<b>MELVILLE, N.Y.</b> — Reflecting on a year of continued product innovation, Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, recognizes the many awards from prominent industry organizations and publications it received throughout 2015 – a hallmark year as the company hosted its once-every-five-year Canon EXPO, which can still be <a href="https://expo.usa.canon.com/?page_id=373" target="_blank">explored online until December 31.</a></p>
<p>In addition to its well-known camera, printer and business solutions, Canon Inc. was ranked three in the U.S. in patents received, with 4,055 patents granted in 2014 and 40 out of 100 on Interbrand’s “Best Global Brands” in 2015, demonstrating the Company’s sustained strong global brand performance. Additionally, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded Canon with a SmartWay® Excellence Award for the brand’s service as an industry leader in freight supply chain environmental performance and energy efficiency.</p>
<p>“We are proud of the innovative products we continued to deliver to our loyal customers,” said Kotaro Fukushima, senior director and general manager, Corporate Communications Division, Canon U.S.A., Inc. “We are honored that the industry and media recognized our hard work and dedication to producing quality, best-in-class products and look forward to continuing the momentum in 2016.”</p>
<p><strong>Consumer Recognitions</strong>

Canon earned several distinguished awards for its consumer products in 2015, such as the <strong>Canon imagePROGRAF PRO-1000 </strong>receiving “Printer of the Year” from <em>ImagingResource.com</em>, the <strong>MAXIFY iB4020</strong> and <strong>MAXIFY MB5320</strong>were named “Editor’s Choice” from <em>ComputerShopper.com</em> and <em>DigitalTrends.com</em>, respectively.</p>
<p>Products from the camera and lens portfolio that received two or more industry awards include:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Canon C300 Mark II:</strong> “Best New Camera NAB 2015” – NewsShooter.com; “Award of Excellence” & “Best in Show NAB 2015” – ProductionHUB.com</li>
<li><strong>Canon EOS 5DS R:</strong> “Honoree, Digital Imaging” – CES Innovation Awards; “Editors’ Choice” – DigitalTrends.com; “Hot One Award – Best Full Frame” – <em>Professional Photographer Magazine</em>; “Best Pro Camera”− Resource Magazine; “Cameras of the Year- Best Professional Cameras” – <em>Imaging Resource</em></li>
<li><strong>Canon EOS 5D S:</strong> “Pop Award 2015” ─ Popular Photography; “Best Pro Camera” and “Editors’ Choice” ─ Reviewed.com; “Cameras of the Year- Best Professional Cameras” – <em>Imaging Resource</em></li>
<li><strong>Canon EOS Rebel T6s:</strong> “Editors’ Choice” – <em>DigitalTrends.com</em>; “Silver Award” – DPReview.com; “Camera of Distinction, Intermediate DSLR” and “Dave’s Pick” – <em>ImagingResource.com</em>; “Editors’ Choice” – <em>PC Magazine</em></li>
<li><strong>Canon XC10:</strong> “Post Pick Award – Coolest New Product NAB 2015” – <em>Post Magazine</em>; “Best in Show NAB 2015” – TVTechnology.com; “Honoree – Digital Imaging” – CES Innovation Awards; “Editors Pick” ─ <em>Resource Magazine.</em></li>
<li><strong>Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM:</strong> “Editors’ Choice” – <em>PC Magazine</em>; “Hot One Award – “Hot One Award-Best Telephoto Zoom Lens” – <em>Professional Photographer Magazine</em></li>
<li><strong>Canon EF 11-24mm f4L USM:</strong> “Hot One Award-Best Wide-Angle Lens” – <em>Professional Photographer Magazine</em>; “Best Lens – Full-Frame” – <em>DPReview.com</em>; “Pop Award 2015” – Popular Photography; “Lenses of the Year, Best Zoom Lens” – <em>Imaging Resource</em></li>
<li><strong>Canon EF-S 24mm f/2.8 STM:</strong> “Editors’ Choice” – <em>PC Magazine</em>; “Hot One Award-Best Portrait Lens” –<em>Professional Photographer Magazine</em></li>
<li><strong>Canon PowerShot G3 X:</strong> “Editors’ Choice” – <em>DigitalTrends.com</em>; “Editors’ Choice” – Reviewed.com</li>
<li><strong>Canon EOS 7D Mark II: “</strong>Hot one Award- Best APS-C” from <em>Professional Photographer Magazine</em>, “Lucie Technical Award for Best Crop Sensor Camera” <em>The Lucie Awards</em>.</li>
</ul>
<p>Also included in this year’s award line-up was recognition for other products from Canon’s camera and lens portfolio, including: the <strong>Canon EF400mm f/4 DO IS II USM</strong> received the “Hot One Award – Best Action Lens” from <em>Professional Photographer Magazine</em>; the <strong>Canon EOS Rebel T6i </strong>received “Dave’s Pick” from <em>ImagingResource.com</em>; the <strong>Canon PowerShot SX60 HS</strong> received the “Editors’ Choice” from <em>PC Magazine</em> and the<strong> Canon Speedlite 430 EX II</strong> received a “Pop Award 2015” from <em>Popular Photography.</em></p>

On the heals of the <a href="http://www.canonrumors.com/teardown-canon-ef-35mm-f1-4l-ii-by-lensrentals-com/">Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L II teardown</a> by LensRentals.com, they now bring us a teardown of its main competitor, the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art.</p>
<p>While the Sigma isn’t as well built as the EF 35mm f/1.4L II, it also costs half as much and by the looks of things, should hold up rather well.</p>
<blockquote><p>Many people are going to compare this lens to the Canon 35mm f/1.4 teardown we did and say that’s why they chose the Canon. That’s legitimate reasoning. The Canon is weather resistant, twice the price, and twice the weight, roughly. If I was going to subject my lens to harsh conditions and use, the Canon looks like the way to go if you can afford it. But if I want to carry several primes in a convenient size and at a convenient expense, the Sigma is a superb choice and I expect it will hold up very well. As always, horses for courses. <a href="http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2015/12/sigma-35mm-f1-4-dg-hsm-art-lens-teardown" target="_blank">Read the full article…</a></p></blockquote>
<p>One noticeable issue with the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art is there is nowhere to optically adjust the lens, so that may be a reason there can be such a copy performance variation. The Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L II has 2 spots, and copy variation is the best of the 35mm options for your DSLR.</p>

Some new Nikon D5 specifications appear to have come out over at Nikon Rumors. Beyond what is being hailed as “killer AF”, we also get some interesting tidbits below. The one odd suggestion is that the D5 could come in 2 variants based on memory cards. One version would get dual CD, the other dual XQD.</p>
<p>As far as Canon goes, we’ve been told there is a strong possibility that the EOS-1D X Mark II will come with dual CFast slots. It will be interesting to see if Nikon and Canon go in different directions in regards to next generation high speed cards, and what effect that could have on the industry. It’s been nice having SD and CF work across the board.</p>
<p>More Rumored Nikon D5 Specifications:</p>
<ul>
<li class="p1"><span class="s1">There is a possibility for two different D5 models – one with double CF and another with double XQD memory cards (this is probably why I was initially getting conflicting reports on the memory cards)</span></li>
<li class="p1"><span class="s1">ISO during video up to 102,400</span></li>
<li class="p1"><span class="s1">Touch screen (not sure)</span></li>
<li class="p1"><span class="s1">No built-in Wi-Fi, but there will be an optional wireless adapter</span></li>
<li class="p1">I have a potential announcement date of January 12th, but this is after the CES show so I am not sure about that either</li>
</ul>
<p>We’ve also been told that the announcement would come on January 12, 2016, which is after CES.</p>
<p> </p>

B&H Photo has completed a review of the soon-to-be-released Canon ME20F-SH, the “see in the dark” video camera Canon announced back in July which caught everyone off guard. This camera is capable of a maximum ISO of 4,560,000.</p>
<p>What I find most exciting is the possibility that some of this technology is going to spill over into other parts of the Canon lineup, most notably the EOS-1D X Mark II and EOS 5D Mark IV.</p>
<p>The summary and noise performance examples are after the break.</p>
<p><!--more--></p>
<p>From B&H Explora:</p>
<blockquote><p>The Canon ME20F-SH presents itself as a unique tool for a wide range of applications. Part cinema camera, part surveillance tool, part studio camera, the camera is ready to serve anyone who wants to capture images in extremely dark conditions without having to sacrifice color or resort to infrared lighting and sacrifice nature color reproduction. <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/video/hands-review/canon-me20f-sh-full-frame-video-camera-sees-dark/bi/2466/kbid/3296" target="_blank">Read the full review…</a></p></blockquote>
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A macro lens was to be a part of the EOS M’s future, and we now see what I think is our first patent for an EF-M macro lens. This optical formula is for an EF-M 55mm f/3.5 Macro for an APS-C sensor.</p>
<p>Patent Publication No. 2015-215391 (Google Translated)</p>
<ul>
<li>Published 2015.12.3</li>
<li>Filing date 2014.5.8</li>
<li>Focal length 53.73</li>
<li>F-number 3.50</li>
<li>Half angle (in degrees) 14.26</li>
<li>Image height 13.66</li>
<li>Overall length of the lens 76.39</li>
<li>BF 17.69</li>
</ul>
<p>While a full frame mirrorless solution from Canon appears to be in the works, we haven’t heard anything about what kind of mount the camera would have.</p>
<p>We are expecting some EOS M announcements in the first quarter of 2016.</p>

I decided I’d weigh in on what I felt were Canon’s best and worst products of 2015. I didn’t find any of the DSLR releases to be all that interesting this year. While I like the EOS 5DS and EOS 5DS R, I just haven’t found a use personally for either of them. I felt 2015 was a development year for Canon as far as DSLRs and mirrorless cameras go and we should expect some big things in 2016,</p>
<p><!--more--></p>
<h4><strong>Best Product Release by Canon in 2015</strong></h4>
<p><strong>Winner: <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1143786-REG/canon_0570c002_ef_50mm_f_1_8_stm.html/bi/2466/kbid/3296" target="_blank">Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM</a>

</strong>Canon released a lot of great new L and DO lenses in 2015, but my pick for the best of 2015 is the brand new “nifty fifty”. Canon improved just about everything on the new version of this lens and did something amazing, they didn’t raise the price over the lens it replaced.</p>
<p>Improvements include 7 aperture blades instead of 5, a metal mount, STM AF motor, faster AF, improved build quality, so it might actually survive a fall. It stops down to f/22 instead f/16 on the lens it replaces.</p>
<p>Just because something is “entry level” doesn’t mean it can’t also be great and this is one great product release by Canon.</p>
<p><strong>Runner-Up: <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1180801-REG/canon_9523b002_35mm_f_1_4l_ii_usm.html/bi/2466/kbid/3296" target="_blank">Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L II</a>

</strong>There were a lot of great lenses to choose from this year, the EF 11-24mm f/4L is one of a kind, the EF 100-400 f/4.5-5.6L IS II is a nearly perfect update the EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II proves Canon is still behind its diffractive optics development.</p>
<p>I have to give the runner-up award to the EF 35mm f/1.4L II though, while the other L and DO releases were great, this lens has a bigger mass appeal, which is why I chose it. Canon once again improved everything about the previous version of a lens model. Optical quality and build quality are again class leading and you cannot overlook having a native Canon lens for accurate autofocus when you need it most. Yes, the lens is expensive, but after the <a href="http://www.canonrumors.com/teardown-canon-ef-35mm-f1-4l-ii-by-lensrentals-com/" target="_blank">recent teardown we saw of the new lens</a>, it looks to be justified.</p>
<p>Canon continues to be the best and most advanced lens maker in the world and it’s likely the big reason they retain their marketshare in the DSLR space.</p>
<h4>Worst Product Release by Canon in 2015</h4>
<p><strong>Winner (Loser): <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1134581-REG/canon_0565c013_xc10.html/bi/2466/kbid/3296" target="_blank">Canon XC10</a>

</strong>I don’t think anyone has any idea what Canon was thinking with this oddball camera. Canon’s marketing claims it’s a product for everyone including still shooters, videographers & photojournalists.</p>
<p>What usually happens when you try to make something for everyone? You end up making something for no one. Which is exactly what Canon did.</p>
<p><strong>Runner-Up: <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1180765-REG/canon_9694b001_eos_m3_mirrorless_digital.html/bi/2466/kbid/3296" target="_blank">Canon EOS M3</a>

</strong>I don’t care if you’ve improved on the EOS M and the EOS M2, all you’re doing is updating a product that is flawed to something that is still flawed. The EOS M system is still way behind mirrorless leaders Sony, Fujifilm & Olympus, and that has to change soon. Canon is promising that it will, but we’ll take the wait and see approach.</p>
<p>Sound off in the forum with your own best and worst list.</p>

<p><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kLU5oygrkpw" width="728" height="409" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>

We all love “best of” lists when it comes to gear, and LensRentals.com has release their “best & most rented gear” list of 2015. Among staff picks, Canon gets three best of the year nods.</p>
<p>LR Staff Picks won by Canon</p>
<ul>
<li>Roger Cicala – <a href="http://www.lensrentals.com/rent/canon/lenses/supertelephoto/canon-400mm-f4l-do-is-ii" target="_blank">Canon EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II

</a><em>“My favorite new piece of gear is the Canon 400mm f/4 DO IS II. It’s amazingly light for a super-telephoto at 4.5 pounds (about a pound more than a 70-200mm f/2.8lens) and with 4-stop image stabilization can be handheld even when the light isn’t awesome.”</em><a href="http://www.lensrentals.com/rent/canon/lenses/supertelephoto/canon-400mm-f4l-do-is-ii" target="_blank">

</a></li>
<li>Chris Steward – <a href="http://www.lensrentals.com/rent/video/cameras/canon/canon-eos-c300-mark-ii-dual-pixel-ef" target="_blank">Canon Cinema EOS C300 Mark II

</a><em>“We rarely receive complaints about the C300, it just works. So I was really excited when we demoed the C300 Mark II at NAB this year. Sure enough, every concern we had with the original C300 has been addressed: 4K resolution, high frame rate shooting, 12-bit internal recording, proxy files, detachable monitor cables, raw output, and more!”</em></li>
<li>Zach Sutton – <a href="http://www.lensrentals.com/rent/video/cameras/canon/canon-eos-c300-mark-ii-dual-pixel-ef" target="_blank">Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L II

</a><em>“This year, I fell in love with the new Canon 35mm f/1.4L II. I loved the old version of this lens, so it was great to see Canon finally step it up, and make the sharpest 35mm available. Previously, Sigma had shaken me away from the Canon 35mm with their Sigma 35mm Art 1.4, but I’ve always been a bit of a Canon loyalist and opted to wait for Canon to bring a new contender to the race.”</em><a href="http://www.lensrentals.com/rent/video/cameras/canon/canon-eos-c300-mark-ii-dual-pixel-ef" target="_blank">

</a></li>
</ul>
<p>If I had to pick my favourite new Canon product(s) of 2015, it would definitely go to either the <a href="http://www.canonrumors.com/canon-u-s-a-announces-connect-station-cs100-the-centerpiece-that-unites-your-canon-imaging-devices/" target="_blank">Connect Station CS100</a> or <a href="http://www.canonrumors.com/announcement-canon-xc10-a-breakthrough-compact-4k-video-and-stills-camcorder/" target="_blank">XC10.</a></p>
<p><em><a href="http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2015/12/the-best-and-most-rented-new-photography-gear-of-2015" target="_blank">Read the full list over at LensRentals.com</a></em></p>

We’re told that the Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II replacement, is in the hands of select test photographers and should be announced some time in 2016. We’ve heard a few times that the lens may change slightly in focal length, but we can’t confirm that via a patent or person.</p>
<p>We receive little bits of information at a time in regards to this lens, but signs are pointing to it being the next L zoom that Canon releases. We suspect it’ll come some time around the EOS 5D Mark IV announcement, as it is generally considered a wide angle zoom event lens, though it does crossover into other uses.</p>
<p>More to come…</p>

Most images of the Nikon D5 have <a href="http://www.chassimages.com/forum/index.php/topic,244580.msg5697310.html#msg5697310" target="_blank">leaked on a French forum</a>. I’m quite surprised we’re seeing a flagship camera leaking through the retail chain.</p>
<p>Translated from the forum (Machine translated)</p>
<blockquote><p>Traveling abroad, stop in a small camera shop and surprise… a D5 sample at the bottom of a showcase…

Presented with a SIGMA 50 art! Taken in hand, fully functional, the (AF focus point spread) is totally rectangular and covers approximately the APS-C format in the viewfinder… for the rest of the photos below speak for themselves, it is a removable cache in which the eyelet is integrated, the pane plugs on the viewfinder being on the prism.</p></blockquote>

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