Blackmagic Design IBC 2019 update: The Blackmagic RAW (BRAW) new version, 1.5 now supports native BRAW editing on Premiere Pro and Avid. But what about FCPX?

Blackmagic RAW 1.5

Blackmagic Design announced BRAW 1.5 as a new software update that supports Adobe Premiere Pro and Avid Media Composer.

That’s a piece of great news. Till now, editors who like to utilize this powerful codec by Blackmagic needed to install a 3rd party plugin (except DaVinci Resolve which supports BRAW from day one) or transcode the BRAW files before using it on their NLE.

The new and FREE plugin form Blackmagic Design, enables editors to work with Blackmagic RAW directly, so they no longer have to transcode files. That means camera original Blackmagic RAW data can be used throughout the entire workflow.

The new plugin eliminates the need to create proxy files and conform edits for finishing. The plugin works on macOS and Windows systems. Furthermore, the plugin is compatible to use in Avid Media Composer and Adobe Premiere Pro. However, the plugin is not compatible (yet) for use on Apple Final Cut Pro X.

Blackmagic RAW is now available for editors working on all major professional NLEs…It’s exciting because you can now edit native Blackmagic RAW files in Premiere Pro and Media Composer and then finish them in DaVinci Resolve without needing to create proxy files, all without ever losing quality!

Grant Petty, Blackmagic Design CEO

BRAW advantages

As you already know, Blackmagic RAW (BRAW) is the hot new codec in town created by Blackmagic Design. We have written an in-depth article about BRAW advantages compared to, ProRes and CDNG which you can read here. 

BRAW, contrary to CDNG, is not a still sequence, but a video codec that moves part of the de-mosaic processing from the computer’s CPU into the camera itself, resulting in efficient encoding for the high-performance RAW experience. With Blackmagic RAW, you get the same quality, bit depth, dynamic range, and controls as RAW, with better performance and even smaller file sizes than traditional video codecs, especially CNDG.

The BRAW is replacing the CDNG that was so recognized with Blackmagic Design products.

Availability and Price

Blackmagic RAW 1.5 is available now for download free from the Blackmagic Design web site.

What about FCPX?

So BRAW’s cross-platforms support has been added only to Adobe Premiere Pro and Avid Media Composer. But what about Apple’s Final Cut Pro X?

There is no news about that. However, we can make a rough assumption for the reason of not including the BRAW in FCPX, and that’s ProRes RAW.

ProRes RAW (released 18 months ago), offers the optimum combination of both the compressed ProRes format and lossless RAW. Apple claimed that the ProRes RAW files are even smaller than ProRes 4444 files. That means having the potential to facilitate workflow and archiving, and also edit RAW on a laptop, and still preserving the performances.

Just a reminder that Atomos, the company that specializes in improving and enhancing the images coming from the camera sensor have found a way to record ProRes RAW from Nikon Z6 and Z7 via Ninja V recorder. This option may be available in the upcoming Nikon’s firmware updates.

FCPX users can work natively with ProRes RAW and ProRes RAW HQ files. Furthermore, ProRes RAW becomes available in Adobe Premiere Pro as well, in a native utilization (without using any plugin). Nevertheless, FCPX doesn’t support the BRAW codec for now.

BRAW vs. ProRes RAW

Is there an undercover codecs war between Blackmagic and Apple? We’re familiar with the optimum synergy between Blackmagic Design and Apple’s products. However, BRAW competes with ProRees RAW since they are offering the same RAW efficiency.

Is there a chance that Apple is blocking Blackmagic from developing BRAW integration on FCPX? We are not sure for now, although it might be a possibility. 

What do you think? Will we see the BRAW on FCPX? Let’s know your insights in the comments section below.