Since Nikon acquired RED that the question is lingering: when will there be a Z-Mount camera from RED? According to recent rumors, those interested may not have to wait long.
The image published on Instagram by Director/Cinematographer Phill Holland showing a Z-mount got the ball rolling: is a RED V-RAPTOR Z-Mount coming soon? Maybe at NAB 2025?
It may be a coincidence, but RED recently sent an email, apparently by mistake, offering users the option to upgrade some of the company’s cameras, and the first three options refer to a V-RAPTOR [X] Z Mount available in Starter, Production (V Lock) and Production (Gold Mount). Error, wishful thinking or an email sent, by mistake, ahead of an eventual release of a new RED model? No one knows for sure, but the rumor mill started working and when you add some available info to the mix, it’s not difficult to believe that something new may be taking shape at RED… or Nikon.
The release of the Z-Mount image by Phill Holland, published on Instagram and Facebook, is not the only RED information shared by the cinematographer. In fact, Phill Holland also shared on Instagram, a few days ago, that the latest beta of REDCINE-X Pro supports N-RAW .nev clips and puts them natively into the RED IPP2 workflow with a colorspace of REDWideGamutRGB and Log3G10. Holland adds that “digging deeper, RCX gains support for some distinct ISO settings: 64, 8000, 10000, 16000, 20000, and 25600, which also work RECODE RAW material as well. For Nikon users, this allows for transcoding, rendering, framing, etc. all through RCX. And this officially supports Apple ProRes encoding on Windows. Interesting stuff to dive into if it’s new for you. And if you mixed the last release, Raptor [X] Extended Highlight general release was also added.”
Will the Z-Mount model appear at NAB 2025?
REDCINE-X PRO is a professional-grade software application, designed specifically for transcoding and pre-editorial image manipulation of REDCODE RAW (R3D) footage. REDCINE-X PRO is a non-destructive application, enabling you to make image adjustments—while preserving the original RAW format. This gives you the ability to return to the original files at any time for transcoding, scaling, cropping, or correcting color.
REDCINE-X PRO converts selected RAW files to RGB color space using de-mosaicing and color matrix algorithms. Timecode, white balance, and other metadata is maintained during RAW to RGB conversion.
The beta version of REDCINE-X Pro released on February 4 is the one including N-RAW support. It’s available for both Mac and Windows and you can download it from RED’s website.
Apparently, the stage is being prepared for something new from RED/Nikon. The email sent by mistake (or not), the suggestions for a new camera, the update to REDCINE-X Pro, all fit together with the knowledge that the new Nikkor Z 28-135mm f/4 PZ zoom lens is expected to be officially announced soon. The lens, which we mentioned here at ProVideo Coalition last October, is Nikon’s first zoom designed to provide ease of use and superior optical performance for video recording, introduced as the ideal solution for solo videographers or small crews. See? It all fits together…
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