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Blackmagic Design has announced the Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K LF Body which retails for $6,995 USD. The whole rationale behind this is to offer customers a body-only model of Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K LF that lets you rig it out by using your existing accessories.
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This is a good move by Blackmagic Design, and the camera represents excellent value for money. If you add the cost of the included accessories that you get with the standard URSA Cine 12K LF Camera (PL Mount) and the price of the URSA Cine 12K LF Body it is more than $4,000 USD cheaper. I have done a breakdown further down in the article.
The Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K LF Body is a version of the camera that has all the quality and features of the URSA Cine 12K but excludes many of the accessories. This body-only model is being aimed at cinematographers and rental houses who already have the accessories they need to rig their cameras.
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The camera itself is a fully featured model without any limitations in quality or performance, but it excludes accessories such as shoulder mounts, handles, some lens mounts, battery plates, power supply, lenses, and the high-capacity 8TB media module. Customers can purchase these items separately as they need them to complete the total camera rig in the exact configuration they prefer.
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The 8TB media module is not in this model, and there is a new CFexpress media module included that has dual CFexpress card slots.
The Blackmagic Media Module CFexpress is an optional module without internal memory and instead has CFexpress card slots built in. This lets you shoot using the same CFexpress cards you use for the Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K or Blackmagic Pyxis 6K. The Blackmagic Media Modules are designed to be easily loaded and unloaded if you want to swap to an empty module or load the module into an optional Blackmagic Media Dock for post production.
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Above you can see what the maximum bitrates are when recording 12K 3:2 at 80fps in Blackmagic RAW 3:1, and 8K 3:2 at 144fps in Blackmagic RAW 3:1.
The Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K LF Body model has an EF lens mount installed as standard. Other lens mounts can be purchased independently as required.
You also have to remember that the camera requires 24V batteries to be able to operate and shoot in all of its frame rates and resolutions. Operating in the 24 to 34 voltage range is ideal for use with URSA Cine as the higher voltage reduces thermal losses allowing for high frame rate recording and powering multiple accessories from your camera. The camera comes natively with a B-mount battery plate. You will need to factor in the cost of B-mount batteries and a charger if you are thinking about purchasing this camera.
The camera draws between 85-150W depending on the resolution, frame rate, and recording option, so it is a pretty hungry beast.
Now, you can run the camera via 14.4V batteries as well, but the resolutions and frame rates will be limited, as will the power outputs. When running URSA Cine with 12 to 18 volt power supplies or batteries, frame rates above 60 frames per second will not be available, and powering accessories via the RS and EXT outputs is not possible.
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If we look at the URSA Cine 12K LF Camera (PL Mount), this is what comes in that kit:
- URSA Cine EF Mount
- Screw Set for EF Mount
- Media Module (8TB)
- URSA Cine Handle
- URSA Cine Top Rod Mount (15mm)
- Blackmagic Design 19mm Baseplate for URSA Cine 12K
- Folding Screen Hood for 5″ LCD
- URSA Cine Battery Plate (B-Mount)
- Wi-Fi Antenna Set
- URSA Cine PL Body Cap
- URSA Cine EF Body Cap
- Rubber Cap Set for Connectors
- 24 VDC 250W Power Supply
- DaVinci Resolve Studio Activation Key
- Blackmagic Sticker
- Pelican 1510 Case with Custom-Cut Foam
The Blackmagic Design 8TB Media Module costs $1,695 USD, the URSA Cine Top Handle is $199 USD, the 19mm Baseplate for URSA Cine 12K is $599 USD, the Blackmagic Design Battery Plate for URSA Cine (B-Mount) is $99 USD, the URSA Cine PL Mount is $395 USD, the Blackmagic Design 24V 250W Power Supply for URSA Cine Camera is $209 USD, a Pelican 1510 Case with Custom-Cut Foam is roughly around $253 USD, and a Blackmagic Design DaVinci Resolve Studio (Activation Card) is $295 USD.
Now if I add all of that up it comes to a total of $3,744 USD. If we include that with the price of the Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K LF Body it comes to $10,739 USD. This is a little strange, as the URSA Cine 12K LF Camera (PL Mount) retails for $14,995 USD. I am not sure why anyone would now buy that version of the camera, as it costs $4,256 USD more for essentially the exact same set-up.
I do feel somewhat sorry for early adopters who bought the URSA Cine 12K LF Camera (PL Mount), but I think everyone is well aware that Blackmagic Design has a history of discounting their cameras after release.
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Blackmagic Design believes that the Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K LF Body model will also help existing Blackmagic Design camera customers to upgrade to the large format 12K sensor featured in this camera. This sensor has features and color science based on Black Magic’s experience with DaVinci Resolve workflows. It’s also been designed for high-performance film production and Blackmagic Cloud workflows.
A unique feature of URSA Cine is the new full-frame 12K sensor that features a multi-scale design with symmetrical color filters that allow in-sensor scaling. Now cinematographers can shoot in 12K, 8K or 4K at the full sensor size. They can simply choose the resolution for the job or the shot they want! VFX plates can be shot in 12K while documentaries can be shot in 8K or 4K for lower data rates. Plus customers can also crop if they want greater depth of field.
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Blackmagic Design spent years developing this new full frame 12K sensor to help create the next generation of cinematography so it had to have extremely high performance. When working in 8K 2.4:1 the camera can shoot up to 224 fps. Or 8K 3:2 open gate up to 144 fps. Even when shooting in 12K 3:2 open gate, it can record up to 80 fps, or up to 120fps in 12K 2.4:1.
Shooting in 12K is fantastic as it enables color super sampling for better handling of fine image detail. Plus the new 12K full frame sensor has the latest Blackmagic color science which has been designed to be the perfect sensor for color grading in DaVinci Resolve. The color filters have been chosen specifically to match DaVinci Resolve’s image science and processing.
The 12K sensor is a a good choice for shooting VFX plates where customers want to shoot wide but retain high resolution. It’s also suitable for shooting IMAX-style immersive content. The high-resolution sensor also allows interesting lens effects where customers can crop a specific part of the image for creative analog-style optical effects, but still be well above your delivery resolution. Even vintage Super16 lenses have high enough resolution to use.
Cinematographers can use the large sensor area to shoot anamorphic and deliver in a range of aspect ratios with 1.3, 1.5, 1.6, 1.66, 1.8 and 2x de-squeeze factors. There’s even 9K Super 35 4-perf, 3-perf and 2-perf modes for full compatibility with classic cinema lenses.
Even though the new Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K LF Body model is lower cost when purchased by itself, it still includes the same exact features as the full kit models. There is no difference in specification to the higher end URSA Cine camera kits.
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It includes exactly the same 12K large format RGBW 36 x 24mm sensor as the other models and has the same large photo-sites for 16 stops of dynamic range, interchangeable PL, LPL and EF lens mounts, and industry-standard Lemo and Fischer connections. It ships with the EF lens mount as standard but customers can purchase the PL and LPL lens mounts as they need them.
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For storage, Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K comes with a dual CFexpress media module for using industry-standard CFexpress cards. These cards will still sync to Blackmagic Cloud and can be accessed via the 10G Ethernet connector on the back of the camera. Customers can also purchase the 8TB high-performance media module if they need it.
All models of Blackmagic URSA Cine are designed to meet the demands of high-end production. The camera body is built with a robust magnesium alloy chassis and lightweight carbon fiber polycarbonate composite skin to help customers move quickly on set. Standard Lemo and Fischer connectors let customers control the camera remotely while providing power for lens motors and other accessories. The camera also has 12G‑SDI outputs, 10G Ethernet, USB-C, XLR audio and more.
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Blackmagic URSA Cine lets crews work faster on set with multiple monitoring options. It has a large fold-out 5″ HDR touchscreen monitor on one side and an external color status LCD on the other. On the right side of the camera, there’s a dedicated assist station with a second 5″ HDR touchscreen which allows crew to work around the camera without needing external monitors. There’s even a dedicated focus puller’s mode to help customers get perfect focus.
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The wide range of industry-standard connections on URSA Cine makes it perfect for high-end cinema production. The 7-pin Lemo and 3-pin Fischer connectors at the front provide record start/stop and 24V power so are ideal for onboard accessories such as focus motors. Camera power is provided by a standard 24V 8-pin Lemo connection, plus there’s an additional 2-pin Lemo 12V connection at the rear for lower voltage accessories.
Blackmagic RAW files store camera metadata, lens data, white balance, digital slate information, and custom LUTs to ensure consistency of image on set and through post production. URSA Cine records to the included Blackmagic Media Module CF or to the optional Blackmagic Media Module 8TB, allowing customers to capture over 4 hours of Blackmagic RAW in 12K or a massive 20 hours in 4K.
URSA Cine includes a high-performance, optical low-pass filter that is precisely matched to the sensor. The OLPF also incorporates updated IR filtering that improves far red color response which, when combined with Blackmagic RAW processing for the URSA Cine, preserves color and critical image detail for new levels of image fidelity.
Blackmagic URSA Cine supports creating a small H.264 proxy file in addition to the camera original media when recording. This means the small proxy file can upload to Blackmagic Cloud in seconds so their media is available back at the studio in real time. The ability to transfer media directly into the DaVinci Resolve media bin as editors are working is revolutionary and has never before been possible.
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Customers can live stream from film sets. URSA Cine features a built in hardware streaming engine that supports RTMP and SRT streaming to major platforms or directly to clients. Simply connect to the internet via Ethernet, high-speed wifi, or even connect a 4G or 5G phone for mobile data.
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URSA Cine also supports the optional Blackmagic URSA Cine EVF to make outdoors and handheld shooting accurate and easy. Customers get an integrated high-quality 1920 x 1080 color OLED display with built-in proximity sensor, 4 element glass diopter for incredible accuracy with a wide focus adjustment. A built-in digital focus chart ensures customers get perfect viewfinder focus setup.
URSA Cine includes an 8-pin Lemo power connector at the back of the camera that works with 24V and 12V power supplies. That means it’s easy to use the camera with existing power supplies, batteries, and accessories. URSA Cine also supports various battery plates so customers can use a wide range of high-voltage batteries from manufacturers such as IDX, Anton Bauer, Core SWX, BEBOB, and more.
Another exciting companion product to URSA Cine is the Blackmagic Media Dock which accelerates post-production workflow by making it faster to start editing and color correction while shooting. Customers can mount up to three Blackmagic Media Modules for high speed access to media from multiple URSA Cine cameras all at the same time. These can be the CFexpress card media module included with the camera or the Blackmagic Media Module 8TB which can be purchased separately.
Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K Features
- Cinematic large format sensor with a massive 16 stops of dynamic range.
- Lightweight, robust camera body with industry standard connections.
- Locking EF mount included with optional LPL or PL mount available separately.
- Blackmagic RAW for real time 12K, 9K, 8K and 4K editing.
- Generation 5 Color Science with new film curve.
- High performance OLPF for reduced moire and aliasing.
- Built in ND filters for shooting in varying conditions.
- Shoot up to 80 fps in 12K, 144 fps at 8K and 240 fps at 4K.
- Includes CFexpress media module. 8TB module can be purchased separately.
- Recording media modules are compatible with the Blackmagic Media Dock.
- High speed wifi, 10G Ethernet or mobile data for network connections.
- Built-in RTMP and SRT live streaming.
- Optional Blackmagic URSA Cine EVF can be purchased separately.
- Accessories and EVF that match the URSA Cine design can be purchased separately.
- Includes full DaVinci Resolve Studio license for post production.
Availability and Price
The Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K Body is available now from $6,995 USD from Blackmagic Design resellers worldwide.