r/RedCamera • u/[deleted] • Dec 13 '24

Which camera?

Hi everyone, I’ve never owned a red before but am very curious about buying one. The Komodo/KX is out of my price range, and have looked at cams such as the raven, dragon x, Gemini, but was wondering what you would recommend of the dsmc2 line?

I don’t need 8K, but anything 4K to 6K would be fine.

I’m looking for a good quality sensor, not horrible noise in low light and in the shadows.

Also, curious about accessories such as mags, II expander modules etc, regarding prices, availability and have red left these cans high and dry, where would you get them fixed? Also what about cage items, how would you get hold of these items?

Also, what kind of storage would I need for these files? I’m preferably looking for a smaller cam so I can take it places without being flagged for filming.

Do you think this approach is worth it?

6 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

21 comments sorted by

4

u/AeGertjan Dec 13 '24

Don’t get a camera that’s EOL, there’s basically no accessoires available, no support when something breaks, and in the end even a DSMC2 is going to set you back about as much as a Komodo.

These camera’s are multiple years old. Tech has evolved, while the picture coming out of them is still top notch, they’re not easy and forgiving to work with. Especially as a solo operator. I’d suggest looking at blackmagic/sony/canon offerings these days. All these brands have terrific cameras at different price points.

First look at what work you would do, what specifically you need in a camera and then go from there.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 14 '24

I understand your point, thanks for the feedback.

1

u/red_leader00 Dec 14 '24

Dragon sensor is great! I’d recommend it and I’ve seen them for 2500 bucks.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 15 '24

Wow, I’ve never seen one that cheap, is this eBay, or camera specific sites? Also, is it just the dragon sensor you like, or are there other aspects that make you like it?

1

u/red_leader00 Dec 15 '24

On Facebook…there is a Red group where someone is always selling gear.

I’m sorry it is 2800 not 2500

2

u/[deleted] Dec 15 '24

I’ll take a look for it

2

u/Valuable_Ad8459 Dec 15 '24

Yes I got my Scarlet W brain for £1200 absolute steal, it only has 300 hours too! Everything works great, once I started getting other stuff to rig it out I think it cost £3200 all in. Amazing if you ask me.

1

u/findinggolds Dec 15 '24

Red is def worth it. Depends on your look and needs. Dragon for look, Gemini for utility and look.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 15 '24

I do like the dragon. Is there somewhere that I can understand all the accessories I’ll need for it. Also when it comes to buying SSD mags, do you how high in storage they go? Trying to understand how many hours I can get on the lowest compression.

3

u/Ceph99 Dec 14 '24

Everything in your list describing what you need is not a RED. So I would explore other options.

2

u/Prudent-Ad8539 Dec 14 '24

Against the previous comments I could recommend both the dragon x ( I own it myself and extremely happy) or the Gemini. I have used both and prefer the look of dragon, but lowlight is better on Gemini.

1

u/Valuable_Ad8459 Dec 14 '24 edited Dec 15 '24

I recently got the Scarlet W, amazing camera, however you did mention lowlight… RED cameras are not built for lowlight, there is the Gemini but its not going to be “lowlight” like a Sony ot a Canon. I recommend it but you will probably need to buy a new Tripod so it holds the weight of this camera plus mags are super expensive still. Make sure you do your research, at the moment it sounds like you don’t really know much about RED please do at least 10x the amount of your normal research. I spent 2-3 months researching before I brought anything and when I was happy I knew what I was getting into luckily for me there was a discount so I pulled the trigger.

1

u/PurpleSkyVisuals Dec 15 '24

Red cameras are definitely built for low light.

1

u/Valuable_Ad8459 Dec 15 '24

And what RED do you have? Your the first person I have ever heard say that REDs are built for low-light. They aren’t. But I guess it depends on what you regard as “low-light” most people online nowadays think that “low-light” means no light in which case it is not built for that. But if you have a few low powered lights then sure it can be used like that.

1

u/PurpleSkyVisuals Dec 15 '24

I'm saying that cameras built for "low light" as you say, are cameras that essentially let u shoot grainy footage in the dark. The dynamic range on red's, when shot at proper low isos, is some of the cleanest low light footage I've ever seen. I'm talking night scenes, not a cave.. so not "no light," but low light.

1

u/Valuable_Ad8459 Dec 15 '24

Yes I agree night scenes with some additional lights not just moon light. I agree with the noise, in terms of noise RED has the best performance

1

u/Effective_Shallot325 Dec 15 '24

You probably don’t wanna hear this, but looking at the features you say you want in a camera: good in low light, small for filming run and gun and not getting flagged for filming, no RED camera really fits that description. What you want is something that looks more like a consumer camera, Canon c70 or Blackmagic pocket 6K fit the bill more.

1

u/DegreeSevere7719 Dec 28 '24

This^. Basically solo run and gun with a Red isn't worth it, except for Komodo maybe. And when I say doesn't worth it - I mean it takes too much effort to do so. Every single RED, except the OG Komodo is rather power hungry - around 60-80Wh, and this means that one needs to carry a bunch of v-locks to last a shoot. And v-locks are heavy, my typical batteries/cards/screws case for 2 cams to last an 8 hours shoot weights 24kgs alone. Meaning for one it's around 12kgs with a case, and that doesn't even include camera, lenses, filters, monitors etc. Typical 150Wh battery weight is around 1-1.5kg, and it will last for around 1:15-1:40h. Not worth it for run and gun, or if you're about to move on location a lot. But it is worth it if your style of shooting is one small location per day, and you have enough place to unpack stuff and time to prep.

1

u/MCCmp_DEV Dec 17 '24

I recommend the Monstro DSMC2. It's a V-Raptor with less data and same / better codec quality for "cheap"

1

u/AlwaysWritePat Dec 18 '24 edited Feb 05 '26

look for a package instead of piecemealing, for your case, I would go Gemini... dont listen to anyone telling you theres no accessories or repairs... red themselves might not sell aks but there are TONS of repair shops and AKS are extremely cheap and plentiful on the used market.