Csaba Nagy's CinePi-2K Brings High-Resolution RAW Video to a Raspberry Pi-Powered Handheld Camera
Built around the Raspberry Pi 4 Model B, a Raspberry Pi HQ Camera Module, battery pack, and USB 3.0 SDD, the CinePi-2K is impressive.
Csaba Nagy is working on a project to create a compact, handheld cinema camera driven by a Raspberry Pi single-board computer and capable of outputting 12-bit RAW DNG format 2K-resolution video up to 50 frames per second — and its open source design costs less than $200 to put together.
"Since my first Raspberry Pi, many years ago I’ve been determined to combine my passion of filmmaking and my love for programming," Nagy explains. "For those that know, high end film/video cameras typically shoot high resolution (4K+) with very good codecs (RAW when possible) and with tons of manual control for high flexibility to manipulate images in the post processing stage."
"Out of the box the Raspberry Pi provides a very friendly experience to work with cameras, with convenience features like auto white-balance, auto exposure, efficient h.264/JPEG codec. These features cater to a wide variety of general applications, but for high end video work these are often hindrances that restrict you from controlling the quality of your image."
The CinePi-2K aims to fix all of this. Built around a Raspberry Pi 4 Model B single-board computer and Raspberry Pi HQ Camera Module, the system captures 12-bit RAW DNG video at up to 2K resolution and 50 frames per second — while the data are saved to an external USB 3.0 SSD to prevent bottlenecking on the microSD storage slot.
To make the device even more usable, Nagy has designed a 3D-printed chassis which turns everything required to run the hardware, including storage and a battery pack, into a handheld camera inspired by the Sony ZV-1 — "which," he observes, "just so happens to have a very identical footprint to a Raspberry Pi board." As well as looking professional, the case offers compatibility with off-the-shelf accessories including aluminium cages to offer mounts and additional rigidity.
Nagy has pledged to release the CinePi-2K under an open source licence, and says it can be put together for under $200 — though the final budget will depend heavily on the lens fitted to the HQ Camera Module and the size and performance of the USB 3.0 SSD used for storage.
More details are available on the project's Raspberry Pi forum thread.
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