Blackmagic Design URSA Mini Pro 12K

Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 12K is a digital film camera with a 12,288 × 6480 Super 35 sensor – 80 megapixels per frame – and 14 stops of dynamic range. It shoots 12K at up to 60 fps, 8K at up to 120 fps and 4K Super 16 at up to 240 fps in 12-bit Blackmagic RAW, processes images with Generation 5 Color Science, and the third generation URSA Mini body handles 12K footage faster. It ships with a PL mount, with optional EF and F mounts, and features built-in ND filters, two CFast 2.0 slots, two SD UHS-II slots and a 10 Gb/s USB-C port for external disks.

12K Super 35 for feature film

Resolution that goes well beyond traditional film: oversampling from 12K gives you sharp 8K and 4K with subtle skin tones and no aliasing.

12K Super 35 · 80 MP14 stops · ISO 80012K 60 · 8K 120 · 4K 240 fps12-bit Blackmagic RAW2× CFast 2.0 · 2× SD UHS-IIPL mount included

Generation 5 Color Science

A new film curve makes full use of the color data from the 12K sensor: more pleasing skin tones and accurate rendering of highly saturated colors such as neon signs and car tail lights in high contrast scenes.

Professional connections

12G-SDI output and input, 3G-SDI monitoring, two XLR inputs with 48 V phantom power, timecode and reference, LANC, a 12-pin broadcast lens connector and a 4-pin XLR 12 V output for accessories.

Timecode and remote control

The highly accurate timecode clock drifts less than one frame every 8 hours. Control the camera via SDI, from an iPad over Bluetooth up to 9 metres away, or via LANC.

Digital film in extreme resolution

URSA Mini Pro 12K’s resolution goes well beyond traditional film stock: it keeps detail, wide dynamic range and rich color. It suits feature films, episodic television, large format IMAX and VFX work including green screen and compositing, where crisp edges around objects make life easier.

12K Super 35 sensor

The sensor with a native resolution of 12,288 × 6480 captures 80 megapixels per frame, with 14 stops of dynamic range and a native ISO of 800. It has equal amounts of red, green and blue pixels and is optimized for multiple resolutions: 12K, 8K and 4K from the full sensor width without changing the field of view.

Shoot 12K, edit on a laptop

The sensor and Blackmagic RAW were designed together so 12-bit RAW in 12K is effortless. Blackmagic RAW is multi-threaded, uses all CPU cores and GPU acceleration, so you can edit 12K footage even on a laptop, and the massive resolution lets you reframe for delivery in 8K or 4K.

Frame rates up to 240 fps

The camera shoots 12K 17:9 full sensor at up to 60 fps and 12K 2.4:1 at up to 75 fps. 8K and 4K DCI from the full sensor width reach 120 fps, 8K and 4K 2.4:1 up to 160 fps, 6K Super 16 up to 120 fps and 4K Super 16 up to 240 fps.

Three ways to record

The camera has two CFast 2.0 slots, two SD UHS-II slots and a USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 expansion port (10 Gb/s) for fast SATA and NVMe drives. With “Record RAW on 2 Cards” turned on it records across two cards simultaneously, so even CFast and UHS-II cards can handle 12K and 8K at high frame rates.

Interchangeable PL, EF and F mount

The included PL mount for professional cinema lenses can quickly be swapped for an optional EF mount for Canon photo lenses or an F mount for Nikon lenses. With the PL mount the camera reads lens data from Cooke /i Technology lenses, and servo lenses are controlled via the 12-pin connector.

Built-in ND filters

The optical 2, 4 and 6 stop ND filters are matched to the sensor and color science of the camera and give you extra latitude even in harsh light. The IR filters evenly filter optical and infrared wavelengths, so images are free from IR contamination.

Controls and status display

The lightweight, robust magnesium alloy body is evenly balanced. Buttons, switches and dials are laid out so the operator can find them by feel with an eye to the viewfinder, and the backlit status display on the side shows the most important recording information.

4″ touchscreen and digital slate

The fold-out 4″ high resolution touchscreen with a wide viewing angle is used for monitoring and reviewing shots. It shows format, frame rate, iris, timecode, shutter angle, white balance and ISO, plus a histogram and card status. The digital slate adds metadata to each shot and increments take numbers automatically.

Bluetooth control

Control the camera on a jib or gimbal via Bluetooth from up to 9 metres away – with the Blackmagic Camera Control app for iPad or third party apps for iOS and Android. A free developer SDK with sample code is available for custom solutions.

Blackmagic URSA Mini Recorder

The optional recorder records 12-bit Blackmagic RAW to 2.5″ SSDs including 7 mm U.2 NVMe disks with data rates up to 900 MB/s. It attaches to the back of the camera between the body and the battery and is controlled via USB-C, so you never need to start the SSD recording manually.

Standard batteries and power

The camera has an industry standard 4-pin XLR power connector for external 12 to 18 V supplies. A V-Mount or Gold Mount battery plate from Blackmagic Design or other manufacturers such as IDX, Blueshape or Anton Bauer attaches to the rear of the camera.

Viewfinder and shoulder kit

The optional Blackmagic URSA Viewfinder has a 1920 × 1080 color OLED display, glass optics, adjustable diopter and a built-in focus chart. The optional URSA Mini Shoulder Kit with shoulder pad, rosettes and quick release tripod mount lets you move from tripod to shoulder and back in seconds.

DaVinci Resolve Studio included

A full version of DaVinci Resolve Studio is included, combining editing, color correction, audio post and visual effects in one application. You can work natively with footage from the camera, from the edit to the final grade.

Controls and connections

Manufacturer drawings showing the buttons, switches and connectors on both sides, on top and at the rear.

Dimensions and weight

The body measures 5.92 × 5.78 × 9.2″ (150 × 147 × 234 mm, W × H × L) and weighs 5.62 lb (2.55 kg).

More information

The Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 12K is the initial shot of a new digital film revolution with an all-new 12K Super 35 sensor with a dynamic range of 14 apertures integrated into the popular URSA Mini body! By combining an 80MP image sensor, new image processing algorithms and the flexible Blackmagic RAW format, recording 12K footage becomes a reality. When resampled to 8K and 4K resolutions, users can get fantastic footage with uncompromising levels of detail and true-to-life skin tones, comparable to the output of professional cameras. The camera allows shooting at up to 60 fps in 12K, 120 fps in 8K and up to 240 fps in 4K (Super 16 size cutout). The URSA Mini Pro 12K features a PL mount, integrated ND filters, CFast and SD/UHS-II media recording slots, and a powerful USB-C interface.

The resolution of the URSA Mini Pro 12K far exceeds the capabilities of conventional film. It offers users a comparable level of detail, wide dynamic range and rich colors. It is ideal for feature films, TV series or large-format (IMAX) productions. Its uncompromising resolution also makes it more than suitable for shooting effects shots against keyed backgrounds. Resampling to 8K or 4K resolution ensures great texture and colour, as well as very smooth transitions thanks to the absence of aliasing artefacts.

The Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 12K features a revolutionary new image sensor with a native resolution of 12,288 x 6,480, an incredible 80 megapixels per frame. The sensor has a Super 35 size, 14 aperture dynamic range numbers and a native ISO of 800. It captures equal amounts of red, green and blue pixels simultaneously and is optimized to work in multiple resolutions: you can shoot at 12K resolution at 60 fps or record to 8K or 4K RAW material at up to 120 fps without cropping or changing the angle of view. And thanks to the interchangeable bayonet, you can use the full range of modern film and vintage lenses to take full advantage of their optics!

Along with the camera, the development of the Blackmagic RAW format for working seamlessly with 12K resolution was also done simultaneously. Thanks to significant optimizations, the Blackmagic RAW codec allows editing footage even on laptops, which other formats do not allow. And thanks to the huge resolution of 12K material, users can easily change the composition of footage after cropping to 4K or 8K resolution. The Blackmagic RAW format can be worked with at any resolution, without rendering, while maintaining the colour accuracy of the image sensor.

Only the Blackmagic RAW format allows you to record 80MP, 12-bit images at up to 60 fps! Constant Quality Q0 and Q5 settings, along with the new Q1 and Q3 modes, guarantee constant quality with adaptive compression levels. Constant Bitrate mode (5:1, 8:1, 12:1 and now also 18:1) has been designed for maximum image quality at a predictable, constant file size. RAW data can be recorded simultaneously to two cards at the same time, allowing you to shoot 12K or 8K high frame rate material on both CFast and UHS-II media types. Blackmagic RAW format preserves camera metadata including information about the lens used, white balance, LUT corrections, etc. for the most consistent output from shooting to final post-production.

12K material ensures the highest level of detail and color for post-production. Subsequent resampling can produce a highly detailed 8K image, without aliasing. In addition, the Blackmagic RAW format supports working directly in 12K resolution, thanks to highly efficient optimizations, support for multiple CPU cores and GPU acceleration (Apple Metal, CUDA and OpenCL)! This allows users to work directly with the footage without generating proxy files.

Blackmagic Design's fifth generation of image processing algorithms includes a new film transfer curve that better utilizes color data from the new sensor. The result is even higher quality color rendition, skin tones or highly saturated colors (neon signs, car brake lights, etc.) not excluded! Blackmagic RAW preserves the wide dynamic range and colour response of the sensor thanks to metadata that can be used for further processing of the footage.

The range of recording formats and frame rates is equally rich, from 60 fps at 12K resolution (12,288 x 6,480, 17:9) to 120 fps at 8,192 x 4,320, 160 fps at 8,192 x 3,408 or in Super 16 cutout mode to 240 fps at 4,096 x 2,160! Although the 12K recording mode stores almost 10 times more information than Ultra HD, the camera offers three options for recording it: to a pair of CFast and UHS-II SD cards or to an external drive connected to the integrated SuperSpeed USB-C bus allowing the use of fast SATA and NVMe drives. In "Record RAW on 2 Cards" mode, the camera records simultaneously on two media to achieve transfer speeds of up to 900 MB/s for 2 CFast cards or 500 MB/s for 2 UHS-II SD media. The USB-C expansion port, as a third recording option, supports transfer speeds up to 900 MB/s.

Most projects require the use of a wide variety of lenses, so the URSA Mini Pro offers interchangeable bayonet mounts for different standards. The supplied PL can be quickly and easily swapped for a Canon EF or Nikon F mount, and a B4 mount is also available for the URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2.

Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro cameras are equipped with a modern USB-C interface; for the 4.6K G2 model it is the USB-C 3.1 Gen 1 variant with transfer speeds up to 5 Gbps, and for the 12K variant it is USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 supporting transfer speeds up to 10 Gbps! The bus can be used to connect external drives - such as the new version of the optional Blackmagic URSA Mini Recorder accessory - for recording to fast, high-capacity SSD media. The NVMe SSDs allow the camera to take full advantage of the camera's capabilities and record Blackmagic RAW files at 12K resolution with Q0 settings, or record videos at very high frame rates. When you're done shooting, just unplug the drive, transfer it to the editing room and start editing immediately, without copying.

The new model of the optional Blackmagic URSA Mini Recorder external recorder enables recording of 12-bit 12K Blackmagic RAW files to powerful 2.5" SSD drives, including the latest generation of U.2 NVMe media. These drives are extremely fast and easily achieve transfer speeds of up to 900 MB/s for recording 4K, 8K and 12K Blackmagic RAW material at the highest Q0 quality. The recorder mounts to the rear panel, between the Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 12K camera and the battery, and connects via a fast USB-C interface.

Features of the Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 12K

• 12K Super 35 sensor with 12,288 x 6,480 resolution
• Designed for shooting feature films, trick shots or commercials
• 14 dynamic range aperture numbers, native ISO 800
• Blackmagic RAW format allowing direct editing of 12K material
• Blackmagic RAW optimization for Metal, CUDA and OpenCL technologies
• Generation 5 Color Science with new film transfer curve
• Record up to 60 fps in 12K, 120 fps in 8K and 240 fps in 4K
• Record to two CFast cards, up to 900 MB/s
• Includes PL bayonet, EF and F bayonets as optional accessories
• SuperSpeed USB-C interface for connecting external drives
• Full version of DaVinci Resolve Studio professional post-production application included
• Compatible with the new optional Blackmagic URSA Mini Recorder.

List of certified CFast, SD and USB-C media for URSA Mini Pro 12K (3/2021)

Recommended CFast 2.0 cards

The following CFast 2.0cards are recommended for recording 12K DCI Blackmagic RAW 18:1 to 60 fps and 8K DCI Blackmagic RAW 8:1 to 60 fps.

• Angelbird AV Pro CF 128GB
• Angelbird AV Pro CF 256GB
• Angelbird AV Pro CF 512GB
• Angelbird AV Pro CF 1TB
  
• CoreRise CFast F512 64GB*
  
• ExAscend Essential CFast 2.0 256GB*
• ExAscend Essential 512GB
• ExAscend Essential 1TB
• FreeTail Evoke Pro 3700x 128GB
• FreeTail Evoke Pro 3700x 256GB
• FreeTail Evoke Pro 3700x 512GB
• FreeTail Evoke Pro 3700x 1TB
  
• Lexar Professional 3500x CFast 2.0 128GB*
• Lexar Professional 3500x CFast 2.0 256GB*
• KomputerBay x3400 CFast 2.0 128GB
• ProGrade Digital 550MB/s CFast 2.0 256GB
• ProGrade Digital 550MB/s CFast 2.0 512GB
  
• ProGrade Digital 550MB/s CFast 2.0 1TB*
• SanDisk Extreme Pro CFast 2.0 SDCFSP-128G-x46D 128GB
• Wise CFast 2.0 3400x 256GB
• Wise CFast 2.0 3500x 512GB
• Wise CFast 2.0 3500x 1TB

Recommended SD cards
The following UHS-II SDcards are recommended for 12K DCI Blackmagic RAW 12:1 to 24 fps recording.

• ProGrade Digital V90 UHS-II 300MB/s SDXC 64GB
• ProGrade Digital V90 UHS-II 300MB/s SDXC 128GB
• ProGrade Digital V90 UHS-II 300MB/s SDXC 256GB
• Sony Tough SF-G64 300MB/s UHS-II SDXC 64GB
• Sony Tough SF-G128 300MB/s UHS-II SDXC 128GB

Thefollowing UHS-II SDcards are recommended for 8K DCI Blackmagic RAW 18:1 to 60 fps recording.

• Angelbird AV Pro MK2 V90 SDXC 256GB
• ProGrade Digital V90 UHS-II 300MB/s SDXC 64GB
• ProGrade Digital V90 UHS-II 300MB/s SDXC 128GB
• ProGrade Digital V90 UHS-II 300MB/s SDXC 256GB
• Sony Tough SF-G64 300MB/s UHS-II SDXC 64GB
• Sony Tough SF-G128 300MB/s UHS-II SDXC 128GB
• Wise 285MB/s UHS-II SDXC 64GB
• Wise 285MB/s UHS-II SDXC 128GB

Recommended USB-C drives

The following USB-C flash drives are recommended for recording 12K DCI Blackmagic RAW 8:1 format at up to 50 fps*

• Glyph Atom Raid SSD 2TB*
• Glyph Atom Raid SSD 4TB*
• SanDisk Extreme Pro Portable SSD SDSSDE80-2T00 2TB*

The following USB-C flash drives are recommended for recording 12K DCI Blackmagic RAW 8:1 format at up to 30 fps.

• Angelbird SSD2GO PKT MK2 512GB
• Angelbird SSD2GO PKT MK2 2TB
• Delkin Devices Juggler 2TB
• Glyph Atom Raid SSD 2TB*
  
• Glyph Atom Raid SSD 4TB
  
• LaCie Rugged SSD Pro STHZ1000800 1TB*
  
• SanDisk Extreme Pro Portable SSD SDSSDE80-2T00 2TB*
• Sony Tough SL-CG5 500GB
• Sony Tough SL-C1 1TB
• Sony Tough SL-C2 2TB
• Wise PTS-512 Portable SSD 512GB
• Wise PTS-1024 Portable SSD 1TB
• Wise PTS-2048 Portable SSD 2TB

*) New to the list.

Blackmagic Camera 7.0 (9/2020)
Version 7.0 implements support for the new Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 12K, including newly increased frame rates, still image recording to Blackmagic RAW, and studio lens connector support. Frame rates have been increased to up to 75 fps in 12K 2.4:1 mode, 120 fps in 8K and 4K DCI, 16:9 and 6:5 Anamorphic, 160 fps in 8K 2.4:1 and 4K 2.4:1 modes, and 240 fps in 4K Super 16 resolution. Blackmagic Camera 7.0 also brings support for 12K LUT correction and exposure metering at 12K resolution when using the Blackmagic URSA Viewfinder with the Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 12K.

Blackmagic Camera 7.2 (12/2020)

Firmware 7.2 focuses on the URSA Mini Pro 12K model, where it implements support for the Blackmagic URSA Mini Recorder, improved color processing algorithms in Video/Extended Video modes, improvements to debayering algorithms, expanded support for anamorphic recording and lenses (CN-E and Cabrio), and improved support for the Blackmagic URSA Viewfinder and Blackmagic URSA Studio Viewfinder. The Blackmagic RAW 2.0 Beta 4 update was also released simultaneously.

Blackmagic Camera 7.2.1 (1/2021)
New here is primarily increased accuracy in estimating remaining free space on the memory card, as well as improvements to the focus assist function.

Blackmagic RAW 2.0 (3/2021)
Thefull version of the Blackmagic RAW 2.0 installation kit implements support for the Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 12Kcamera, dual-card recording, and Generation 5 Color Science algorithms for color processing. Also new are DaVinci Wide Gamut and DaVinci Intermediate gamma profiles, as well as Blackmagic RAW data recording from Nikon Z 6II and Z 7II cameras using Video Assist 12G HDR series monitors/recorders.

Blackmagic Camera 7.4.1 (8/2021)
The new update for Blackmagic Design cameras is for Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 12K models, which improves the performance and stability of the USB-C interface when recording with the Blackmagic URSA Mini Recorder

Blackmagic RAW 2.1 (8/2021)

• Native Apple Silicon interface support on the Apple Mac platform
• Optimized media decoding from Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 12K cameras using CPU
• New Blackmagic Gen 5 Color Science Technical Reference document
• Blackmagic RAW media support from Panasonic S1H, S1 and S5
• Blackmagic RAW media support from Nikon Z 6II and Z 7II
• Faster plug-in for Premiere Pro application