Choose the recording setup
Select resolution, frame rate, and a Constant Bitrate or Constant Quality compression setting to describe the planned camera stream.
BRAW storage & recording-time calculator
Know the media before you roll.
Plan Blackmagic RAW storage, card time, sustained data rate, and drive headroom in one transparent production calculator—without spreadsheets or guesswork.
No sign-up Runs in your browser Assumptions shown
Camera A6K · 24 fps · 5:1
157
MB/s estimated data rate
9.4 GBper min
564 GBper hour
200+MB/s drive
Production calculator
Know the media before you roll.
Estimate BRAW storage, record time, sustained data rate, and a practical minimum drive speed. Constant Quality modes are shown as ranges because scene detail changes the bitrate.
Estimated storage
including a 20% production buffer
Data rate—
Per minute—
Per hour—
Minimum drive target—
Modeled planning estimate. Camera implementation, scene detail, metadata, audio, formatting, and firmware can change real-world results.
Source-led estimates: ratios and ranges are modeled from Blackmagic RAW behavior and checked against published camera storage-rate tables. Formula & source notes →
Four practical steps
How BRAW Planner works.
BRAW Planner connects the choices made in camera with the storage, recording time, and sustained speed the rest of the production needs to prepare.
Enter time or capacity
Calculate storage from an expected roll duration, or switch modes and enter card capacity to estimate available record time.
Set a visible buffer
Add headroom for extra takes, longer interviews, formatting differences, and schedule drift. The margin stays separate from the base estimate.
Read the production outputs
Use the total capacity, card time, data-rate range, and drive target to coordinate camera media, offloads, backups, and post.
Worked example
What a one-hour 6K shoot can mean.
6K · 24 fps · 5:1 ~564 GB
Base estimate for one hour before a production safety margin.
Add the realities of production.
A 20% buffer moves the working allocation to roughly 677 GB. One 1TB drive may cover the roll, but a responsible plan still asks whether the device is approved for the camera, whether its sustained speed remains stable as it fills, and how the footage will be copied to two destinations.
This is why BRAW Planner separates the base data model from the buffer. You can see what the codec estimate contributes and what your production margin contributes—then adjust the margin for interviews, live events, documentary work, or multi-camera coverage.
Learn how BRAW file size works →Blackmagic RAW planning
What is BRAW Planner?
A browser-based planning tool for Blackmagic RAW.
BRAW Planner is an independent calculator and learning resource for crews that record, transfer, back up, or edit Blackmagic RAW footage. It translates camera choices into practical estimates for data rate, storage per minute and hour, total shoot capacity, recording time, and sustained drive speed.
The calculator is designed for decisions made before the camera rolls. It does not upload footage, inspect a clip, or promise an exact file size. Instead, it shows its assumptions and gives you a defensible starting point that can be checked against your camera manual and approved-media list.
Review the model and source notes →Built around the way BRAW behaves.
Blackmagic RAW preserves 12-bit image information and camera metadata so controls such as white balance and exposure interpretation can remain adjustable in post. For planning, its two encoding approaches matter just as much as its image flexibility.
Constant Bitrate settings offer more predictable data use at ratios such as 3:1, 5:1, 8:1, and 12:1. Constant Quality settings can spend more data on complex frames and less on simpler ones, so BRAW Planner presents a range and uses the upper estimate when suggesting media-speed headroom.
Compare BRAW recording modes →Production advantages
Why choose BRAW Planner?
A production estimate is more useful when its assumptions are visible. BRAW Planner keeps the model readable and turns each result into a concrete acquisition or post-production decision.
Plan in either direction
Start with shoot duration to size storage, or start with a card or drive to see how long the camera can keep rolling.
Honest CQ ranges
Variable Constant Quality modes are shown as ranges instead of being reduced to a misleading single-number promise.
Visible safety margin
The production buffer is adjustable and separated from the base estimate, so extra capacity never disappears inside hidden math.
Drive-speed context
A peak-based target with headroom helps connect camera data rate to recording media, ingest drives, and backup storage.
Source-led methodology
Formula notes, limitations, and supporting camera data are published so the estimate can be reviewed rather than taken on faith.
Private and immediate
The calculator runs in your browser with no account and no footage upload. Change a setting and the plan updates immediately.
From set to post
Common use cases for BRAW planning.
Use the same transparent baseline to brief camera, DIT, editorial, and production—then adjust the safety margin for the uncertainty of the job.
Build your estimateNarrative and commercial shoot days
Estimate capacity by planned takes and setup time, then reserve room for pickups, alternate performances, and high-ratio hero shots.
Choose a compression ratio →Documentaries, interviews, and live events
Reverse-calculate card time for long, unpredictable rolls and choose a larger buffer when there may be no safe moment to change media.
Plan recording time →Multi-camera productions
Build a per-camera estimate, multiply it across the unit, and align card swaps so one camera is not forced offline at the wrong moment.
Open the multi-camera guide →High-frame-rate and slow-motion work
See how an increased frame rate raises throughput and storage demand before committing to a specialty shot or extended HFR sequence.
Compare frame-rate impact →DIT, offload, backup, and editorial
Carry the data-rate and daily volume estimate into transfer windows, two-copy or three-copy backup plans, proxy creation, and archive sizing.
Design the offload workflow →BRAW knowledge base
Field guides with a job to do.
Each guide answers a distinct production question: compression choice, card capacity, SSD selection, multi-camera planning, backup design, or the BRAW-versus-ProRes tradeoff.
Storage
How Long Can 1TB Record BRAW? A Practical Capacity Guide
Estimate 1TB BRAW recording time across resolutions and compression settings, understand 1TB versus 931GiB, and reserve realistic capacity.
9 min read · Read guide → FundamentalsBRAW Compression Ratios Explained: 3:1, 5:1, 8:1 and 12:1
Compare BRAW 3:1, 5:1, 8:1, and 12:1 by data rate, image-detail risk, card time, and practical use case—not just by file size.
10 min read · Read guide → ComparisonsBRAW Constant Bitrate vs Constant Quality: Which Should You Use?
Choose between BRAW 3:1–12:1 and Q0–Q5 by understanding predictability, scene complexity, peak media speed, and storage risk.
9 min read · Read guide → StorageBRAW Data Rate Guide: MB/s, Mbps and Drive Speed
Read BRAW data rates correctly, convert MB/s to Mbps, choose sustained media speed with headroom, and avoid burst-speed marketing traps.
10 min read · Read guide → StorageBRAW File Size Guide: GB per Minute and TB per Shoot
Learn how resolution, frame rate, compression, duration, and production buffers determine BRAW file size, with formulas and worked examples.
10 min read · Read guide → StorageBRAW Recording Time: How Long Will Your Card or SSD Last?
Estimate BRAW recording time from card capacity, data rate, compression, frame rate, and reserved space, then build a reliable media rotation plan.
10 min read · Read guide →Frequently asked questions
Before the card goes in.
What does the BRAW calculator estimate?
It estimates Blackmagic RAW data rate, storage per minute and hour, total storage for a planned duration, recording time for a card or drive, and a practical sustained drive-speed target.
Why are Constant Quality results shown as a range?
Q0, Q1, Q3, and Q5 allow bitrate to move with image detail. A complex frame can require substantially more data than a simple frame, so a single exact number would imply false precision.
Are GB and TB decimal or binary?
The calculator uses decimal storage units: 1 GB equals 1,000 MB and 1 TB equals 1,000 GB. Operating systems may display the same device in GiB or TiB, which produces a smaller-looking number.
Does frame rate change BRAW storage?
Yes. When resolution and compression stay the same, storage scales approximately in proportion to frame rate. Recording 60 fps usually needs about twice the data of 30 fps.
Which data rate should I use to choose an SSD?
Use the maximum shown rate, then add headroom. This tool displays a minimum target based on 125% of the estimated peak, rounded upward. The camera manufacturer’s approved-media list remains the final authority.
Can the calculator guarantee an exact file size?
No. It is a planning estimate. Camera model, firmware, sensor window, metadata, audio, scene complexity, formatting, and filesystem behavior can change real results.
Is BRAW Planner affiliated with Blackmagic Design?
No. BRAW Planner is an independent educational and production-planning resource. Blackmagic RAW and related product names belong to their respective owner.
How much safety buffer should a production use?
Twenty percent is a practical starting point for normal work. Multi-camera days, interviews with unpredictable durations, events, or productions with limited offload windows often justify 30% or more.