Last week, JVC finally revealed specs, pricing and availablity of the industry's first "affordable" 4K camera. From where I'm sitting this is almost a non-event as the size of the camera's sensor renders it unusable for cinematic pursuits. I wouldn't even mention it here if it wasn't for the fact that Sony, LG,Sharp and Toshiba also announced plans to produce 4K televisions at the same Consumer Electronics Show.
Usually seeing this many companies line up behind a technology would be a tip-off that it's time for people who make their living (or hope to make their living) by producing media to their ducks in a row. In this case, however, I think it's a much better idea for everyone to take a collective deep breath...
As I've mentioned before, 4K is cool, and it's probably the future. But in the present tense most of us need to keep a little perspective. This change-over from HD to 4K is going to take a good long time. Before investing a dime of your money into 4K gear consider this -
1. While 4K gives lots of detail (almost four times more than 1080p, the current highest HD standard) you need a REALLY big screen to be able to get any benefit out of it. 4K is great for movies that will actually be shown on the big screen, but most experts agree that you'll need a TV bigger than 70 inches to achieve an appreciable difference.
2. 4K is just starting to be used on the highest-end projects. Sure, Peter Jackson and David Fitcher are shooting features in 4K, but most of the time those movies are downrezed to 2K (approximately 1080p) before they even make it to the movie theater. Remember, Avatar was created in 2K and that looked very, very good.
3. There is absolutly no 4K distribution pipeline on the horizon. Imagine how frustrating it would be to drop $15,000 on a 4K TV only to have to watch the same 1080p content just like everyone else. Many networks are still broadcasting in 720 for crying out loud. And don't give me "internet distribution" - large-scale distribution of 4K media wil bring the internet to it's knees!
4. 4K is a bear to produce in. To understand what I mean by "bear" talk with someone who lived through the transition period between SD and HD. You'd occasionally to called on to edit something in HD only to find that your SD-optimized machine handled the footage only slightly above brick-speed. Renders could often been timed with a calendar. HD to 4K will be even harder on your current machine.
Yes 4K is coming. No, you really don't need to worry about it yet. Just keep doing what you're doing with your DSLRs.
(hope that helps)
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