Pro Video File Types and Codecs: Sony 2016, ProResRAW 2020

[VidThreeNorth]

I am hoping to collect information beyond Sony and beyond 2016 to create a general reference, but I guess we have to start somewhere, so this my first post. I will retitle this topic as becomes appropriate:

This is fairly beginner level, and it is a bit dated already, but I think it is a good start.

"Explaining Sony's XAVC Codec's - XAVC-I, XAVC-L and XAVC-S",
posted Feb 4, 2016 by [Length: 12:42]
""

 

[VidThreeNorth]

I was hoping to find a post about a camera specific file type by Canon or some other camera mfr., but I have not run across anything I thought was worth posting. This link is a pretty good introduction to Apple's ProRes raw, though a bit specific to the Panasonic S1H and Nikon Z6. But there is a lot of reasonably detailed info about the issues of support and how it is working out in the real world. "The DP Journey" already covered Blackmagic Raw, so this is a bit out of order, but that much does not matter to me so much. It is a bit long, but unfortunately that is the fault of the topic:

"ProRes RAW - Expectations and Reality | PART 1: S1H",
Posted May 14, 2020 by "The DP Journey", [Length 16:59]
""

[2020-11-04 01:03 added missing reference to Nikon Z6.]

 

[VidThreeNorth]

If you think you've heard enough for now about ProResRAW, you can skip this one. Keep in mind that PRR support is a "moving target" situation. It has already changed since these two videos have been posted, and say, maybe six months from now it could be different in a way that is significant to you. But here it is for now:

"ProRes RAW - Expectations and Reality | PART 2: DEEP ANALYSIS",
Posted May 14, 2020 by "The DP Journey", [Length 23:43]
""

 

[VidThreeNorth]

As I wrote earlier, this is not going the way I hoped, but there is some good information in this stuff, so I guess I should not feel too badly about it. What should you take away from what is here about Pro Res RAW? Really, that what you might get out of Pro Res RAW is variable depending on the camera model that you buy and at what stage your firmware and the software is at. If you hear something good about it based on someone's experience with camera A, you cannot count on the same experience if you go with camera B. The importance of the difference will be up you to decide. And as I wrote before, keep in mind that things are changing, and those changes will be for the better.

This part is a "Part I" for the Sony A7SIII, I have not had time to look to find if a "Part II" exists for this post. It might already be released. . . .

"A7SIII: With ProRes RAW POWER...comes RAW RESPONSIBILITIES!"
Posted Nov 1, 2020, by "The DP Journey", [Length 21:36]
""

 

[VidThreeNorth]

A7SIII w/ProRes RAW Pt 2

These posts by The DP Journey are well structured in 2 parts. If you want a fairly general overview of the situation of any given time, it seems that you can probably get by just watching the "Part 1's". The Part 2 stuff is generally technically deeper. Either way, my cautionary note seems to apply, which is that these posts are very "cutting edge" and the situation is evolving. I think this is particularly true with the A7SIII. On the one hand, I can see that the firmware, though in a very good usable state (better than the Canon R5 and R6 when they first hit the market) still has room for further development. Likewise, the support also has room for growth. This reviewer has pointed out that ProRes RAW support actually results in a 12-bit Log file, but that is "today". There is no telling about what might happen "tomorrow". But what is going on right now is already significant.

"A7SIII-PART 2: With ProRes RAW POWER...comes RAW RESPONSIBILITIES!",
Posted Dec 7, 2020 by "The DP Journey", [Length 20:56]
""