Feel free to use this handy-dandy table as a cheatsheet for your next RAW project with Nikon ZR and RED KOMODO-X. The numbers are specifically for 6K (unless noted as 4K crop by DX), at a camera’s native aspect ratio (either 16:9 for ZR or 17:9 for DSMC3), at 24 frames per second (23.98p for ZR, 24.00p for DSMC3), as these are the factors I care most about with the type of work I do, as well as my own personal aesthetic. Maths for other frame rates, etc, can be derived.

Personally, the winners for me are R3D NE FX/DX (ZR) + R3D MQ (KX) for higher-end work, N-RAW Normal DX (ZR) + R3D ELQ (KX) for long interviews, and N-RAW Normal FX/High DX (ZR) + R3D LQ (KX) for everything else. I would only use R3D HQ or ProRes RAW HQ for VFX.

Codec	Camera	Compression Ratio	Bits Per Pixel	Bitrate (MB/s)	GB/minute
ProRes RAW HQ (FX)	ZR	5:1	12	521.25	31.28
R3D HQ	DSMC3	3:1	16	251	15.06
ProRes RAW HQ (DX)	ZR	5:1	12	228.75	13.72
R3D NE (FX)	ZR	4.5:1	12	190	11.4
N-RAW High (FX)	ZR	4.5:1	12	190	11.4
R3D MQ	DSMC3	5:1	16	176	10.56
R3D LQ	DSMC3	8:1	16	110	6.6
R3D NE (DX)	ZR	4.5:1	12	97.5	5.8
N-RAW Normal (FX)	ZR	7.5:1	12	97.5	5.8
N-RAW High (DX)	ZR	4.5:1	12	92.5	3.15
R3D ELQ	DSMC3	15:1	16	68	4.08
N-RAW Normal (DX)	ZR	7.5:1	12	47.5	1.65

The Breakdown

Nikon ZR

R3D NE

The Nikon+RED 12-bit compressed raw codec R3D NE (Nikon EXPEED), as implemented on the flagship Nikon ZR, rests between R3D HQ and R3D MQ found on RED DSMC3 cameras.

R3D NE is compressed approximately 4.5:1. For comparison, R3D HQ is compressed about 3:1, R3D MQ is 5:1, R3D LQ is 8:1, and R3D ELQ is 15:1.

The R3D NE bitrate at 6K/16:9/23.98p FX (VistaVision) is approximately 190 MB/s (~11.4 GB per minute), and at 4K/16:9/23.98p DX (Super 35/APS-C) is approximately 97.5 MB/s (~5.8 GB per minute).

Nikon N-RAW

Nikon N-RAW High Quality has a compression ratio of 4.5:1, while N-RAW Normal Quality is about 7.5:1.

N-RAW bitrates for 6K/16:9/23.98p FX (VistaVision) are approximately 190 MB/s (~11.4 GB per minute) for High Quality and 97.5 MB/s (~5.8 GB per minute) for Normal Quality.

Bitrates for 4K/16:9/23.98p DX (Super 35/APS-C) are approximately 92.5 MB/s (~3.15 GB per minute) for High, and 47.5 MB/s (~1.65 GB per minute) for Normal.

Both N-RAW and R3D NE are built on intoPIX TicoRAW compression technology, running on Nikon’s EXPEED image processors. While N-RAW uses Nikon’s native N-LOG gamma curve paired with Rec.2020 color gamut, R3D NE adapts RED’s REDCODE RAW framework, with Log3G10 gamma and REDWideGamutRGB color science, into the Nikon Z ecosystem.

ProRes Raw HQ

Apple’s 12-bit ProRes RAW HQ on Nikon ZR, at 6K/16:9/23.98p FX, has a compression ratio of around 5:1, with bitrates of approximately 521.25 MB/s (~31.28 GB per minute). At 4K/16:9/23.98p DX, the bitrate is approximately 228.75 MB/s (~13.72 GB per minute).

RED DSMC3

R3D

RED’s versatile 16-bit IPP2 REDCODE RAW codec onboard DSMC3 cameras — such as Komodo-X and V-Raptor — has several delicious flavors to choose from compared to the so-far limited palette of Nikon’s R3D NE.

The compression ratio for R3D HQ is about 3:1, R3D MQ is 5:1, R3D LQ is 8:1, and R3D ELQ is 15:1.

The bitrate for R3D 6K/17:9/24p (Super 35) in HQ is 251 MB/s, MQ is 176 MB/s, LQ is 110 MB/s, and ELQ is 68 MB/s.

ProRes 422

For ProRes 4K/17:9/24p (Super 35), the bitrate for 422 HQ (~5:1–6:1 compression) is 94.25 MB/s, and 422 (~6:1–9:1 compression) is 62.875 MB/s.

Sony PXW-FS7 II

XAVC-I

For giggles, let’s compare my FS7 II’s XAVC-I codec to the RAW ones. At DCI 4K/17:9/24p, XAVC-I is 30 MB/s.