Blackmagic announces 12K video camera for $9,995

Blackmagic Design has announced its first 12K video camera, the Ursa Mini Pro 12K. It’s a higher resolution version of the existing Ursa Mini Pro, which shoots at 4.6K; the new model has a 12288 x 6480 Super 35 sensor capable of capturing 12K footage at 60 frames per second, 8K at 110 fps, and cropped 4K Super 16 at 220 fps.

The camera uses a PL mount for compatibility with a wide range of high-end cinema lenses, but it can be swapped out for Canon EF and Nikon F mounts. Other features include built-in ND filters and a USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 expansion port for faster data transfer to external SSDs.

No-one has a 12K TV, obviously, so this camera isn’t necessarily designed for projects that will actually be viewed in 12K. Instead, Blackmagic says the extra pixels can help produce a cleaner image in 8K or 4K through downsampling, as well as letting you crop in post-production without losing resolution. Blackmagic’s own DaVinci Resolve software is capable of editing 12K footage, while the camera’s built-in compression can store 4K, 6K, and 8K versions at once for instant exporting.

It’s a similar approach to Blackmagic’s Pocket Cinema Camera 6K, which also uses a high-resolution Super 35 sensor but is designed for 4K or HD projects. The Ursa Mini Pro 12K is a much more expensive camera, of course, and sits firmly in the realm of products that only film and TV professionals would consider buying or renting.

That said, at $9,995, the price isn’t astronomical for something that doesn’t really have a direct competitor. Blackmagic says it’ll be available worldwide later this month.