In a rather unusual move, Canon has announced a surprising sensor the developed: a 120 Mega-pixel APS-H sensor.
APS-H is the size of the photo sensors used in the EOS 1D series (clearly Pro cameras). And this big sensor has a huge amount of pixels (nearly 7.5 times larger than the company’s highest pixel count commercially available sensor), and is able to do HD video capture on 1/6th of its surface or 9.5 fps continuous shooting.
There is no immediate commercial application to expect from this technology demonstrator, but this is an impressive achievement.
Nota bene: The latest Canon demonstrator of this kind had 50 MP in 2007.
The feature set is quite impressive for cameras supposed to be low-end and mid-range only. Some of the competition is going to feel the heat.
Sony Alpha 33
As expected, this is a Pellix camera (a semi-transparent mirror provides fast AF while in LiveView or in video capture mode). It climbs up to 10 frame/s continuous shooting and is 1080i HD video-capable.
The sensor is the 14MP APS-C CMOS sensor that we have been seeing a lot around here in the recent weeks.
Sony Alpha 55
Same as Sony Alpha 33, but with a larger (16MP) CMOS sensor.
Impressive enough to immediately receive a “Gold Award” from DPreview.
The A55v version (for USA only, apparently) will include a GPS for geo-tagging of photos and videos.
Sony Alpha 560
The A560 is definitely bringing 1080i HD video to the Sony SLR line; From a 14.2 MP CMOS photo sensor.
Specific to the Alpha 560: It will not be available before early 2011.
No GPS, contrary to rumours.
Sony Alpha 580
Same as Sony Alpha 560, but with a larger (16MP) CMOS sensor.
It seems that the announcement of the Canon EOS 60D will be done on September 26th. Until then, the feature list of the Canon ESO 60D is still a bunch of rumours.
In parallel, we have to wait for what will probably be a set of two new high-end tele-photo lenses. Maybe two white pro ones. Canon Rumors says: 300 f/2.8L IS & 600 f/4L IS.
Thanks to PentaxForums, we may actually know what the next Pentax DSLR photo cameras will be.
As expected the most interesting camera would be the Pentax K-5, with a set of features putting it right into the competition for expert photographers.
16 MP APS-C photo sensor
Sensitivity: ISO xxx-25600
Continuous shooting at 7 fps
Launch on Sept 20
Availability: Oct 2010
US$1600 suggested retail price
If the high ISO values go with a low noise and high real sensitivity, all Pentax lovers will be happy and a few other may be attracted. However, it seems that the sensor may be the 16MP CMOS sensor from Sony that nearly everybody seems determined to used these days and it may be difficult to differentiate themselves completely from the crowd on this issue only.
The low-end Pentax KR is also very near to what we were expecting (good news again for Pentax):
12 MP APS-C photo sensor
Up to 120 color combinations (Pentax is now specializing if unmistakably visible photo cameras)
Instead of publishing all variations of the rumours in a continuous stream of useless information/news, I just opened the feature pages for the new Sony low-end DSLR cameras:
I may do the same for other cameras in the near future, when I feel that the information is stable enough to provide it in an organized way. Keep in touch.
It seems that Sony is not as tight-lipped as usual in the preparation of the upcoming Photokina show in Köln, Germany at the end of next month. The offering is now nearly certain: 4 Alpha cameras and a set of lenses can be expected. They should be announced on August 24 (next week).
Alpha 33 (a pellix camera with a 14 MP sensor)
Alpha 55 (a pellix camera with a 16.7 MP sensor, 10 fps, ISO 100-25600, 15-point AF, EVF – all to be confirmed)
Alpha 560 (with 14MP sensor, 5 fps, ISO 100-12800, 15-point AF, swivel display – near certain feature set)
Alpha 580 (same as A560, with 16MP sensor)
Note: Pellix is the name usually applied to describe a camera where there is no mobile mirror, but a pellix semi-transparent mirror which is providing a simultaneous and continuous AF while bringing light to the photo/video sensor. For more information about it, see the Wikipedia articles in both English and German. The presence of Pellix should also allow to keep a LiveView operation during the photo/video capture (probably in association with an Electronic View Finder or EVF).
What is now certain is that the Alpha 33 and Alpha 55 will be very small indeed. They are smaller than the smallest existing Alpha cameras (the Alpha 290). They are nearly as small as the NEX-5 camera.
Thanks to SonyAlphaRumors, you can see a marketing-based and meaningful size comparison:
Alpha 33 vs. Samsung NX10 vs. Panasonic G2
As was reported here about a month ago, Canon does not believe that it is necessary to leave the traditional APS-C DSLR format factor to compete with the EVIL cameras. Sony seems to have understood this too. But they decided to provide both the (still?) smaller ones (NEX series) and continuously shrinking ones (Alpha series). It will be interesting to see how this works in the end.
At least, Canon appears right and we can expect to see similar comparisons appearing with Canon bodies of the near future.
Compatible lenses for NEX
Additionally, some companies are rumored to be interested in providing a real competition in terms of lenses for the NEX camera range (Sony will no longer be alone). If Zeiss and Leica are actually present there in a few weeks, it will mean that this NEX camera series will certainly be a huge success, if only because of the large advertisement effort supported by several companies at the same time. However, it is nearly impossible to sort out the good information and the false rumors in what is said from all sides.
Digital Rev, which is not used to propagating false rumours (or any rumors at all, by the way) up to now, just published a small article explaining why there will be no Nikon D700s (a minor improvement over the current Nikon D700 Full Frame DSLR camera): It would not be powerful enough to kick the very successful Canon EOS 5D Mk II (Sony probably has the same issue in order to provide a sibling to the Alpha 900/Alpha 850 offering; Pentax solved the issue by looking at a larger format in the 645D).
Instead, they would be preparing a new and better Nikon D800 with a much more powerful set of features:
Full Frame FX CMOS 16 MP photo sensor
Sensitivity: ISO 200-12800 (ext. to ISO 102400)
Continuous shooting at 9 fps (or 11 fps in DX mode)
Autofocus system: Based on the 3500FX 51-point Multi-CAM
Full HD video
3″ (921,000 dots) VGA LCD
In any case, I would not expect this for the short term. Not before beginning of 2011.
Sony just announced that this lens awaited as a key item in the Sony NEX range will be available from September 10th, 2010 at the steep price of 99,750 yens, or about 920 euros.
Optical stabilization, focal range equivalent to 27-300mm, aluminium alloy finish; This should be a nice object.
Many French-speaking lovers of the Sony (ex-Minolta) photo cameras know about the excellent web site of Alpha Numérique which is providing a wealth of varied informations (often appearing in the link lists I publish monthly in relation with photo software programs).
Now, I would like to underline the quality of a full series of posts, published by Patrick Moll on Alpha Numérique, and dedicated to comparing as precisely as possible the various offers now on the market to develop and improve as much as possible the pictures that -sometimes- we must shoot using very high levels of ISO sensitivity (with the troubling levels of digital noise that come with big ISO levels).
The list of the software programs taken into account is quite respectable:
Image Data Converter 3
Lightroom 3 / Camera Raw 6
DxO Optics Pro 6
Aperture 3
Bibble Pro 5
Capture One Pro 5
ACDSee Pro 3
Silkypix 4
Lightzone 3
Raw Developer 1 (dcraw)
Not bad, eh!
Even if the comparisons done here are not only for Sony photo cameras, Patrick Moll applied its tests to a quite appreciable list of cameras too:
Even if you are not reading French, I highly recommend checking these (most of the posts are made of image comparisons using the yellow buttons to select the software program results you want to see). Even if you are equipped with Pentax, Canon or Nikon gear, the lessons you will draw from this are applicable on all the photo camera brands, concerning strengths and weaknesses of each of these software tools.
To understand the review process and the methodology, I would recommend the reading of (here, all in French):
With the tests, body by body, you will immediately recognize the excellent results of Lightroom 3/Camera Raw 6 (these two Adobe software programs share a single common RAW file management core). Just behind, comes DxO Optics Pro 6 which is a bit more violent (or more accentuation prone) and the (not famous enough) Bibble Pro 5.
From this point, you will always be able to get the best from the photos you were forced into shooting in poor lighting conditions which required big ISO figures.
CNET Asia seems to have been observed while preparing the article for the upcoming compact point-and-shoot digital photo camera following the Canon G11. The main features of the Canon G12 will be:
Nikon did not stop at announcing the Nikon D3100 as a new beautiful entry-level digital SLR. Here are four new lenses:
AF-S NIKKOR 85mm f/1.4G (estimated selling price of $1699.95)
AF-S NIKKOR 24-120mm f/4G ED VR (estimated selling price of $1049.95)
AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR (estimated selling price of $1299.95)
AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR (estimated selling price of $399.95)
As you can see, except the 55-300mm, these are not really cheap lenses. Their quality will be their first weapon (Even more for the 85mm which will attract the attention of some pro photographers).
Nikon disclosed its new DSLR (that we will be able to see at the Photokina show in Köln, Germany at the end of September): Nikon D3100. As expected from the recent weeks of rumours, it brings at the entry-level the following features:
Nikon D3100 menu
1080p HD video capture, with Full AF mode during recording (through contrast detection),
14.2 MP photo sensor (14MP is really becoming the new standard),
Face detection as in the Nikon D5000 (but with up to 35 faces),
A new user menu, which also includes photographs to illustrate the different settings.
During the analog years of photography, it was possible to photograph pictures taken in the Infrared part of the light spectrum. Quite often, it led to a images that were simultaneously eerie looking (for the shift in colors) and slightly blurred by a reduced quality/resolution. It was only a matter of buying an IR filter and some IR-sensitive film. Then, you had to experiment.
Today, in the Digital Age of the Pixel, infrared photo became a little more difficult because, while the digital photo sensor is by nature very sensitive to infrared light, this is counteracted by filter removing this sensitivity (most sensors as so sensitive that they would produce bizarre-looking pictures if left untamed). Now, this is even more true for DSLR cameras which are nearly systematically closed to Infrared light (mostly, the only solution is a conversion involving replacing parts in the SLR camera and a lot of trial and error).
However, the images may be worth the effort if you look at some pictures produced by patient photographers.
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