VENICE is a very different kind of camera for Sony: everything from its name through to an all-new compact chassis and that uniquely cinematic look. Sony has been part of digital cinematography from its modern-day beginning, collaborating with George Lucas on his digital vision for Star Wars prequels. Early test shoots adapted existing Sony cameras such as the HDC-950P, but dedicated cameras such as the Academy Award-winning F900 soon followed, as well as the CineAlta brand itself. Each new camera generation has advanced imaging performance and features, but what’s remarkable is how the look of the cameras has evolved to be smaller and simpler — closer to traditional film cameras. VENICE represents the zenith of this evolution of technology and design. For this interview we spoke to: Product Planner Yutaka Okahashi, Project Leader Yuji Ooba, Designer Shinsaku Hirano, Mechanical Engineer Koji Izumi.

Izumi: We considered every detail! For example, most cameras are designed with the intake and exhaust ports on the top and bottom of the camera, but if it rains while filming, water enters the camera through them. For VENICE, the intake vent is located on the left and the exhaust vent is on the right. By separating the ventilation flow path from the electronic components, the camera’s operation is not affected, even if water enters the intake and exhaust ports. That was our theory, but we also conducted tests with VENICE in harsh conditions and found that there were no problems with its operation, even under extreme circumstances.

We also designed VENICE with on-set maintenance in mind. We knew that it’s easy for the fans to get dirty when shooting in harsh conditions, so on VENICE they can be changed very easily. Once the sensor module is removed, the fan can be extracted as simply as opening a drawer. As long as the customer is willing to accept the appropriate responsibility, the entire task can be done in a matter of minutes.

Hirano: We also decided to reflect this interior robustness with VENICE’s external design: adopting a new utilitarian gray color with a distinctly bumpy texture on the magnesium chassis. We wanted VENICE to look, and even feel, in way that made its robustness quite obvious. It’s a small camera, but it’s tough enough for almost any mainstream cinematography application.

Okahashi: Time is a lot of money on a film set. Superb imaging performance is of limited value if set-up time is too long, so this was a big focus for the team. We listened to customers on how they preferred to work and the number of buttons, layout and menu composition. We reduced the number of external buttons to 14 to achieve a more intuitive approach to operating the camera. A lot of time was spent tuning the controls to meet an operator’s needs; all the necessary functions in just the right places, paring away anything unnecessary that might interfere in an instinctive user experience. The same user-focused approach was applied to the menu control interface. During normal use, there’s a simple interface providing quick access to all the key features, but it’s still possible to access a layer of more detailed controls to make more sophisticated adjustments. In fact, the VENICE team called on a UI expert from outside of the professional group to provide a fresh approach. He spent a great deal of time with customers, analyzing their usability requirements with paper outlines, often in private sessions at cinematography events. It’s one more reason to visit the Sony booth — being consulted on our next-generation cameras!

Ooba: This camera is often used with camera assistants, so we took care to meet their needs, with the main display on the side to increase the operability for them.

Izumi: One example of how VENICE’s design evolution offered new functionality is that when a space became available on top of the camera, we immediately started thinking about how to use it. After much consideration, we decided to attach a slide rail to the top of the body. Doing so allowed independent movement of the handle and viewfinder stay. The viewfinder can also be rotated 90°, making it useful in locations where it is hard to see through the viewfinder, like when you’re against a wall or in a car. We also considered the position of the terminal so the cables do not get in the way of the bottom space, allowing trouble-free panel operation and a sense of compactness when operating the camera, even if many cables are inserted.