Is 8K a massive improvement over 4K or barely detectable? Actually, it's both

Screen Capture from Mark Toia's RED Helium Review

Mark Toia's a cinematographer and filmmaker whose start is definitely ascending. He's a fan of 8K but not for the reasons you might think

There's an awful lot of absoluteism in virtually any discussion about 8K. Views are typically polarised between 8K being the necessary and ultimate video format and it being completely unnecessary. A millisecond of reflection reveals both of these positions to be unreasonable.

We're featuring this video from Mark Toia not because it's got some great images, and not because we've been paid to advertise the RED HELIUM camera at this point (we haven't). In any case, this video is two years old. 

The reason we're featuring it here is because Mark is completely reasonable and balanced in his discussion of 8K (regardless of the camera manufacturer - it's just that RED is the only camera maker that has a workable solution at this resolution right now). 

Mark's message is, essentially, don't despair (and don't gloat!) if you "only" have a 4K or 6K camera. These are wonderful tools too. And if you already shoot in 8K, don't have the ultimate in sharpness as your goal. Instead, use the higher resolution medium to capture and preserve the character in your images - and, importantly - your lenses. 

Essentially, 8K can capture imperfections like nothing else. Yes, it's ironic, but it's true. 

Enjoy the video.