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The Nikon ZR uses the same sensor as the Z6III but becomes Nikon’s first camera to be co-branded ‘Red’ Photo: Mitchell Clark |
Nikon’s video division, Red, has put out a statement giving a few more clues about the distinction between the R3D NE Raw codec that makes it debut in the Nikon ZR, and the existing N-Raw system.
Red appears to confirm that R3D NE (‘Nikon Expeed’) uses the same TicoRaw compression system as N-Raw, which helps explain why N-Raw files could be opened in software that supported R3D NE, by simply changing the filename extension. However, it says the differences go deeper.
What we already knew
We already knew that the R3D codec locks the camera to one of its sensor’s two base steps (ie: one of the two effective gain steps within the pixel) with no additional analogue gain added when you change ISO. By contrast, N-Raw works the same way as most cameras do in stills mode: applying increasing gain as you raise the ISO.
This means N-Raw sacrifices a stop of highlight information each time you raise ISO by a stop, in return for some improvement in shadow noise, but means that you can’t mimic other ISO settings after the fact. The R3D method retains these highlights irrespective of ISO setting at the point of shooting, meaning you can apply different tone curves to adjust “ISO” as part of post processing.*
What has been discovered
Video testing site CineD has conducted some tests on the ZR and found some interesting details. The first is that the R3D codec appears to decode its Raw data such that it doesn’t expand to use the full range of a 10-bit working space. This is presumably to allow its use with LUTs and alongside cameras that capture a wider dynamic range (either now, or in the future), which would make use of the higher data values. This is comparable to what Panasonic does with its V-Log / V-Log L system. This is not the standard workflow for N-Raw.
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| In addition to various flavors of Raw capture, the Nikon ZR is the first consumer camera we’ve come across that can natively capture super-wide dynamic range ’32-bit float’ audio. |
Interestingly, CineD also says that it found R3D NE clips a stop earlier than the ZR’s ProRes Raw or N-Raw modes, with Nikon responding that there is a “difference of highlight clipping points between N-Log and R3D NE.” CineD points out that the Red processing includes a highlight recovery algorithm that recovers detail (but not necessarily color) information around clipping, which is worth being aware of.
Combine all this information and read between the lines of Red’s statement and it appears to suggest that R3D NE uses the same basic codec as N-Raw but with a different gain strategy and a different assumed workflow (via Red’s Log3G10/RWG gamma and gamut), that requires it to be exposed differently to get optimal results.
So how does it perform?
CineD also found the camera’s rolling shutter was a match for the 9.44ms we measured from the Nikon Z6III and that its dynamic range was okay, rather than great, which is again consistent with what we were expecting, given the Z6III’s performance.
Sadly, Nikon USA says it will not have any testable cameras available for review until mid November, so we’re not yet in a position to check or further investigate any of these findings further.
R3D NE and the Expansion of REDCODE RAW
Summary
REDCODE RAW, also known as R3D, is RED’s proprietary RAW video codec that has been shaped and honed with every generation of RED’s cameras. R3D is not just made of up compressed RAW video, but carries with it advanced sensor characterizations, robust metadata, RED’s color science, and unique RAW controls that guarantee precise and consistent results throughout the entire imaging pipeline, from sensor to screen.
Detailed Explanation
REDCODE RAW was the first widely adopted RAW cinema workflow codec, which has constantly been evolving over the years with each generation of RED camera. Its foundation starts with RED’s color and sensitivity characterization of the sensor, and ends in the debayering, decompression, and image processing through the RED managed software development kit that all major post-tools have implemented. This standardization, from sensor to screen, allows RED to guarantee precise and cinematic results throughout the entire image pipeline.
Like all REDCODE RAW formats, R3D NE utilizes the latest in RED’s IPP2 pipeline, from decompression and debayering algorithms, to the advanced RAW image processing such as Chroma Noise Reduction. R3D NE has been optimized to use the existing RAW compression capabilities found in Nikon’s EXPEED ASIC, which is what the NE in R3D NE stands for – Nikon EXPEED.
Inside the Nikon ZR itself, sensor data is processed into a RED industry adopted Log3G10/RWG image, allowing for on-set monitoring with the same 3D LUT’s that would be used in any RED workflow. In addition, sensor gains and colorimetry have been tuned to not only provide exposure and color matching with RED’s ecosystem, but to leverage the same ISO behavior the rest of the R3D ecosystem uses, allowing users to balance their dynamic range shot-by-shot if needed.
In early 2025, RED had introduced the ability to process N-RAW through the latter part of this process, and .NEV became part of the RED workflow. Some tools that already had native .NEV maintained their existing workflow and kept direct decode of N-RAW footage. These applications, such as DaVinci Resolve, have now updated to RED’s latest software update, could however be forced into sending these .NEV’s through the RED software by renaming them to .R3D. These files technically remain N-RAW, and are still indicated as such in the software, as they do not include any of the in-camera characterization, metadata, and workflow that makes REDCODE RAW what it is. Importantly, these renamed files will not be the same as an R3D NE file shot with the same camera – the color, exposure, and latitude will all differ.
REDCODE RAW is an ecosystem, providing consistency from set to screen across generations of cameras. The Nikon ZR, and more specifically R3D NE, is just the latest step in bringing the RED workflow to filmmakers everywhere.
*Technically, ISO is an sRGB JPEG-based standard, so it’s best not to take it too literally when being used as a post-processing parameter in Raw video software. (See also the ‘exposure’ slider in a lot of photographic Raw software, which changes image lightness but cannot change exposure)