Archive for September, 2011

I Get Interviewed by James Beltz at PhotoTips.biz

First time for everything
I had the pleasure to sit down with James Beltz at PhotoTips.biz and be interviewed for his podcast.

We talk about my start, current rumors, some opinions on the mirrorless cameras and a lot more. We even touched on some video game addiction.

Watch The Full Show Here: http://www.phototips.biz and also available on iTunes.

cr

This & That – What Others are Saying

Rumor Roundup ala Planet5D
@PlanetMitch over at Planet5D has posted a rumor roundup that touches on Canons events in the next month or so.

He’s also invited me to talk live on his site on Monday, October 3, 2011 at 3PM EST.

Read the roundup

Patent – The return of the aperture ring.
@Photography Bay has posted a patent pertaining to aperture rings returning to lenses. The ring would be for video capture on DSLRs.

Read all about it 

PRO-1 Printer
Apparently the PRO-1 moniker is for a “series” of printers. I’m not sure if we’ll see more than one. I know printers aren’t all that exciting, we’re waiting for the juicy EOS stuff.

Canon EF 200-400 f/4L IS 1.4x Availability?
The most recent information I have is it will be officially announced this fall, with a Q2 2012 availability.

Canon still has to start churning out the new 500 and 600.

cr

October 26 Event?

What do we have here?
The expected Pixma announcements fit in around that date, however there is an EOS logo showing on the bottom of the invite as well. October 26 is a Wednesday. I had heard previously about a “third week of October announcement” for Pixma and from a couple of people EOS. However as posted yesterday, I had been told by everyone and their mother that no new DSLR was coming in 2011.

Thanks manny

cr

Canon Pixma PRO-1 [CR3]

New Printer
Canon will be announcing the Pixma PRO-1 for the PDN show in New York City at the end of October.

Specs

• A3+ Printer (13″ Wide)
• 12 Cartridges
• A Gloss Enhancement Cartridge (unsure if it’s addition to the 12 cartridges or included)
• Better built than the Pixma 9500
• Small well built cartridges
• Unknown retail price 

No 5D Mark III on Novemeber 3 [CR2]

Oh no!
I can hear the collective tears hitting the floor.

The recent rebates on the 5D Mark II have nothing to do with an imminent release of an updated camera. They have more to do with selling lots of 5D Mark IIs. I’d expect rebates to be extended right through to Christmas (Dec 25).

What is coming?
Two new video cameras are coming to us on November 3, 2011.

What I think I know about them
One will be EF mount, the other will be PL mount.  They will be both be higher end cameras, and could reach the price point of $10000+. It has also been suggested that the EF mount camera could fall under the “EOS” banner.

Other crazy things I’ve heard about them?

One of them would have a square sensor and take 48mp still images. I’ll [CR1] that one.

Noooooo, What about the 5D Mark III?
There is absolutely nothing, I mean nothing about a 5D Mark III being imminent. I have received the “no new DSLR in 2011″ line from 7-8 different sources. One source said if something is announced in 2011, it would be near the end of December for CES/PMA, but that was merely conjecture.

So no 1Ds4, 5D Mark III or the rumoured 6D (name guess) in 2011.

A curveball could still come, announcements for products can change. Just because they announce, it doesn’t mean they have to ship anything.

cr

Opinion – What EOS Will Look Like by Photokina

What say me?
A lot of unknown and exciting things are swirling around that November 3, 2011 announcement in Hollywood. I can tell you truthfully that I have seen just about every possible scenario. What’s true? For the moment I don’t know.

I think EOS will evolve a lot in the coming 12 months, the business of digital SLRs has changed with the advent of video in the segment. I figured I’d offer my opinion on the line partially based on things I’ve been told and things that just make sense to me.

I’ll start at the top of the EOS lineup and work my way down.

By the way, Photokina is next September in Cologne/Koln, Germany. See you there!

*This is NOT fact*

EOS 1D/1Ds
I don’t think we’ll see this camera announced until 2012. I also see the amalgamation of the line has highly possible. If Canon has the technology to give big megapixels as well as frame rate. It makes no sense to produce two different bodies. I’m not sure if we’ve seen the last of APS-H, though I think it’s likely. I could see this body in the $5000-$6000 range.

5D Mark III/3D
The camera most of the planet wants to see announced and shipped now! I don’t think it’s likely to appear before the end of 2011.

If in 2012 the top tier of cameras is merged, there will be a price gap a 5D3/3D could move up to.  Say, $3500. There could be a lot of advanced video features, big megapixels and an upgraded, but not pro body level AF system. I fully expect Canon to figure out a way to directly monetize the video features of DSLRs.

When? I’ve heard anytime between tomorrow and Photokina 2012.

6D
One of the recent rumors has been the coming of a new full frame EOS body added to the lineup. It would be in the $2000 range. It would see a drop in megapixels from the 21 of the 5D Mark II and be solely designed for ISO performance. To meet the price point, I’d expect a modified 9 point AF (more crosstype sensors).

If the 5D3 moves up the latter in performance and price, a $2000 full frame camera at launch would be an industry first and a massive seller. Canon was the first company to break the $1000 price barrier with a DSLR, no reason they can’t do it again.

I can definitely see this as a possibility, though I’m not convinced of it yet.

*correction* The full frame Sony A850 launched at $2000 USD. Thanks for pointing it out.

7D Mark II
I think the 7D will make it all the way through 2012 and into 2013. What is there to improve on the camera? How do you really make it better enough to justify a new model? If Canon is spending a lot of resources on developing 3 new full frame sensors, I could see APS-C remaining relatively unchanged.

The biggest upgrade I think to the 7D will be a price drop over the next 12 months.

60D
As with the 7D, there’s really no need to upgrade this camera. It will only be 2 years come Photokina, and the cycle of camera updates is slowing down.

It’s a good little camera that sells well. I think we’ll see it last into 2013.

T3i/T3
More of the same here (a bit boring eh), I don’t see a new rebel in 2012 either. A domino in the APS-C line will have to fall before they all get an update. Using the same sensor in the 3 cameras is probably great for the bottom line. I can’t see them abandoning that mindset.

Mirrorless
When Canon announces a mirrorless system, I think it’s going to be a standalone product. So it won’t be EF or EF-S compatible. I see Canon launching a unique product to their line, not more of the same. I think the low end of mirrorless cameras is a crowded world, especially with the rainbow of cameras Nikon just announced. So why add another bunch of cameras to the segment? I think the gold mine for Canon is convincing the North American market to buy a mirrorless camera. Their mirrorless camera. So it’s going to have to be different.

To be honest, I really have no great hypothesis of what they’re going to do. It’s something I’d have to think more on.

So that’s it, as of today, that’s the way I see the EOS lineup going. It’s based on some information I’ve received as well as some opinion.

cr

*UPDATE* Fujinon for Canon? [CR1]

Fujinon Lenses
A brief email this AM stated Fuji will announce Fujinon lenses for the EF mount in March. No other details were given. This is the first time I’ve heard anything on the topic. Grain of salt and all that.

There have been mentions elsewhere from time to time that Fuji wasn’t finished in the DSLR business.

*UPDATE*
This could also be lenses for video as pointed out by a few people, though the information did specify EF.

cr 

*UPDATE* Pixma Pro 1 Series? [CR1]

New Pixmas
A series called “Pixma Pro 1″ printers are apparently to be launched sometime in the next 6 weeks. There may have been something lost in translation on the “series” of printers, it could just be one called Pixma Pro 1.

Features

• Clean lines in design
• No LCD screen
• 12 Cartridges
• A new type of coating cartridge? I didn’t understand exactly what was meant.
• Announcement within 6-7 weeks

I’ve been hearing about 12 cartridge printers for a while now, we’ll see. The source is good on this one.

*UPDATE*
There was another printer that was supposed to be announced last spring and never was.

The printer that was supposed to be launched last spring was code named ‘Renoir’ and was basically a 9500 (pigment ink), but it has a unique design.

The ink is in the base, so it doesn’t add weight to the print head. The ink then goes via tubes to the print head. Since the head is not weighted down, the ‘Renoir’ can print at extremely high speed.

No word whether or not this printer or technology will reach market.
cr

September 22 “Announcement” Confusion

My Fault
A few days ago we posted  that DigitalREV had put on their Twitter and Facebook pages about being invited to a “pro product launch” event.

I should have updated the post to say we had heard nothing from anyone else in regards to a DSLR announcement. I knew for a fact no other outlet had been invited to any Canon event or press conference.

I apologize, it’s my fault for not updating the post appropriately, I simply forgot.

As mentioned on other sites, “no leaks… no announcements.” That holds true here as well.

cr

New Video Camera Information? [CR1]

From a forum post
Below is a post that appeared on the GTC forum in the UK.  Apparently they will be appearing in November, as we’ve reported previously.

“They will be badged as EOS, despite the fact they are video cameras, and there will be two versions – one for EF lenses, the other with an PL mount. I’m guessing here but the PL mount camera may offer more options than the EF version – e.g. SDI out and genlock… etc in the same way that the XF300/305 cameras have differentiated themselves.

“Its a Super35 4K sensor, but from what I have seen only records 1080 in-camera, using the same XF codec – i.e. 4:2:2 @ 50mbps. Perhaps the PL version will output 4K thru SDI?

“The size of the camera looks similar to that of the FS100, but more rounded/ergonomic. It has a similar LCD screen on top, but it seems more flexible – i.e. allowing for greater viewing angle/for versatility.

“This could be a killer camera, and one well worth waiting for if any of you guys are thinking of buying a F3/FS100 or AF100…”

A wish list, or something to it?

Via [HDM]

cr