Medium format is reborn! Of course, through the newly announced Canon EOS 5Ds and 5Ds R with 50 megapixels of full frame joy! The Canon EOS 5Ds and 5Ds R boasts a DIGIC 6 processor, 41 point cross type AF system, built in intervalometer and all for under $4000 USD.
The Canon EOS 5Ds R has no low pass filter on the 50 megapixel full frame CMOS sensor to cater to the high resolution image professional. The LPF cancellation maximizes the sharpness and detail for the critical photographer.
Beware Canon EOS 5D Mark III owners! The high resolution 5Ds and 5Ds R has no headphone jack to monitor audio during video recording in movie mode. You do have the Mark III's Full HD capabilities along with a new Time Lapse video feature of the 5Ds and 5Ds R but of course no headphone jack! Leave it to Canon for this marketing blunder...BTW, NO 4K VIDEO unlike the lesser priced competition of the Sony A7S and Panasonic GH4. Really?
No worries for the budget conscious DSLR Canon crowd! The newly announced Canon EOS Rebel T6s and T6i has 24 megapixels of cropped sensor goodness with EF-S mount to fill the gap with the pricey 5Ds. The flagship Rebel T6s now has a top body LCD screen along with an articulating rear LCD for high and low angle shots. The FULL HD video capabilities are there like the external microphone jack and the full manual video and audio control. The less expensive T6i has no top LCD screen and is basically a T5i in disguise...Budget means $849 and $749 for the T6s and T6i, respectively.
With all this new high resolution bodies, you need new glass in the Canon EF lens lineup. The new Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L USM will fill in the ultra wide zoom lens gap filled by Nikon recently. This ultra wide zoom lens will MSRP for $3000...Yikes!
Sorry Yanks! The new Canon EOS M3 24 megapixel mirrorless powerhouse with built in wi-fi and articulating screen will not be offered in the USA. As a current Canon EOS M owner, this is a big mistake on Canon's marketing team. I love this form factor with compatibility with my EF glass. My envy grows with the Canon EOS M3's higher MP and built in flash...Really, again?
The new Canon EOS Rebel SL1/100D digital camera takes all the "Rebel" goodness and wraps it in a small package. This new entry level 18 megapixel Canon Rebel with an APS-C CMOS sensor is now the lightest and smallest DSLR in the digital market today. This small form factor certainly blurs the line with their existing and not so popular Canon EOS M digital mirrorless compact camera just released in November 2012. The Canon EOS Rebel SL1/100D emerges as the Canon EOS M mirrorless digital camera with a real viewfinder and no silly EF-M Lens Adapter, IMHO.
Does the new Canon EOS Rebel SL1/100D video performance stack up with its Rebel brothers? Yes, it certainly does except for the fact it is missing an articulating screen and a larger capacity battery. Just like the Canon EOS M mirrorless digital camera, the new Canon EOS Rebel SL1 is missing the swivel screen and utilizes the same Canon LP-E12 battery pack. The new Canon Rebel SL1/100D also retains the quite useful touchscreen feature of the 3.0 inch LCD screen, the extended video record time of 29 minutes and 29 seconds and the full manual exposure and audio control with an external microphone jack. Enough said! Watch the Youtube video above to see for yourself!
Surprisingly, Canon has managed to fit an optical viewfinder and a built in pop up flash in the Rebel SL1/100D with a form factor similar to the Canon EOS M mirrorless digital camera. The familiar Rebel controls like Mode Dial, AE lock and even the ISO button are all in the usual locations on this small Rebel body. Full size features like a 4 fps shutter rate powered by a DIGIC V processor and video resolutions like 1080p at 30fps and 720p at 60 fps fill this "baby" Rebel with adorable goodness!
My Canon EOS Rebel SL1/100D rig consisted of the new Manfrotto MVH500AH fluid video head for support, the Rode VideoMic shotgun microphone with the Rycote Lyre Suspension System for audio capture and the new Hoodman Custom Finder Kit with the H32 viewfinder loupe to help in critical focus. As for lenses used in my Youtube video, I used the Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L prime and the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L IS macro lenses. As expected, the Rode VideoMic with the more durable Rycote shock mount is a dream and can now actually fit comfortably in my camera bag. The new Manfrotto MVH500AH fluid head is larger than my Manfrotto 701 HDV head but this new head has tilting spring tension with a new quick release plate. The Hoodman Custom Finder Kit with H32 loupe is still under my pending evaluation for now. Stay tuned for more...
The Hybrid CMOS AF II makes an infamous comeback but in an allegedly improved 2nd version! Canon's attempt at continuous AF during video recording was a blatant disappointment. Just like the Canon EOS Rebel T4i and the Canon EOS M Hybrid AF systems, I did not expect much with the new and improved 2nd version of the Hybrid AF Servo function. Again with the new Canon EOS Rebel SL1/100D, the continuous AF during video recording hunted back and forth like usual and completely missed the boat, IMHO! Manual focus during video is the way to go for great video!
So what is my Canon EOS Rebel SL1/100D Video Test Verdict? The Canon EOS Rebel SL1/100D emerges as another stellar video performer just like its bigger Rebel brothers but just in a small form factor with no articulating screen. If travel size and weight are your criteria for minimalist filmmaking, the new Canon EOS Rebel SL1/100D is your DSLR Phoenix rising from the digital ashes!
Big things do come in small packages, especially when it comes to Canon's smallest and lightest creation, the Canon EOS Rebel SL1/100D DSLR. Boasting an impressive 14.36 ounces for body only with a size smaller than the current Canon Rebel T4i/650D, the new Canon Rebel SL1/100d still packs a mighty punch like the Canon EOS M digital mirrorless camera.
The new Rebel SL1/100d touts an 18 megapixel CMOS APS-C sensor with DIGIC V processor. 9 AF points fill the frames along with 4 frames per second shutter rate. A new version of the AF Servo called Hybrid AF II allegedly has better AF Servo during video recording. I will keep my fingers crossed for that past disappointing AF feature in the previous Canon Rebel T4i/650D.
For an upcoming retail price of $649 body only and $799 with the new STM enabled kit lens in April 2013, the new Canon EOS Rebel SL1/100D will be a great value just like the previous Canon EOS Rebel T3i/600D. The new Rebel SL1/100D has an impressive 1080p capable video function with an external microphone input for audio as well. Of course, video and audio have full manual control for ultimate creativity. Just like the previous Canon Rebel T4i/650D and the Canon EOS M, the new Canon Rebel SL1/100D keeps the touch screen user interface but only with a fixed 3.0 inch LCD screen. Beggars cannot be choosers!
I almost forgot! It has only been 10 months since the previous Canon Rebel T4i/650D was released, but there is an almost identical and new Canon EOS Rebel T5i/700D coming soon to replace it. What's the point? There is really nothing new besides a "real time" Live View of Creative Filter Effects and other minor things not worth mentioning. Just keep your current full size Canon Rebel and save up for the smallest and lightest DSLR from Canon next month.
The new Canon EOS M maybe a day late and a dollar short in the competitive mirrorless camera market. Panasonic, Sony and Leica, to name a few, have dominated the compact, no real viewfinder and interchangeable lens market for hungry consumers for the past several shopping seasons. What does the Canon EOS M have to offer this late in the game?
For a retail price of $800, the 18 megapixel Canon EOS M features a very large APS-C sensor with DIGIC V processor, like in the Canon EOS Rebel T4i/650D. With a large CMOS sensor in a compact form factor comes a new interchangeable EF-M lens system as well. The EF-M 22mm f/2 STM lens is the standard kit lens with the Canon EOS M. As a 35mm focal length equivalent on a crop sensor, the new EF-M lens is fast and quick due to the f/2 aperture and stepper motor. Be patient, I will have more ISO and still image quality tests in my upcoming Canon EOS M Verdict and Video Review.
Enough with the basics! The Canon EOS M features full manual exposure and audio control for Full HD 1080p glorious video. The full manual control is partly touchscreen because of the smaller landscape of the mirrorless form factor but that gimmicky feature looks bad only on paper. For such a compact camera, the touchscreen is quite useful and handy at times. For audio inputs, the Canon EOS M has built in stereo microphones and a mic jack for an external microphone. Now for my actual Canon EOS M Video Test...
Now for the video good stuff! The video quality is impressive, especially with the new EF-M 22mm f/2 STM lens. The color, sharpness and that dreamy "bokeh" in the video footage makes this a formidable contender in the mirrorless market. You basically get Canon Rebel T4i/650D video quality in half the size. The full manual control for exposure and audio is a bonus for the budget filmmaker. There will be soon a EF-M to EF lens mount adapter for the Canon EOS M so I can mount all my "L" glass like the big boys. Just like the T4i/650D and 5D Mark III, the Canon EOS M has total video capture time of 29 minute and 59 seconds. My kid's Christmas Recital can last longer than 12 minutes. Hooray...I think?
Now for my initial bad stuff! I am a big fan of manual focus during video capture. My experienced eyes and precise fingers can roll that lens barrel with precision better than most machines. The focus throw on the new Canon EF-M 22mm f/2 STM lens is average but very smooth to focus manually. The only problem is the EF-M lenses need power for AF and MF. Since there is no external AF/MF switch on EF-M lenses, you have to go into the menu to select the focus option. Not very user friendly when you are switching back and forth from still pictures with AF and shooting movies with manual focus. The other pink elephant in the room is the infamous Hybrid AF Servo during video capture. Just like the Canon Rebel T4i/650D, the continuous AF during video recording was a big disappointment. My Canon EOS M Hybrid AF Video Test is coming soon to give you more details. Patience!
For all those Apple Final Cut Pro fanboys! Just like the modified .plist of the Canon E-1 Movie plugin of the Canon Rebel T4i/650D, I hacked the .plist again for the new Canon EOS M. With this .plist modification, you can automatically log and transfer your Canon EOS M .mov files to AppleProRes422 instead of manually transcoding. Just read the above .plist and follow my links in my last Canon EOS Rebel T4i/650D Video Test for detailed instructions.
The Canon EOS M is a mighty new contender in the mirrorless market. My dream Powershot G1X and the new Powershot G15 did not feature full manual exposure and audio control to my disappointment. I think the Canon marketing department has something up their sleeves for the moment. Now, if they only lower the Canon EOS M price point like the other mirrorless brands...
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My Canon EOS M Verdict and Video Review is complete and posted with a full gallery of more pictures and videos like this Rokinon 8mm T3.8 Fisheye Cine version lens. Click here.
Move over Fuji X100, Leica M9 and Sony NEX 7! Canon welcomes its first entry in the mirrorless digital camera market with the new Canon EOS M Digital Camera System. This very small form factor digital camera touts a very large APS-C 18 megapixel sensor just like the Canon EOS Rebel T4i/650D. Just think of the new Canon EOS M as a very advanced point and shoot with interchangeable lenses. Scheduled for an October 2012 release to the public, the new Canon EOS M bundled with the new EF-M 22mm f/2 STM lens will be $799 USD.
The new Canon EOS M digital camera finally solves my Canon Powershot G1X gripes and issues. The Canon Powershot G1X which retails for the same $799 USD does not have manual exposure and audio control for video recording as well as an external microphone input jack. I found that rather disappointing but Canon vindicated themselves with the new Canon EOS M digital camera. Full manual video control of exposure and audio along with external microphone input are featured with the new Canon EOS M. Rejoice!
EF-M is another dedicated Canon lens lineup for the Canon EOS M digital camera. Since the large APS-C sensor is located in such a small form factor, there is little room to spare. Tight spaces require slimmer lens mounts to keep practical focal lengths like in the new Canon EF-M 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM zoom lens. This is another lens with the stepper motor feature to work in conjunction with the Hybrid AF of the Canon EOS M just like the Rebel T4i/650D.
Current Canon EF glass owners do not worry! Your expensive Canon lenses will work just fine with the new Canon EOS M digital camera. Canon will release a $199 USD EF to EF-M mount lens adapter which keeps all the AF and IS functions intact. The screen capture above is courtesy of Youtube.
Canon's first entry in the mirrorless digital camera market is quite impressive. The new Canon EOS M has all the features of the new Canon EOS Rebel T4i/650D in the size of the Canon Powershot G1X. Just imagine a point and shoot with an APS-C sensor with interchangeable lenses with full manual control for video with an external microphone connection. I am looking forward in shooting some Full HD 1080p movies with this dream machine. Still photographers will be impressed as well. A frame rate of 4fps with JPEG's is sure fast enough to capture action and RAW image capability will satisfy the most creative.
Double digits are in your future now. 10 years old, 10 candles, 10 fingers, 10 toes and 10 generations of Apple iPhones fill your ever growing mind of everything pink. Happy 10th Birthday Madeline!
The final countdown has begun to your teenage years. Once shy and unsure, you are now open and confident. Parental grip is tightening to the point of asphyxiation but at this point we maybe getting ahead of ourselves. With the proper guidance and your favorite Japanese Hibachi Steakhouse, the path to adulthood just got easier.
A family tree has many branches. Your siblings and cousins look up to the eldest wise-woman for knowledge and the latest Carly Rae Jepsen pop song lyrics.
I have to admit my Canon fault. My first born was digitally photographed with a Sony Cyber-shot DSC F707. Although, I was shooting film with a 35mm Canon EOS 3 before my jump to digital, I quickly realized my true calling with a Canon EOS 10D. Maybe "10" is truly a magical number.
An ice skating birthday party plus the latest Canon Rebel T4i/650D equals another video test to capture the special moments. With ice comes snow to low light ice rinks with disco lights. Snow meaning ISO 6400 video noise in less than ideal lighting conditions. What choice do I have?
With every birthday comes cake and a lurking hungry younger brother with fork in hand to steal your glory. No worries, your smothering sibling has a younger sister to eat his cake very soon. It seems a decade is certainly not long enough...
How can you celebrate Independence Day without fireworks and a catchy blog post title? The Canon Rebel T4i on the 4th of July kicked off a pyrotechnics display with a high ISO video test. I was so busy capturing the bombs bursting in air in 1080p video, I only have 2 megapixel video screen grabs of the July fourth explosions. No worries, the glorious Full HD video will suffice!
Armed with a plethora of enormous firework cakes, I cranked my Canon Rebel T4i/650D wide open and the ISO to an amazing 3200 to capture this 1080p video shot at 29.97fps. I paired my T4i/650D with an EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS lens and captured audio with a Senneheiser MKE400 shotgun microphone. For editing, I used Final Cut Pro 6.0.6 with the Canon E-1 Movie Plugin to transcode to AppleProRes422. Finally, for support I used Benro 3580 tripod legs with a Manfrotto 701 HDV video head.
This is my kind of bakery! Explosive cakes piled high to the amazement of children and crying babies. Consider it a Filipino obsession with ornate gunpowder displays for grown adults as well.
Cousin chaos returns for America's Independence Day! Family is more powerful than gunpowder bursting in air, except for my baby daughter's loaded diaper of mass destruction.
ISO 3200 is the limit for Canon T4i video capture. I expected noise and grain at this level for a proper exposure for extreme dark followed by flash bang moments. Shooting wide open at f/2.8 challenged the venerable T4i CMOS sensor for light gathering. Of course the more expensive Canon 5D Mark III and the 1D Mark IV is at least two ISO stops cleaner but the T4i is over three times less expensive. Not too shabby for entry level!
Almost 16 months after the venerable Canon Rebel T3i/600D hit store shelves, Canon unleashed a new Canon Rebel T4i/650D to the entry level DSLR market for a retail price of $849 for body only. The Canon EOS Rebel T4i/650D is now touted as Canon's flagship to its Rebel lineup. Although it shares the same 18 megapixel CMOS sensor as its predecessors, the Canon Rebel T4i/650D features a DIGIC V processor to handle the faster 5fps shutter rate, a new Hybrid AF system to work in conjunction with Canon STM (stepper motor) lenses for video, a more sensitive 9 point AF like the Canon 60D and the first the touchscreen control for Canon DSLR's. Of course, there is much more to list but that will have to wait for my upcoming Canon EOS Rebel T4i/650D full review. Patience!
As soon as I picked up my Canon Rebel T4i/650D from my friends at North Tampa Photography, I hit the ground running by capturing some video to evaluate image quality and the new touchscreen feature on the swivel LCD. The video above was shot at 1080p with the Canon EOS Rebel T4i/650D at 29.97fps. I edited the video using Final Cut Pro 6.0.6 using a modified Canon E-1 Movie Plugin to transcode the h264 video files to AppleProRes422. I used Compressor to export a 470mb h264 video file. I paired the T4i/650D with the Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L lens and captured audio with the Rode VideoMic shotgun microphone.
Now for my brief video evaluation of the T4i/650D! First the good stuff... The extra indent on the power switch for movie mode makes the transition easier to capture video without turning the mode dial almost a full 360 degrees. The built in camera microphone is now stereo and placed above the viewfinder. Hesitant at first for change, the touchscreen LCD controls are surprisingly good and practical for recording video. With a touch of the Q (quick menu) button, you have touch control of all major functions including aperture, shutter, ISO, focus point, focus magnification and much more to list. The touchscreen is quite handy especially when choosing focus point and magnifying digitally for critical focus. No more fumbling with control dials and menus anymore. Total video recording time is now up to 29 minutes and 59 seconds. Just like the Canon 5D Mark III, a new continuous video file is created when the 4gb file limit is reached. The new Hybrid AF system for Servo AF during video capture looks very promising and I will have a full review and Hybrid AF video test shortly.
Now the bad stuff...Gone are the days of 1080p 3x to 10x digital zoom video capture like in the previous Canon Rebel T3i/600D. Canon completely removed this useful feature adding that extra reach for distant subjects like in my Supermoon video. Next problem is the removal of the AF Quick mode option in movie mode. I found the AF system of the stills mode is much more accurate and "quick" than the new Flexizone single focus point. Habits are just too hard to break! As an added note, the Movie Servo AF is enabled by default in movie mode. It has to be disabled because the AF will be constantly hunting for focus during video capture. Another brief critical issue with the AF is switching between stills mode and movie mode. If you are in AF Quick mode in Live Mode for stills, your selected setting in movie mode for AF will be set to the AF face tracking mode by default. Confusing? This maybe corrected in some future firmware fix, hopefully. As of now, that briefly wraps up my initial positive and negative video aspects of the new Canon Rebel T4i/650D. Everybody will have to wait for my full review and in depth look into the Hybrid AF system with Canon STM lenses.
Look familiar? This is my modified .plist for the Canon E-1 Movie Plugin v1.3 to make the Canon Rebel T4i compatible with the Log and Transfer feature of Final Cut Pro. All of the other higher end Canon DSLR's can quickly and easily transcode h264 video files to AppleProRes422 for smooth non linear editing except the Rebel series. I fix that problem easily like the previous Rebels here. Be warned! Follow instruction carefully in that link and click on the picture above to view the .plist modification for the Canon Rebel T4i/650D. Good Luck!
There will be more to come especially with the new Hybrid AF tracking system with Canon STM lenses including the new Canon EF 40mm f/2.8 STM pancake lens or "shorty forty".
This concludes my first of many Canon Rebel T4i/650D Video Tests. Some extra tidbits I have to mention regarding video. Like the Canon 5D Mark III during video recording, the HDMI output is a cropped 16x9 version that is displayed with or without camera information. This sure beats a 4:3 480p video output like the previous Rebels! Just like the previous Canon Rebel T3i, the new T4i keeps the manual audio control for video and the added video resolution of 720p at 59.97fps as well.
Canon has done it again! The announcement of the new Canon EOS Rebel T4i/650D DSLR with a 18mp APS-C sensor with DIGIC V+ processor gains new ground in the entry level DSLR market. The previous Canon Rebel T3i/600D was already impressive, but from all the added features of the new Canon Rebel T4i/650D makes this camera shine brighter. In a nutshell, consider this entry level DSLR a Canon 60D in a Rebel body, but with touchscreen LCD capabilities and a new Hybrid AF system for even smoother focus during video recording. On top of all that, you can add the Canon 60D 9 point AF system. As soon as the new 5 frames per second Canon EOS Rebel T4i/650D hits the store shelves, I will post my upcoming Canon Rebel T4i/650D Verdict and Video Review very soon.
Pancakes are not for breakfast anymore! The new Canon EF 40mm f/2.8 STM prime lens or pancake lens was also introduced as a compact travel lens for full frame and APS-C sensor DSLR's. A very thin and low profile standard prime lens featuring the new stepper motor technology to make focus even smoother during HD video capture with the new Canon Rebel T4i/650D DSLR. The budget filmmaker can rejoice because the retail price of this small gem is $199. Call it a "nifty forty"?
The ultimate entry level walk around lens is reinvented. The new Canon EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM lens makes a fabulous pair with the new Canon Rebel T4i/650D DSLR. The new stepper motor technology combined with the T4i/650D's hybrid AF system makes it possible to focus smoothly during video recording. This sounds like a promising budget kit lens for soccer moms and amateur filmmakers.
Chad Soriano brings more than 20 years of experience as a television news photojournalist and still camera photographer. Chad worked at Tampa’s Fox Television station, WTVT. His primary role there was in the special projects, consumer investigation unit. His assignments ranged from general news to consumer fraud. His skills in news gathering and camera-work combine to create a strong tool in developing and promoting a unique visual style.
