CES 2019 - Highlights and things to watch out for
CES 2019 highlights
CES 2019 is a wrap folks. The show that brought us a week long of excitement and gadget goodness will return after a year.
Here were some of our favorite camera products that were showcased at CES 2019.
Nikon Z Series 14-30MM f/4.0 Lens
Source: Nikon Global
Nikon introduced the new Nikorr Z series 14-30 F/4 S ultra wide zoom lens on the first day at CES 2019. The NIKKOR Z 14-30mm f/4 S is an ultra-wide-angle zoom lens that covers a 14 mm to 30 mm range of focal lengths with a constant maximum aperture of f/4 throughout the range. According to Nikon, the lens is part of the S-Line, a newly designated grade of NIKKOR Z lenses that adhere to a new benchmark in optical performance, creating new definitions of design principles and quality control.
Nikon Firmware Upgrade
Nikon has announced a firmware update that will enable raw video output to an external recorder, Eye AF and CF Express card compatibility. Nikon’s new mirrorless cameras, the Z6 and Z7 will be more than capable of outputting a RAW signal to the Atomos Ninja V.
With this new firmware update Nikon intends to announce its long awaited Eye auto-focus feature in their mirrorless cameras like the Z6 and the Z7. The Eye AF is a very good helping-hand when it comes to taking pictures such as portraits, event or street photography scenario. According to Nikon, the technology/feature is in its last and final implementation phase. In the demonstration video below, you can see it acquires the eye as fast as a Sony/Fujifilm has been able to do with their mirrorless technology.
Source: Nikon Europe YouTube Channel
Nikon has also announced that their new mirrorless cameras will be compatible with the new CF express cards after the firmware update. These cards use the same form-factors as the XQD cards which are the only data transfer interface used in the Z6 and Z7.
Source: ProGrade Digital Website
DJI Smart Controller
Source: ProGrade Digital Website
Source: DJI Global
DJI has introduced a smart controller for some of the drones it makes. By some we mean the latest drones like the Mavic 2 Zoom and the Mavic 2 Pro. DJI Smart Controller comes with a built-in microphone and speaker for “expanded options” such as live streaming. It can also playback video through the HDMI output port at 4K with H.264 or H.265. Of course, wi-fi is required for live streaming.
Source: DJI YouTube Channel
Sharp Micro Four Thirds 8K Camera
Sharp 8K Pocket Camera
Sharp introduced a prototype 8K Micro Four Thirds pocket camera. The camera is more than just a concept and it will be officially announced this year. In a lot of ways, the camera looks quite similar in design to a 4K Black Magic Pocket Camera.
According to Sharp, the camera will record 8K (7680×4320) at up to 30fps using H.265 compression. Sharp also claims that they are working on giving the camera the ability to record 8K 60p. The camera looks to be very minimalistic in its design, with very few physical buttons or dials. It has an SD card slot and we believe it to be UHS II type, as per the requirement of the footage.
Sharp claims it to be the ideal Vlogger/YouTuber camera because of its 5 inch flip-out touchscreen. Sharp has incorporated a very large screen because getting critical focus when shooting in 8K is not an easy task.
Nikon Z6 Filmmaker’s Kit
Source: Nikon Global
For users who are looking to take full advantage of the Nikon Z 6’s industry-leading video capabilities, this powerfully cinematic camera is now available as part of a new Filmmaker’s Kit. The bundle includes a range of equipment that helps users unlock the Z 6’s advanced video features and powerful potential.
Here’s everything included in the filmmaker’s kit:
NIKKOR Z 24-70mm f/4 S lens
Mount Adapter FTZ
Atomos Ninja V 4K HDR 5” Monitor Recorder
Rode VideoMic Pro Plus
MOZA Air 2 3-Axis Hand-Held Gimbal Stabilizer
Additional EN-EL15b battery
Coiled HDMI cable
12-month Vimeo Pro membership
Complimentary Nikon School Online class
Lexar 1 Terabyte SD Card
Source: Lexar Global
Lexar announced a 1 TB 1TB 633x SDXC™ UHS-I card to end your sorrow.
The main features are:
Leverages Class 10 UHS-I (U3, V30) technology for a read transfer speed up to 95MB/s (633x)*
Capture high quality images and extended lengths of stunning 1080p full-HD, 3D, and 4K video**
Enjoy shooting longer without changing cards with this high-capacity 1TB memory card
High-speed file transfer from card to computer to dramatically accelerate workflow
Kodak Smile Camera
Source: Kodak Global
Kodak has announced a new Instant Camera range which offers you the choice of a real print out or a digital copy of your image. In all, two cameras have been revealed: the 16-megapixel Kodak Smile Classic and the Kodak Smile, which offers up an LCD screen, a 10-megapixel digital camera, and microSD card slot.
Ista360 TITAN
Source: Insta360 Global
Launched at CES 2019, the Titan produces 10,560 x 5,280 video and stills. Not only that, it can capture both in 2D (monoscopic) and 3D (stereoscopic) formats.
Ordinary 360 cameras use a two small smartphone-size sensors back to back, with a 180+ degree fisheye lens over each, then stitch the two hemispherical images into a single 360 degree image in-camera in real time. The Titan uses the same advanced FlowState image stabilisation system used in its Insta360 One X model.
So those were the best highlights of CES 2019 that caught our eye.
What do you think we missed? Comment down below.
Nikon Firmware Update Enables Raw Video, Eye AF And CF Express Cards On Z7 And Z6
Nikon just dropped this news. This is going to change the mirrorless game.
Nikon has announced a firmware update that will enable raw video output to an external recorder, Eye AF and CF Express card compatibility.
Apple ProsRes RAW Output
On the second day of the CES 2019, Atomos’ CEO Jeromy Young announced that the new Atomos Ninja V is compatible to record ProRes RAW with the new Nikon Z6 and Nikon Z7.
“Atomos is excited to work with Nikon on the development of ProRes RAW recording from Nikon’s Z series. This expands ProRes RAW to Ninja V and is the world’s first true full frame mirrorless to give raw video output. The combination will enhance content creation at all levels, from Social, through Pro Video and into Entertainment.”
- Atomos Global
According to Atomos, the Nikon Z6 and the Nikon Z7 output a stream of RAW data via a HDMi cable to the Ninja V. Capturing Apple ProsRes RAW with the Ninja V will unlock wider and complete control of the video image at highest quality possible.
Some believe that Atomos is using a closed loop protocol with-in the HDMi, which basically means that they are taking all the pixels and rearranging them.
Nikon’s new mirrorless cameras, the Z6 and Z7 will be more than capable of outputting a RAW signal to the Atomos Ninja V, it’s not unrealistic to expect that more cameras will be capable of doing this in the near future. We wouldn’t expect that we are likely to see either Canon or Sony enable a RAW output to be recorded from their cameras.
Eye AF
With this new firmware update Nikon intends to announce its long awaited Eye auto-focus feature in their mirrorless cameras like the Z6 and the Z7. The Eye AF is a very good helping-hand when it comes to taking pictures such as portraits, event or street photography scenario.
“Our much-anticipated Eye AF function that is currently in development for the Z7 and Z6 can effectively detect your subject’s eyes, making focusing so much easier! You’ll capture stunning shots where focus has been clearly acquired on the subject's eyes - good news for portrait and streetphotographers!”
-Nikon Global
According to Nikon, the technology/feature is in its last and final implementation phase. In the demonstration video below, you can see it acquires the eye as fast as a Sony/Fujifilm has been able to do with their mirrorless technology. The only difference being that the area of the box seems to be much larger than that of Sony’s or Fujifilm’s Eye AF.
Source: Nikon Europe YouTube Channel
It will be possible to select which eye to focus on if there are multiple subjects in the frame, in which case, this makes it easier for the shooter to prioritise the particular subject.
We expect the Nikon’s Eye AF to be as efficient as Sony’s or Fujifilm’s.
As of now, Nikon has not released an official date about when we can expect this new firmware upgrade, but we believe it will be soon.
If you would like to know further please visit:
CF Express Card
Nikon has also announced that their new mirrorless cameras will be compatible with the new CF express cards after the firmware update. These cards use the same form-factors as the XQD cards which are the only data transfer interface used in the Z6 and Z7.
What’s really surprising is that Sony was the first one to introduce XQD cards and yet they have not incorporated the technology to any of their camera devices.
In a recent statement given by Pro Grade Digital states that they will be introducing a 1 terabyte CF Express card demonstrated 1,400 MB/s read speed and over 700 MB/s burst write speed.
Source: ProGrade Digital Website
“ProGrade Digital is delighted to be participating in this exciting technology demonstration highlighting the speed of the ProGrade Digital 1TB CFexpress card and Thunderbolt™ 3.0 in the digital workflow,”
-Wes Brewer, founder and CEO of ProGrade Digital.
“With read speeds up to 1400MB/s, this technology provides peak performance for offloading cinema-quality, video and still image files at speeds that are at least three times faster than ever before.”
- ProGrade Digital Global
If you would like to know further, please visit:
https://progradedigital.com/2019/01/08/prograde-digital-cfexpress-1-0-demonstrated-at-ces-show/
