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ARRI’s new ALEXA 35 camera is already making waves in the cinematography world, and we are happy to provide you with the latest info. Boasting a new sensor design and new color science, the ALEXA 35 is a brand new camera with 17 stops of dynamic range (2.5 more than previous ALEXA cameras), and a familiar Super 35mm camera package with a host of dedicated accessories that will fit into established on-set workflows. Truly a 4K camera with a 4.6K resolution sensor that fulfills the mandates for 4K origination while using a Super 35mm-sized sensor, the ALEXA 35 delivers not just the tech specs, but it also expands the creative potential of your images. This is a truly massive achievement by ARRI, and it does away with the two-form-factor approach of previous ALEXA cameras where the smaller version sacrifices some of the high-end features of the larger cameras. There is no larger-sized version—the ALEXA 35 is compact, yet sacrifices none of the high-end features.

The Sensor

ARRI has long held fast to its original sensor design for the ALEXA, refusing to squeeze in extra pixels that might cause the image to suffer. However, now 12 years after the original ALEXA debuted, ARRI has created a new Super 35mm sensor with 4K resolution without compromising the image. The new sensor features 4.6K resolution, 17 stops of dynamic range with filmic highlight roll-off, thanks to 1.5 stops of increased highlight sensitivity and 1 stop more sensitivity in the shadows. The sensor provides more contrast, sensitivity, and colors, and it is so improved over previous ALEXA sensors that during the camera’s development, ARRI engineers found stray light contamination between the lens and the sensor—the downside to such a large dynamic range—which led to the development of stray light suppression technology in the camera and in the five new lens mounts developed just for the ALEXA 35 to help you get the cleanest images. Relentlessly pursuing the most from its cameras, and for you to get the widest dynamic range for your images is the ARRI way, and the ALEXA 35 exemplifies this.

The Super 35 sensor itself has a 4.6K horizontal pixel count, and can capture footage at 120 fps, which is impressive for a new sensor design; the ALEXA 35 boasts a standard ISO range of 160 to 6400 ISO. This range provides clean images throughout a variety of lighting conditions, letting you take advantage of the sensor’s dynamic range and contrast. However, sometimes you will have no choice but to shoot in dim conditions with little to no access to lighting units, and here is where the ALEXA 35 and its Enhanced Sensitivity Mode won’t let you down. From 2560 to 6400, you can select the Enhanced Sensitivity Mode, which produces a much cleaner image compared to the standard ISO setting.

REVEAL Color Science and Imaging

To take advantage of the new sensor’s capabilities, ARRI has developed its own new color science that provides more lifelike skin tones of all types, and can reproduce subtle tonal variations. This allows you to capture images with a palette that varies from robust saturated colors to gentle pastels. The REVEAL color science uses a color space larger than the REC 2020 color space, yet it doesn’t include virtual colors (colors humans can’t see), providing you a wide palette that is easy to manage in post-production for fast color timing, and simpler color space conversions. Plus, the new color space is compatible with ACES.

REVEAL also uses an improved de-Bayering algorithm for improved color fidelity and cleaner edges, excellent for green and blue screen work. ARRI has also developed a new Log C tonal curve, Log C4, to handle the expanded dynamic range of the sensor, and new Look Up Tables (LUT) for working with Log C4. The REVEAL color science can also be used to process ARRIRAW from the Alexa Mini LF and ALEXA LF which, though lacking the expanded dynamic range of the new sensor, provides cleaner color edges and easier grading of your LF and Mini LF footage. Another nifty feature, available with the ALEXA 35, is what ARRI is calling Textures. Textures can be chosen in-camera like Look files, or like selecting a film stock. Each Texture file is a combination of 30 image settings, and different textures can be selected for a variety of image needs to match the shooting conditions for skin tones and sharpness.