High-resolution monitoring and professional recording for any camera!
Now it’s easy to add professional monitoring and recording to any SDI or HDMI camera with Blackmagic Video Assist! You get a super bright touch screen display that’s much larger than the displays found on DSLR cameras. The monitor supports 3D LUTs and includes powerful focus assist and exposure tools that make it easier to accurately set focus, expose and frame shots. Blackmagic Video Assist features high-speed SD card recorders for HD or Ultra HD recording in incredible 10-bit 4:2:2 quality ProRes, DNxHD and DNxHR files in Quicktime and MXF formats. With both 7” Ultra HD and 5” HD models, Blackmagic Video Assist works with any camera that needs better quality monitoring and professional format file recording!
Whether it’s a wedding, an indie film, or a television commercial, you need to make sure your images are perfectly sharp and captured at the highest possible quality, no matter what type of camera you use. Blackmagic Video Assist works with everything from DSLR’s to older tape based camcorders, and even the latest digital film cameras. When you’re shooting a wedding, there’s only one chance to get it right and if you’re an indie filmmaker, you want your film to look as good as a Hollywood movie when projected at festivals. Blackmagic Video Assist helps you make sure every shot is in focus and gives you professional images with the same recording quality used by major motion pictures and primetime TV shows!
Shoot Better Video
See and capture every detail with confidence!
Blackmagic Video Assist
5” all-in-one monitor and HD recorder!
The 5” Video Assist features a 1920 x 1080 screen, HD recorder, and a down converter for monitoring and recording HD from Ultra HD cameras. The large screen makes it easier to focus and frame shots, and the recorder saves files that are far superior quality than the highly compressed files that DSLRs record! It’s also a fast and inexpensive way to add modern file based recording to your existing HD cameras! You get 10-bit 4:2:2 broadcast quality files that work with all major editing software, so you’ll never have to worry about tape, optical discs or other proprietary and slow media formats again!
Professional HD and Ultra HD Recorder
10-bit 4:2:2 ProRes and DNxHD recording!
The 5” Video Assist records all HD formats up to 1080p60, and the 7” Video Assist 4K records HD and Ultra HD up to 2160p30. You get incredible looking, broadcast quality 10-bit, 4:2:2 ProRes and DNxHR in Quicktime or MXF files that work with all major editing software so you can start editing without having to convert them! Recording can be automatically triggered from SDI and HDMI so you can stay focused on getting the shot, without having to worry about operating additional gear! The 7” Video Assist 4K also has two recorders so when one card is full, it automatically continues recording onto the next!
Records to High Speed SD Card
Low cost, high-performance storage you can get anywhere!
Both models record HD video using standard SD memory cards and the 7” Video Assist 4K can also record to super high-performance UHS-II cards which are fast enough to record Ultra HD! That means it’s now possible to record Ultra HD using low-cost cards that cost less than $2 per GB. By connecting Video Assist to your existing camera, you can eliminate proprietary and expensive media such as XDCAM, P2 and SxS. UHS-II cards are fully backwards compatible with regular SD card slots so you can just insert them into your computer to start editing the media immediately.
Better Monitoring
Super bright and clear display
Blackmagic Video Assist has a bright 5” or 7” display so you don’t have to carry extra monitors and scopes on set! The large screens make it easy to see focus peaking and overlays such as histogram, audio meters, controls and more! You can mount it on cameras as a large crew monitor, hand it to the cinematographer for composing shots or set it in front of the director to review each take. The screen has a wide 135º viewing angle, which means it’s easy to see, even when several crew members are watching. The image also auto rotates, so you can even rig it upside down!
Focus and Exposure Tools
Accurately expose and focus every shot!
Blackmagic Video Assist features powerful focus and exposure tools that help you get the best shots! Focus peaking indicators can be displayed as red, green, blue or white overlays that indicate exactly which parts of the image are in focus. In addition, false color tools make it easy to properly set exposure. The false-colour tools work by highlighting specific color ranges of luminance with a solid color overlay. Green indicates neutral grey, while pink tones are good references for skin, which is typically one stop over neutral grey. Using false color helps you keep exposure consistent from shot to shot!
Use false color to easily set exposure and balance your shot.
Use and store up to six 3D LUTs
Monitor Using 3D LUTs
Both models of Blackmagic Video Assist can store and recall up to six 3D LUTs instantly so you can properly monitor footage on set with the “look” you need! Digital films are often shot in logarithmic colourspace, which is great for post-production and color correction, but looks flat and washed out when viewed on the monitor. 3D LUTs solve this problem because they transform the camera’s image so that everyone on set can see the footage with the final look as the director intends it. You can even load LUTs to simulate different types of look or to simulate specific film stocks. Best of all, LUTs are completely non destructive because the original camera footage remains untouched!
High-Quality Audio
Better audio recording than most cameras!
Blackmagic Video Assist 4K is also an extremely high-quality audio recorder! You get two mini XLR inputs with 48V of phantom power so you can attach external microphones to record audio with Video Assist, instead of your camera. This totally eliminates the problems with auto gain controls on DLSR cameras! With an amazing equivalent input noise floor of -128dBV, you get high quality, crystal clear audio that sounds dramatically better than camera audio! Sound is recorded into the same file as the video so you don’t have to worry about AV sync between separate audio and video files!
Easy Touchscreen Controls
Use simple tap and swipe gestures to make adjustments!
The built-in monitor is also an interactive touchscreen that makes setting up the Blackmagic Video Assist incredibly intuitive. All of the functions are at your fingertips, allowing you to use simple tap and swipe gestures to display camera information, change settings and evaluate audio and video levels. The elegant heads up display let’s you change recording formats or view the current input frame rate, histogram, audio meters, timecode, and more, all while still keeping your eyes on the shot!
Designed to be durable and lightweight, both models are incredibly small yet still incorporate large LCD monitors and touch screens. Both models include high-speed SD card recorders and space for two rechargeable batteries, which are hot-swappable so you never have to stop shooting. You can use the mounting points to attach it to the top of a camera or use the built-in kickstand to set it up on a table. It’s even comfortable enough to hold in your hands so you can pass it around to the crew. The 7” Video Assist 4K even features a built-in speaker, making it easy for everyone to review shots!
Portable All-In-One Design
Integrated on set monitoring and recording
Professional Connections
Connect to professional cameras, camcorders and DSLR’s
The compact design of the Blackmagic Video Assist includes HDMI and 6G-SDI so you can connect them to virtually any DSLR, prosumer or professional camera! The loop thru output lets you monitor on larger displays or projectors. The 12V universal power supply gives you continuous operation. When you’re on location, two side by side LP-E6 batteries give you enough power for longer shoots! The Blackmagic Video Assist 4K also features a LANC connector and two mini XLR inputs with 48V of phantom power for connecting microphones, along with a built-in speaker that automatically mutes while recording!
Work with Professional Software
Record files that are ready for editing and grading
Blackmagic Video Assist captures ProRes and Avid DNx files which are the most widely accepted post production video formats in the world. Footage can be captured at a variety of ProRes and DNx data rates. If you are working with popular editing software such as DaVinci Resolve, Final Cut Pro X, Adobe Premiere Pro or Avid Media Composer, you can start editing and color correcting without having to transcode or convert the files. Since it comes bundled with DaVinci Resolve Lite, you can begin editing and creating looks on set! Even motion graphics and visual effects artists using software like Fusion and After Effects, or sound editors using ProTools can easily work with the files for fantastic collaboration!
