Panasonic has released a new free firmware upgrade for the VariCam 35 and LT cinema cameras and VariCam HS high-speed 1080P camera that includes additional ProRes codecs and HD-SDI Monitor output improvements.
The Ver. 7.0 firmware for the VariCam 35 and HS and Ver. 5.0 upgrade for VariCam LT can be downloaded now at this URL – http://pro-av.panasonic.net/en/varicam/index.html
In Ver. 7.0 and Ver. 5.0 firmware upgrades, ProRes 4444 XQ, ProRes 422 and ProRes 422 LT have been added for both 2K and HD for VariCam 35 and LT, and in HD for VariCam HS. The bit depth of Pro Res 4444 has been increased to 12-bit, with 10-bit file playback only in camera. For the VariCam LT, AVC-LongG G50/G25 recording (HD only) is now supported for the majority of frame rates. For the Varicam LT you can now shoot in ProRes 4444/4444 XQ recording in the VFR mode which is also good news for owners of the camera.
For cinema shooters, there’s new support of 23.98PsF output, which provides native frame rate support without introducing 2:3 pulldown artifacts. There’s also new support for “Letter Box” output in 4K/2K in which the image in MON OUT will be automatically set in “Letter Box” mode.
For the iPad, there’s a new remote control app – VariCam ROP – that has a user display similar to VariCam’s menu display. On the app, you can select whether you want Master control in the app or camera, a lock switch to prevent accidental operation, and dial up/down operation by screen swipe on an iOS device.
For production, a 2.0:1 aspect ratio has been added to the framing marker choices. Netflix series like Frontier and A Series of Unfortunate Events have been produced recently in the 2.0:1 aspect ratio.
For HD-SDI monitor outputs, users can shorten the delay of the outputs to two frames, greatly enhancing onset monitoring applications.
Additional features the firmware upgrades include:
Focus status can be selected “Meter” notation, even in V-Log recording (VariCam 35/LT/HS)
Ability to assign “VFR (ON/OFF)” to USER SW (VariCam 35/LT/HS)
MON OUT can be selected “ANAMORPHIC DESQUEEZE” in 2K/HD mode (VariCam 35/LT/HS)
For VariCam 35 and HS, “Image Invert” and “Surround View” can be selected independently
For VariCam 35 and HS, viewfinder display can be selected “EE (Camera through)” even in Playback
For the VariCam LT, “Audio Level Meter” can be selected to display on SDI OUT
