Tag Archives: Chronos 1.4

BEST SLOW MOTION CAMERAS OF 2021!

 

We have passed another year in slow motion land and while camera releases were more plenty than expected considering the chip shortage and teh COVID disruption, it’s time to take a look back through the year’s camera releases, and see which delivered on the price/performance scale when it comes to slow motion frame rates.  Phones are stagnationg while high end cameras are getting more frame rate options in higher resolution. Our Best Slow Motion Cameras Of 2021 have been selected and ordered by recommendation! → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Chronos Camera m43 Lens Adapter with Speedbooster Support!

The two existing Chronos cameras, the 1.4c 720p at 1502fps & the Chronos 2.1 -HD 1t 1080p 1000fps are identical when seen from the outside but very different inside as they contain different sensor and memory boards. However one constant is that both use the C mount as the default for lens adapters. The camera usually comes with a Canon EF or Nikon F mount adapter depending on the buyer preference which screws on the C mount thread and allows for support of classic lenses from Macro to telephoto. 

One request from the community has been the support for other lens mounts like Micro 4/3ds which lets you adapt a variety of lens mounts and the much coveted speedbooster adapters which allow a 1 f-stop improvement in light gathering for micro 4/3ds systems. Today Krontech, the company behind the Chronos high-speed camera is introducing a passive Micro 4/3rds adapter for both the Chronos 1.4c and 2.1-HD and uses the body screw terminals near the lens thread mount to place a solid connection that allows such lenses. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Slow Motion Videos You Have to See!

Slow Motion camera releases are slow at this time of year but that doesn’t mean we have to be deprived of cool stuff to see. We have gathered a few slow motion videos that warrant your time and attention and surely push the art of capturing snapshots of time forward.

Even when these high speed cameras that in most cases are worth a lot more than the typical luxury midsize car, many creators are getting their hands on them and being creative in ways that could not be imagined in an earlier timeframe. From natural phenomena to technological feats, the footage has that mesmerizing quality that only this type of footage can instill on the viewer.  → Continue Reading Full Post ←

BEST SLOW MOTION CAMERAS OF 2020!

BEST SLOW MOTION CAMERAS OF 2020

As the end of 2020 nears, it’s time to take a look back through the year’s camera releases amid the COVID 19 chaos, and see which delivered on the price/performance bracket with slow motion frame rates as the primary goal.  Phone slow motion took a back seat this year as the interest of the feature in phones was subdued or even eliminated. Our Best Slow Motion Cameras Of 2020 have been selected and ordered by recommendation!

We saw some surprises including a mostly affordable 4k slow motion solution and the adoption of 4k 120fps on many cameras which makes us think 240fps at UHD should be something to think about in the coming years as a regular option once 8k video is commonplace on consumer recording devices and TVs. The increase in resolution should theoretically allow for a lot of 4k frame rates to be offered as 8k delivers 4x the pixel count of 4k for any given frame rate. Keep on reading for our 2020 picks!

BEST SLOW MOTION CAMERAS of 2020:

Without further ado here are what we believe are the best value slow motion cameras in their respective categories for the year 2020:

Best Slow Motion Phone Category:

3rd Place) Sony Xperia 5 II:

The Sony Xperia 5 II is all about capturing the best video possible on a smartphone and in HDR. The kick here is that the phone is capable of 4k 120fps in full HDR which is pretty much class-leading.

The footage below will give you a taste of what the phone can do. In good light, it will let you capture excellent quality 4k 120p footage with the possibility to grade as it records a gradable flat profile.  In low light, it will be a pretty unremarkable image with grain and artifacts as could be expected from the light requirements when shooting at high speed.

Sony Xperia 5 II: 4K 120fps video footage by CNET Highlights:

Sony Xperia 5 II Slow Motion Specs:

  • 120fps 4k
  • 60fps 1080p

This is one of the first phones to offer 120fps in 4k which will probably become a standard spec in 2021 for flagships. However absent is the slow motion at 1080p which considering the 4k oomph, it should have been capable of 480fps at 1080p or similar. It is a shame that the spec was completely avoided considering HDR in 120fps 4k requires 240fps full pixel readout before merging.  In theory, 240fps non-HDR is possible on this phone but not available for unspecified reasons. Phones are becoming more powerful by the day and this is one that has our attention. The just under $1k price tag is not ideal but some of the best phones are going to cost you.

2nd Place) OnePlus 8T:

One Plus continues to offer compelling slow motion features on their phones with 480fps 1080p and up to 480fps at 720p.  It gives you a quad 48MP camera module which is literally insane considering the phone sells for under $750USD and has 120hz refresh rate. Feature-wise it has probably everything under the sun and then some and will not disappoint in the performance realm.

Fireworks in Slow motion – OnePlus 8T 480fps in dark by sternking: → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Multiply Your Video Frame Rate with Dain-App !

Multiply Your Video Frame Rate

We got over 20 messages with essentially the same video sample in our inbox this week. They all touted the new interpolation from the DAIN experimental App or (Depth Aware Video Interpolation App)  which now analyses footage with a Neural network AI algorithm that crunches motion vectors and even what seemed impossible before “Object Occlusion” to generate higher frame rates from lower fps sources.  The technology is pretty fascinating and should be further improved by more training and samples over the coming years.

For stop motion animators, this is a complete game-changer as now you could animate with as little as 8fps and then interpolate to 30fps or 60fps with very little in the way of tearing and artifacting as long as the footage is well lit and objects clearly defined.  To make matters more interesting, it also analyses footage with shallow depth of field yielding impressive results.

Multiply Your Video Frame Rate with Interpolation or the “I” Word for Slow Motion Enthusiasts:

We visited the Interpolation topic in the past on our Fake Slow Motion article and concluded that then, the quality of interpolation while good was far from usable and you really could not compromise real high fps footage from interpolated versions except in very simple cases.

Now with DAIN technology, we have no choice but to re-visit the cases and analyze what it is capable of.  We looked at a few dozen examples and it is clear the technology has progressed forward so much that now stop motion animation, 2D Cell-based cartoon animation, and even 3D animated sequences rendered at 30p can easily be turned in higher fps increments yielding impressive and in some cases miraculous results.

We would like you to first watch the video below to understand what a depth map is and how the software in DAIN can create frames from nothing that look just like real ones.  A depth map will generate an approximated view of the world in a Lidar-Like vision representation to figure out to the best of the AI estimation where objects are in a scene according to their location close or far to the camera.

Depth-Aware Video Frame Interpolation by Wenbo Bao:

Even at 48fps from  12fps source, it is clear the technology in DAIN can yield impressive results even with heavy organic detail in the background including foliage. The software does an admirable job of estimating the relative position of objects in the video scenes.

AI使用フレーム補間アプリ DAIN APP byTALBOの実験室 Ch.: → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Krontech Releases Chronos Software 0.4 with LAN support!

Chronos Software 0.4

Krontech.ca the makers of the Chronos affordable professional high speed camera have released the Software version 0.4.0 Beta of the camera platform.  The cameras will now be using an embedded build of the Debian operating system which was already the default OS for the Chronos 2.1 HD.  All Chronos 1.4c cameras can now be upgraded to the new Beta version free of charge Follow this link for the official thread.

We tested the software briefly and found it to be responsive and solid.  However as a Beta, you should be ready to find some glitches here and there, if you are doing mission-critical work you should wait for a full release before updating to be on the safe side, we recommend it for most users who are not shooting once in a lifetime events. If you do find bugs please contact them to help squash them out.

Chronos Software 0.4.0 Software Beta:

Official thread, installation instructions and download link here!

Notable Changes:
– Support for the LUX2100 image sensor.
– API for camera control via JSON/HTTP over the Ethernet port.
* Examples: https://github.com/krontech/chronos-examples
– Saving of media over network to an NFS and Samba share.
– Software updates can be downloaded over the internet.
– Real-time video stream from the camera using RTSP.
– New back-of-camera GUI is available via the software update screen.
* For more information: http://forum.krontech.ca/index.php?topic=498

The biggest change is the ability to control the camera via Ethernet which gets it into more professional settings that allow for a really long tethering solution or using a small portable LAN Wifi router like the ZyXel here which will allow wireless control from afar. As of now it allows the use of control scripts that will operate the camera remotely with a great deal of customizability.  For situations that require the camera to be sealed and controlled remotely and unattended, this is an ideal solution. We will revisit the feature once we have tested it.

Spice Slow motion test chronos camera 2.1 HD by LaSt Studio:

We love the new Dark GUI and we especially find it comforting to get more video preview space which was taken by the old interface scroll bar and buttons. Now the video preview takes center stage much like what you see in other professional cameras like the ones from RED and or Blackmagic design.   We will test the new software in our next shoot with the Chronos 1.4 and will get a 2.1 HD to review later this year. Stay tuned!

Chronos does space science:

Krontech also shared this article in IEEE Spectrum magazine that details the work by Masten Space Systems on creating instant landing pads for future space exploration vehicles. The technology uses the rocket exhaust and composite materials to create a kind of lilypad array on planetary surfaces to create a stable base for exploration modules.

The Chronos cameras were used extensively for testing the different materials and exhaust plumes of rockets on their research. The footage below shows part of the Chronos camera imagery analyzing different test cases of the technology. We estimate the Chronos 1.4c was used for this project.

It is exciting to see Krontech catering to many labs now and creating a name for itself in the Aerospace industry by showing affordability does not necessarily mean unprofessional.  The fact that rocket scientists are using the cameras with great success should make it an easy purchase for many other labs.

For more information on these cameras go to www.krontech.ca !

Thanks for reading and remember to mention HSC Code “HISPEEDCAMS5”  to Krontech at Chronos store for a possible discount on your order if you are a new customer! -HSC