Canon recently released their annual report for 2024, and there are a few interesting things Canon mentions in the report. One of the biggest takeaways is Canon has moved in automated production lines for cameras and lenses. This likely makes Canon unique among all of the manufacturers.

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The annual World Press Photo Contest has awarded the best photojournalism and documentary photography of last year.
The overall winner of the 68th annual World Press Photo Contest is Samar Abu Elouf, Palestine, for The New York Times.
The photo shows Mahmoud Ajjour, aged nine, who was injured during an attack on Gaza City.

For me, this is a fiery plea against war, whatever the cause, against violence against civilians and children in particular.
It will not end any war or conflict. Ukraine, Israel, Sudan, ... where do I end.
But the victims are always the civilians, families and children.

Leaders of the world: Stop it now!

View the other winners and galleries

By the way - as if it matters here - gear: Canon EOS R5

Well, the hits keep on coming during the current economic fun. We already know that Canon USA will be increasing prices by 7-8% on their entire line-up of cameras and lenses. There may also be some inventory issues in the near-term.

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Canon Japan has updated their camera and lens end of service dates. This is great information to have if you’re using current EF or EF-M gear. If you’re buying older gear on the used market, it’s good to know when Canon will officially stop servicing cameras and lenses.

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The images found in the link speak for themselves...and enable comparison of Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer images with those obtained from the Webb telescope.

GAS!

It looks like Sony is going to announce a lens a lot of people in these parts have wanted to see Canon announce. They're going to be announcing an FE 50-150mm f/2 GM lens likely on April 23, 2025.

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It looks like we may see Canon USA increasing prices across the board in response to the current trade-war between the USA and China. While the USA has paused the 24% reciprocal tariff on Japan, there is still a 10% tariff in place.

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The RF 200-500mm f/4L IS USM has been rumored for ages, and we know that prototypes were out there, but where is it? We have reported and blown possible announcement dates. Apologies for that.

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Fujifilm seems to be nearing an announcement for is being called a “half-frame” fixed lens digital camera. How the half-frame will work is still a bit of a mystery. It makes sense with 35mm film cameras or something like the Pentax 17 to get more images onto a roll of film, but how is this going to work for digital?

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First impression when I took it out of the box, it's a chunky little thing but the size is manageable. Very solid feel. The grip is small but the textured surface is fairly 'sticky' so it doesn't feel like it will slip out of my hand.

I wasn't surprised that the LC-E17 wall-wart charger was not included, but only because I had already perused the manual.

For those needing an Arca-Swiss compatible plate, the Hejnar Photo D052 (for the G5X/G7X) fits perfectly – the battery/card door opens fully, anti-twist nubs engage properly and the alignment mark is on the optical axis.

The hole for the wrist strap on the right side of the camera is very small (there's a much larger lug on the left side for a neck strap, though one is not included). The supplied wrist strap stayed in the box, a Peak Design anchor loop fit through the hole on the right side, but getting it in was a very tight fit. Now I can use the PD wrist strap when needed, I share it across the R8, M6II and M6, all of which have a PD anchor on them.

In terms of cases, the V1 is a perfect fit in my little Lowepro Dashpoint 20.

Control layout is not great, but that's the norm for a P&S camera. The control ring at the base of the lens is not very deep and is very close to the body (not that Canon had other options). I find it a bit difficult to turn because I end up with half of my finger(s) on the thin, fixed portion of the lens barrel distal to the control ring. Small adjustments are actually easier with the middle finger of my right hand that's wrapped around the front of the body. The ring is clickless, which makes sense given the video-focused intent of the camera, but is not ideal for stills. The control dial on the back is not conveniently located, but it's in the typical place for a P&S.

The menus will be familiar to anyone using a Canon ILC. There are a few control customizations, which is nice. It's possible to set up back button focus with the * button, though like the rear dial that's not a comfortable reach for the my thumb. I wish Canon had allowed the movie record button (next to the shutter button) to start AF in stills mode, but in their infinite wisdom only the * button can do that (in addition to the shutter half press, of course). It was a little funny to me that Canon lets you set the shutter button to only metering start without assigning AF to the * button. I guess they figure if you aren't in A+ mode and you manage to leave your camera with no way to focus, that's on you. I suppose MF could be assigned to the control ring, too old-school for me. I do like that there are three C# modes available.

In terms of performance, it's quite capable from first impressions. Power up is pretty quick, focus is snappy like you'd expect from current DFAP sensors. I haven't tried tracking moving subjects, but on the pretty simple test of setting focus on an object or myself in a mirror then rapidly moving the camera around to change the framing, the subject lock-on is very good. I haven't really looked at image quality, but with modern sensors that's proportional to sensor size so I know what to expect. It will 'improve' once DxO supports it (which I assume they will, I'll shoot RAW + JPG in the meantime).

I bought the V1 for two reasons: a walkaround camera and for occasional video shooting. The advantage as a walkaround camera is obvious, the V1 in the Dashpoint 20 case is small enough for a large pocket or to stay in my work satchel with my laptop. To drive the point home, here are possible walkaround combos in my kit (V1, M6II + M22/2, R8 + RF 28/2.8).



The V1 is the most compact overall (though the body itself is bulkier than the M6II). In terms of video, I typically use the Canon Vixia HF G60 camcorder for that. But in some venues that's not permitted, and for low light use where I don't need to zoom in too much the larger sensor of the V1 (vs. the 1" sensor in the G60) will have a bit less noise.

Ok...enough talk, on to some sample images. I was in Boston today, so I took a quick walk around the Fan Pier area of the Seaport District. Actual focal lengths are indicated, keep in mind the FFeq range of 16-50mm is actually 8.2-25.6mm.

"Rowes Wharf Wide"

PowerShot V1, 8.2mm, 1/400 s, f/5.6, ISO 100

"Rowes Wharf Tele"

PowerShot V1, 25.6mm, 1/400 s, f/5.6, ISO 125

"Seaport Condos"

PowerShot V1, 15.3mm, 1/400 s, f/5.6, ISO 100

"Boston Cruise"

PowerShot V1, 25.6mm, 1/400 s, f/5.6, ISO 100

"Spring Forsythia"

PowerShot V1, 25.6mm, 1/400 s, f/4.5, ISO 100

One last one near home, I was curious about the sunstars from the 9-bladed aperture. I was surprised that the narrowest aperture available is f/11 (throughout the zoom range), though of course diffraction is going to be an issue at that point.

"Sunstar"

PowerShot V1, 25.6mm, 1/400 s, f/11, ISO 1600

Overall, I'm impressed with the camera and looking forward to using it more frequently.

We all know what’s going on economically on the planet, and it is obviously a challenging time for a lot of businesses. Japan is currently being hit with a 24% tariff and that seems to be affecting Canon USA’s pricing plans.

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The Canon PowerShot V1 has begun shipping, likely yesterday if you preordered one. Preorder numbers were pretty good for a PowerShot camera, but it looks like Canon in the USA brought in a good number of cameras.

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The Canon RF 200-800mm f/6.3-9 IS USM has been a terrific selling lens for Canon. We’re big fans of its performance and price performance. It has allowed so many photographers get reach without selling their car or a kidney.

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There have been a lot of mentions about new RF mount lenses coming in 2025 and 2026. The number continues to grow, and if Canon sticks to their 8-10 new lenses a year declaration from a few years ago, we're quickly hitting that number in rumored lenses.

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Sigma will announce an FE 200mm f/1.8 Sports lens in the coming weeks. This is a focal length and aperture that I absolutely love and I am longing for an RF version of the Canon EF 200mm f/1.8L USM that I own or the EF 200mm f/2L IS USM, which was absolutely brilliant.

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Today, Nikon announced the new full-frame / FX format Z5II, an entirely new generation of intermediate-level camera that miraculously manages to fit the latest high-end features into a lightweight camera body that will help kickstart any creative spark.

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On April 2, the United States Government announced a 24% tariff on Japan. The tariff is scheduled to come into place on April 9, 2025. If and when it does, that will increase the cost of goods imported to the United States from Japan by 24%.

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I've come a long way with Canon since the F1N.
To make a long story short, I then bought the EOS 5DsR in 2017, which I still use.
Now this wonderful older lady is getting on in years and I'm looking for a successor.
But no matter how long I look, there's nothing from Canon that will take me forward as a landscape photographer.
The resolution of the current models alone is even lower than my 50MP.
How much longer should/can I wait?
It's getting to the point where it's no fun anymore, because there's no improvement in sight from Canon.
At Sony, 60MP is already old hat and the successor will probably have 80MP.
So if Canon doesn't wake up, I'm not going to wait any longer - sorry.

The Canon EOS R7 Mark II is expected to arrive at some point this year. We think that it'll come in either Q3 or Q4 of 2025. As always, nailing down announcements dates is not an exact science, as there are so many variables that go into picking a day to announce a product.

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Had my R5 II for a couple of months (stills shooter) after retiring my R6, and I am overwhelmed with all the video options.

I was a meeting last night and attempted to record the presentation and the annoying thing is the camera burned the battery down before the presentation was over (about 50 minutes in). I had it in 4K-U fine and standard lgop and 24 fps. I think.

Videos are NOT my jam (though I occasionally shoot them for family or business meetings if needed), With my R6 I just set it to 24 1080p and went about my business. These were usually loaded to youtube or cloud drives for personal/family use.

Since I've got the R5 II I figured I'd 'future proof' the video a little bit more and step up to 4K but now I've got too many choices with codecs, multi sampling, phase of the moon, etc.

Can anyone recommend a decent/simple 4K configuration that will get me decent picture quality and a long record time and no special software to view it on my computer?

Unlike 2024, it looks like Canon is going to be announcing things in a more spread-out fashion. As you know, most of what Canon announced last year came late in the year. That won't be the case in 2025.

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I’m traveling to South Africa in July and will be using the Canon RF100-300mm 2.8L lens (from Canon). Since I don’t have this lens to measure myself, I’m reaching out to anyone who owns it and the R1. Could you kindly measure the length of the bare lens, the length with the R1 attached with the hood in place, and the length with the hood reversed? I’ve checked online, but I just want to confirm these measurements before I proceed to purchase the 22L or 30L.

RF 100-300mm bare lens - 323mm/12.72”
RF 100-300 F2.8 with Hood and Body Length: 47cm/18.5cm
RF 100-300mm attached to R1 hood in place ????

Thanks

Is it because I own Canon cameras and advertisers pay for algorithms that target Canon owners?

My newsfeed on Microsoft, Apple, and android devices never shows gloomy or sky falling news about other brands. It is ridiculous.

So there are certain situations where the AF "has trouble" doing what I want/need it to do. For example, let's
say you are trying to take a picture of a bird that is "buried back in some reeds" . If you let the AF do it - taking
your finger off and putting it back down ... the camera will almost always 'go right back to the same focus
point'. But these birds have an annoying habit of moving almost every frame ... while never being out in
front of the reeds/limbs of the bush, etc.
So what I'd like Canon to do is to have a "timing thing" where if you let off and then come back on in some
particular rhythm/timing that the camera reacts with "let's try a -different- focus point". And if you do it
again it will try a third/fourth different point. Whether or not the camera has been 're-aimed' should be
part of this equation.
I will not specify what that timing amount is - I'll learn it when it is available.

So what do -you- think of this? ... Oldrocky in the PNW