The Phantom Flex4K and Veo have the highest image quality of any slow motion camera. The Flex4K shoots up to 1000 fps in 4K resolution and has an ISO between 250 up to 1250. Both capture completely uncompressed RAW data. The Flex4K uses 2TB SSD CineMags and can save 128GB RAW files in just 10 seconds. The VEO does not have this feature and save times are much slower 11 -14 minutes for a 72GB shot. The Phantom Flex4K is the flagship Phantom camera and the ideal choice for most projects.

The Phantom Flex4K has a sensor of 4096x2304. On most productions we shoot the Flex4K at 4096x2304. As a rule of thumb, all digital high-speed cameras achieve more frames per second the smaller the resolution. There is always a balance between frame rate and image size. Unlike other high-speed cameras, any resolution from its maximum and below can be selected on the Phantom Flex4K. This makes the Flex4K also perfect for anamorphic lenses.

In most cases 35mm PL lenses are used. All of our kits come with both PL and Canon EF lens monts. Panavison, Nikon, B4 and BNCR lens mounts are available on request. Our cameras are regularly serviced and collimated by specialist engineers to ensure the cameras optics are precisely calibrated and clean.

The Phantom Flex 4K camera can shoot in either RAW or ProRes mode. We always recommend shooting in RAW as this will give you more dynamic range with less chance of blowing out your highlights or crushing you blacks. A RAW file is simply a digital image file that is uncompressed and has has not been processed. It therefore has more information than a processed ProRes file. It is like a digital negative that can be referred back to at any time. All camera manufacturers use their own RAW format. Vision Research use the Cine RAW format. At the end of the shoot, our Phantom technician will download The Cine RAW files from the 10GB CineStation onto your hard drive. You can either get your onset DIT to transcode the Cine RAW files to a file type of your choice. Alternatively we can provide a DIT for your production.

A film friendly analogy of RAW camera data would be ‘digital negative’. This is because of its ability to capture native digital data off the sensor without further destructive processing applied, such as a white balance. This can be beneficial as in most cases RAW data has had very little image manipulation and holds all the quality straight from the sensor. This allows for the greatest control in post-production. The Phantom Flex4K is a high-speed camera design specifically with a RAW based workflow. The Phantom Flex4K CineMags allow RAW data to be saved with great speed and prevent any downtime between shooting. This RAW data is completely uncompressed and holds the best possible quality.

RAW data must be backed up to multiple hard drive devises to ensure safe storage. RAW should be considered as the master and can always be reverted back to should there be any issues through post. Generally Phantom RAW data must be transcoded to another native format before edited with. This transcode process can be done either on-set or after the days shooting and any format can be chosen. By converting directly from the RAW data the maximum quality can be retained. Halo High Speed offer very high-end transcoding, producing the cleanest and highest quality images possible. All of Halo High Speed’s Phantom packages come complete with a Macbook Pro DIT kit including Phantom Fuse, Seance and Resolve software.

We generally need larger lights when shooting high speed in order to achieve the 5.25 additional stops for shoot at 1000fps. If using tungsten lights it is safer to use fixtures 5,000W or larger. This is because our AC (alternating current) power supply in the UK runs at 50 Hz. This means the power is delivered in a wave of 50 cycles per second, ie. the current changes 50 times per second. This is fine when shooting up to 100fps, however any faster than that and the camera starts to see the cycle of the tungsten filament cooling and reheating which registers as flicker. Once a fixture of 5000W or more is used, the filament is sufficiently large as to not have time to cool down, hence eliminating the chance of getting flicker. If using fixtures below 5000w or even practical lights on a set, a good trick is to use DC (direct current) power. This can be achieved by using battery power. The current supply is direct and constant and is not in a cycle. The filaments will therefore not be cooling and reheating.

HMI lights are generally flicker free when shooting below 100fps. HMI (discharge lamps) have an arch of light that can be perceived as movement or flicker at higher frame fates. This is the fast movement you can see around the edges of the beam. You see it better if you look away from the light as the receptors around the edges of your eye are more sensitive to movement. It is the same frequency as the output of the ballast, which can be 50 – 100hz depending on the ballast and its settings. Often people call this “flicker” but it is not the same effect as the “flicker” seen on film or a digital sensor, which a “flicker-free” ballast is designed to prevent. Flicker-free blastast run at a frequency of 1000 Hz which eliminates this. Because the supply to the lamp is AC the current flows through the lamp in one direction, stops momentarily as the supply voltage goes through zero and then flows again in the opposite direction. In effect, the arc is collapsing and reforming very quickly each time the current stops. When the arc reforms, it does not always reform in exactly the same place – the “feet” of the arc move on the surface of the electrodes. In fact, this happens at twice the supply frequency, which is beyond the ability of the eye to perceive. However, the eye is sensitive to the changes that occur between one pulse and the next and it is these changes which are at the supply frequency. Once the ballast is tuned to 1000 Hz the cycle goes up to 1000 per second which becomes too fast to register at high frame rates.

LED lights run on circuit boards which use a wide range of frequencies. These practical LED lights that we find in offices, homes and street lighting can suffer from flicker above 100fps. However modern LED lights designed for the film industry are generally flicker free as long as the unit is not dimmed down. As always always test the LED fixture before shooting.

There is an option in the Phantom Flex4K to de-squeeze the image, therefore allowing the use of anamorphic lenses, both 2 times and 1.3 times de-squeezed. Although you can shoot anamorphic on the Phantom VEO, there is no in camera de-squeeze which mean monitoring and framing is problematic.

The black reference is needed when the black level of the sensor shifts, which is mostly due to temperature fluctuation of the camera and sensor. The camera is designed to hold the sensor temperature at a certain point when the camera comes up to full working temperature, but this value changes depending on your environment, so sometimes the camera will need a black references while sometimes the black level will remain relatively stable.

Our Phantom Flex 4K cameras all have the maximum possible internal memory of 128GB. When shooting at 4K resolution of 1 : 1.178 (4096 x 2304) the maximum frame rate is 938fps. This equates to 9,709 frames, giving us 10.5 seconds to catch the action in real time. When played back at 25fps this will play out at 6 minutes 47 seconds. Some other companies only offer the 64GB version of the Flex 4K which only lets you capture 5 seconds of real time action. This can obviously be restrictive so always try and book the 128GB version. If shooting with an aspect ratio of 1 : 1.89 (4096 x 2160), 10.356 frames are available, with a maximum frame rate is 1000fps. Shooting at an aspect ratio of 1 : 2.39 (4097 x 1712) 13,066 frames are available giving a maximum frame rate or 1,250fps. The Flex 4K can operate in LOOP mode which means aver 10 seconds of real time after starting recording the 128GB RAM goes back to the beginning and starts recording over itself again. The camera is usually set in this mode with a trigger position set to cut the camera once the shot has finished. The camera can run for hours in this mode. For example if waiting for an animal to do something in the wild such as the Great White Shark jumping out of the water in Blue Planet, then once this happens the camera is triggered and the 128GB shot is saved to the RAM. This take can then be trimmed to a smaller file size if needed and then saved in less than 10 seconds to a 2TB CineMag within the camera. The camera is then ready to shot again within seconds depending on the file size.

Here is a simple guide. When doubling the frame rate, you open the aperture one stop. So for example: 50fps would be + 1 stop compensation; 100fps would be + 2 stops; 200fps would be + 3 stops; 500fps would be + 4.25 stops; 1000fps would be + 5.25 stops and 2000fps would be + 6.25 stops.

The Phantom Flex4K camera can be powered by either 24V V-Lock batteries or a 24V Block Battery . Our Flex4K kits come with a dual shark fine battery plate to ensure camera is dual powered at all times to guarantee you get the shot. If the camera for any reason looses power before saving then the shot in the RAM will be lost. For our natural history clients we provide Airsafe batteries (Onboard V-Lock and Block Batteries) for international travel.

Yes, our Flex4K kits come complete with a dedicated DIT kit including Phantom Fuse, Seance and Resolve software.

The camera body weighs in at 14 lbs (6.3kg) and the size is 11.5 x 5. x 7.9 in (LxWxH); 29.2 x 14 x 20cm.

Yes, Halo is the only UK high speed company to provide Phantom training. We provide bespoke hands on training days specific to a company or individuals requirements. Clients include BBC Natural History Unit, Natural History and Branded Content production companies, DOP’s, Camera Assistants and DIT’s.