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Blackmagic Design announced Blackmagic Video Assist 12G which are new models of the company's popular combined monitoring and recording solutions. These new models feature brighter HDR screens, built in scopes, upgraded batteries, 12G-SDI and much more. Blackmagic Video Assist 12G will be available in September 2019.

The new Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR adds professional monitoring and recording to any SDI or HDMI camera in all HD, Ultra HD, 2K and 4K DCI formats. The new improved design includes innovations such as brighter screens for HDR work, tally indicator, 4 built in scopes, enhanced focus assist features, 3D LUTs and native Blackmagic RAW recording from supported cameras. With 12G-SDI and HDMI 2.0 on both 5" and 7" models, customers get support for recording from virtually any device in all formats up to 2160p60. A brighter touch screen ensures a better view of their recording when shooting HDR digital film, or when shooting outdoors in sunlight. The new design also features upgraded batteries and supports two standard Sony L-Series batteries. This means Blackmagic Video Assist 12G is incredibly versatile and is the perfect solution for the next generation of digital cinema shoots, live production mastering, broadcast testing and measurement.

There are two models of Blackmagic Video Assist 12G, with each model including an innovative touch screen user interface with deck controls, as well as a large screen to view recordings. The Blackmagic Video Assist 7" 12G model also includes 2 media slots, while both the 5" and 7" models include 12G-SDI for high frame rate Ultra HD, analog inputs for audio, USB-C external disk recording, plus a front panel speaker and side mounted headphone jack. Customers also get 2 rear battery slots for mounting Sony L-Series batteries, so customers have enough power for the brighter HDR screens and higher speed Ultra HD electronics. A 12v universal power supply is included for studio or on location use.

Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR is an ideal upgrade for cameras, as it’s super bright 2500nit display is bigger than the tiny displays found on consumer cameras, plus users are also adding professional focus assist features and better quality file formats. Video Assist is also a great solution for professional cameras because customers can use it to upgrade older broadcast cameras to modern file formats used on the latest editing software. No matter what editing software customers use, Video Assist lets customers support them all, as customers can record in Apple ProRes, Avid DNx and Blackmagic RAW. With both HDMI and 12G-SDI inputs customers can connect it to any consumer camera, broadcast camera or even DSLR cameras. Then, on supported cameras, customers can even upgrade to RAW style workflows with Blackmagic RAW.

The innovative touchscreen LCD user interface provides incredible control. On screen, there are dedicated buttons for play, stop and record, plus a mini timeline for scrolling through their recordings. Customers can even image swipe to jog. The LCD includes a heads up display of timecode, video standard, media status as well as audio meters. Scopes can be enabled via the touch screen as well as focus and exposure assist. Plus customers can load and save 3D LUTs.

Video Assist uses commonly available SD card media, so customers can record to flash memory cards that are easy to obtain. The files are small enough to allow long recordings on standard SD cards or the faster UHS-II cards. The larger Video Assist 12G 7" model even includes 2 SD card slots so customers can swap out any full cards even during recording, allowing infinite length recording. Standard SD cards or the faster UHS-II cards are perfect for broadcast because they are small, high speed and affordable.

If recording to other media types is required, then the USB-C Expansion port lets customers plug in an external flash disk for recording. Imagine adding a Blackmagic MultiDock 10G for easy SSD compatibility with other recorders such as Blackmagic HyperDeck models. Customers even get on screen menus for managing external disks using the touch screen.

Video Assist features a wide range of video and audio connections such as multi-rate 12G-SDI for SD, HD, and Ultra HD SDI devices. HDMI is included for HDMI cameras and monitoring to consumer televisions and video projectors. The 7 inch model features Mini XLR inputs which are provided for audio input from microphones and external audio mixers. Video Assist even includes a 12V DC power connection with locking power connector.

Customers will be ready for the latest HDR workflows with support for the latest HDR standards and an extremely bright screen with a wide color gamut. Plus the high brightness screen makes outdoor shooting in bright sunlight possible. The built in scopes even change to HDR scopes when working in HDR formats. Files are tagged with the correct HDR information then SDI and HDMI inputs will also automatically detect HDR video standards. Static metadata PQ and HLG formats are handled according to the ST2084 standard. The bright LCD has a wider color gamut so it can handle both Rec. 2020 and Rec. 709 colorspaces. The built in Video Assist LCD color gamut can even handle 100% of the DCI-P3 format.

Video Assist features full internal waveform monitoring so customers can ensure compliance to broadcast standards and it also works great as a portable waveform monitoring solution. The waveform display provides a traditional luminance (brightness) levels view of the video inputs or the playback signal. The vectorscope display allows customers to see the intensity of color at 100% SDI reference levels. Customers also get an RGB parade display which is ideal for color correction and checking for illegal levels. Histogram shows the distribution of white to black detail in their images and highlights or shadows clipping. The built in scopes can even be overlaid on live video, or as a small picture in picture view at the top right of the scope.

The SDI and HDMI connections are multi-rate, so handle SD, HD, and Ultra HD. SD formats include NTSC and PAL. 720p HD standards include 720p50 and 59.94p. 1080i HD interlaced formats include 1080i50 and 59.94. 1080p HD formats include 1080p23.98, 24, 25, 29.97, 30, 50, 59.94 and 60p. Customers can even do 1080 PsF formats. Ultra HD is supported up to 2160p59.94. Customers can even record 2K and 4K DCI rates up to 25p for digital film work.

Video Assist works with industry standard 17 and 33 point 3D LUT files, or customers can work with the built in LUTs such as Extended Video, Film to Video, Film to Rec.2020 and more.

Video Assist records using standard open file formats so customers don’t have to waste time transcoding media. Recording works in industry standard 10-bit ProRes or DNx files in all formats and from all HDMI or SDI cameras, as well as 12-bit Blackmagic RAW when connected to supported cameras. Best of all media files work on all operating systems.

Blackmagic RAW is a revolutionary new format designed to capture and preserve the quality of the sensor data from cameras. Video Assist supports Blackmagic RAW recording from popular cameras such as Panasonic EVA1 and Canon C300 MK II. This eliminates the problems with popular camera formats such as H.264, which are highly compressed resulting in noise and processing artifacts. It also saves camera settings as metadata so customers can set ISO, white balance and exposure, then override them later while editing, all without any loss of quality. Blackmagic RAW files are also small and fast to use making them easy to work with.

Blackmagic Video Assist 12G includes a built in professional audio recorder that’s much better quality than the audio quality found in most cameras, eliminating the need to carry around extra audio equipment. When working in SDI formats, customers can record 2, 4, 8 or 16 channels of audio in real time. For connecting microphones the Video Assist 7" model has two XLR analog audio inputs with phantom power that support the high definition audio sample rate of 192 kHz at uncompressed 16 and 24 bit per sample. Customers can monitor using on screen audio meters with user selectable VU or PPM ballistics.

Multiple languages are fully supported so customers don't need to learn another language to use it. Support is included for English, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, German, French, Russian, Italian, Portuguese and Turkish.

The files from Blackmagic Video Assist 12G are common and are compatible with all operating systems or in most video software. Media can be formatted using ExFAT or HFS+ so customers can easily access the media on computers and access the files like regular disks. DaVinci Resolve is perfect for use with Video Assist because it features editing, color correction, audio post production and visual effects all in one software application.



Availability and Price
Blackmagic Video Assist 12G will be available in September 2019 from US$795, excluding duties, from Blackmagic Design resellers worldwide.

Press Photography
Product photos of the Blackmagic Video Assist 12G, as well as all other Blackmagic Design products, are available at www.blackmagicdesign.com/media/images.

About Blackmagic Design
Blackmagic Design creates the world’s highest quality video editing products, digital film cameras, color correctors, video converters, video monitoring, routers, live production switchers, disk recorders, waveform monitors and real time film scanners for the feature film, post production and television broadcast industries. Blackmagic Design’s DeckLink capture cards launched a revolution in quality and affordability in post production, while the company’s Emmy™ award winning DaVinci color correction products have dominated the television and film industry since 1984. Blackmagic Design continues ground breaking innovations including 6G-SDI and 12G-SDI products and stereoscopic 3D and Ultra HD workflows. Founded by world leading post production editors and engineers, Blackmagic Design has offices in the USA, UK, Japan, Singapore and Australia. For more information, please go to www.blackmagicdesign.com.

Blackmagic Design released Blackmagic RAW 1.5 a new software update with support for Adobe Premiere Pro and Avid Media Composer, plus Blackmagic RAW Speed test for Mac, PC and Linux, so customers can work on a wider range of platforms and editing software with their Blackmagic RAW files. Blackmagic RAW 1.5 is available for download now from the Blackmagic Design web site.

The new Blackmagic RAW 1.5 update includes Blackmagic RAW Speed Test which is now available on Windows and Linux for the first time. Blackmagic RAW Speed Test is a CPU and GPU benchmarking tool for testing the speed of decoding full resolution Blackmagic RAW frames on their system. Multiple CPU cores and GPUs are automatically detected and used during the test so that customers get accurate and realistic results. Simply select Blackmagic RAW constant bitrate 3:1, 5:1, 8:1 or 12:1 and the desired resolution to perform the test. Results are displayed in an easy to read table that shows how many frames per second the computer can decode for all supported resolutions.

Editors working in Adobe Premiere Pro and Avid Media Composer can now work with Blackmagic RAW files using the free plug-ins found in Blackmagic RAW 1.5. These new plug-ins enable editors to work with Blackmagic RAW directly, so they no longer have to transcode files. That means camera original Blackmagic RAW files can be used throughout the entire workflow. There is no longer a need to create proxy files and conform edits for finishing. These plug-ins bring the quality of RAW in small, modern, GPU and CPU accelerated files that are faster and easier to work with than any other video format. Best of all, when projects are moved from Premiere Pro or Media Composer into DaVinci Resolve for color correction and finishing, all of the camera RAW metadata and image quality is still there.

AJ-CX4000
Panasonic will showcase its new AJ-CX4000GJ broadcast shoulder mount 4K camera at IBC 2019. The product, which will launch in December 2019, follows the handheld-type AG-CX350 as the new “CX” Series lineup of 4K camera recorders . The AJ-CX4000GJ is a B4 lens mount, interchangeable lens camera recorder that is typical for broadcast use. It is equipped with a large-sized 11MP image sensor and enables high quality 4K (UHD) image recording with a horizontal resolution of 2000 TV lines. It is also compatible with HDR, compliant with BT.2100 and BT.2020.  The high efficiency and high image quality HEVC codec is adopted for the recording of 4K images. Long time recording with 4K/10-bit high image quality is possible whilst keeping bitrate and storage size under control. The high speed transfer and reliable expressP2 card or the low running cost microP2 card (SDXC memory card can also be used) can be selected for recording media. It also supports the recording of the AVC-ULTRA codec (HD) from the conventional P2HD Series. UHD 60p/50p 10-bit 4:2:2 output via a 12G-SDI output is also possible. Additionally, it offers an innovative network solution. Images can be distributed in HD mode to internet live streaming services using the Direct Streaming function, compatible with RTSP, RTMP and RTMPS. The LAN terminal, equipped with a lock mechanism (1000BASE-T compatibility), supports NDI|HX connectivity. Transmission and camera control is possible with an IP connection and can be linked to a recording/distribution system combined with Panasonic’s remote camera. For sports events and documentary recording, this camera offers the high-quality 4K images that are required for the broadcasting industry.

AV-UHS500
A new 12G-SDI compatible compact 4K Live Switcher, the AV-UHS500, will also be on display at IBC 2019. The 4K Live Switcher demonstrates outstanding live video production performance in the field for use in a variety of applications, such as event staging, broadcast at stations and OB vans, lectures at universities and conference halls. The AV-UHS500, planned for release in February 2020, represents the next step in switching technology from Panasonic, which has rapidly gained a reputation for live compact switchers in broadcast studios, live entertainment and sport events. The AV-UHS500 offers a high level of functionality in its range. In addition to providing 4K/3G/HD multi format support, the device allows the same number of HD inputs and outputs to be maintained even when operating in 4K. Five optional boards have also been developed to meet customer needs. For improved flexibility and usability, additional optional boards can be freely installed to increase the number of inputs to as many as 16 SDI or 8 HDMI, ensuring smooth operation at big events with a large number of cameras. The unit is equipped with 5 keyers, including 2ch of chroma-key and 2ch of PiP, to enable a variety of production effects. The switcher is also equipped with an up/down conversion function, HDR/SDR conversion function and ITU-R BT.2020/BT.709 conversion function. These enable the flexibility to select video output as needed in environments where there are a variety of formats being used.

AK-SHB800
Panasonic is also showcasing its new 8K ROI (Region of Interest) multi camera system that promises to change the landscape of broadcast production. This system includes a 8K multi-purpose camera (AK-SHB800), a processing unit (AK-SHU800) and framing control software (AK-SFC101) and goes on sale in Europe later this month at an RRP of 130.000 EUR. The 8K ROI system is able to produce 4 different HD signals or virtual cameras from a single 8K camera system. The 8K sensor produces a wide angle, large canvas, out of which four separate crops can be generated out of the processing unit. The system improves operational efficiency, reducing operating costs on a multitude of potential production applications such as sports broadcasting, staging and studio applications. Featuring automated picture correction technology, the camera system also ensures that any distorted images are corrected and cropped with a natural, cut out, Full HD image from within the main 8K image. Multiple cameras can be integrated across the system, with a main operator controlled camera linked to further sub-cameras, which can also be pre-programmed prior to the event. As a result, a single operator can control multiple cameras each with several pre-set crops for versatile, yet cost effective multi-camera operation.

AW-RP60
The brand new AW-RP60 Remote Camera Controller unit will also be demonstrated. Equipped with a large LCD to display a GUI menu screen with clear visibility and an improved joystick for smoother control, this controller is compatible with all current Panasonic PTZ models. Thanks to the improved GUI, now all important information about the cameras, such as iris, zoom and focus can be seen at all times directly on the screen. The AW-RP60 is also capable of supporting up to 200 cameras in 20 groups, manages 100 presets and comes with PoE support allowing for an easy integration. It will be available from October onwards.

Brazilian artist Mauro Corveloni has been using LightWave 3D® since 2000, and is renowned for his character creation. Many in the LightWave™ community have asked him to share his tips on how he does the hair and fur for his creatures and people, and we’re pleased to be able to share this amazing FiberFX™ tips and tricks video with you here on the LightWave blog!

Whether you are a professional DP making films with RED or ARRI cameras, or an amateur video maker or just a passionate gimbal user shooting videos with SONY, CANON, NIKON, FUJIFILM, BMD or other DSLR or mirrorless cameras, MARS 400S is a product that could cater your needs.

Up to 4 iOS & Android APP Monitoring
Both SDI & HDMI Interfaces
OLED Display Screen & Low-Battery Warning Indicator
121 m Transmission Range with Ultra-Low Latency
Channel Scan&Three Application Scene Modes
Support 1 Transmitter Connecting to 2 Receivers