Why we bought (and sold) a $20k cinema camera

Avenue One bought a $15k cinema camera and sold it… 💸

We picked up an URSA 12k. It produced a beautiful image.

But there were a few downsides to the wonderful image quality: ❌

1. Huge file sizes (350gb/hour)
2. Heavy camera weight
3. Denoising every image unless it was filmed in direct sunlight
4. $800 memory cards
5. No Autofocus

We weren’t filming movies. We were mainly filming corporate video.



For those reasons, we switched camera systems (to Sony FX6 + FX3)

Sony cameras still create beautiful images. Here’s the upsides: ✅

1. Much smaller file sizes (50gb/hour)
2. Lighter camera by 4lbs
3. Flawless performance in low light
4. Cheaper emeort cards
5. Eye tracking autofocus

There’s plenty of film nerds who will say: ‘it’s not about the camera, it’s about the user’. And they’re absolutely right.

The switch to Sony was one of the best decisions I made because it fit my personal work flow.

There’s ups and downs to various camera systems, but at the end of the day, all we want is for our camera systems to work for us, our companies and our clients. We would love to be your next Boston Video Production Company. 🎥


See you on set! 🎬

- Nick Gould, Owner of Avenue One Productions LLC