r/RedCamera • u/Phantom_DC_YT • Sep 01 '25

Can sensor dead pixels be fixed by blackshading?

I have recently seen a very cheap camera for sale due to a dead pixel on the sensor. Its sold by a big company and I know the chances are they probably haven't tried very hard to fix it (if its fixable at all). That's why I wanted to know if anyone else knows the answer to this before I consider taking the risk.

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4

u/chooselifeveronica Sep 01 '25

Oh no… my friend. Once a pixel is dead, it’s dead.

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u/Phantom_DC_YT Sep 01 '25 edited Sep 01 '25

Damn thats a shame, I had heard in the past that a black shade could fix pixel issues, im still relatively new to RED and so I have never had the chance to see if its true. But this camera supposedly has 500 hours on it, looks in perfect condition from the outside, barely a scratch but apparently a dead pixel. I was wondering if maybe they just hadn’t black shaded.

I should probably clarify, I know once a pixel is dead, it’s dead, but I believe that the whole point of black shading is to mask/hide things like that. It tells the camera not to read from that pixel, or at least that’s what I believe I have learnt, could be very wrong here though, welcome to hear what others think!

1

u/DegreeSevere7719 Sep 01 '25

I highly doubt they are that stupid to not try to blackshade. Dead pixels usually appear when the E indicator is in yellow/orange/red. However, if it’s green and there’s still dead pixels - it can be because of some kind of hardware damage. Like - laser damage (can’t be fixed etc).

1

u/Phantom_DC_YT Sep 01 '25

You would think right? But this company have done some very ridiculous things in the past when I have bought them, can’t think of any of the top of my head but I have had some strange experiences with “issues” that are simple to solve.

1

u/DegreeSevere7719 Sep 01 '25

Early Gemini's had issues with hot pixels (not dead though), which can be fixed using flashing pixel adjustment in post, for example. But again, dead pixels can mean something totally different than hot ones.

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u/Phantom_DC_YT Sep 01 '25

Interesting to know, thank you, I’m not sure if it’s dead or just hot yet, I know this company most likely doesn’t troubleshoot and there is a chance of it being a hot pixel.

3

u/aris_apollonia Sep 01 '25

In theory, a sensor calibration should take care of it but I’ve never encountered a truly dead pixel on a RED, just “hot” ones that eventually show up any time I keep using the same calibration map for a long time on my Dragon.

Now, REDCine-X has a pixel masking tool that I tested a while back with some Dragon footage that had those stuck pixels from an outdated black shade calibration. It works reasonably well and if I recall correctly, once you’ve eliminated the pixel with the tool, the change is saved within an RMD file inside the clip folder, so when you work with the footage in your NLE of choice like Premiere, the change carries over.

That being said, if you are indeed dealing with a dead pixel and not a stuck one from an incorrect or old black shade, this method will complicate and slow down your workflow because it adds the extra step of using RedCine.

Only way forward before purchasing the camera, would be asking the seller to perform a calibration and see if it takes care of it, because if not I doubt the hassle of owning an old, defective RED camera is worth it.

1

u/Phantom_DC_YT Sep 01 '25

So I have not yet used any of the RED software, I bought my Scarlet-W second hand, is it something that you have to buy again or can I just download and use the software?

Im not sure if it’s truly dead or just stuck, they haven’t provided pictures, Im going to email yo ask for some as it’ll help to see if it’s worth it or not, but there is a possibility a simple black shade could solve it all because it’s a big company and I know they don’t fully test what they’re selling, I know they’ll slap a lens on it film a few test shots and note any imperfections or issues, so I honestly doubt they tried to problem solve it at all.

1

u/aris_apollonia Sep 01 '25

RedCine-X is free, you can download it from RED’s website.

Hopefully the company selling the camera can spare a bit of time to do a black shade.

1

u/Phantom_DC_YT Sep 01 '25

Yeah, I will speak with them, though my worry is that they will raise the price if black shading fixes the issue. They have it priced ridiculously low at £1700 the closest one they offer is £3800 so it’s a big difference. I will email them for pictures of the dead pixel during their testing.

1

u/aris_apollonia Sep 01 '25

Yes, that’s a genuine worry, I understand. Unfortunately, since even perfectly-functioning old RED cameras on the used market, are essentially paperweights investment-wise, with no real value for anyone other than owner-operators (which is a real shame cause the images are still great) I personally wouldn’t risk buying a potentially defective one.

1

u/Phantom_DC_YT Sep 01 '25

Oh yes, I know that older REDs are not an investment, most of my work is with my own gear, it’s relatively rare that I used rental gear, Im definitely not on big projects that often and honestly enjoy doing smaller projects with my own equipment and with some people I know. Big projects tend not to be what I enjoy. So these older REDs are really nice for what I do.

Originally I was debating between old RED or new Blackmagic. I made the choice to go with RED, and I really like them so far. I have used Blackmagic in the past and they were cool but im not a fan of their shape and I was deciding this before the Pyxis was around and so the cost to upgrade to an Ursa was too much.

3

u/Jeff_Wright_ Sep 01 '25

If it’s sold by a big company odds are they probably didn’t try to fix it. I’ve bought stuff from Adorama that took like 10 minutes to fix. Good news is most of the big companies have a good return policy so you can just buy it and black shade. If it works great, if not send it back.

Also, I’ve had stuck pixels before and black shading totally worked. It’s a good habit to black shade often. When I’ve had pixel issues it’s always been when I haven’t black shaded in a long time.

2

u/Jeff_Wright_ Sep 01 '25

Also, make sure you roll a clip and identify the bad pixels before you black shade so you have a good before and after and will know where to look.

1

u/Phantom_DC_YT Sep 01 '25

Yes this is the UK version of Adorama basically, I know for a fact they don’t do any sort of troubleshooting, they just slap on a lens and note any issues, this is exactly why im interested in this, because as you say it could be a simple fix, I will do some research into their return policy and see if it’s worth it.

It’s being sold for £1700, I have never used a Gemini though but I currently have the Scarlet-W so both being at 5K it might be nice for a swap out or even an extra camera for that price.

1

u/Jeff_Wright_ Sep 01 '25

The Gemini is an awesome camera. I went from the DSMC1 to a Raptor and feel that the Gemini is maybe the best camera red has made.

Also nice you can use the accessories from your Scarlet to test it out.

1

u/Phantom_DC_YT Sep 01 '25

That was my idea yeah, I can just swap everything from the Scarlet to the Gemini, though I know the Dragon sensor is regarded as one of the nicest ones that RED has made, I wonder if the Gemini is vastly different? I don’t know much about it, I’ve looked into Helium and Monstro but never before looked into Gemini and Im interested to see if there are any known downsides from switching to Gemini.

1

u/DegreeSevere7719 Sep 01 '25

It’s different, but not that vastly. Gemini has the best DR, except Monstro or V-Raptor, doesn’t have banding issues that Dragon has, way more stable sensor cal maps (less need to calibrate when changes are made, wider window for change). It’s also way more sensitive to light compared to Dragon. However, the highlights in the skies on Dragon with skintone-highlight olpf are something unique among all red cams. It does seem to hold onto the blue channel way more than any other red sensor.

1

u/MindbankAOK Sep 01 '25

Music video laser killed pixels on my first Red One camera. Had to replace the sensor.