The PMW-F3 is equipped with a newly developed Exmor Super 35 CMOS image sensor which offers creative shallow depth of field, similar to that of a film camera. This sensor has an extremely high sensitivity of F11 (ISO800) with a very low noise level (an S/N ratio of 63 dB). This is a significant advantage especially when shooting in low-light conditions or at night using only ambient light.

The PMW-F3 employs a PL lens mount that is standard for film cameras, allowing use of a virtually unlimited number of prime and zoom lenses for 35-mm film cameras. This greatly broadens the choice of lenses for a wider spectrum of creative expression. A PL lens mount adapter comes with the camera as standard. The PMW-F3 supports the Cooke/i Technology protocol, which enables the camcorder to communicate with the lens to obtain lens metadata such as focus and iris position. The ARRI LDS interface will be supported as well. This improves post-production workflow as lens metadata can be recorded onto an SxS card and brought into the post-production process.

The recording format and recording media are identical to the existing PMW-EX1R and PMW-EX3, and proven, high-speed, intuitive XDCAM EX workflow can be used with high reliability. This workflow offers seamless integration with leading nonlinear editing software.

The PMW-F3 has a small, compact body with a very modest footprint, and weighs just 2.4 kg (5 lb 4 oz). It offers mobility, flexibility, and cost efficiency. In addition, the camcorder’s power consumption is only 24 W, and about three hours’ recording can be achieved with only one BP-U60 battery.

The PMW-F3 has an HD-SDI Dual-link output connector which offers 4:2:2 1080 50/59.94p uncompressed signal output as standard. By using external recording devices such as HDCAM-SR recorders, users can achieve x 2.5 natural slow-motion playback in 1080/24p mode.

The PMW-F3 delivers a scalable external recording solution. When the RGB and S-LOG output option is added, RGB 4:4:4 baseband signal output is available for external recording devices such as HDCAM-SR recorders. A LUT (Look Up Table) function is also provided for monitoring purposes when S-LOG output is activated. The same option includes 3G-SDI output functionality. It enables users to select Dual-link HD-SDI or 3G-SDI depending on the connecting devices.

Another new feature of the PMW-F3 is the 3D-LINK option which is especially convenient for 3D stereoscopic shooting. Two PMW-F3 cameras can be controlled by one camera remote controller at the same time. The two cameras are connected with a special 10-pin cable that includes genlock, timecode in/out, and control line. Simultaneous control of the Iris and Focus functions of two cameras is extremely useful.