As it promised last September, Panasonic is ready to bring Apple ProRes RAW support to its cinema-centric S1H full-frame mirrorless camera via the Atomos Ninja V HDR monitor-recorder. In fact, the two companies have announced updates to the award-winning Ninja V HDR monitor-recorder and Panasonic LUMIX S1H that together record 5.9K Apple ProRes RAW files directly from the camera’s sensor. Alternatively, you can record production-ready Apple ProRes or Avid DNx video at up to 4Kp60 10-bit 422 – perfect for the widest range of post workflows.

Jeromy Young, CEO of Atomos, said: “We are excited about what the combination of the Ninja V and the LUMIX S1H gives to our users. Providing the choice to record 10-bit ProRes video for fast turnaround projects, or stunning full-frame 5.9K 12-bit ProRes RAW for more creative flexibility. It
becomes an extraordinary workhorse – especially for delivering the best HDR possible.”

Apple recently released a version 1.0 beta of ProRes Raw for Windows that added support to Adobe apps running on the Windows platform, including Adobe Premiere Pro and After Effects. Availability on both Apple and Windows systems should make it easier for video shooters to adopt the codec.

The Lumix S1H is the third member of the full-frame mirrorless Lumix S family and designed specifically for cinema-quality video with a bigger body for heat dissipation and a dedicated cinema-orientated interface. Panasonic worked alongside Atomos to develop the firmware, and luckily for users, it will be free of charge. There will also be no need to send the camera into Panasonic for an additional hardware upgrade as with Nikon, which costs $200 USD to upgrade the Z7 and Z6.

Alongside Raw video options, a series of minor UI and handling improvements have been added, and a series of minor bugs fixed.
Panasonic says, “There were cases where color banding appeared in 4:2:0/10-bit video recording in some situations. This bug has been minimized.” In addition, “There were cases where the REC RUN time code did not count up when the video was not recorded on an SD Memory Card but was recorded on an external device over HDMI. This bug has been fixed.” Another issue with freezing during 400Mbps recording in certain conditions has been “improved”, and a fault with aperture control on some non-Panasonic L-mount lenses has been fixed.

Polish director of photography Krzysztof Sieniawski – whose latest feature-length historical docudrama recently premiered on the History Channel and was made for just $120,000 – has shot a fast-moving drama to showcase the capabilities of the S1H and Ninja V. “Blind Love” was shot in just one day by his small team of indie filmmakers. Filmed entirely in 5.9K ProRes RAW, using one camera in basic handheld and gimbal setups, it demonstrates the amazing results that talented creators can deliver to screen without a Hollywood budget using this setup.

Sieniawski said: “I loved working with the S1H and Ninja; it really suits our style of fast-paced filmmaking. But it was the image quality that blew me away. I was super impressed by the colors and the latitude the 5.9K ProRes RAW files gave me in post. The image is clean even when shooting at high ISO in RAW, unlike other systems I have tried. I’m looking forward to using it on a feature-length production in the near future.”

The firmware will be available from May 25th.
More info on Atomos’ website.