I’ve made some significant changes over at my Photography Gallery, where I archive the photographs posted on this blog and elsewhere. The major change has been to switch to a simple layout that focuses more on the photographic images and, I hope, is a bit more logical to navigate. Let me know what you think!
Tag Archives: announcement
Canon EOS 5D Mark II Announced
This evening I’m seeing quite a few links to the announcement of the updated EOS Canon EOS 5D Mark II. (Here is a link to a Canon press release.) Unlike some previous Canon updates that seemed rather trivial – e.g. 20D to 30D – this one includes quite a few compelling new and improved features, and I’m sure this will be a very popular camera.
Some highlights include:
- 21MP full-frame sensor
- HD video capture
- The expected sensor dust reduction/cleaning features
- Live view shooting
- Some interesting software additions – a “new creative mode,” “peripheral illumination correction” in jpg modes (sounds like compensation for vignetting), and “auto lighting optimizer” (seems to try to deal with recording details in high dynamic range scenes)
- Continuous shooting at 3.9 fps
- Larger and higher resolution LCD
- 150,000 shutter cycles
- Expanded ISO range
- Price: $2699
For many of us who are attracted to the 5D image quality, the 21MP sensor is a good thing – this camera should compete with the 1DsMKIII on an image quality basis as long as one has good enough lenses and uses careful technique. (I doubt if there will be much IQ advantage if one hand holds the camera in most cases.) It is interesting to note that the increased shutter life is competitive with 1-series cameras as well.
Video capture is quickly going to be a standard feature on DSLRs – though the usefulness of the feature is something that will perhaps only become apparent once these cameras find their way into the hands of those who know how to use the feature effectively and creatively.
The relatively leisurely 3.9 fps burst mode is no surprise. The 5D is not a camera optimized for fast action sports photography that relies on high speed burst mode shooting. But still, at nearly 4 fps it won’t exactly be unusable in this regard either.
The pricing is interesting as well. Whether due to the recent announcement of a $3000 25MP full frame Sony camera and the anticipated competition from a 20+MP Nikon camera or something else, it seems that the prices of full frame cameras – and very capable ones, at that! – are starting to drop.
Will I buy one? I had pretty much decided that I would not buy a 5D upgrade that only provided a 16MP sensor. However, at 21MP this body provides close to double the number of photosites – and such a doubling has been more or less my trigger for an upgrade. Of course, I’m not one to rush to be the first to buy. I’ll let those who are willing to pay any price to be “first on the block” get theirs right away, and I like to see what initial problems are discovered as the first units are released. All of that being said, I think there is a fair chance that I’ll do this upgrade within the next 6 months or so.
Also: Canon announced one new lens, an upgraded EF 24mm f/1.4L II USM. The previous version was thought by some to be less impressive than its 35mm f/1.4 big brother, so it isn’t too surprising that Canon updated this lens. There is also some thought the Canon will update some lenses in order to take better advantage of the higher MP count sensors – they can exceed the resolving ability of some good lenses. It will be interesting to see whether the new 24mm L is a significant improvement over the previous version… and whether it is worth the somewhat shocking (for a prime!) $1699 list price.
G Dan Mitchell Photography
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Canon 50D Announced: Competition is a Good Thing
News of Canon’s announcement of the new EOS 5D cropped sensor mid-range DSLR is all over the web today – well, at least all over the photographic portion of the web. The new body updates the X0D line from the recent 40D, primarily by updating the 1.6x cropped sensor to 15 megapixels. According to Canon this was done while increasing the performance at high ISOs, keeping the burst rate almost the same as that of the 40D, and maintaining image quality by the use of “gapless microlenses” that can capture more light than would have been the case with older designs. There are other feature updates as well, and it looks like the price will be roughly but not precisely in the same ballpark as that of the 50D… at least once the prices drop a few months after the introduction of the new camera.
What does this mean for the DSLR buyer? The answer is, “It depends.” Continue reading Canon 50D Announced: Competition is a Good Thing
Lowepro Slingshot 350 AW Introduced
I’ve written before that I’m a big fan of the Lowepro Slingshot AW line of camera packs, especially the Slingshot 200 AW camera pack. I’ve used mine extensively and it provides a good mix of capacity (enough for a body and a few lenses), convenience (carries over the shoulder with one strap), accessibility (swings forward for easy access to gear), low price, and weather protection (built-in weather cover). I especially like it for urban photography where I can keep all of the necessary gear close and accessible while traveling on foot.
Now I see that Lowepro has introduced a new larger model, the Slingshot 350 AW that is designed to hold not only more photographic gear, but also to carry a laptop. I have not yet had a chance to see the bag in person or try it out, but if it works the way I would expect based on experience with the Slingshot 200 AW it sounds like it could be a dynamite bag for travel and especially for air travel.
G Dan Mitchell Photography
About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email
Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.
(Basic EXIF data is available by “mousing over” large images in blog posts. Leave a comment if you want to know more.)