The most accurate BRAW calculator for professional filmmakers and cinematographers. Calculate Blackmagic RAW storage requirements and data rates instantly with our free, comprehensive tool. Perfect for planning shoots, estimating storage costs, and ensuring your drives can handle the data rates. Used by thousands of professionals worldwide for accurate BRAW calculations.
Calculate BRAW Storage & Data Rate
Professional Blackmagic RAW calculator for accurate production planning
Calculation Results
(MB/s)
What is Blackmagic RAW (BRAW)?
Blackmagic RAW (BRAW) is a revolutionary codec developed by Blackmagic Design that combines the image quality and workflow benefits of traditional RAW formats with the speed and ease of use of conventional video codecs. Unlike other RAW formats that can be cumbersome and require extensive processing power, BRAW is designed for real-time editing and efficient storage.
Key BRAW Advantages
- Smaller file sizes: Up to 50% smaller than other RAW formats.
- Real-time editing: Edit natively without transcoding or proxies.
- Full RAW control: Complete color grading flexibility with metadata-based adjustments.
- Efficient workflow: Faster processing and rendering in post-production.
Technical Innovation
BRAW uses partial in-camera de-mosaicing and advanced compression algorithms to achieve its efficiency. This means some processing is done in-camera, reducing the computational load during post-production while maintaining the flexibility of RAW footage. The codec supports both constant bitrate and constant quality modes, giving filmmakers precise control over file sizes and image quality.
How to Use the BRAW Calculator
- Select Your Camera Settings: Choose your recording resolution (2.8K to 12K), frame rate, and BRAW compression setting.
- Enter Recording Duration: Input your planned recording time using hours, minutes, and seconds.
- Get Accurate Results: View real-time calculations showing data rate (MB/s), total file size, and storage requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
Blackmagic RAW (BRAW) is a revolutionary codec that combines the quality and benefits of RAW formats with the speed and ease of use of traditional video formats. It’s designed for professional filmmaking and post-production.
Our BRAW calculator uses official data rates provided by Blackmagic Design, making it extremely accurate for planning purposes. Actual file sizes may have minor variations (typically within 5%) due to content complexity.
Constant Bitrate (3:1, 5:1, 8:1, 12:1) maintains a fixed data rate, making file sizes predictable. Constant Quality (Q0, Q1, Q3, Q5) varies the data rate to maintain consistent image quality, which is often more efficient.
For high-end cinema, use 3:1 or Q0. For general professional production, 5:1 or Q1 offer a great balance. For documentary or long-form recording, 8:1 or Q3 are efficient, while 12:1 or Q5 are best for maximum storage savings.
The ‘Data Rate’ shown in our calculator is the minimum sustained speed required. For smooth playback, your drive should exceed this speed by 20-30%. NVMe SSDs are recommended for high-resolution BRAW.
Yes! This calculator works for all Blackmagic cameras that record BRAW, including the Pocket Cinema Camera series, URSA Mini Pro, and Studio cameras.
BRAW is significantly more storage-efficient than ProRes. For example, 4K BRAW 5:1 uses approximately 40% less storage than ProRes 422 HQ while maintaining RAW flexibility.
BRAW supports resolutions up to 12K (on the URSA Mini Pro 12K). Our calculator includes all standard BRAW resolutions from 2.8K to 12K.
BRAW file size is directly proportional to frame rate. Doubling the frame rate (e.g., from 24fps to 48fps) will approximately double the storage requirement.
BRAW is widely considered one of the most efficient RAW formats because it uses partial in-camera processing to reduce the computational load in post-production while keeping file sizes manageable.