 40 x 40, featuring 80 6G-SDI connections in a 2RU rackmount. This sleek machine offers added flexibility ¨C in addition to simultaneously supporting SD, HD, and Ultra HD video, you can scan through your connections while viewing them live on an integrated 5″ LCD. Additionally, the LCD supports virtually any TV format, so you won¡¯t need an external monitor for any of your signals.
Joining the lineup of Blackmagic¡¯s rackmount studio monitors is the SmartView 4K, coming in at 26 x 48″ and featuring 12G-SDI connections. It¡¯s a native Ultra HD display but is capable of automatically switching to SD-SDI and HD-SDI formats using Teranex processing.
The DeckLink series of I/O cards now adds the DeckLink Extreme 4K 12G, which features capture and playback of SD, HD, Ultra HD, and 4K DCI formats, allowing you to switch between commercial, broadcast, and digital-cinema projects. It features two full-frame DCI 4K inputs and outputs and lets you ingest 10-bit YUV or full-color bandwidth 12-bit RGB. The card also offers up/down/cross conversion and 3D stereoscopic output for advanced effects and grading.
Rounding out Blackmagic¡¯s showing at IBC are five additions to the comprehensive Mini Converter family, all centered on providing you the flexibly of using 4K SDI sources with various broadcast equipment. Heading the list are the Heavy Duty SDI to HDMI, HDMI to SDI, and SDI to Analog 4K Mini Converters, designed with durable housings for on-location use. These models are built to broadcast standards and can automatically switch between SD, HD, 3G-SDI and up to 6G-SDI formats. For use in the studio and in the field, Blackmagic is also offering the SDI to Audio and Audio to SDI 4K Mini Converters, which allow you to embed/de-embed 4 channels of analog audio and 8 channels of AES/EBU audio conveniently to and from any SDI video connection.
Blackmagic leaves IBC with a strong showing for video prosumers looking to add more to their lineup of products. With so much to offer, this could be a breakout year for Blackmagic Design.
