HD For Indies

Hey all -

Sorry for delay, I'm back, wasn't feeling well for several days and was bed/couch bound.

So first up - Silicon Imaging came out with a press release last week, changing a lot of details about their camera.

The biggest news is that it will do a true, native 2K - 2048x1152; the other is that they are changing the way they present the two pieces of the camera - it used to be presented as "the camera" where the head could be removed; now they are pitching it as a DVR and a MINI head, that it just so happens you can put together to have a freestanding, battery powered camera.

For those unfamiliar with the camera, the way I see it there are four Big Deals about this camera:

1.) It is basically a battery powered (if you wish) computer with a sensor/lens on it, which allows for all kinds of quick clever low cost feature development and implementation.

2.) It records in a compressed RAW format, which keeps datarate low and tweakability high in post (wavelet based Cineform RAW codec). If you're not aware of the benefits of RAW, they are huge - it is the same thing as shooting RAW on your digital still camera - you get ALL the info off the sensor.

3.) It can be split into two sections - a recording head and a DVR, and be connected soley via a gigabit ethernet cable between them, allowing for long cables runs and putting the sensor/lens package in tight spaces.

4.) And oh yeah, it'll shoot full progressive HD or 2K, at user selectable frame rates up to 72 fps. You can shoot compressed or uncompressed RAW (assuming you have the storage system that is fast enough).

New stuff from press release:

-NEW NAME: It is now called the Silicon Imaging SI-2K. Thank god, I the old name was too much of a mouthfull. Simple, clean, good.

-NEW MODES: You can shoot 1920x1080 progressive or 2048x1152

-RECORDING STYLES: (not new but worthy of clarification) - if you just by the mini head (the sensor package), you can record onto a sufficiently hoss (Core 2 Duo recommended) laptop - you don't have to by the DVR unless you want to.

You can then edit the footage using Cineform's Prospect 2K (which also handles HD resolutions) software that is an add-on to Adobe's Premiere Pro application.

Other features:

-2/3" sensor
-native 2048x1152 maximum recording resolution
-10 bit, full raster (no horizontal shrinking like HDV and DVCPRO HD) Cineform RAW codec recording (wavelet based, very efficient)
-claimed dynamic range of over 10 f-stops
-touch screen interface (pretty nifty, I've seen it/played with it at NAB)
-IT friendly connectivity
-if recording to the onboard storage, it is just a USB 2.0 drive - simple and easy to transfer data off of
-be sure to see last week's article about their Iridas partnership
-a full workflow, albeit limited to certain tools at this point in time (see above linked article for Q&A on that subject)
-non-destructive LUTs that can be affiliated with footage on a shot by shot basis (VERY nice)
-

The SI-2K MINI is just the sensor and some circuitry in a palm sized block, with a GigE port on the back (power too? Can't recall). Geoff Boyle has been using one on the set of a movie he's the DoP on:

"The Silicon Imaging camera is truly amazing," states Cinematographer Geoff Boyle. "The SI-2K MINI is small enough to be placed directly in a scene for point-of-view shots, used on robotic arms for model photography or incorporate two side-by-side for stereo 3-D. We used it on 'Mutant Chronicles,' a Sci-Fi feature with over 1500 visual effect shots. We shot flames and explosions using the 72fps slow motion mode and the recordings display smooth tonal gradations and natural colors. Finally, the director can immediately see full-resolution instant replays, without having to wait for film dailies or color correction."


Pretty nifty!

Cineform's Prospect 2K software, which is an optional add-on when purchasing (or available separately), lets you edit and color correct the Cineform RAW footage directly with no conversion - this is a SIGNIFICANT feature and capability, a big time saver on set.

One of my few complaints with this camera is that it is at present only compatible with Adobe's Premiere Pro, and then only with Prospect 2K/HD. That is however a temporary situation - they already have QuickTime working with their codec under Windows, and are working on a Mac OS X implementation as well. More workflow info coming over the next few weeks they say.

OK, all this is great, but what's it cost?

The SI-2K DVR with a hot-swap drive cartridge system and the MINI camera head (all you need to shoot with) is going to be $20K, and a bundle that also includes Prospect 2K is $22K (extra two grand). Estimated ship date in January '07. If you just want the SI-2K MINI (the sensor head), that will be available starting sometime in December and cost $12,500. Combine that with a sufficiently powerful laptop or desktop unit and you can record in the field/studio with the tiny sensor package and a lens, tethered to the computer by a simple, cheap gigabit ethernet cable.

Very slick.

For more info, see Silicon Imaging's or Cineform's websites.

At first I didn't quite get what they were changing, so I emailed Ari Pressler of Silicon Imaging and he was kind enough to take the time to answer my questions and walk me through it. There's some golden goody info in here, worth reading. Here's how our email exchange went:

Q (from Mike): I see 2K listed now - is it a natively 2K camera? As in does the chip have 2048x1152 pixels, or is it stretching up from 1920x1080 to get there?

A: Native 2048x1152. You can use the extra res for supersampled HD or overscan to pan/scan. I would think most will "shoot on silicon" at 2K even if distribution format is HD.

Q: I see 10 bit Cineform and 12 bit uncompressed listed - is it possible to use either of those modes at either HD or 2K res? Is there any limitation on mix & match of res & compressed/uncompressed?

A: You can mix and match. The only restriction is in the DVR, the data rate for 12-bit uncompressed to disk is faster than internal USB rates. Therefore, you may need to use external SATA or Notebook with dual-drives if doing long shots.

Q: I see talk on the mini-head and the DVR - what of the main camera? Is this the new product, or is there still going to be a camcorder offered as we've expected? Sorry if I'm just being dense here.

A: The DVR is the full Camcorder with Mini which can either be attached to the front of camera or tethered up to 300ft away over GigE.

Q: Any changes on the form factor from last I saw at IBC? Is that still going to happen going forward - a smaller form factor, or is the switch to mini-head and DVR the new, only modality?

A: The form factors have changed. The MINI is smaller than SI-1920 camera head before (65mm wide) and there will be a new design for the DVR which we have not yet released.


Still with the questions, I came back for more, asking about the difference between the old & new offerings, etc.

Q: So, it is as much a repositioning (marketing-speak-wise) as well as a physical reconfiguration - there will still be an all-in-one, it is just the DVR attached to the head, or the head its removable.

Other than the size discrepancies, is this akin to the Genesis in that you can run it in camera remote connected as well as all-in-one self contained, battery powered camcorder mode?

I'm just trying to understand the overall theme here.

BTW, this is clever as all hell.

Ari responded:

A:You dont need to buy a separate MINI it is part of the DVR package. Like a 2-for-1 deal!

When you buy the Battery-Powered DVR (MINI + embedded core 2 duo processing system + GPU + USB HDD cartridge + DC/DC Power Supplies) you can remove the MINI head (optical block) from the front of the DVR body and extend the Ethernet cable to 100m or convert to fiber for longer distances....Batteries not included :-).

We often see VGA to CAT-5 extenders used for moving the viewfinder to the
location of the Mini, as well. Then you use 2 CAT-5 cables.

Had some more operational questions for Jason over there, he answered the following:

Q: Does the head need it's own power or does it derive it from the GigE?

If the head does need power, how much? Could you have a "local" battery up by the head and just run one or two GigE's back to the video village setup?

A: It needs it's own power, but it's only 5-6W, nothing really. Small batteries can do the trick. We use small Anton Bauers (Dionic 90's) to keep the head and LCD screen running all day.

Q: And HEY, has anybody gotten this to work on a Mac Pro under Boot Camp? THAT would be a trip....or one of the new servers, if/when they ever ship.

A: Yep, already done that :)

(kewl)

Q: ....and at $2000 bundled, does Prospect 2K INCLUDE Premiere Pro, or is PPro required as well? Is Prospect 2K/HD an add-on to PPro, or a full solution including it? And for 2Kx1152, do the Kona3 or BlackMagic display that and play it in realtime out the HD-SDI or component outputs?

A: As far as monitoring 2K, you'll need an AJA Xena (or I guess Kona on the Mac when the QT versions come out) card for Prospect, not Blackmagic. Has to-do with the on-board frame-buffering on the AJA cards that the Blackmagic cards don't have.

AJA cards do a real-time crop to 1080P for monitoring from the 2K signal.


I (Mike) got clarification from Cineform last night - the $2000 Prospect HD DOES include Premiere Pro, so you DO have a complete editing software solution included in that $22K bundle. At $2000, that's a $1300 savings over buying Prospect HD and Premiere Pro separately.

Q: Output from DVR for monitoring etc.:

VGA?
DVI?
HDMI?
any plans for HD-SDI integration? Does your mobo have PCI-X or PCIe slots?

A: Monitoring is via DVI, which can be converted to both HDMI or HD-SDI.

There is a PCIe x16 slot, but that has the video card in it.


(Mike's comment - but that also means that it is limited to 8 bit, as DVI is strictly 8 bit...but for field monitoring, this is probably acceptable most of the time)

So this means that you can shoot 2K, uncompressed, on an itty bitty remote head, with one or two gigabit ethernet cables (quite small) running back to a laptop or desktop unit, with live monitoring. Pretty rockin'.

They also gave a presentation last Friday at Abel Cine, and Paul Nordin attended and posted his comments in a thread over at DVInfo.net. His major takeaway:
-not all of the pieces discussed are working/demonstrable yet (notably the Iridas Look file integration)
-no fully CC'd footage shown as yet
-mention of a second generation chip, sounds like sensor chip
-LOTS of cool, only-because-it-is-a-computer UI functionality, like a still store 50% transparency overlay (NICE!)
-still no sync sound or sync'd timecode if I'm understanding correctly

There's LOTS of discussion about audio recording in the rest of that thread here.

Mike's takeaway as of now:

Considering how close they are to their claimed ship date (January '07, and I'm writing this Nov. 6, '06) and their price point, this is one of the most interesting cameras to watch at this time. As their feature set and form factor start to nail down (we haven't seen final form factor yet), the character of this camera, if not the image quality, it starting to come into focus. The main benefits as I see it are:

-the advantages of shooting RAW as opposed to highly processed Y'CbCr
-native compressed editing in a major NLE (albeit Adobe, top of the heap of "everybody else" in feature editing after Avid & FCP)
-REALLY high quality for that compressed footage - it is 10 bits/channel, full raster - you'd have to go to the $100,000 decks to get that kind or recording quality, such as D-5 or HDCAM SR...and that's essentially a $9500 option. Within this price range, either DVCPRO HD (8 bit, 1280x1080, 100 mbit) or HDV (8 bit, 1440x1080 but heavily compressed 25mbit)
-flexible shooting modes - either the all-in-one package of DVR+MINI head, or the remote head with the remote DVR.
-up to 72 fps, but I think that is if you drop the res to 720p - is this right? Somebody bust me if I'm wrong on this one.

Disadvantages:
-but timecode sync, sync sound, and onboard sound are still unincluded, unresolved issues...but addressable ones over time.
-stuck with Premiere Pro ONLY right now for native editing. While it is possible to transcode with tools like After Effects, it is a bit of a task...which I discussed among other things in this article.
-no Mac solution....today
-no 1080i native acquisition...but that really isn't the market these folks are going after, anyway.
UPDATE - YES CAN DO TIMECODE - Jason emailed to correct me: "BTW, quick clarification . . . we DO have timecode, it's just time-of-day free-run right now . . . we'll be adding record run and LTC-syncing soon." ...which is one of the nice things about being software based - just update the app and BOOM! New features via software patch! Love it!

I just can't say enough about how important the RAW workflow is. The fact that you'll have the choice to do as "little" as Cineform compressed 1080p (something in the ballpark of 100 megabits), up to 12 bit uncompressed RAW is GREAT. The primary benefit of RAW, esp. uncompressed, is that you're getting ALL of the data the sensor is capturing, so that there are a minimum of destructive choices made at the point of acquisition (although you can still under/overexpose, be out of focus, etc.). But in terms of image processing, very little is done that will degrade the image, destructively change the image, etc. And with non-destructive embedded metadata for LUTs, you can make creative decisions that you can undo later in post - which is a HUGE consideration when working with a medium like digital where once a highlight clips, it is GONE, whereas with film it is often recoverable. I'll soon write about this at length, but it is a big, big deal.

It looks like these guys will ship 2-4 months ahead of the Red One, the other HD+ resolution, any frame rate, large sensor, IT centric based camera due out early next year. They are different animals, and I'll have more to say comparing and contrasting them in the future.

They have some news as well, workin' on that article next.

-mike