Misc. News with Update!

UPDATE: The US designation for the new Rebel is the SL1, and another feature it has is a touch sensitive rear LCD screen. Canon is also introducing the Rebel T5i. The Rebel SL1 will sell for $649.99 for the body or $799.99 for the SL1 kit with the new EF-S 18-55mm IS STM lens. The T5i will sell for $749.99 as body only and for $899.99 in a kit. Below is an interesting size comparison between the new SL1, the Rebel T4i, and the EOS M, courtesy of Photo Rumors. As you can see, the SL1 is definitely smaller.

A couple of items have come to my attention. First up is a new camera from Canon, the EOS Kiss X7 (Kiss is the European version/designation of the American Rebel camera line), which is intended to compete against some of the Micro 4/3 cameras, in terms of size and portability. And it does seem small. Look at the diameter of the lens mount compared to the body. However, putting regular Canon lenses on it will negate much of its size advantage, compared to the rather petite M 4/3 lenses. And since Canon has their own M 4/3-like camera, the EOS M, you have to wonder about their reasoning. Well, whatever.

But the specs look good: 18 MP sensor, full HD video, pivoting LCD screen, and DIGIC5 processing chip. With the new camera is a new kit lens, the EF-S 18-55mm IS STM, which is optimized for video. And when it comes to the US, the camera will have a different name, of course. If nothing else, it should make a great back-up camera.

 

The Brown Sisters, photograph by Nicholas Nixon 

Then, Ahorn magazine has published an interview with Nicholas Nixon, a documentary photographer whose main camera is an 8x10 view camera. Even though he works with such a large, cumbersome camera, he manages to routinely get intimate people pictures with a lot of heart and presence. Nixon is a fabulous photographer, who frankly isn't as well known as he ought to be and you can read what he has to say about his art here.

Canon News

Item 1: The big news is that Canon has finally jumped into the mirrorless, interchangeable lens camera market with the EOS M. The EOS M features an 18 MP APS-C sensor with full HD video capabilities and will ship in a kit in October with the EOS M 22mm f/2 STM lens for around $799.95. If you remember from an earlier post, Canon's new STM lenses offer full-time, noiseless autofocus even during video recording. The EOS M will be offered in four colors: black, white, silver, and red. It's not clear exactly how big or small the camera is, but if the lens mount is any clue, it should be around the size of comparable cameras like the Panasonic GX-1, or maybe just a touch smaller. The new lens mount is significantly smaller than the standard Canon EF and EF-S lens mounts and Canon will start out with 2 lenses for the EOS M: the 22mm f/2 (which is equivelent to a 35mm lens) and an 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM. Canon will also have a lens mount adapter so you can use their regular line of EF and EF-S lenses.

I think the price is right and if the size is right, this could be an excellent camera for a lot of photographers. It could definitely function as a back-up to a bigger system, or as a pocket-sized alternative to a bigger system. Canon is kind of late to the party with this camera, so it's hard to predict how people will respond to it. I know that I am looking forward to seeing it in person and seeing how it shoots. Color me interested.

Update: After looking at a few promo videos of the new EOS M, it looks like it is being aimed at the casual or amateur photographer. It has a touch screen that is used for most operations on the camera. There are very few physical buttons and controls on the camera. While this will appeal to a lot of potential buyers, and there is nothing wrong with this, it will be a definite turn-off for most serious photographers. Having to go through touch-screen menus to choose an aperture will limit the use and appeal of this one for pros. Plus, at least for now, there is no option for an in-camera viewfinder. I wish Canon had debuted a model with more pro-features than this one. Kind of a bone-headed move, if you ask me. Color me not so interested, now.

     

Shot with the EOS M with the 22mm f/2 STM lens.

Item 2: Ilford and Canon are teaming up to offer folks a chance to have one of their images printed on Ilford Galerie Prestige papers (Smooth Gloss 310 gsm and Smooth Pearl 310 gsm) using 3 different Canon printers: the Pixma PRO-1, the Pixma Pro9500 Mark II, and the Pixma Pro9000 Mark II. If you are interested in seeing how Canon printers perform, this is a great opportunity. For myself, I am currently using the Canon Pixma Pro9500 Mark II and am quite happy with it. I know Epson has the majority of the inkjet market locked up, but you won't lose anything by printing with a Canon printer, that's for sure. To read the details and take advantage of the offer (it's good till September 30th), go to www.TryMyPhoto.com.

Item 3: This is more in the realm of rumor, but Canon is supposed to announce in the near future a new full-frame, entry-level camera. From what I've heard, it will be more like a full-frame Rebel than a 5D Mark III. It will be smaller, lighter, and use more plastic in the construction. The interesting part of the camera is that it is supposed to sell for around $2000. And suddenly the higher than expected price of the 5D Mark III starts to make sense. When the Mark III came out at $3500, people were surprised and dismayed. It seemed like too much of a jump in price from the Mark II for too little gain. But with the new camera coming out, having a full-frame camera that is nearly $1500 less than the Mark III almost guarantees that people will snatch these up in a heart beat. Having a smaller and lighter camera with the new 40mm pancake lens might be the perfect combo for street shooting and photojournalism. At this point, I'm not really sure how I feel about this. Of course, as I said, this is more of a rumor for now. We'll see what happens later.