First impressions: Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K

The Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K. Yes, you read that right, one of the worst named cameras ever. It's not pocket-sized, it's not really a cinema-style camera and putting 4K in the name is just as silly as if it had been called the Canon 5DmkII 1080p. Blackmagic really needs to revamp their naming conventions, but boy oh boy but this camera pack in some serious features for an unbeatable price.

$1300 for 4K RAW 60FPS with 13 stops of dynamic range recorded to internal UHS-II SD cards or CFast 2.0 cards. That's insane. Sure it's only a micro 4/3rds sensor and doesn't have internal stabilization but those are insignificant at such a low price. The Pocket Cinema Camera 4K also features Dual ISO, records externally over USB-C and runs off affordable LP-E6 batteries.

It's amazing and I'm not surprised. Blackmagic has consistently been putting all the other camera manufacturers to shame. They might miss ship dates and have their fair share of bugs and issues but the price to performance ratios are constantly kicking the crap out of the competition. It seems like every NAB Blackmagic has some new wonderful announcement and it just brings a smile to my face.

I love the Ursa Mini 4.6K and the GH5. Blackmagic decided to make my dreams come true and put the two together into one incredible package. The 5" touchscreen is beautiful. The menu system is beyond intuitive. It might not have an articulating screen but no camera is perfect.

We will have to see how it actually performs in the real world but on paper and in my hands at NAB, I immediately made a new best friend.

Product Highlights:
4/3" Sized HDR Sensor
Record DCI 4K 4096 x 2160 up to 60 fps
Dual Native ISO to 25,600
5" Touchscreen Display
Active Micro Four Thirds Lens Mount
Record up to 120 fps Windowed HD
CFast 2.0 & SD/UHS-II Card Slots
External Recording via USB Type-C
13-Stop Dynamic Range, 3D LUT Support
Includes DaVinci Resolve Studio License

[luisdinnebeer]

you deserve so many more subscribers! Your quality is better than many of the big youtubers.

[georgedoyle]

Good to have you back Stronz, its either a feast or a famine with you! ;)

[KaganTech]

Everyone! Time to panic sell your GH5 before the massive price crash that's coming!

[Holtenstein]

The price point does sell it. I can't really complain about anything! Oh and I think you forgot to mention it comes with Resolve Studio as well. What a great price point. At $1300 why not have one?

[bigdap]

Blackmagic hit this one out of the park: you don’t need image stabilization, autofocus, full frame, nor flippy screen to turn a brilliant idea into a beautiful story. The Pocket Cine 4K punches well above its price point and that’s all that really matters. If the image is great I’m getting 2 of ‘em.

[joncarson]

Do you think it could be a possibility to use a Canon Battery grip? Also how easy is it to adjust audio levels while rolling?

[PrettyLady]

this is going to be crazier when GH5 announced. Question: do they take preorder yet or no? thanks fro the video

[DynamixWarePro]

With the specs, the 4/3 sensor and Dual ISO, this could hurt sales of the GH5s if the low light performance is there because with the exception of a flip out screen and anamorphic and maybe a few small features the GH5/GH5s has, it beats the GH5s on specs anyway, especially the RAW video and ProRes codecs and that you can use multiple storage options and you're not limited to one type of media. I am not liking the design of it that much, but I like the big screen it has.

The price point does sell it, even if you have to get storage media and extra batteries that will increase the cost, but I wouldn't mind if it cot a little more if have a flip out screen (I sometimes talk in front of the camera and only have myself to set up the camera) and although not necessary exactly, it would have been nice to have built in variable ND so I could adjust the exposure how I wanted without having to use external filters like I do now with my GH5 and the only other minor thing is that I would have preferred a cold shoe mount instead of a screw mount on top so I could easily mount hardware like a light or microphone that has a shoe mount.

I am looking forward to seeing reviews and footage from this when it comes out as I have used a GH5 for about a year now and although I like it, I'd rather would have had a Blackmagic camera before then, but the ones I liked with the M4/3 mount had two issues, the Pocket Cinema Camera had a super 16mm sensor, a bit small, and the 2.5K Cinema Camera had detailed RAW but it wasn't that sharp to my eye and it didn't have an active MFT mount, this seems like the much better option and if I had the money, I may consider upgrading next year if nothing better comes along.

[andrewjohn]

Will it be able to mount a Zhiyun Crane 2 or even the ronin?

[baubergo]

What lens did you use for this particular video?

[EricLefebvrePhotography]

You forgot to mention that it includes black magic rull editor (300$ value) on an sd card.

[bigmouthmedia]

I'm still trying to work out if they have a LOG setting also...

[creativesymon]

It's a fantastic camera at the price point and should start a positive trend. But I HATE the name.

[josephbohme]

YOU PUNKED US, YOU DON'T HAVE ONE aN AIR CAMERA REVIEW

[iDealMedley]

What hair product are you using?😂 your hair looks silky smooth

[legendp]

I would gladly pay $2000 to have a built in evf and a screen that flipped up or down at-least (like the sony camera screen)

[iDealMedley]

I think this is a reasonable upgrade from the gh4. The codec is crazy

[iDealMedley]

I'm happy that i didn't upgrade to the gh5 from gh4. This is the reason why

[iDealMedley]

Nvr buy the 3rd party canon batteries the battery life is ridiculously low, get the original ones it will be worth your money trust me

[pharmabuse]

Six months - so close, and yet so far. 12-bit RAW, 10-bit ProRes, SD, CFAST 2.0, Ext. SSD, Dual ISO, Mini XLR - so much to like. But let's face it, your GH4 footage looks awesome, and is all most of us will ever need. Still shooting in Cinelike-V? Do wonder when/if BMD will bring dual native ISO to their S35 lineup, and if they'll introduce a FF sensor. They're definitely poised to take a bite out of Panasonic, Sony, and Canon's revenue in the prosumer/enthusiast market. Makes the idea of keeping 10-bit 422 out of the C200 seem all the more ridiculous. BMD seem to be giving consumers what they want, and more...