Sony Electronics, Inc. has made two major announcements this past week, the first being the introduction of its compact, ultra-wide angle, large aparture FE 14mm F1.8 G Master™ Prime Lens, the other being a new firmware for its industry-standard FX6 and FX9 cameras.
The FE 14mm F1.8 G Master expands Sony’s E-mount lens line which “allows users to capture the world with new perspectives by delivering sharp resolution from corner to corner with little to no distortion, especially when shooting landscapes, architecture, starry skies and interiors.”
Sony’s Vice President of Imaging Solutions, Yang Cheng, said in a statement, “Sony continuously strives to meet the needs of our customers with the most advanced tools possible. We’re excited to share the newest member of our G Master series, the FE 14mm F1.8 G Master. This lens sets a new standard for 14mm primes, by delivering extraordinary corner-to-corner resolution and advanced autofocus capabilities in a compact design that has never before been realized in this focal length.”
You can read all the specs for this new lens at the SonyCine.com blog.
It will be available in May for a price of approximately $1,600 USD/$2,100 CAD, and it will be sold at Sony’s authorized dealers throughout North America.
More usage and content shot with the lens and others from Sony can be seen at Sony’s AlphaUniverse.com site, which is dedicated to the Sony α – Alpha brand.
The new FX9 and FX6 firmware will allow 4K 120p RAW output for both cameras, as well as anamorphic desqueeze, Cinemascope frame lines and Super 16mm Center Scan mode. This will be available through a series of upgrades and innovations across the full range of its professional media products and solutions aligned with leading industry trends focused on Internet Protocol (IP), Cloud and Imaging. The market transformation is fueled by the need to produce high quality content from any location, through scalable and efficient workflows.
Theresa Alesso, Pro Division President, Sony Electronics Inc, said, “For the last year, in the face of unprecedented circumstances, Sony has been working tirelessly to match the changes in market needs with useful and pragmatic innovations. As remote, distributed production coupled with efficient workflows become the standard way of working, we will continue to introduce technology based around IP, Cloud, AI, and Imaging quality that enables customers to transform their business.”
You can read more about how these upgrades will be implemented through the announcement, also at SonyCine.com.
These firmware upgrades will be introduced beginning in May 2021 with the 4K 120p RAW output capabilities, leading up to the FX9 Version 3.0 firmware later in 2021 which will add the other features.
Sony is also introducing a new addition to the professional monitor line-up, the PVM-X3200 (32”) 4K HDR production monitor, launching in October 2021, which will benefit from TRIMASTER technology and supports an all-white luminance of 1000 cd/m2. It also matches 100 percent of the color gamut of the industry-leading BVM-HX310 TRIMASTER HX master monitor, ensuring continuous color accuracy from production to post. With the optional license, PVML-HSX1, scheduled for June 2021, the PVM-X3200, PVM-X2400 and PVM-X1800 will also support internal conversion of HDR to SDR and 4K to HD for further usability.
Sony’s range of shoulder camcorders, the PXW-Z750/Z450/X400, will also see an improved integration into an HDR workflow. SR Live Metadata will be recorded with greater detail in a recording file as a result of the new firmware update planned for May 2021. In April 2021, the Metadata based part of the workflow will be enhanced with the introduction of SR Live MetaFile, which will allow users to manage SR Live Metadata files shareable between Sony’s HDR production converter unit, HDRC-4000, via USB or email, instead of just relying on an SDI link.
In May 2021, Sony is planning to offer SR Live 3D LUT files that provide HDR/SDR conversion with the same image quality as Sony’s HDRC-4000 converter unit. By importing this SR Live 3D file, third-party converters that support 3D LUTs can also be used in Sony’s SR Live for HDR workflows, giving the system more flexibility.
For more information on all these of new products and solutions, visit Pro.Sony.
