I am a photojournalist with near two decades of experience, shooting on every type of video camera imaginable. I have seen the constant shifts and evolution in our field from the trusty Sony Beta SP (analog camera) to the digital high definition cameras that exist today.

At a recent Formula 1 shooting at The Circuits of America in Austin Texas, I had the pleasure to shoot on URSA Mini by Black Magic Designs. I was amazed by how well the camera was designed. I immediately started to research their newest camera line-up and am very pleased with what I see. Here is what Black Magic Designs is bringing you this year.

URSA Mini 4K
The affordable URSA Mini ($2999.00 per B&H) 4K features a fixed EF mount along with dual CFast card recorders. The web site refers to the camera as such, “URSA Mini Pro is designed to include everything you need in a handheld camera so you can take it anywhere!

Unlike cheap plastic cameras, the evenly weighted camera body is made out of a super tough magnesium alloy. It’s a true professional camera with full redundancy on every control, even the power switch! Plus, the familiar broadcast switches and controls allow full setting changes without having to take the camera off your shoulder!

There’s an external high visibility backlit LCD status display so you can see critical shooting information, and a 4” foldout touch screen for reviewing shots. That means you don’t have to carry an extra on‑set monitor! You get professional connections such as 12G‑SDI, XLR audio, a built in high quality microphone and more. The optional electronic viewfinder and shoulder mount kit lets you go from tripod to handheld shooting in seconds, or you can turn URSA Mini Pro into the ultimate live production camera by adding an URSA Studio Viewfinder!”

For videographers on a small budget, looking for a high quality camera can be a difficult task indeed. This camera is a great option for you. It will provide the high end looks and color grades professionals love while not breaking the budget. It is also a easy to use camera. All the buttons are exactly where they should be; and therefore easily accessible.

URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2
The URSA Mini Pro 4.6k G2 camera is an amazing camera. Priced at $5995.00 this camera is the newest and best camera on the market within its class.

The URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2 adds built in ND filters, an interchangeable lens mount, dual CFast and UHS‑II SD card recorders, and a massive set of broadcast features and external controls. URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2 is the ultimate high end digital film camera with second generation electronics, a high frame rate image sensor, and a USB‑C for recording directly to external drives.

It features high quality neutral density (ND) filters that let you quickly reduce the amount of light entering the camera. The 2, 4 and 6 stop filters have been specifically designed to match the colorimetry and color science of the camera, providing you with additional latitude, even under harsh lighting conditions. This lets you use different combinations of aperture and shutter angle to achieve shallower depth of field, or specific levels of motion blur, in a wider range of situations.

The IR filters have been designed to filter both optical wave lengths and IR wave lengths evenly to eliminate IR contamination of the images that most ND filters can suffer from. The ND filters are true optical filters with a precision mechanism that quickly moves them into place when the ND filter dial is turned. The filter settings can even be displayed as either an ND number, stop reduction or fraction on the LCD!
This feature can be seen on the Sony FS5 setup but Black Magic is taking it to a whole new level of accessablity.

BLACK MAGIC DESIGNS are the best new cameras on the market.
This Camera does not disappoint and will be seen all over production sights and in the hands of videographers like me all around the world. I am not saying that I will never own a SONY, CANON or PANASONIC Camera in the future. Those Cameras are proven and time tested. What I am saying is that BLACK MAGIC has caught up with the competition and will not be shunned by me or any other professional photojournalists in the future.

If you need help deciding which camera is best for your needs, go ahead and schedule a free consultation with me and I’d be happy to assist you.