Oh Red, how I want you…

I’ve been hovering and waiting, and following the rumours and the forums, and literally hanging off every word Jim Jannard deems us mere mortals worthy of hearing (too over the top perhaps? hmmm…). I’ve been a follower of Red Cameras for years – the original Red One has been picked up by film-makers like Peter Jackson (Lord of the Rings) and other heavy hitting Hollywood producers. I won’t got into the tech here, but when a camera nut like Jim (who is better know as being the founder of Oakley) decides he wants to spend some of his fortune building a camera like no other, he certainly doesn’t hold back!!

But I digress – it is not Red One or even the new Epic sensors that I’m really interested in (although, if you want to see sensor insanity, check out the Epic 617 sensor, coming in at a very physical 168x56mm – yes, actual size!). My interest lies in Scarlet, specifically the Mysterium Monstro FF35 (Full Frame 35mm) – an amazing piece of kit, you’ll need to read all the specs yourself to fully grasp the shift this kind of tech will make in the photography space. No longer will people think of film and stills as separate – that’s the coolness of DSMC (and we’re already seeing that convergence in the half-hearted attempts by Nikon and Canon to get film quality onto a still body – just try and film a high speed train or car with these new 1080p bodies and then lift stills from the footage, and you’ll see why I say “half-hearted”).

But I digress – Red crushed me today with the early pre-release pricing and release schedule! The FF35 didn’t even make it onto the release schedule, and the S35 (the sensor below) starts at $US 7000 just for the “brain”. By the time the rest of the camera is added (viewfinder, storage, power, monitor, triggers, lenses), it’s suddenly in the league of the ‘Blads and less in the world of the Canons and Nikons… Gizmodo was the first to shatter my hopes and dreams…

I saw another rumour too – word on the street is that when the FF35 is finally released (in at least 3 years, based on their prior release schedules), it could have a starting price of $US 28,800!! Yikes!!

You can read more on the Red User Forums where you can find the latest news, updates, and lamentations…