Camcorders that think like cameras: Q&A with Ted from RED

Ok, you could say we're a little obsessed with RED over here at PDNPulse. Come to think of it, Maria Wakem, editor of our sister site, PDNGearGuide.com is pretty obsessed with RED too. Maria got a chance to interview RED's chief product evangelist Ted Schilowitz during NAB 2008 on how RED's ultra-high definition camcorders will impact professional photographers. Below is a transcript of that Q&A.

1. RED announced three new products yesterday, the 5K Epic, the 3K Scarlet and Red Ray. Can you point out features that you think photographers would be most interested in?

Ted: I talk very publicly and very bluntly about what our camera is, and it is essentially, a digital still camera that can shoot video. It doesn't think like a video camera at all. It shoots RAW like a digital still camera and it can compress that RAW using a very advanced hardware compression engine that turns that still RAW into something that can be recorded at a very high frame rate on a compact flash card. And every [camera we make] does that.

If you want to talk about our new products, there are three announcements for NAB 2008. The first one is called Scarlet; that's our little baby...It's not HD, it's not 2K, it's actually a 3K camera, which is a big deal. For us, HD is no where near good enough for anything except viewing. Acquisition needs to be high-resolution...Scarlet has a 2/3-inch, professional-level 3K sensor.

2. When RED One was released last year with the ability to pull high-resolution still images from video footage, it caused a buzz in the photo community about the potential death of the decisive moment. Is RED's encroachment of the still image market an intentional one?

Ted: No, not at all. We're huge fans of the still world. We just see this as pieces of the puzzle evolving, as the convergence of the two worlds. We have the highest level of respect for what digital still cameras have done in the market. In fact, we've paid a lot of attention to that in terms of what we've done because we believe that we're on the same path. When you see things projected from our RED One camera in 4K and how far we can go with a similar type of sensor and a similar type of logic, this RAW-processing logic, but applying it to slightly different toolsets that are used for motion instead of stills, it's all the same stuff. You're just using it slightly differently.

We've talked to National Geographic and Discover and guys shooting with video and digital still at the same time, and they're asking, "Can we shoot with just one camera and potentially pull stills for our magazine?" The answer is, absolutely.

3. Although there has been much clamor about Scarlet's recent release, one of the downsides is that it does not feature the ability to interchange lenses. Is that something RED will make possible in the future?

Here's the thing about RED, everything is subject to change, at any point in time. Today we like this logic. It feels right, it works right. I think you'll be very impressed with the optics. That doesn't mean we have anything set in stone. Even with the RED One, which is already shipping, it's not set in stone.

4. How long is the waiting list for these latest products?

We decided this NAB would be different from NABs in the past where we had this insane mad rush to get orders in and everybody was freaking out. We wanted to use this NAB to show off our new stuff. At some point down the road we're going to announce how the products will be sold and delivered and all that.

5. Ultimately, if you were to advise a photographer looking to explore video on a RED purchase, which camera would it be?

If they're Mark III guys who are used to spending real money on a digital still camera, they would be very comfortable spending around $18,000 on a true digital cinema camera with interchangeable lenses, and on something they can now use a Nikon mount on, put Nikon glass on, and shoot just like they would shoot with a Mark III or some of the other high-end digital SLRs that are out there. Scarlet would probably be their other camera that they would have in their [gear] bag. It just depends on if they want to spend around $3,000 or $20,000. Both are going to take really great pictures; it's just different kinds of optics on the front end.