Atomos Monitors: Choosing The Right One For You

Atomos is an Australian brand that creates cutting-edge 4K and HD Apple ProRes monitor-recorders. They are well-respected in the field due to their attention to detail and robust, durable, and user-friendly products. Atomos offers a range of devices to suit various applications and budgets, including the Ninja series, Shogun series, and Zato Connect. The monitors are designed to enhance and record images, offering features such as touchscreen capabilities, high brightness, and compatibility with various camera setups. When choosing an Atomos monitor, factors such as screen resolution, battery options, and additional accessories should be considered to ensure the best purchase decision.

Atomos Ninja Ultra 5-Inch 1000nit HDR Monitor-Recorder

The Atomos Ninja Ultra 5-Inch 1000nit HDR Monitor-Recorder is a powerful tool for filmmakers, offering a range of features that enhance the filmmaking process. This monitor-recorder combo is designed to work seamlessly with mirrorless and cinematic cameras, capturing your vision in stunning detail.

One of the key advantages of the Ninja Ultra is its ability to record in ProRes RAW format, offering unparalleled flexibility in post-production. With support for up to 8K 30P, 6K 60P, and 4K 120P, the Ninja Ultra ensures that you can capture high-quality footage no matter the project. Additionally, the Ninja Ultra provides a flexible codec choice, including ProRes RAW, ProRes, DNxHD, and H.265 (HEVC), all at no additional cost.

The device is built on the new operating system AtomOS 11, which introduces exclusive monitoring and recording features that bring creativity to the forefront. RecordAssist and PlayBackAssist functionalities cover pre-arranged or remote shots, while improved false-color tools like Arri False Color or EL Zone cater to the needs of modern creators. The Ninja Ultra also includes the SDI Cine feature, which automates matching filenames, timecode, and record triggers from ARRI, Canon, RED, and Sony SDI cameras, streamlining your workflow.

The Ninja Ultra has a compact 5-inch screen size, making it convenient for on-the-go filming without compromising on image quality. Its HDR capabilities deliver exceptional dynamic range and colour accuracy, ensuring that you capture every detail in your footage.

Overall, the Atomos Ninja Ultra 5-Inch 1000nit HDR Monitor-Recorder is an impressive piece of equipment, offering a range of features that cater to the needs of filmmakers, from cinematic productions to social media content creation.

Atomos Ninja V 5 4K HDMI Recording Monitor

The Atomos Ninja V 5" 4K HDMI Recording Monitor is a compact and versatile device, ideal for filmmakers and video content creators. It features a 5-inch HDR display with 1000 nits of brightness, making it suitable for both indoor and outdoor use. The monitor has a sturdy aluminium body, weighing just 320g, and offers a range of tools for focus, exposure, and framing. It is compatible with a wide range of cameras, including DSLR and mirrorless models, and supports various industry-standard formats such as Apple ProRes and Avid DNxHR.

One of the key features of the Ninja V is its recording capability. It can record high-resolution 4K footage in DCI or UHD formats at up to 60 fps, including 24 and 25 fps for a film-like aesthetic. The recorded videos are stored as high-quality Apple ProRes or Avid DNxHR files with 10-bit 4:2:2 chroma subsampling. The Ninja V also supports RAW recording, allowing you to capture uncompressed video directly from your camera's sensor.

The monitor includes a variety of onscreen exposure analysis, framing, and focus assist tools, such as waveform, focus peaking, false colour, and frame guides. It also has an anamorphic de-squeeze feature, supporting anamorphic footage with squeeze ratios of 2x, 1.5x, 1.33x, and Panasonic's 8:3. Additionally, the Ninja V offers flexible power options and can be powered by a single L-series battery.

The Ninja V is designed to be user-friendly, with an intuitive interface that provides easy access to its various functions. It also includes the AtomOS 11 operating system, which offers improved icons, faster performance, and new features such as SegmentPro for splitting long recordings into user-defined chunks. The monitor is built with expansion in mind and offers a range of ports for accessories, such as the AtomX Cast for multi-cam switching and the Atomos Connect for wireless connectivity.

Overall, the Atomos Ninja V 5" 4K HDMI Recording Monitor is a powerful and versatile tool for filmmakers and content creators, offering high-quality recording, flexible power options, and a range of monitoring and analysis tools.

Atomos Shogun Ultra

The Atomos Shogun Ultra is a powerful monitor-recorder that offers enhanced connectivity and collaborative creativity for video production. With a bright 7-inch screen, the Shogun Ultra provides clear images and instant feedback for checking HDR footage on set or reviewing captured shots. Its network connectivity includes Wi-Fi 6E and GigE, enabling stable and speedy connections for cloud workflows.

The Shogun Ultra is designed to work seamlessly with HDMI mirrorless and SDI cinematic cameras, offering cross-conversion between HDMI and SDI. It supports RAW recording and can capture inputs up to 8K at 30fps, 6K at 60fps, and 4K at 120fps. The monitor also includes comprehensive monitoring tools such as waveform, focus peaking, and custom LUTs, ensuring you get the perfect composition and exposure for every shot.

One of the standout features of the Shogun Ultra is its cloud capabilities. With its wireless and network functions, you can access efficient cloud workflows like camera-to-cloud and Atomos Edit. This allows you to edit your projects in the cloud and publish directly to social media platforms, streamlining your video production process.

The Shogun Ultra also offers flexible power options with an NP battery slot and a separate 2.1mm locking jack DC input, ensuring you can stay powered up during your shoots. Additionally, its versatile mount can be adapted to suit different industry-standard equipment, making it a secure and reliable choice for any camera rig.

While the Shogun Ultra offers impressive features, it's important to consider a few potential drawbacks. Some users have noted that the unit can get quite hot, and it may drain batteries quickly. Additionally, there may be limitations when trying to use certain features simultaneously, such as RAW recording and NDI functionality.

Atomos Shinobi

The Atomos Shinobi is a lightweight, high-brightness 5-inch monitor designed for vloggers, creatives and photographers. It is a standalone small monitor that features Atomos' screen processing technology and professional monitoring tools. The Shinobi monitor weighs just 200g, making it one of the lightest 4K-input monitors on the market. It has a 10-bit HDR/SDR display, allowing users to see their images clearly even in bright daylight. The 1000 nit screen is also equipped with an anti-reflective coating and anti-fingerprint technology.

The Shinobi offers a range of professional monitoring features, including advanced histograms, waveforms and videoscopes. It also includes a selfie Mirror Mode for vloggers. The monitor can be easily attached to a camera, with its weight of 196g and 1/4-inch-20 screw mounts on the top and bottom for cage and adaptor rigging. It is compatible with almost any HDMI camera.

The Shinobi runs on the AtomOS platform and includes an extensive suite of scopes and simple one-touch operations. It provides monitoring tools for focus, framing and exposure, such as Focus Peaking, Zebra, False Color, Frame Guides, Waveform, Vectorscope and more.

The latest version, the Shinobi II, features a slimmer design, a 50% brighter screen and camera control capabilities via a USB-C connection. It maintains the portability of its predecessor, weighing just 210 grams. The Shinobi II also offers touch-to-focus functionality for selected cameras.

Atomos Shogun Classic

The Atomos Shogun Classic is a versatile, 7-inch monitor and recorder with a 3000-nit touchscreen. It is a great tool for professionals who want to enhance the quality of their videos. With a 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio and a peak brightness of 3000 nits, the Shogun Classic delivers exceptional image quality. It offers high-performance HDR and real-time 4K recording, making it an excellent choice for live production, multi-camera shoots, and in-the-field event coverage.

One of the key features of the Shogun Classic is its ability to provide complete control over production settings during filming and editing. It supports 10-bit HDR for detailed pixel evaluation, ensuring that you can meticulously monitor and fine-tune your footage. The dynamic zoned backlight improves contrast, making blacks deeper and whites brighter, while the HDR control options allow for HDR exposure management and SDR finishing.

The Shogun Classic also includes a range of monitoring tools such as custom 3D LUTs, false colour, focus peaking, and pixel magnification. It has four SDI inputs for multi-camera setups and can record up to four 1080p60 streams separately. It also supports a wide range of codecs, including up to 4Kp60 Apple ProRes and Avid DNx.

The Shogun Classic is compatible with a variety of cameras, including DSLR, mirrorless, ARRI, RED, and Sony Venice. It enables accurate HDR monitoring and provides a high-quality viewing experience, giving you the confidence to make informed on-set decisions. The Shogun Classic's efficient workflow speeds up the editing and finishing process, making it a valuable tool for any video professional.

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