New equipment annoucements from Canon

[Donald]

I got this from one of my usual suppliers.

Not sure what name this new one will go under in such as the US.

A touch screen !!!!!!!! Whatever next?

[Bobobird]

Smartphone screen tech moving over to other products. Can be useful on a tripod instead of fiddling with dials etc.

[blakemcguire]

I'm not sold on touch screens except for picking focus.

[MilT0s]

Actually I find the pancake 40mm an excellent choice.

40mm is the most common focal length for me as it is 64mm in my cropped, slightly tele.

[ktuli]

I think that is going as the Rebel T4i in the States.

[rpcrowe]

The pendelum has swung. Video is more important than stills in the DSLR world now!

I personally do not like touch screen controls on a camera. I have that capability on my Panasonic HDC-TM900 video camera (with which I far prefer to shoot video than with my 7D) and I never use the touch screen for controls unless I am using it to control downloading my video to my computer.

Well, perhaps, Canon finally came upon a decent focus system for video. Man my little Panasonic beats the pants off my 7D in the world of follow-focusing and general focusing; although I will asmit that I can achieve a more narrow DOF with the 7D.

The 40mm "might" be a nice lens for a prime video lens on a full-frame camera but, IMO, it is too long for a standard video lens on a 1.6x crop camera for video.

Additionally, 40mm f/2.8 is "neither here nor there" for stills on a crop camera. Neither long enough, nor short enough nor fast enough!

It has been a long, long time since motion picture and video shooters used a single prime lens for shooting. Turrets were the answer to shooting motion pictures and video with prime lenses until the evolution of the zoom lens. BTW: zooms were used professionally in motion picture shooting LONG BEFORE there were ever any still camera zoom lenses which provided professional quality imagery.

My feeling about the three offerings T4i, new zoom and pancake f/2.8 40mm is the same as it was regarding the two f/2.8 primes recently introduced: I AM TOTALLY UNDERWHELMED!

The nice little lady who cleans the toilets at the Canon Headquarters and doubles as their marketing manager in her spare time; has struck again. Congratuations Canon!

[Andrew1]

Think of the new offerings like video, touch screens, small mirror-less cameras, camera to internet uploading, colour choices, etc. It's marketing to the group making most of the purchases. A younger generation that came into an existing digital world where ease of use and options is more important than quality. A group for which a products life-cycle has little meaning and it's more of an inconvenience if it's too long. Hell, even cellphones last too long for these groups. People used to complain about cellphones lasting only a couple of years. Now there are packages that allow you to upgrade whenever you want. Canon was called the "Camera of the Month Club" for the frequency of releases in their P&S lines. Technology is driving the advances and many manufacturers have found the financial benefits of quick releases rather than waiting for major upgrades. There are lots of people out there scrambling and buying the latest and greatest in camera technology and yet never even thinking of doing anything but posting on social websites where photos are viewed at 72 ppi. My guess at the future? Watch for easier and better connection to the internet and App's in a DSLR similar to what you see in iPhones. Also more short video downloads on social sites rather than photos.

[Donald]

Hell, even cellphones last too long for these groups.

I know I sound like a grumpy old man, but I was left speechless when someone I work with was announcing the acquisition of her new mobile/cellphone and advising that one of the key factors was the length of the contract and how quickly she would be able to get an upgrade ........ And that was before she had unboxed her new phone.

There just has to be something wrong when we've arrived at that way of thinking.

[blakemcguire]

I know I sound like a grumpy old man, but I was left speechless when someone I work with was announcing the acquisition of her new mobile/cellphone and advising that one of the key factors was the length of the contract and how quickly she would be able to get an upgrade ........ And that was before she had unboxed her new phone.

There just has to be something wrong when we've arrived at that way of thinking.

This is the sign of a consumption based economy.

[inkista]

I haven't read up on the T4i, yet, but I can say I love the touchscreen on my Panasonic G3. Not having to faff about with AF points, and to just point to where I want to focus is simply grand in some uses. Folks on the street still expect you to hit a shutter button to take a picture. They think you're chimping when you take the shot.

The pendelum has swung. Video is more important than stills in the DSLR world now!

Yes. The STM step-motor thing is definitely an indication that things like follow focus, rack focus, etc. may be showing up on dSLRs for video at some near point.

... My feeling about the three offerings T4i, new zoom and pancake f/2.8 40mm is the same as it was regarding the two f/2.8 primes recently introduced: I AM TOTALLY UNDERWHELMED!

Well, I'm probably not going to rush out and buy a T4i. But the EF-S 18-135 now has the capability of autofocusing during video, and has MTF charts that rival the 24-105L's. So, that's a nice option. And the 40/2.8 is a pancake. Either you want a pancake or you don't. It's not a lens. It's a lenscap you can take pictures with. Personally, I'd be a lot happier if it was f/2, but I can now ditch my adapted C/Y Tessar 45mm f/2.8, and have a pancake that a) autofocuses, and b) doesn't whack into the mirror on my 5DMkII, if I want. And at $200, at least the price is right for what it is. The fact that Canon actually sees that some folks want cheaper lenses (and that there's a reason the Cosina Voigtlander Ultron 40mm f/2 SLII was selling) is a good thing, too. The fact that it's a usable focal length on both crop and full frame is nice.

I'd've been a lot happier, though, if they'd come out with a $200 EF-S 35mm f/1.8 USM for the newbs on their first dRebels. But this isn't a bad alternative. And offering it as a kit option for the 650D is also a nice move.

[dje]

I have to admit I was sceptical of touch screen cameras, and I was also sceptical of touch screen computers. But I've just bought a Toshiba tablet and am getting to like it for it's portability. The interesting thing with it is that I have downloaded a beta app (Android) called DSLR Controller which allows you to tether a Canon DSLR to the tablet. This effectively gives you touch screen control (including Auto-focus point selection by touching an area of the screen and even manual focus from the screen rather than from the lens ring).

It pays, I think, to keep an open mind on technology changes - and this from someone who was sceptical of this new fangled thing called Windows with mouse control all those years ago !

Dave

PS : You can also get a handy cut-down version of Photoshop for IPAD's and Android tablets for about $12.

[Black Pearl]

If it is a capacitance screen like an iPhone or Galaxy then YEAH!
if its a pressure screen like a Panasonic G/GF then BOO!

A properly sorted touch screen would transform the way in which we interact with our cameras in the same way it has done with mobile phones. Image being able to swipe through images, double tap to zoom to 100% and have quick access to menu functions.
I'd have the main screen setup like apps where you could swipe and tap the functions you wanted. DSLR's are dead technology unless they evolve and I'm fed up with the major brands dragging their heels just to pamper to the luddites who want things to be the same as they have always been. I haven't used my Nikon D300s for weeks as I'm bored with the whole concept of having to do things a set way.

Why?

Why should I have to press a button that does one job?
Why should I have to scroll through a complex menu with a rocker or a wheel one small step at a time?
Why should I have to plug the damn thing in or remove a card to get access to my images?
Why can't I link it with my mobile device while I'm out and about - you can with a Samsung?

Good for Canon. The rest of you pay heed, take notice and get your collective fingers out of your collective backsides and make the DLSR a 21st century device.

[Donald]

The interesting thing with it is that I have downloaded a beta app (Android) called DSLR Controller which allows you to tether a Canon DSLR to the tablet.

Now that is interesting. I'm just waiting on delivery of a Lenovo Tablet (the one with the pen and handwriting capability). It's primarily for work purposes, but my employer will be okay with me using it, in a limited way, for personal use.

..... and get your collective fingers out of your collective backsides and make the DLSR a 21st century device.

I'm all for moving forward with technology, so long as it serves a useful purpose and is not just gimmickry.

[inkista]

If it is a capacitance screen like an iPhone or Galaxy then YEAH!
if its a pressure screen like a Panasonic G/GF then BOO!

A properly sorted touch screen would transform the way in which we interact with our cameras in the same way it has done with mobile phones. Image being able to swipe through images, double tap to zoom to 100% and have quick access to menu functions.

Don't need to. Already have all of that with my oh-so-lousy G3's pressure screen. Iz nize. But as I said, for me, the best part is being able to use the touchscreen to select the focus point anywhere in the frame you want and shoot.

But then, P&S cameras have had all of this for a while, now. Y'know, like liveview taking forever to move to dSLRs. There is a reason we love mirrorless compacts. Now if Canon would just freaking implement focus peaking and intervalometers, I wouldn't have to keep loading Magic Lantern....

[enaiman]

Well, I've been thinking about that touchscreen some time ago and it looks like it's finally coming.
I am using some of the buttons after each shot (view, zoom in, zoom out) just to check if the result was focused and sharp that I am afraid these buttons will fail long before the shutter count reaches half of it's life. So the touch screen is a deal maker for me.
I won't switch my 60D for a 650 but if that comes in any other camera, xxD or xD, I will buy it, no matter the cost.
Of course, there are other very important things in a camera but, between 2 similar cameras, I will gladly pay one extra thousand just for that touchscreen.

[Colin Southern]

I think that is going as the Rebel T4i in the States.

And probably "Rebel 3 kisses and a hug" in Japan!

[Colin Southern]

I'm all for moving forward with technology, so long as it serves a useful purpose and is not just gimmickry.

To be honest, I'm quite often in a bit of a negative mindset when it comes to change (with this stupid "cloud based computing" being a great example!) - but I often find that after a year or three I "finally see the light". These days I love storing things in "the cloud" - I can't remember the last time I bought a CD (it's all iTunes for me these days) - my iPhone (complete with touch/swipe/pinch type gestures) has changed my life ... and to be honest, when I think about it, things like touch screens on cameras make a lot of sense.

Probably to the point where in 5 years we'll all think back in horror at the way we "used to do it" and wonder why nobody thought of it sooner.

[Snarkbyte]

More cowbell!!!

[dje]

Now that is interesting. I'm just waiting on delivery of a Lenovo Tablet (the one with the pen and handwriting capability). It's primarily for work purposes, but my employer will be okay with me using it, in a limited way, for personal use.


I'm all for moving forward with technology, so long as it serves a useful purpose and is not just gimmickry.

Donald according to the DSLR Controller website, the software is compatible with the Lenovo Thinkpad and "mostly" compatible with the 40D.

Dave

[Mahn England]

A presentation of the 650D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_sOB...ayer_embedded#!