Canon and Red went head-to-head in Hollywood last night with both companies launching similar-sized video cameras aimed at high-end TV and feature film productions.
Canon chairman and chief executive Fujio Mitarai told a 500-strong audience at Paramount Studios that the EOS C300 was Canon’s attempt to become part of Hollywood’s film-making community.
“We don’t expect you to welcome us without good reason, so I’ve brought a set of tools from Japan that I believe will greatly expand the boundaries of digital expression and lead to new possibilities in story telling through motion pictures,” said Mitarai.
Three hours later and less than a mile away, Red revealed the specification of its Scarlet-X camera, three years after the device was first unveiled.
The 4K Red camera has a 14 megapixel sensor with a dynamic range of 13.5 stops and up to 18 stops with HDRx.
Canon’s EOS C300 camera is available in two models - an EF or PL mount – and has an 8.3 megapixel Super 35mm sensor, which provides 12 stops of latitude.
Canon said its camera shoots at 1080p rather than 4K because “1080p is the most commonly used and sought after shooting and delivery size for productions today” and that it would allow for “seamless” integration into production pipelines.
The C300 has a list price of $20,000 (£12,485), with an estimated delivery date of the end of January for the EF version and March for the PL mount camera.
Red’s Scarlet-X is priced from $9,750 (£6,080) and will ship from 17 November.
In an apparent swipe at Canon, Red said its new camera leaves “one-dimensional DSLRs and 1080p camcorders in its wake”.
“The future is dependent on those who push… not those who react,” said Jim Jannard, founder of Red.
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