Well, someone finally did it. You can finally build your own camera. Cobble together all the parts you want with
Red's new Epic or Scarlet systems and you get a custom configured video/still camera.
It's a shame the thing is so darn expensive. As far as I can see:
Pros
- Dynamic range: 11+ or 13+ stops!!
- FPS: 30+!!
- Unless you go real low end, you'll be getting really good resolution.
- You can use Canon and Nikon Lenses!
- If you've got the money to put into accessories: configure your 'brain' as a still camera one day and then a video camera, the next.
Cons
- Price, you're gonna have to spend a boatload to get a decent setup. ($7000 to use Nikon or Canon Lenses)
- Judging from the configuration above, this is gonna feel like a medium format camera – the fast and light of a DSLR might be outa the question.
- The earliest we're gonna see anything is Spring 2009, and most likely won't see the whole line until 2010.
Things I still wanna hear about
- Storage: 24MP at 30FPS is gonna add up fast. Are we storing on harddrives, huge flash drives, what?
- They claim this huge dynamic range: trust, but verify.
- Will there be an optical viewfinder?
- How much do accessories like the DSLR grip cost?
- What about flash? There doesn't seem to be a hotshoe.