Blackmagic Design released its annual NAB 2024 update and announced over a dozen new products, including a new version of its popular DaVinci Resolve editing suite. Other key products include the Micro Color Panel for DaVinci Resolve on iPad, a 17K 65mm camera, and the Pyxis 6K Cube Camera.
Davinci Determination 19
DaVinci Resolve has become a popular option for editors who don’t want to pay a monthly subscription to Adobe Premiere Pro, and is arguably more powerful in some ways. However, the latest version 19 stands out from its rival, offering a range of new AI-powered features for effects, color, editing, audio and more.
Starting with the editing module, a new feature lets you edit clips with text instead of videos. Transcribing clips opens a window that displays text recognized by multiple speakers. This allows you to remove sections, search text, and more. Other features include a new trim window, a fixed playhead (reduces zooming and scrolling), a window that makes changing audio attributes faster, and more.
The Color tool introduces “Color Slice,” a way to adjust an image based on six vectors (red, green, blue, yellow, cyan, and magenta) along with a dedicated skin tone slider. For example, you can adjust any of these specific colors, easily changing the saturation levels and hues while seeing and adjusting the underlying tone. The special skin slider undoubtedly makes it attractive for quick skin tone adjustment.
Another important feature in Color is “IntelliTrack,” which is based on a neural AI engine and allows you to quickly select points to track to create effects or stabilize an image. Blackmagic has also added a new Lightroom-like AI-powered noise reduction system that quickly removes digital noise or film grain from images without the need for user adjustments.
“Film Look Creator” is a new module that opens up color correction options with over 60 cinematic parameters. The operation seems to be quite simple, as you can start with a preset (standard 65mm, cinema, bleach bypass, nostalgia) and then adjust the parameters to your taste. Another new trick is Defocus Background, which allows users to realistically simulate shallow depth of field through masking (unlike smartphones), while Face Refinement tracks faces so editors can tweak brightness, colors, details and more.
The Fusion FX editor adds some new tools that make it easier to manipulate 3D objects, and on the audio side (Fairlight), BMD has introduced the “Dialogue Separator FX” to separate dialogue, background or atmosphere. DaVinci Resolve 19 is now in open beta for everyone to try. A full release date is not yet known. As usual, the studio version costs $295 and the main version is free.
Micro color panel
BMD’s DaVinci Resolve for iPad proved to be a popular option for editors on the go, and now the company has introduced a dedicated control interface with the new Micro Color Panel. It offers editors control far beyond the already good pencil and multitouch input, while remaining relatively unobtrusive at 7.18 x 14.33 inches.
A slot at the top front allows you to slide your iPad in and connect from there via Bluetooth or USB-C. The company promises a “professional” feel for the controls, which consist of three weighted trackballs, 12 rotary controls and 27 buttons. With it, you can perform editors, adjust parameters such as shadows, tints and highlights, and even perform smudges and other effects.
“The old DaVinci Resolve Micro Panel model was popular with customers who wanted a compact grading panel, but we wanted to create an even more portable and affordable solution,” said Grant Petty, president of Blackmagic Design. It’s available to pre-order now for $509.
Box 6K camera
Blackmagic Design follows rivals like RED, Sony and Panasonic with a new box-style camera, the Pyxis 6K full-frame camera. The idea is that you start with the basic brain (controls, display, CFexpress media, brain and sensor) and then use side plates or mounting screws to attach accessories like handles, microphones and SSDs. It’s also available with Blackmagic’s URSA Cine EVF (electronic viewfinder), which adds $1,695 to the price.
The specs are very similar to the Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K that I tested late last year. The native resolution is 24 megapixels (6K) on a 36 x 24 mm sensor, enabling a dynamic range of up to 13 stops with two native ISO values of up to 25,600. It can record 12-bit Blackmagic RAW (BRAW) directly to the CFexpress Type B cards or an SSD.
It also supports direct streaming to YouTube, Facebook, Twitch and others via RTMP and SRT, either over Ethernet or over a cellular connection. Since streaming is built into the camera, customers and customers can see the stream status and data rate directly in the viewfinder or LCD. The Pyxis 6K launches in June for $2,995 with three mounts (Canon EF, Leica L and Arri PL).
Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K and 17K
Along with the Pyxis, Blackmagic introduced a pair of cinema cameras, the URSA Cine 12K and 17K models. Yes, these numbers represent the resolution of these two cameras, with the first offering a full-frame 36 x 24mm sensor with 12K resolution (12,888 x 6,480 17:9) and an incredible 100 fps. The second has a 65mm (50.8 x 23.3) sensor with a resolution of 17,520 x 8,040 and a dynamic range of up to 16 stops.
Both models have features such as built-in ND filters, an optical low-pass filter and BMD’s latest Generation 5.0 color technology. The URSA Cine 12K comes with 8TB of internal storage, but you can also use your own CFexpress media. Other features include live streaming, a high-resolution EVF, V-battery support, Bluetooth wireless camera control and more. The URSA Cine 12K model is available for pre-order for $14,995 or $16,495 with the URSA Cine EVF and will be available in April. The URSA Cine 17K is in development, pricing or release has not yet been announced.
This article contains affiliate links; If you click on such a link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission.