SONY FX6
SPECIFICATIONS Price: £5994/$5998 Sensor size: 10.2megapixels BSI CMOS, full-frame Image stabiliser: None Formats: 4096x2160 C4K, 3840x2160 4K, 1920x1080 FHD, MXF Codecs: C4KXAVC-I 10-bit 4:2:2 up to 60p 600Mbps; 4K 10-bit 4:2:2 up to 120p 600Mbps; 4KXAVC-L, 8-bit 4:2:0 150Mbps up to 120p, FHD XAVC-I 10-bit 4:2:2 up to 60p 223mbps, XAVC-L 10-bit 4:2:0 up to 240p 50mbps, MPEG 8-bit 4:2:2 50Mbps 60p, 16-bit Raw via external recorder ISO: Base ISO 800/12,800 ISO range: 800-102,400 (expandable 160-409,600) Gamma curves: S-Cinetone, Standard, HLG, S-Log3 Dynamic range: 15+ stops Autofocusmodes: Fast hybrid AFwith real-time Eye AF, touch AF Autofocus points: 627 on-sensor phase detection Controls: Peaking, waveform, zebras Lensmount: Sony E Shutter speed: 1sec – 1/8000sec Filters: Variable ND 1.4– 1/128 Screen: 8.8cm/3.5in LCD, 2.76million dots Audio: 2 x XLR inputs on handle
I t wasn’t very long ago that a full- frame cinema camera was the holy grail for most filmmakers and totally out of reach. With only a handful of manufacturers like Arri and Red offering these large- chip beauties, they cost as much as a very nice sports car. Sony and Canon joined in the fun, but with eye-watering prices for the Venice and C700 FF. Then around a year ago, everything changed as Sony and Canon threw their hats into the ring with latest-spec, full-frame sensor cameras ideal for high ISO performance and shallow depth- of-field, including advanced autofocus systems using new- school phase detection. Canon’s 5.9K C500 Mark II costs £17,000/$15,999 while Sony’s 4K FX9 might not have internal Raw shooting, but is even more affordable at £11,160/$10,998. Obviously not cheap, but the Sony is around a third of the price of the full-frame Venice and shared its sensor technology. So it is in the realms of affordability for independent filmmakers, especially as a rental option. And high-end crews can finally afford a B camera to a Venice that had the same sensor size and, hence, look. Fast forward around a year and Sony has gone a huge step further in affordability with its new full-frame FX6 cinema camera at a smidge under six grand – £5994/$5998. And although it doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of the FX9, as you might expect, it does have a few tricks all of its own that FX9 owners will be looking at jealously. It’s an
incredible camera for the money, and also very light and compact. If you think of the FX9 as a Sony FS7 with a full-frame sensor, then similarly, the FX6 has a similar body size and shape to the FS5 and is also fitted with a full-frame sensor. It’s not the 6K sensor of the FX9 – which is downsampled to 4K in use – but it’s essentially the same BSI CMOS sensor and AF tech as found in the new Sony A7S III mirrorless camera we have raved about. Much of the spec is identical, although there are a few differences. But the headline specs remain: 4K/60p full-frame with no crop, recorded internally to SD or new-school CFexpress Type A cards, in 10-bit 4:2:2 All-Intra with no limitations on recording time and with all the advanced hybrid AF functions still working. Both the A7S III and FX6 shoot 120fps 4K internally, too, as well as 240fps in HD for up to 10x super-slowmotion, although there is a slight crop at the fastest frame rates. There is a huge range of HD and 4K options in 10-bit and 8-bit, 4:2:2 and 4:2:0 versions, All-Intra and Log-GOP. While the A7S III shoots at 16:9 4K only, the FX6 does offer 17:9 C4K in XAVC-I 10-bit 4:2:2 at up to 60p, recording at 600Mbps. Which is where the nitpickers can claim the FX6 isn’t always full- frame. In 4K at up to 60p, it records from the whole width of the sensor, but at C4K, instead of the field of view becoming wider by around 5%, the FX6 view actually becomes shallower to give the DCI-4K aspect ratio. There is also a crop when using fast frame rates over 60p by
ABOVE There’s no viewfinder, but the screen can be mounted in lots of different positions
Output: BNC 12G-SDI, HDMI-A, USB-C, Wi-Fi
Storage: 2 x CFexpress Type A or SD/SDHC/SDXC card slots Dimensions (WxHxD): 114x116x153mm/4.5x4.6x6.1in Weight: 890g/1.96lb body only
around 10%. It’s a small difference, but something to be aware of if you are using it alongside an FX9, which has a 6K sensor that downsizes to 4K for recording, as there is a difference. In terms of the sensor, the FX9 uses a CMOS with a Dual Base ISO system that changes how the sensor gathers light at different settings. It changes the sensitivity and also
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