Atomos

Atomos logo Atomos are an australian company based in Melbourne. The two founders, Jeromy Young and Ian Overliese, have been manufacturing and selling video equipment for the Graphics, Events, Broadcast and Film industries for the past 11 and 15 years respectively, for companies that include Canopus & Blackmagic Design. Jeromy and Ian believe that by using the latest technology in Atomos products, they can help video businesses by improving video production workflows. Everyone at Atomos is proud to have gained Apple's approval for their hardware implementation of Apple’s professional editing codec, ProRes.

Atomos Ninja 2

Atomos Ninja ProRes video recorderThe Ninja2 is a battery-powered portable touchscreen recording & playback device, encoding video in real-time to the visually-lossless Apple ProRes format, onto low-cost, removable 2.5" hard disks, with a capacity of up to 16 hours on a standard 750GB drive (in ProRes LT mode).

It combines the functions of Professional 10bit HD Recorder, Monitor, & Playback device, capturing pristine video and audio, in SD or HD, direct from any camera with a clean uncompressed HDMI output, storing it in either of the LT, 422 or HQ ProRes modes, or as Avid DNX-HD files.

Audio input can be from the embedded HDMI stream, or via a stereo analogue input, with level control, stored on disk in 48KHz 16bit uncompressed format.

The Ninja consumes very little power, and is designed from the ground up to be a low power device to ensure long recording times and efficient use of batteries. Atomos' unique battery-looping technology means that you never have to interrupt a Ninja recording to swap power cells. Just unplug the old battery and replace it with a fully charged one. Continuous Power!Atomos Ninja kit

Most standard 2.5" hard drives can be used, which helps keep the running costs down. SSDs can be used, especially when "shooting on the run", but are not essential when the camera's more static. The Ninja is sold as a complete kit including the rugged protective case, batteries, charger & two disk caddy shells (disk drives are extra - ask for prices).

Ninja makes it easy to get video off your camera and onto your computer, with FireWire 800, USB 2 & 3 interfaces built into the included docking station. Insert the 2.5" disks into the docking station, or connect the device itself via USB, and the Apple ProRes files are recognised within seconds. They work natively with Final Cut Pro and on any computer with the ProRes codec installed (including suitably configured PCs - eg with Adobe CS5/6). That's right: there's no capture card necessary in the Atomos Ninja workflow!

Atomos Samurai 10bit SDI HDSDI ProRes video recorderAtomos Samurai

The next step up from Ninja, and slightly larger, the Samurai has SDI/HDSDI input and output. It has a super high-resolution 5" touch-screen monitor with an ideal workflow, from sensor to timeline in unparalleled Apple ProRes quality. All the innovative features of the Ninja plus time-code and gen-lock and the ability to work with multiple synchronised units.

Samurai is simple to use as well, with a no-nonsense, intuitive touch-screen that doubles as a viewfinder and playback monitor. Samurai eliminates the need for a separate monitor, external high quality recorder and large battery by combining these three pro-video essentials in into one clever portable device.

The Blade version features a built-in waveform monitor and an improved screen for higher quality monitoring. At 325 dpi and 1 million pixels (1280x720) this 5" SuperAtom IPS Panel delivers amazing resolution, super accurate colours and super deep blacks, with an image representation that oozes atmosphere. When you see this screen you will not believe your eyes. OLED seems lifeless and dull by comparison at normal brightness levels - In-Plane Switching technology really brings your images to life! (according to Atomos :)

Atomos Connect

Atomos Connect SDI HDMI ConvertersConnect Converters are the ultimate battery powered, in-the-field converter tool for any situation. With SDI and HDMI connectivity, internal and external battery options and Atomos’ patent pending Continuous Power technology, you can connect & forget about conversion anytime, anywhere. They’re able to convert any SDI or HDMI signal, including 3G. Choose S2H for HD-SDI>HDMI and H2S for HDMI>HD-SDI.

Built for converting convenience, they are lightweight and fit in your pocket. Easily powered from battery or AC, they provide 3:2 pull-down removal, test pattern and audio signal generation, and even have a built-in torch for use in dark locations. They’re stackable and modular and you can cascade and power them from one source. Ideal for mounting on the back of a Ninja or Samurai to enhance the I/O capabilities.


Atomos at the IOV VideoSkills Roadshows

In the last 2 years Martin has been one of the trainers at the IOV Videoskills Roadshows, aimed at helping videographers improve their basic skills. Topics covered include lighting, sound, camerawork and editing, with a two-handed interview as the sample subject matter. This is the resulting video from the event at Gilwell Park, where the guest interviewee was Robbie Fleming from Atomos, who talked about the Ninja & Samurai portable 10bit ProRes recorders.
Shot on a Sony EX3 and edited in Premiere CS5. Lit with Kinoflo Diva 400 and Dedolights, and recorded through a 416 boom mic,  via a SQN4 mixer to the EX3.

  The last Videoskills Roadshow training day was in London in Sept 2011

  IOV Videoskills Roadshow - London in HD, from Martin Kay on Vimeo

Encoded 1280x720, so best viewed Full Screen on the Vimeo site, in HD

 

Educational pricing is available for Atomos products for orders from educational institutions - apply for details.

More video capture & converter products : Blackmagic Design

Note - all prices quoted on this site are UK pounds - ex VAT & delivery

Atomos Products

Price

Atomos Ninja2 Full Kit - with 2x Caddy 2x Battery 1x Charger & 1x Docking Station 525.00
Atomos Ninja2 - reduced kit (2013 Retail version) 470.00
Atomos Ninja1 - original version, v2 of AtomOS s/w & HDMI-In only 230.00
Atomos Samurai Kit - with 2x Caddy 2x Battery 1x Charger & 1x Docking Station 640.00
Atomos Samurai Blade HD Recorder/Monitor - Retail Kit 835.00
Atomos Connect SDI-HDMI mini-converters (mains or battery versions) 199.00
Atomos Master Caddy shell (single caddy) 5.00
Atomos Master Caddy shell (5-pack) 19.95
Other Atomos accessories & spares - please enquire for prices TBA

What we're about . . .      ZEN is not a traditional Audio-Visual dealer who started selling computers, nor is it a computer shop that also sells video editing systems. You won't get any salesmen giving you the "hard-sell" when you call, just straightforward advice and information - which for some callers is the knowledge that they don't need to buy whatever it is they thought they needed! Above all you'll be dealing with someone with a wide range of experience and knowledge of both PCs and video production. We're not the biggest, nor necessarily the cheapest, but we are one of the longest established computer/video specialists in the UK.

Company history . . .      ZEN was started in the 1980s by Martin Kay, then working for ITV at Granada's Manchester studios, who built his first 6502-based computer in 1979 from an Ohio Scientific kit, bought in the USA whilst working as a Sound Recordist on a film shoot for World In Action. With the advent of the Amiga, which could be gen-locked to a video source, Martin started writing a variety of video-related software. This included subtitling & tele-prompting, ident clocks, scoring software for sports & gameshows, and specialist software to mimic other computer displays for use in TV film dramas like Cracker, Prime Suspect and A Touch of Frost. Martin left Granada in 1993 to concentrate on his computer-video activities with ZEN, following a natural path into non-linear editing systems, now the main focus of the business, although he still maintains an active interest in video production.

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Revised: 25 April, 2013