RED DIGITAL CINEMA has officially announced the availability of the V-RAPTOR 8K S35 and V-RAPTOR XL 8K S35 featuring RED’s powerful new S35 sensor. The new 8K S35 sensor has the same fast cinema-quality sensor scan time as its 8K VV counterpart, which is twice as fast as previous generations while maintaining a wide dynamic range with 16.5+ stops and coverage for Super 35mm lenses.
The V-RAPTOR XL 8K S35 also includes RED’s new integrated electronic ND system, allowing for precise control of density in 1/4, 1/3, and full stop increments, providing never before seen exposure and depth of field control.
“The V-RAPTOR and XL have produced some of the best imagery I’ve seen, and now that performance is available to the filmmakers who prefer the Super35 format,” said RED Digital Cinema president Jarred Land. “Not just from the users who love their vintage S35 lenses and the flexibility of 8K, but the shooters working in areas like wildlife filmmaking and broadcast television. We’re excited to start seeing what they create with the new S35 cameras.”
RED had released a limited-edition beta V-RAPTOR RHINO 8K S35 in November of 2022, to support the amazing wildlife cinematography community who had been asking for a successor to the DSMC2 HELIUM workhorse.
The V-RAPTOR 8K S35 and V-RAPTOR XL 8K S35 are available for order today directly via RED’s website or through any of RED’s premium or authorised resellers. The standard V-RAPTOR 8K S35 is priced at $17,995 while the XL, which comes in either V-Lock or Gold Mount, is $34,995.
Filmmakers now have even more choices when choosing the Super35mm format. V-RAPTOR 8K VV can capture Super35 in 6K, providing users with the flexibility of switching between Large Format and Super35, or the new V-RAPTOR 8K S35 for 8K resolution with all Super35mm glass. By capturing the full 35 megapixels of 8K compared to the 20 megapixels of 6K, filmmakers gain the flexibility of 8K image capture while in the Super35mm format.
The new systems serve a variety of productions –wildlife, live events, and traditional cinema. Wildlife and natural history shooters who often shoot hundreds of feet from their subjects will benefit from the V-RAPTOR 8K S35’s compact and flexible set-up while still allowing for wide-range zoom lenses.
The S35 V-RAPTOR systems are a solution for broadcast productions striving for more cinematic imagery in final delivery. The new 8K S35 sensor provides shallower depth of field, slow-motion playback, and higher resolution in a format that supports the wide range of lenses required for live event coverage. Live 8K workflows using RED Connect — which is compatible with both V-RAPTOR and V-RAPTOR XL, unleashes the power of 8K in these environments, allowing for different framing to be pulled from a single camera position and controlled downstream for a more immersive production.
As with the VV versions of these two cameras, they’ll be available in pre-bundled packs, which allow customers to get shooting right away. The standard V-RAPTOR is available in both a Starter Pack and V-Lock and Gold Mount versions of a Production Pack, while the V-RAPTOR XL is available in both V-Lock and Gold Mount versions of the Production Pack.
