<em>New URSA Mini camera OS adds new UI, dozens of features and improves camera performance!</em></p>
<p><strong>NAB 2016, Las Vegas, USA – April 18, 2016</strong> – Blackmagic Design today announced a major new camera operating system for its URSA Mini cameras. This new camera OS features an incredible new user interface along with dozens of new features and will be available later this year free of charge for all URSA Mini customers.</p>
<p>The new Blackmagic URSA Mini camera OS beta will be demonstrated on the Blackmagic Design NAB 2016 booth at #SL217.</p>
<p>The new URSA Mini camera OS is not just an upgrade, it’s a total rewrite from the ground up. The new OS has been specifically designed for the high performance processing architecture of URSA Mini and delivers a much more responsive experience, along with an entirely new user interface that makes using URSA Mini faster and more intuitive than ever before.</p>
<p>The first things customers will notice is the incredible new user interface and heads up display which dramatically reduces the number of menus and submenus needed to find specific settings and commands. Customers can now quickly change settings such as ISO, white balance, shutter angle, iris, frame rate, frame guides and more without ever having to navigate through any menus.</p>
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<p>In addition, there are now custom white balance and white balance presets, along with tint control settings. Customers also get more accurate shutter angle selection, including a large easy to use on screen keyboard for easy entry of settings. When entering the shutter angle, the new URSA Mini camera OS will even offer smart flicker free shutter angle suggestions to assist the camera operator.</p>
<p>Entering metadata on cameras has always been tedious. The new URSA Mini camera OS solves the problem of tedious metadata entry by giving customers an entirely new metadata entry page with predictive entry suggestions and a preloaded dictionary of commonly used terms that can be applied as metadata tags with a simple tap. For example, if you stop and start the camera, the take will automatically increment. If you increase the scene number, shot and take, it will automatically reset to 1.</p>
<p>The new URSA Mini camera OS adds 1.33x and 2x anamorphic de-squeeze previews, along with the ability to double tap so customers can pan and zoom around the preview on the built in display. Customers can now import and store external 3D LUTs and apply the LUT to the LCD, front and main SDI outputs independently. They can also load and save their own presets for different shooting setups or different operators.</p>
<p>In addition, customers can now assign shortcuts to camera function keys, toggle between peaking and color focus assist, see new percentage based safe area guides and have the ability to toggle SDI overlays with information specifically geared toward either the cinematographer or the director viewing at video village.</p>
<p>“Customers love their URSA Mini cameras and are shooting some incredible footage with them,” said Grant Petty, CEO, Blackmagic Design. “The new Blackmagic URSA Mini camera OS is so exciting because it gives us a platform to build on for the future. There is a lot of extra power in the URSA Mini design that we have only just started to unlock, and until now this power has been hidden. The new URSA Mini operating system is going to let us build more of the features customers need even faster than before. Once you use it, it’s like getting a whole new camera for free!”</p>
<p><strong>Availability and Price</strong>

The Blackmagic URSA Mini camera OS will be available later this year as a free update for all Blackmagic URSA Mini customers.</p>
<p>Press Photography

Product photos of the Blackmagic URSA Mini, and all other Blackmagic Design products, are available at www.blackmagicdesign.com</p>
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<em>Now it’s possible to distribute and sell Ultra HD content direct to customers at live events!</em></p>
<p><strong>NAB 2016, Las Vegas, Nevada – April 18, 2016</strong> – Blackmagic Design today announced the new Blackmagic Duplicator 4K, which allows delivery of Ultra HD content to consumers by recording files onto inexpensive SD cards that can be distributed to customers the moment an event is finished. Featuring 25 built in SD card recorders, multi rate 12G-SDI connections and a realtime H.265 encoder, Blackmagic Duplicator 4K is the best way to deliver Ultra HD content that customers can actually view on their 4K televisions and Windows 10 computers today.</p>
<p>Blackmagic Duplicator 4K is available now for US$1,995 and will be demonstrated on the Blackmagic Design NAB 2016 booth at #SL217.</p>
<p>The Blackmagic Duplicator 4K lets content creators dramatically increase revenue because it gives them a way to sell content right after a live event, while attendees are still excited about the performance before, and before they walk out the door. Now customers can sell concert videos to fans as they leave the venue, to parents after their children’s latest performance or recital, after sporting events, conferences, sales seminars and more.</p>
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<p>The Blackmagic Duplicator 4K encodes video using H.265, which is the new standard for Ultra HD delivery, and saves files in an open file format on to standard SD cards. The built in realtime H.265 hardware encoder gives customers incredible looking Ultra HD video, even at high frame rates up to 2160p60. The H.265 video looks better than the older H.264 standard, and the files are small with data rates low so content can play back from standard SD card media. With H.265, Ultra HD content is not much larger in file size than a HD file would be in the older H.264 standard.</p>
<p>Featuring 25 SD card recorders miniaturized into a single rack unit, the Blackmagic Duplicator 4K uses standard, common SD cards that are readily available, super thin, inexpensive and very fast. Cards can be used for SD, HD and Ultra HD video up to 2160p60 and are compatible with Windows 10 computers. With the addition of a USB adapter, SD cards can even be plugged directly into most consumer Ultra HD televisions for immediate playback of the video.</p>
<p>The built in H.265 encoder is so efficient that a one hour Ultra HD program can easily fit onto a very inexpensive 8GB SD card. SD cards are also easy to label and completely re-usable so customers can reformat unsold cards and record over them again at their next event. Unlike proprietary disc based formats like Blu-Ray, customers don’t have to buy a slow and expensive player. Blackmagic Duplicator 4K is the easiest, most compatible and cost effective way to distribute Ultra HD content to consumers today.</p>
<p>The front panel controls are designed to make duplicating content as easy as possible and feature 6 large illuminated buttons for record, stop, lock, append, menu and remote. The lock button prevents accidental interruption of recording during an event, and the append record button seamlessly combines recordings from different parts of an event into a single file.</p>
<p>This revolutionary new append recording feature is perfect for events that have natural breaks, like weddings with a ceremony and reception in different locations. Append recording makes it easier for consumers to watch the final program because they only have to play back a single movie file.</p>
<p>The Blackmagic Duplicator 4K features advanced, multi rate 12G-SDI connections that can record all SD, HD and Ultra HD formats up to 2160p60. For larger events, multiple duplicators can be stacked using the SDI loop thru and RS-422 deck control. This lets customers encode and duplicate to an unlimited number of SD cards in realtime. When recording is started or stopped on the first duplicator, the others automatically follow. There is also an optical fiber SFP socket for adding an optional SMPTE compatible optical fiber SDI module when working in larger venues with long distances between equipment. Adding optical fiber SDI directly into the duplicators could be very useful when duplicators are set up close to the merchandising stands away from the production area so that cards can be handed to customers for quick sale.</p>
<p>“Virtually all televisions sold are now Ultra HD models,” said Grant Petty, CEO, Blackmagic Design. “Manufacturers have moved away from regular HD and customers are buying new larger high resolution TV’s. But the problem for consumers is that there’s very little content available so they can’t take advantage of the resolution, color and detail that their new Ultra HD televisions can display. The Blackmagic Duplicator 4K is the solution to the Ultra HD delivery problem because it is an extremely affordable and convenient way to deliver Ultra HD content directly to consumers that they can play on their Ultra HD televisions today!”</p>
<p><strong>Blackmagic Duplicator 4K Key Features</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>25 SD card recorders for simultaneously recording onto multiple cards at once.</li>
<li>Realtime H.265 encoding technology which is the standard for Ultra HD.</li>
<li>12G-SDI input and loop thru output, along with RS-422 control.</li>
<li>Uses open standard file formats that are compatible with computers and Ultra HD televisions.</li>
<li>Records all SD, HD and Ultra HD formats up to 2160p60.</li>
<li>Record unlimited cards by daisy chaining multiple duplicators together.</li>
<li>Easy to use front panel controls with lock, record, append, stop and remote buttons.</li>
<li>Built in universal 110V – 240V AC power supply.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Availability and Price</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Blackmagic Duplicator 4K is available now for US$1,995 from Blackmagic Design resellers worldwide.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Press Photography</strong>

Product photos of the Blackmagic Duplicator 4K, and all other Blackmagic Design products, are available at www.blackmagicdesign.com/press/images.</p>
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I lent Dustin my copy of the Canon EF 50mm f/1.0L to review, as we both figured it’d be fun to take a look at one of Canon’s most collectible lenses.  The EF  50mm f/1.0L was introduced in September of 1989 and was the fastest SLR  lens available during its production run, which ended in 2000.</p>
<p>This lens isn’t an amazing optical performer, but as someone mentioned on Twitter recently, if you want a unique look, use a unique lens and the EF 50mm f/1.0L fits the bill.</p>
<p>From Dustin:</p>
<blockquote><p>Canon didn’t make this lens (in quantity) for long, but it was a shot across the bows of Nikon, Pentax, and others that said, “Look what we can do!” The technologies (and lens body) pioneered in this lens were implemented into the far more practical (yet still extreme) EF 85mm f/1.2L, and seven years later evolved into the EF 85mm f/1.2L II lens; one of the most prized portrait lenses in the world. The burst of creativity and advanced engineering that resulted in this lens enabled Canon to create more accessible and successful autofocusing f/1.2 lenses (50mm and 85mm), a feat that no one else is replicating even in 2016.  It is worth noting that still today Canon is the only one producing autofocusing lenses with an f/1.2 maximum aperture. <a href="http://www.canonrumors.com/reviews/review-canon-ef-50mm-f1-0l/">Read the full review</a></p></blockquote>
<p>I now have the lens back in my possession and look forward to shooting with it on the new EOS-1D X Mark II.</p>
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<strong>TOKYO, April 18, 2016</strong>—Four Canon cameras and one Canon printer were recognized with “Best Photo and Imaging Product” awards by the Technical Image Press Association (TIPA), representing 30 photo and imaging magazines from 15 countries across five continents. The five award winners are: the EOS 5DS R digital SLR (DSLR) camera, the EOS-1D X Mark II DSLR camera, the PowerShot G5 X digital compact camera, the IXUS 285 HS (PowerShot ELPH 360 HS in the Americas) compact digital camera, and the imagePROGRAF PRO-1000 professional inkjet printer.</p>
<p><strong>Best DLSR Professional / High Res: EOS-5DS R

</strong>Named “Best DSLR Professional / High Res,” the Canon EOS-5DS R features an “impressive” approximately 50.6 megapixel full-frame sensor that the TIPA jury noted rivals those of larger medium-format digital cameras. The judges also highlighted the camera’s 5 frame-per-second (fps) continuous shooting of full-resolution still images and Full HD video capture at 30 fps. The EOS-5DS R is equipped with Dual DIGIC 6 image processors, a newly developed mirror vibration control system and time-release lag settings to further suppress camera shake and allow the camera to realize the full potential of its sensor.  It has a 100% coverage 3.2-inch 1.04 million dot Intelligent ClearView II LCD viewfinder that can display a variety of shooting information. The jury also pointed out that the camera sports a 150,000 pixel RGB-IR metering sensor that utilizes EOS iTR (Intelligent Tracking and Recognition) AF and that AF performance is enhanced by the 61-point high-density reticular sensor.</p>
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<p><strong>Best Photo / Video Professional Camera: Canon EOS-1D X Mark II

</strong>Selected for this year’s “Best Photo / Video Professional Camera” award, Canon’s EOS-1D X Mark II flagship-model DSLR offers impressive specifications. The camera is equipped with an approximately 20.2 megapixel 35 mm full-frame Canon CMOS sensor and achieves high-speed continuous shooting of approximately 14 fps, and up to 16 fps in Live View mode. The TIPA judges noted that the Dual DIGIC 6+ image processors enable high-speed writing of up to 170 RAW images and 81 RAW+JPEG images per burst. Thanks to Dual Pixel CMOS AF, in which all of the CMOS sensor’s pixels include both imaging and the phase-difference detection AF functions, the EOS-1D X Mark II is capable of high-speed AF tracking. The camera features an improved 61-point viewfinder AF and an improved AI Servo III+ predictive AF algorithm, and also achieves 4K 60p video shooting, and Full HD 120 fps high frame rate image capture suitable for slow motion video capture. With the optional Wireless File Transmitter WFT-E8B, compatible with the new IEEE802.11ac wireless LAN standard, data can be sent wirelessly at high speeds across the 5 GHz band.</p>
<p><strong>Best Easy Compact Camera: IXUS 285 HS

</strong>Crowning the IXUS 285 HS “Best Easy Compact Camera,” the TIPA judges declared, “Canon continues to offer pocketable yet full-featured compacts that offer many more options and higher photo quality than camera phones.” The camera sports a 12x optical zoom lens with built-in image stabilizer, a dedicated Wi-Fi button and NFC for enhanced connectivity, and a 3-inch LCD screen. It boasts an approximately 20.2 megapixel CMOS sensor and DIGIC 4+ image processor that achieves high image quality even in low-light environments. What’s more, it can capture 1080p Full HD video and, using Canon’s proprietary algorithm, can produce a “highlight reel” in camera from selected albums.</p>
<p><strong>Best Expert Compact Camera: Canon PowerShot G5 X

</strong>Crowned “Best Expert Compact Camera,” Canon’s PowerShot G5 X features a 1-inch approximately 20.2 megapixel High Sensitivity CMOS sensor and DIGIC 6 processor that achieves an approximately 6 fps continuous shooting speed and Full HD video. The camera features a 24–100 mm (35 mm film equivalent) 4.2x optical zoom lens with a nine-blade iris and an aperture of f/1.8 at the wide-angle end and f/2.8 at the telephoto end that achieves rich tonal gradations and exceptional blur characteristics across the entire zoom range. The G5 X features an EVF (electronic viewfinder) with approximately 2.36 million dots and approximately 100% coverage that employs an organic EL (electroluminescent) panel and has a refresh rate of up to 120 fps. A built-in eye sensor, which has a range of approximately 22 mm, can even detect users wearing glasses and switches display from the EVF to the 3-inch vari-angle LCD touchscreen. Additionally, the camera’s hot shoe is compatible with all Speedlite flashes in the EOS system.</p>
<p><strong>Best Photo Printer: imagePROGRAF PRO-1000

</strong>“Combining the ease of desktop use and a 17-inch wide cut sheet printer with many features from Canon’s higher-end pro printer models,” the imagePROGRAF PRO-1000 earned the title of TIPA’s “Best Photo Printer.” It incorporates a new twelve-color LUCIA PRO ink system, with eleven pigment inks, including the newly formulated Photo Black, and Chroma Optimizer. What’s more, Photo and Matte Black have their own nozzles, so no switching is needed between print jobs.</p>
<p>Equipped with the air feeding system found in Canon’s large-format imagePROGRAF inkjet printers, the PRO-1000 virtually eliminates paper skewing, regardless of paper weight and type, while also achieving more accurate ink placement. A new print head expels more ink droplets per second for more stable print performance, and print head-mounted sensors can detect clogs and automatically delegate printing responsibilities to other nozzles to prevent discoloration.</p>
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<p>A patent showing  a new ultra wide angle optical formula has appeared in the form of a 9-18mm f/3.5-4.5 STM. This could be a higher  end version of the EF-M 11-22 f/4-4.5 IS STM.</p>
<p>Patent Publication No. 2016-54371 (Google Translated)</p>
<ul>
<li>Published 2016.4.14</li>
<li>Filing date 2014.9.3</li>
<li>Zoom ratio 1.90</li>
<li>Wide-angle intermediate telephoto</li>
<li>Focal length 9.22 14.05 17.50</li>
<li>F-number 3.39 4.04 4.63</li>
<li>Half angle of view (degrees) 53.07 44.12 37.91</li>
<li>Image height 12.27 13.63 13.63</li>
<li>Overall length of the lens 89.68 83.60 86.84</li>
<li>BF 14.22 15.78 16.00</li>
<li>Upon correction of the distortion, providing a constraint on stretching amount at each image height</li>
<li>Properly set the curve shape of the distortion aberration</li>
</ul>
<p>There definitely see to be a lot of EOS M patents and talk happening at the moment. We expect to see at least one higher end EOS M camera announced and delivered this year.</p>
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<p><strong>*UPDATE*</strong>

“Soon” is always a relative term and we’re now not expecting such a lens to be announced in 2016.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>We’re told that Canon will announce a replacement to the EF 50mm f/1.4 “soon”. This is an oft rumored lens for replacement and there’s no doubt there has been ongoing development for such a lens.</p>
<p>We’re told that the replacement for the EF 50mm f/1.4 will not have IS, will still be f/1.4, and have ring type USM, instead of the new macro USM we’ve seen in the new EF-S 18-135 IS.</p>
<p>Take this with a grain of salt for the time being, as it comes from an unknown source. If we can confirm or deny this information from a known source, we’ll update this post.</p>
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A patent for a new EF-M lens has appeared. We’ve been told that there will be 3-5 new lenses coming for the EF-M mount in 2016 and at least one will be a new kit lens. This patent is for an APS-C sized sensor and the optical formula is for an EF-M 16-80mm f/2-6. This concept definitely fits what would be considered a kit lens.</p>
<p>Patent Publication No. 2016-51137 (Google Translated)</p>
<ul>
<li>Published 2016.4.11</li>
<li>Filing date 2014.9.2</li>
<li>Zoom ratio 4.71</li>
<li>Focal length 16.09 41.83 75.78</li>
<li>F-number 2.07 5.15 6.00</li>
<li>Half angle of view (degrees) 36.26 18.01 10.17</li>
<li>Image height 11.80 13.60 13.60</li>
<li>The total lens length 100.68 110.04 120.89</li>
<li>BF 15.19 27.94 26.84</li>
</ul>
<p>I suspect we’ll be seeing a lot more patents for upcoming EOS M products.</p>
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The EOS 6D has been hugely successful and a lot of people are looking forward to its replacement. The good news is, there will be a replacement, the bad news is, it likely won’t come to market until the first half of 2017.</p>
<p>With the EOS 5D Mark IV launching in August for a September/October release, there wont be enough time to launch an EOS 6D Mark II in 2016. It was never a likely scenario that both cameras would launch around the same time. The EOS 5D Mark IV deserves the spotlight.</p>
<p>The only other ILC camera we think will be coming in 2016, will be a new mirrorless camera from Canon. The EOS M4 may be announced, but I don’t see it coming to market until 2017 as well.</p>
<p>We have been told by an unconfirmed source that the EOS 6D Mark II will sport the same resolution as the EOS 5D Mark IV, which is being reported at 24mp. We’ve also been told that it’s possible that the EOS 6D Mark II will not get DPAF, but I’d take that with a grain of salt, as it’s still too early to be sure about final specifications.</p>
<p>So this is our updated roadmap for new Canon DSLR/Mirroress cameras.</p>
<ul>
<li>Canon EOS 5D Mark IV: announcement in August 2016, Release in September/October.</li>
<li>Canon EOS M (High end model): announcement in October 2016, Release in November/December.</li>
<li>Canon EOS 6D Mark II: announcement in February 2017, release in March/April.</li>
<li>Canon EOS M4: announcement in February 2017, release in March/April</li>
</ul>
<p>We have no information that suggests we’re going to see an EOS Rebel SL2 anytime soon, if at all.</p>
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