Cinema cameras

Blackmagic and RED cameras that record motion data store it inside their RAW files. FPVFlow reads it and can play the RAW footage directly, but it needs the camera maker’s SDK to decode the image, and it does not render RAW files the way it renders MP4 or MOV.

  1. The external SDK
  2. Blackmagic RAW
  3. RED
    1. Opening R3D clips
    2. Rendering R3D
    3. Settings to check
  4. The project workflow for RAW

The external SDK

The Blackmagic RAW SDK and the RED SDK are not bundled with FPVFlow. The first time you open a .braw or .R3D file, FPVFlow asks:

This format requires an external SDK. Do you want to download it now?

Answer Yes. The download happens once; after that, RAW files open like any other clip. The SDKs are fetched from Gyroflow’s servers, so the first open needs an internet connection.

To keep the preview responsive, FPVFlow lowers the preview resolution to 1080p when you open a RAW file, unless you have chosen a preview resolution yourself.

Blackmagic RAW

Blackmagic cameras with gyro logging write the motion data into the .braw file. For most models it is aligned with the frames, so no synchronization is needed and FPVFlow collapses the Synchronization panel. Load or check the lens profile as usual.

.braw cannot be rendered from FPVFlow. If you click Export, FPVFlow tells you the format is not available for rendering. Use the project workflow below instead.

RED

RED cameras that log motion data store it in the .R3D file. The Gyroflow 1.6.3 list names the RED V-RAPTOR and KOMODO. The motion data is aligned with the frames, so no synchronization is needed when you open the .R3D itself.

Opening R3D clips

  • Keep all the .R3D parts of a clip together in their folder and open any one of them. FPVFlow finds the other parts by their shared name and reads the motion data of the whole clip. You can also drag the .RDC folder onto the video area.
  • If you transcode the clip to ProRes yourself and keep the transcoded file next to the .R3D with the same name, FPVFlow finds the .R3D and reads the motion data from it when you open the transcode.

Rendering R3D

FPVFlow can render R3D clips only through REDline, RED’s command-line tool that comes with REDCINE-X PRO. When REDline is installed with REDCINE-X PRO in its default location:

  1. FPVFlow converts the R3D to ProRes and then stabilizes the ProRes.
  2. Choose the ProRes flavour in Advanced > Format for R3D conversion. The colour options next to it set how REDline develops the image.

Without REDline, R3D cannot be rendered from FPVFlow; use the project workflow below.

Settings to check

  • Gyro bias. A slow, steady drift in the stabilized result usually means the gyro reads a small rotation even at rest. The Gyro bias fields in Motion data correct it. To have FPVFlow measure it, use Estimate gyro bias here from the timeline’s right-click menu at a point where the camera sat still.
  • Rolling shutter. The KOMODO has a global shutter, so Rolling shutter correction is not needed for it.

The project workflow for RAW

The way to keep the full quality of RAW footage is to stabilize it inside your editor:

  1. Set up the clip in FPVFlow: lens profile, motion data, stabilization.
  2. Save the project with Ctrl+S. This writes a .gyroflow file next to the clip.
  3. In your editor, apply the Gyroflow plugin to the original RAW clip and load that project file.

On Windows and macOS, when DaVinci Resolve or an Adobe editor is installed, a Video editor plugins section at the bottom of the right panel installs or updates the Gyroflow plugins.

The plugins are Gyroflow’s. They apply the stabilization from the project file, but not FPVFlow’s additions such as the LUT or the external audio. Grade and mix in the editor.