The Best Camera for Cinema: Canon C50 vs Nikon ZR vs Sony FX3A vs PYXIS 6K vs Red Komodo

Low budget filmmakers have never been so spoilt for choice as they are today. However, that comes with a catch: too many options.

Which camera system should you put your hard earned money down on?

In this article, we compare the following cameras purely on their technical specifications:

• Canon C50 (Amazon, B&H)
• Nikon ZR (Amazon, B&H),
• Sony FX3A (Amazon, B&H),
• Red Komodo (B&H), and
• Blackmagic Design PYXIS 6K (Amazon, B&H)

All five cameras are good enough “on paper” for cinematic short or feature films on a low budget. Though, you’d be surprised by what you can learn by putting aside subjective criteria like image quality or color science – temporarily, at least!

The goal is to find the camera that is the best investment for you. And since this is a fun comparison, there will only be one winner!

Let’s get to it.

Comparison of sensors and lens mounts

Four cameras have full frame sensors with a size close enough to 36mm x 24mm that doesn’t matter practically. The Komodo is the only one with a Super 35 sensor.

Here are their sensitivity ratings:

Camera	Video ISO Range	Native ISO
FX3A	80-102,400	800, 12800
PYXIS 6K	100-25,600	400, 3200
C50	80-51,200	800, 6400
ZR	100-64,000	800, 6400
Komodo	250–12,800	800

The FX3A is still probably the best bang for your buck in low light situations. However, practically speaking, if you’re making a movie and can stay between ISO 400 and ISO 1600, any of these cameras should be good enough.

E.g., in my review of the Red Komodo I’ve shot in low light situations and at night and the camera was perfectly adequate.

I tend to prefer the native ISO because it gives you cleaner images overall, and the most dynamic range. The dual (or second native ISO) is never as good as the first, and without further testing it’s hard to know how usable it is.

Here’s what you get with lens mounts:

Camera	Lens Mounts
FX3A	Sony E
PYXIS 6K	Leica L, Canon EF, Arri PL
C50	Canon RF
ZR	Nikon Z
Komodo	Canon RF

Obviously the PYXIS 6K (Amazon, B&H) has the best options, but you’ll be purchasing the mounts separately. That’s better than getting an adapter.

Comparison of resolution, dynamic range and frame rates

Here’s how the cameras compare in terms of absolute resolution:

Camera	Best Possible Resolution	Max FPS^	Max FPS^ in 4K
FX3A	3840 x 2160 (4264 x 2408 externally)	120 fps	120 fps
PYXIS 6K	6048 x 4032	36 fps	60 fps
C50	6960 x 4640	60 fps	120 fps
ZR	6048 x 3402	60 fps	120 fps
Komodo	6144 x 3240	40 fps*	60 fps

The Sony FX3A (Amazon, B&H) can only shoot up to 4K UHD, whereas the others go further.

The PYXIS 6K and the Komodo is disappointing in this comparison, and the winner has to be the Canon C50, which gives the highest frame rates at a greater resolution, in Open Gate.

One of the advantages of Open Gate with the Canon C50 is you can film it horizontally even if you need to make vertical videos. Assuming you’re filming in 9:16, the resolution cropped will be 2611 x 4640.

Which is better: Higher resolution or higher fps?

For the low budget filmmaker, a higher fps will help you get more shots. Lots of films demand slow motion. In scenes where you need to move the camera around quickly, having the option eliminates ugly jitter-artifacts caused by the rolling shutters on these inexpensive cameras.

A higher resolution gives you two advantages – a zoom crop if you needed to, and a better resolved downsampling when delivering in 4K. However, handling these files and grading them are much more expensive and time-consuming.

If you have to pick – pick higher fps every time. In today’s bleak market, nobody’s asking for 8K content.

Here are the official dynamic range numbers:

Camera	Dynamic Range	Sensor Size
FX3A	15+ stops	Full frame
PYXIS 6K	13 stops	Full frame
C50	15+ stops	Full frame
ZR	15+ stops	Full frame
Komodo	16 stops	Super 35

Cameras have pretty much leveled up on dynamic range, except for the PYXIS 6K. The Komodo definitely is amazing in its dynamic range, and I expect it to do better than the ZR or C50 by a tiny margin.

However, going by the low light performance, the additional DR is mostly cancelled out.

To be honest, I would pick any of these cameras for image quality. They’re all good enough for a theatrical DCP and get the job done. They might not pass Netflix specs but that’s a joke. If your film is good and does well in festivals it has a good chance of being picked up no matter what it was shot on.

Your low budget production will be the limitation here – no camera can hide poor lighting, cheap sets or locations, whatever. The days when mirrorless cameras were not good enough are over.

What you could base your decision on is the color science and skin tones. My order of preference (and I’ve shot with all brands over many years):

1. Canon and Nikon (a tie)
2. Blackmagic Design and Komodo (a close second)
3. Sony (a distant third)

This is me. You do you.

Codecs and external RAW recording

The codec options are all over the place:

Camera	Internal RAW	Internal Codecs	External RAW Recording
FX3A	No	XAVC S-I, XAVC HS	HDMI Type A – 16-bit Prores RAW
PYXIS 6K	12-bit BRAW	Prores HQ	12G-SDI – BRAW
C50	12-bit Cinema RAW Light	XF-AVC, XF-AVC S, XF-HEVC S	HDMI Type A – n/a
ZR	12-bit Redcode RAW, Nikon N-RAW, Prores RAW HQ	Prores 422 HQ, H.265, H.264	HDMI Type D – n/a
Komodo	12-bit Redcode RAW	ProRes 422 HQ, ProRes 422	12G-SDI – None

You need an external recorder for recording any RAW via HDMI. But I’ll be honest. I wouldn’t do it that way. That RAW is nothing like the real RAW you get when recording internally.

For the FX3A, RAW isn’t truly 16-bit, and neither is the sensor. It is the clear loser here.

The clear winner in terms of codecs is the Nikon ZR, though practically speaking they’re all equally good enough for cinema work. Sadly though, it’s got a micro-HDMI output, though it’s not unworkable.

Focus and exposure aids, and ergonomics

A cinema camera needs the right exposure aids. The little things make all the difference:

Camera	Exposure
FX3A	Zebras, Histogram, Meter
PYXIS 6K	False Color, Zebras
C50	Waveform, False Color, Zebras, Histogram, Meter
ZR	Waveform, Zebras, Histogram, Meter
Komodo	Traffic Lights, False Color, Zebras, Histogram

The Sony FX3A falls behind the others here. The Nikon ZR definitely needed false color, so I see it as a big miss on Nikon’s part.

As far as size and weight are concerned:

Camera	Ergonomics	Nits	Weight
FX3A	Swivel monitor, tally lights, mounting points	n/a	640g
PYXIS 6K	Tilt and swivel LCD monitor, mounting points	1,500	1500g
C50	Tilt and swivel LCD monitor, tally lights	n/a	670g
ZR	Tilt and swivel LCD monitor	1,000	540g
Komodo	Fixed LCD on top	n/a	950g

None of the cameras have viewfinders. I guess all the market research points to filmmakers not needing it. A good viewfinder is as expensive as your camera, so it’s a shame we don’t have a clear winner here.

You get an XLR module, tally lights and mounting points extra with the FX3A and C50. The mounting points are not always in a place that you’ll find useful.

All the cameras have fans, except the ZR. However, it is prone to overheating. The maximum record time possible is 125 minutes – which is perfectly all right for filmmaking.

Weather sealing is not guaranteed on any of the cameras. I don’t expect these cameras to be pushovers, and this is par for the course for this budget range.

The only camera I would doubt in a downpour is the Blackmagic. It’s also too big in this lineup.

ND Filters

None of these cameras have built-in ND Filters, which is a shame.

Audio Features

Camera	Audio	Best Audio Bit Depth
FX3A	2 x XLR/TRS 1 x 3.5mm jack	24-bit
PYXIS 6K	2 x mini XLR 1 x 3.5mm jack	24-bit
C50	2 x XLR/TRS 1 x 3.5mm jack	24-bit
ZR	1 x 3.5mm jack	32-bit float, 24-bit
Komodo	1 x 3.5mm jack	24-bit

The Sony FX3A (Amazon, B&H) and Canon C50 (Amazon, B&H) comes with an XLR grip which can be attached to the top of the camera and be used as a top handle.

With the PYXIS 6K (Amazon, B&H) you will have to get mini XLR to XLR adapters.

You get 32-bit float with Nikon ZR (Amazon, B&H), but it’s still only one 3.5mm jack, hardly professional. Great for vloggers, not so useful for cinema use.

Image Stabilization

The PYXIS 6K and Komodo does not have IBIS, the others do.

Nikon claims that the ZR (Amazon, B&H) has 7.5 stops of stabilization whereas Sony claims that the FX3 has 5.5 stops of IBIS. Canon hasn’t published the number for the C50.

All companies use their own standards of testing IBIS so you cannot be absolutely sure unless you test it out for yourself. In practice, I would be surprised if any of the others was inadequate when paired with the right lenses.

The Sony FX3A also has gyro information, but to stabilize the footage you will have to use the Sony Catalyst software.

Timecode

The Blackmagic PYXIS 6K has Tri-Sync/Black Burst and Timecode. In their own words:

Simply plug in an external timecode generator to the BNC timecode input and the camera will automatically detect timecode and lock the internal generator. Now each camera can start and stop recording and all the shots from all cameras will have the same matched timecode.

Highly accurate timecode clock. Less than 1 frame drift every 8 hours.

Blackmagic Design

My thoughts? Even though this feature is useful, you do need to purchase a timecode generator and follow that workflow.

The others don’t have built-in timecode features. If you’re recording audio separately, as you should, the best option is to number and label the files accurately so syncing is easier later.

Batteries and media cards

Here’s a look at the media:

Camera	Slot 1	Slot 2	Other
FX3A	CFexpress Type A or UHS-II SD card	CFexpress Type A or UHS-II SD card	None
PYXIS 6K	CFexpress Type B	CFexpress Type B	USB-C 3.1 Gen 1
C50	CFexpress Type B	UHS-II SD card	None
ZR	CFexpress Type B	Micro SD (UHS-I)	None
Komodo	CFast 2.0	None	None

You can get the job done with any of these cameras, but in a head to head comparison the FX3 and PYXIS 6K wins for its dual, dual card feature. The Komodo suffers with an older generation card system, and I don’t know what Nikon was thinking with the Micro SD slot.

What about batteries?

We don’t have enough information about the C50 and ZR, but I’m going to give this one to the Komodo, because it has hot-swappable dual batteries.

Which is cheaper to own?

Let’s just add up the costs:

Camera	Komodo	PYXIS 6K	C50	FX3A	ZR
Camera body	$2,995	$2,495^	$3,899	$4,098	$2,197
XLR adapter	$399*	$0	$0**	$0**	$399*
Total	$3,394	$2,495	$3,899	$4,098	$2,596

The NIkon ZR is cheap, but very close to the PYXIS 6K, too, in price.

So, what do you really get?

Let’s see who wins in what:

Feature	Winner
Resolution	Canon C50
4K 120fps	Sony FX3A, Canon C50, Nikon ZR
DR and Color	Red Komodo
RAW and Codecs	Tie, except FX3A
Internal ND filters	None
Low Light Performance	Sony FX3A
Exposure Aids	Canon C50, Red Komodo
Media	Sony FX3A, PYXIS 6K
Lenses	Tie
Ergonomics	Tie
IBIS	Nikon ZR, Sony FX3A
Ports and Monitoring	PYXIS 6K
Audio	Tie
Autofocus and Manual Focus	Canon C50, Nikon ZR, Sony FX3A
Battery life	Red Komodo
Rolling Shutter	n/a

Before we take our final decision, we’ll let the cameras tell us what they offer that the other doesn’t:

Camera	USP	Major Cons
FX3A	IBIS, low light, world-class AF, dual card slots	Overheating in 120p? Only 4K UHD internally, Price is too high, No RAW internally
PYXIS 6K	6K RAW, Prores, XLR and SDI, bright monitor, dual card slots, USB-C recording, Ttimecode, Price	Poor battery life, No IBIS, No continuous AF, low frame rates, dynamic range
C50	7K, world-class AF, Open Gate	Price, no IBIS
ZR	6K RAW, Prores, IBIS, world-class AF, Codecs, Price, monitor brightness	Micro HDMI slot, Micro SD slot, Battery Life
Komodo	6K RAW, swappable batteries	Super 35 sensor, fixed LCD, low light ability, lower frame rates, CFast cards

My Verdict

The FX3A has been a winner on this website for a couple of years now. But all that has changed. To me, quite clearly, it comes down to either the Canon C50 or Nikon ZR.

The ZR is over a thousand dollars cheaper – and it has IBIS.

I would be crazy if I don’t recommend the Nikon ZR for the cash-starved filmmaker. Unless the footage is terrible, or the camera has major issues, the Nikon ZR is the new champion.

What do you think?