With new acquisitions in late November, Magnanimous Media now offers the full line of Canon’s Cinema EOS cameras and CN-E prime lenses.
Magnanimous has offered the C300, the first, midrange model in the Cinema EOS line, since May.
The C300 “is probably the best docu-camera available at the moment, delivers excellent dynamic range in C-Log, has excellent low-light performance and, when grading, the image spreads like butter and performs very well in secondaries,” says Magnanimous creative director Jonah Rubash.
In late November, they began offering the C500 and C100, the models above and below the C300, respectively. “The success and performance of the C300 certainly influenced our decision to acquire the C100 and C500,” Rubash says.
The C100 combines elements of DSLRs and traditional video cameras, and while it does not have the full complement of features of its higher-end cousins, it “has great dynamic range and low light performance with arguably better ergonomics then either the C300 or 500,” Rubash says.
Retailing at a comparatively affordable $6,500, Magnanimous can offer the C100 for $200 a day, and unlike the C300 and C500, it is available without insurance.
On the upper end, the C500 is marketed as a competitor to the RED Epic and Scarlet (which Magnanimous also offers). “The C500 diversifies our 4K cinema options, and makes 4K RAW an option for shoots that may otherwise have been HD,” Rubash says.
Unlike the REDs, the C500 records RAW 4K or 2K to an external recorder. To this end, Magnanimous will soon offer the Gemini 444 recorder, which provides 10-bit Log RAW at up to 30 frames per second, and 12-bit RGB 444 up to 2K.
“The Gemini 444 will provide other benefits to cameras such as the Sony F3 and S-Log as well as 3D support,” Rubash says. “We are currently strongly leaning towards the Gemini 4K recorder as our end solution for Canon RAW as it provides excellent support for all that the C500 has to offer.”
Now renting Canon’s new CN-E primes
Also in November, Magnanimous started renting a full set of Canon’s new CN-E prime lenses—24, 50 and 85 mm—built for Cinema EOS cameras or other EF mount cameras. Rubash says the CN-E primes are “a little warmer” than their Zeiss Super-Speed PL-mount set, “and have contrast on par with the L-series still counterparts.
The CN-E lenses diversify that selection, so low-budget filmmakers can have that much more variety in making decisions about the design of their work.”
