Sony PMW-F3 Brochure

PMW-F3 within budget, beyond imagination

A breakthrough in cost performance, the Sony PMW-F3 starts at $16,000 MSRP. Here’s a true
Super 35mm image sensor designed from the ground up for moving pictures. So you’ll get
gorgeous images without gotchas like aliasing and moiré. The PL mount works directly with
the 35mm cinema lenses you love. The on-board XDCAM EX™ recording takes advantage of
Sony’s well-established post workfl ow. Even RGB output is an option (expected availability Fall

2011). With all the facilities of a true camcorder, the F3 is everything you expect. And beyond.

CAMERA

Super 35mm image sensor

Amazing low-light sensitivity. Gorgeous highlight handling.
Able to see into dark areas without undue noise. The PMW-F3
responds to light and color beautifully, as directors of
photography can attest. It’s all made possible by an original
Sony Exmor™ CMOS image sensor purpose-built for the
PMW-F3. This is not some DSLR image sensor retrofitted for
video. In fact, the F3 image sensor pixels are four times the

size of typical DSLR pixels, equal to a two-stop advantage. It
all adds up to one of the most eagerly anticipated cameras

in Sony’s history.

Full Super 35mm image size

When it comes to image sensors, size definitely
matters. Other things being equal, a bigger sensor equates
to better low-light sensitivity and lower image noise. Even
more important to some photographers is the pursuit of
“bokeh,” the defocused backgrounds made possible by
shallow depth of field. A common technique for directing
audience attention within the frame, shallow depth of
field is far easier to achieve with a large sensor. And that’s
exactly what the PMW-F3 delivers, with a single sensor that
closely approximates a Super 35mm motion picture film
frame. Bigger sensors also make it easier to capture wide­angle shots; the field of view is wider for any given focal
length lens.

Hold the three-CCD prism. The PMW-F3 features a single
Super 35mm image sensor.

Not just a bigger sensor,
bigger pixels

Low-light sensitivity and powerful highlight
handling depend in part on the imager size
and also on the size of the pixels on that
imager. That’s why Sony developed a new
image sensor for the PMW-F3 with pixels that
are four times the size of typical DSLR sensor
pixels. Thanks to this two-stop advantage, the
F3 achieves a sensitivity of F11 at a signal-to­noise ratio of 63 dB and an exposure index
of ISO 800. Dynamic range extends to 460%
of nominal peak white. All told, you’ll capture
images of incredible exposure latitude,
whether you’re seeing deep into the shadows
at night or capturing the highlights in
daytime exteriors.

The Micro Four Thirds™ sensor (left) imposes a significant crop factor
versus 35mm. The PMW-F3 sensor has nearly twice the surface area of the
Micro Four Thirds sensor in 16:9 operation, making the F3 a significantly
better match to the Super 35mm film frame.

RGB output

From color grading to compositing and chroma key the most demanding Hollywood postproduction
processes benefit from RGB recording. Once an option, the CBK-RGB01 RGB and S-LOG Gamma output
module is now standard equipment. This enables the camcorder to output an image with spectacular
resolution, color quality and bit depth: uncompressed 10-bit RGB 4:4:4 1080p, over industry-standard
Dual-link HD-SDI. You’ll be able to record this signal on the likes of Sony’s SRW 1 HDCAM SR™ field

recorder and the SR-R1 SRMaster™ field recorder, either of which is capable of visually lossless 880

Megabits per second image capture. Simultaneous recording means you can capture to the XDCAM
EX™ and HDCAM SR recordings in perfect sync, for
simultaneous online and offline versions of your production.

Pure file-based 4:4:4 workflow with the SRW-1 HDCAM SR field recorder and the CBK-RGB01 RGB and S-LOG Gamma upgrade,
expected in Fall 2011.