Everybody predicted this. But still, it was trowed like a bombshell. Why? Because it’s so beautiful and smart camera. It’s only 4.5K, but who needs more. This article is full of gorgeous photos of one of the most marvelous cameras ever made: Meet the new ALEXA Mini Large Format which was announced today. Check it out.

The need for compact LF

In 2015 ARRI has announced the ALEXA Mini that according to ARRI (at the time) was dedicated to acting like a B camera or for gimbals and drones due to its compact design.

However, the ARRI Mini was accepted beyond all expectation by cinematographers that pursued after the ARRI artistic look within the efficient and compact form factor of the Mini.

That’s why the Mini has become the most wanted camera by DPs. There are tons of Hollywood feature films that were shot entirely on the ALEXA Mini as the 1st camera. Moreover, the ARRI Mini was the most desired camera from all ARRI’s lineup. We made some research regarding the films that were shot on the ARRI Mini, some of them won Oscar for Best Picture and Cinematography.

No need for 6K, 8K, 3D, and VR. No need for 16 (marketing) stops of dynamic range. This camera seems like a slam dunk,  the only problem is the price ($54,000 for the body ONLY).

From the other hand, the large sensor ARRI cameras (ARRI LF and ARRI 65) were also very common by industry leaders. It seemed that ARRI has nailed it technologically and artistically in regard to large sensor and compact form factor. Thus the creation of a combination of those characteristics was a matter of time. BTW for those of you that are curious about the advantages of shooting in large format, feel free to check our articles focused on ARRI’s large format methodology and techniques.

Compact form factor + large sensor

The combination of compact form factor and large sensor demands High-end technologies implementation. The ALEXA Mini is the perfect combination between compact design and large sensor.  Implement ARRI’s large sensor within the Mini body is a challenging task. I guess there was tight cooperation between the Large Format and Mini divisions at ARRI since it needs the combination between those two product management methodologies in order to find solutions, developing an efficient cooling apparatus within the camera, due to higher data consumption.

The design is derived from functionality

Indeed, the camera looks a little different than the ALEXA Mini. However, let us cut to the chase here and talk about the camera. The first thing noticeable is the large sensor. The next thing noticeable is the Media Module (explained below) on the left side of the camera. The third is the cooling vents all around the camera.

ALEXA Mini LF Highlights

• Large-Format 4448 x 3096 Sensor
• Native 4K Recording in ARRIRAW & ProRes
• Open Gate, 16:9 & 2.39:1 Anamorphic Mode
• Native 800 ASA, 14+ Stops Dynamic Range
• Array of ARRIRAW & ProRes Capture Modes
• Same Wireless Features as ALEXA SXT W
• Works with Existing ALEXA Components
• Internal FSND 0.6, 1.2 & 1.8

Resolution is not the most important factor, but image quality.

Sensor

The ALEXA Mini LF uses the same sensor as the ALEXA LF. This is the ALEV 3 A2X sensor, which has the same photosite size and type as the Super 35 ARRI digital cameras. The electronics of the Mini LF (sensor board and processing boards) are different from the ALEXA LF, in order to meet the size, power and cooling requirements of such a small camera. While this does not affect image quality, it does affect the maximum frame rate achievable in the different recording formats. Basically, It is the same sensor used in the ALEXA LF. Dimensions: 36.7mm X 25.54mm (for comparison, the RED MONSTRO VV sensor is 40.96mm X 21.6mm) thus it’s the same size (give or take) as Vista Vision sensor.

New Codex Compact Drives

The ALEXA Mini LF supports one new recording media, the small and affordable Codex Compact Drive 1 TB. It contains one industrial SSD (no RAID) in a tough enclosure and the drive’s full capacity of 1 TB is available for ARRIRAW and ProRes recording. The drive will be formatted by the ALEXA Mini LF in the UDF format for ARRIRAW and ProRes. Therefore, both ARRIRAW and ProRes can be recorded onto the same media without reformatting or switching drives. The drive is capable of a sustained write rate of 8 Gb/s. We will also use this media for future cameras.  We’ll write a detailed article regarding the data rate consumption.

New Viewfinder: MVF-2

The ALEXA Mini LF uses a new 4-inch viewfinder MVF-2. It features an HD, color science and ARRICAM eyepiece, like ALEXA LF EVF-2.

Frame rate

• LF Open Gate ProRes 4.5K: 0.75 – 40 fps
• LF Open Gate ARRIRAW 4.5K: 0.75 – 40 fps
• LF 16:9 ProRes HD: 0.75 – 90 fps
• LF 16:9 ProRes 2K: 0.75 – 90 fps
• LF 16:9 ProRes UHD: 0.75 – 60 fps
• LF 16:9 ARRIRAW UHD: 0.75 – 60 fps
• LF 2.39:1 ProRes 4.5K: 0.75 – 60 fps
• LF 2.39:1 ARRIRAW 4.5K: 0.75 – 60 fps

It’s not a high-speed camera. But hey, that’s the goal of the “regular” ALEXA Mini.

4K is enough

Resolution is not the most important factor, but image quality. The ability for an image to look beautiful, artistic with a wide dynamic range. The characteristics of skin tones, tonal, colors, whites, blacks, and precision. Those are matter. ARRI knows that. Good cinematographers know that. That’s the bible of engineering when developing camera like the ALEXA Mini LF. No need for 6K, 8K, 3D, and VR. No need for 16 (marketing) stops of dynamic range. This camera seems like a slam dunk,  the only problem is the price ($54,000 for the body ONLY).