NEWS AGENDA Away with the Pyxis! Blackmagic’s
newest cinema camera could be an affordable entry point into the full- frame Raw field
Owning a full-frame cinema camera that records 6K Raw footage internally has been a pipe dream for many due to the limited choice and high price of cameras. But the new Blackmagic Pyxis changes all that, as this next-generation digital film camera comes with a choice of L-Mount, PL or locking EF lens mounts and costs just £2910/$2995. It is being heralded as the easiest full- frame cinema camera to rig up, thanks to its box design that’s made from aerospace aluminium with multiple mounting points and accessory side plates. An included SSD plate provides a mount to attach a USB-C drive for recording, or a mobile phone for live streaming. The camera has the same 36x24mm, 6048x4032 pixel sensor with dual native ISO up to 25,600 that we recently tested in the Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K, offering 13 stops of dynamic range. Also present on the body are dual CFexpress media slots for recording codecs such as Blackmagic Raw – and these will sync media with Blackmagic’s Cloud platform. Lots of frame choices are offered, including open gate 3:2, which allows for reframing in post-production. This makes it ideal for anamorphic shooting. The sensor caters for true 6:5 anamorphic without cropping, too, for widescreen cinematic images in high resolution. The Pyxis can shoot in all standard resolutions and frame rates from HD
MAGIC TOUCH The full-frame sensor from the Blackmagic 6K camera now comes in a conventional video-style body
swappable and a USB-C expansion port allows recording direct to external flash media disks or an SSD. The Pyxis also produces HD H.264 proxies in real time, making it easy to share media in minutes by uploading to the Blackmagic Cloud by using the latest Apple or Android phones via mobile data. Wired Ethernet is also possible via a port. The camera supports the optional Blackmagic Ursa Cine EVF for shooting outdoors. This has a 1920x1080 colour OLED display with built-in proximity sensor as well as four-element glass dioptre adjustment. A 12G-SDI output is included for monitoring, with support for HDR and Ultra HD output. So an SDI display can be used on-set for monitoring, with or without overlays that show camera info and status. SDI allows for far longer cable runs than HDMI, making it easier to reach monitors positioned further away on-set. The Pyxis features a streaming engine that supports RTMP and SRT for YouTube, Facebook, X and more. The camera also has mini XLR inputs
up to DCI 4K and 6K, as well as stills at 24.6 megapixels. It records to 36fps at 6048x4032 3:2 open gate or 60fps at 6048x2520 2.4:1 and 4096x2160 DCI 4K. For higher frame rates, the sensor can be windowed to shoot up to 100fps at 2112x1184 – a Super 16 crop. The built-in LCD is a four-inch-tall, high-resolution HDR touchscreen with 1500 nits of brightness, so there should be no need for an external monitor. The camera design gives important functions such as ISO, white-balance and shutter speed both touchscreen and physical controls. A row of three function buttons may be customised, and the controls can be locked to avoid accidentally changing settings during a shot. Recording in Blackmagic Raw allows precise control of detail, exposure and colour during post-production. The two CFexpress card recorders are hot-
“The Pyxis can shoot in all standard resolutions and frame rates from HD up to DCI 4K and 6K, as well as stills at 24.6 megapixels”
with 48v phantom power and accepts BP-U batteries.
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PRO MOVIEMAKER
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