Cinema camera

Blackmagic Design Cinema Camera 6K recording modes

The Blackmagic Design Cinema Camera 6K has 7 recording modes in the Cutvey Viewfinder gear list, from 6K 3:2 Open Gate at 36 × 24 mm down to Super 16 16:9 at 12.57 × 7.05 mm. A 35mm lens covers 54.4° across on the widest mode and 20.4° on the narrowest, so the mode you record changes the frame as much as the lens does.

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Recording modes and sizes

Each row is one recording mode as the app knows it: the active area the mode reads from the sensor, the resolution it records, the image circle a lens must cover, and how much smaller it is than a 36 × 24 mm full frame by diagonal. The last column is the line the app prints under the mode: the maker, how the size was found and the day it was read.

ModeActive areaResolutionImage circleFull frame cropSize from
6K 3:2 Open Gate36 × 24 mm6048 × 403243.3 mm1xBlackmagic Design · published · 2026-08-04
6K 6:5 Anamorphic (anamorphic intended)28.76 × 24 mm4832 × 403237.5 mm1.16xBlackmagic Design · derived from pixel pitch · 2026-08-04
6K DCI 17:936 × 19.05 mm6048 × 320040.7 mm1.06xBlackmagic Design · derived from pixel pitch · 2026-08-04
6K 2.4:136 × 15 mm6048 × 252039 mm1.11xBlackmagic Design · derived from pixel pitch · 2026-08-04
Super 35 4:3 (anamorphic intended)24.38 × 18.29 mm4096 × 307230.5 mm1.42xBlackmagic Design · derived from pixel pitch · 2026-08-04
Super 35 4K DCI 17:924.38 × 12.86 mm4096 × 216027.6 mm1.57xBlackmagic Design · derived from pixel pitch · 2026-08-04
Super 16 16:912.57 × 7.05 mm2112 × 118414.4 mm3xBlackmagic Design · derived from pixel pitch · 2026-08-04

"Published" means the size was read from a published figure. "Derived from pixel pitch" means it was worked out from the photosite count and the published pixel size. A Provisional mode is still waiting for a second person to check it, so give its frame a little room. Counted November 2, 2026.

Anamorphic modes

6K 6:5 Anamorphic, Super 35 4:3 are flagged as made for anamorphic lenses. With a squeeze the lens sees a wider slice than the mode's width, and the picture is stretched back out in post. Horizontal angle with a 2x squeeze:

Mode40mm 2x50mm 2x75mm 2x100mm 2x
6K 6:5 Anamorphic71.4°59.8°42.0°32.1°
Super 35 4:362.7°52.0°36.0°27.4°

Try another squeeze in the anamorphic calculator or read anamorphic lenses explained.

Field of view for a standard lens set

Degrees across the frame for spherical primes, worked out from each mode's own width. A wider mode sees more on the same lens; that is why a 35mm feels different on open gate and on a 4K crop.

Mode18mm24mm35mm50mm85mm135mm
6K 3:2 Open Gate90.0°73.7°54.4°39.6°23.9°15.2°
6K 6:5 Anamorphic77.2°61.9°44.7°32.1°19.2°12.2°
6K DCI 17:990.0°73.7°54.4°39.6°23.9°15.2°
6K 2.4:190.0°73.7°54.4°39.6°23.9°15.2°
Super 35 4:368.2°53.9°38.4°27.4°16.3°10.3°
Super 35 4K DCI 17:968.2°53.9°38.4°27.4°16.3°10.3°
Super 16 16:938.5°29.3°20.4°14.3°8.5°5.3°

The lens that frames like full frame

If the director thinks in full frame focal lengths, this is the lens on each mode that gives the same horizontal angle. The last column does the same against a Super 35 frame 24.89 mm wide.

ModeLike a 24mm on full frameLike a 35mmLike a 50mmLike a 35mm on Super 35
6K 3:2 Open Gate24mm35mm50mm50.6mm
6K 6:5 Anamorphic19.2mm28mm39.9mm40.4mm
6K DCI 17:924mm35mm50mm50.6mm
6K 2.4:124mm35mm50mm50.6mm
Super 35 4:316.3mm23.7mm33.9mm34.3mm
Super 35 4K DCI 17:916.3mm23.7mm33.9mm34.3mm
Super 16 16:98.4mm12.2mm17.5mm17.7mm

Pick any two modes in the crop factor calculator to match a lens on another camera, or read sensor size and field of view.

Depth of field on each mode

Cutvey Viewfinder picks the circle of confusion for depth of field from the recording mode's own gate, unless you choose one on the panel. These are the values it starts from.

ModeDiagonalCircle of confusionWhy
6K 3:2 Open Gate43.3 mm0.030 mmnearest to Full Frame
6K 6:5 Anamorphic37.5 mm0.030 mmnearest to Full Frame
6K DCI 17:940.7 mm0.030 mmnearest to Full Frame
6K 2.4:139 mm0.030 mmnearest to Full Frame
Super 35 4:330.5 mm0.025 mmnearest to Super 35
Super 35 4K DCI 17:927.6 mm0.025 mmnearest to Super 35
Super 16 16:914.4 mm0.015 mmnearest to Super 16

Work out near, far and hyperfocal for any lens in the depth of field calculator.

Frame this camera in the app

Open Cutvey Viewfinder, tap the strip at the top of the viewfinder and choose Blackmagic Design Cinema Camera 6K and the mode you will record. Your iPhone or iPad then draws that mode's frame for every lens in your kit, with the band where a lens sees wider than the phone. Check one lens here first in the field of view calculator.

More Blackmagic Design bodies

Camera and lens names are trademarks of their respective owners, used only to identify the equipment. The sizes come from the Cutvey Viewfinder gear list, which is as accurate as its sources. Request a correction.

Frame the Blackmagic Design Cinema Camera 6K on your phone

Cutvey Viewfinder draws this camera's frame for every lens in your kit, on iPhone and iPad. $19.99, once.