Canon focuses on 25th birthday EOS DSLR
5D Mark III is foxier for filmmakers
Canon will mark a quarter Century of its EOS single-lens reflex camera system with its latest DSLR, the EOS 5D Mark III.
The Mark III takes things up a notch from its highly-rated predecessor, pushing the sensor up a megapixel or so, and featuring the new 61-point AF system found in the recently launched EOS-1D X.
According to the company, it's one of the most advanced AFs to date, with 41 cross-type points and five dual cross-type points. Canon's metering system steps into the forefront here, with a 63-zone dual-layer sensor for each point of the AF system instead of the previous 35. It compares colour and luminance signals against the information gathered too.
Another aspect that has been brought over from the 1D X is Canon's Digic 5+ image processor, which replaces the Digic 4 found in the Mark II.
This powers the camera's 22.3Mp full-frame sensor, which rolls up with an increased eight-channel read-out, handling a full res speed of up to 6fps in bursts of 18 Raw images or 16,000 JPeg pics. There's also an ISO of 100-25600 which can be expanded to a whopping 102400 for extreme low light conditions.
HD video capabilities has been improved upon also, with the addition of 60fps slow-motion shooting albeit at 720p, as well as the ability to use an external mic for higher audio quality and a headphone jack for monitoring recording.
On the rear you'll find the same 3.2in LCD used by the 1D X too, which boasts 1040k pixels and protection from dust and scratches.
There is also dual memory card slots, with a UDMA 7-compatible CF card input and one for a regular SD. Both can be used simultaneously, switching automatically if one becomes too full.
The EOS 5D Mark III is instantly compatible with over 60 EF lenses from the EOS system. It'll be available from the end of March 2012 for £3000. ®
COMMENTS
Re: How Much?!?!?
It isn't wholly surprising... it has virtually the same specs as previous models of 1Ds had. It doesn't make much sense to take it out of the semi-pro price bracket though; seems like they'd have been better served by creating a 3D at the 3k price point, and putting a 5d3 back at 1.8k. Still, I Am Not A Marketer, so what do I know?
Price comparable with its Nikon equivalent though, the D800. It is a nasty thought that we're left with Sony of all people to provide a decent value full frame dSLR.
Pixels are not 'dots'
"3.2in LCD... which boasts 1040k pixels"
Shame on The Register for falling for the increasingly used camera manufacturer's trick of boasting the number of "dots" their screens have, by which they do of course mean sub pixels, not pixels.
It's just a trick by the marketing departments to multiply screen resolutions on their new models by a factor of three over their old ones, even though the screen is really the same resolution.
And before some Canon spin doctor suggests it, the fact that the pixels on a sensor aren't made up of sub-pixels is no reason to talk about "dots" on an RGB display.
How Much?!?!?
£3000? Ouch, I won't be upgrading then. Almost double to current cost of the 5D Mk2 and £1000 more than that model was available at launch.
Come on Canon there is a global financial crisis ongoing don't you know, or haven't you noticed?
Re: How Much?!?!?
The launch price of the MkII in the UK was £2299, which equates to around £2500 with inflation. So the MkIII *is* more expensive, but by around 500 quid, not 'over £1000'.
It might be double the current cost of a MKII, but that's because it's a 4 year-old camera that's just been replaced!*
*Well, sort of.
