I guess many of us were waiting for this: the possibility to use Sigma's excellent…
Introducing the EOS 60Da DSLR, made for astrophotography
UPDATE: The new Canon EOS 60Da can be pre-ordered at B&H starting from now (click here).
There is a new camera by Canon, a modified version of the highly popular EOS 60D. And Canon kept the secret very well, until today.
The camera comes with a modified IR filter and a low-noise sensor with more hydrogen-alpha sensitivity, so you can “capture the true colors of the universe”. This means the sensor is able to get more information-signal at a specific frequency (i.e. at 656nm, that’s the emission frequency of hydrogen). Without that you can not shot things like gas clouds (nebulae) in outer-space. It’s a 18MP cam that takes the heritage of the EOS 20Da of 2005. Limited numbers available and sold only by authorized dealers, price is around $1,499. Get ready to shot aliens, black holes and supernovas. Jokes beside, this is a camera that the many astronomers (hobbyist and pros) out there were waiting for. Now it is here and will be available this month. From the CPN presentation of the 60Da:
To open up the possibilities for quality astrophotography Canon has modified the infrared (IR) blocking filter in the EOS 60Da. This modification enables the EOS 60Da to allow three times more Hα light than the EOS 60D through to the camera’s sensor. Hα light is often the brightest in stellar photography making the EOS 60Da well suited to capturing the reddish colours seen in diffuse nebulae (a cluster of stars within an intricate cloud of gas and dust).
Automatic price-check for the EOS 60Da: Amazon DE, Amazon UK, Amazon IT, Canon IT, WEX Photographic, Canon FR, Canon UK, Canon DE Automatic price-check for the EOS 60D: Amazon DE, Amazon UK, Amazon IT, Canon IT, WEX Photographic, Canon FR, Canon UK, Canon DE
Canon’s Press-Release…:
LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y., April 3, 2012 – Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, today introduced the EOS 60Da Digital SLR Camera, a long-awaited successor to the EOS 20Da that is optimized for astrophotography. This DSLR caters to astronomers and hobbyists who enjoy capturing the beauty of the night sky by offering a modified infrared filter and a low-noise sensor with heightened hydrogen-alpha sensitivity. These modifications allow the camera to capture magnificent photographs of “red hydrogen emission” nebulae and other cosmic phenomena.
“The EOS 60Da is a testament to the constant desire to meet the needs of every customer, including those in specialized fields,” said Yuichi Ishizuka, executive vice president and general manager, Imaging Technologies & Communications Group, Canon U.S.A., “This new camera enables an accurate depiction of a part of our solar system which is hard to achieve with conventional cameras but should be enjoyed and celebrated.”
The Canon EOS 60Da camera packs a powerful 18-megapixel CMOS sensor (APS-C) that produces sharp and high-contrast images of astronomical objects, a major enhancement over the EOS 20Da model’s 8.2-megapixel sensor. The improved infrared-blocking filter is a modification suited specifically toward astronomy enthusiasts to achieve a hydrogen-alpha light sensitivity that is approximately three times higher than that of a normal Canon DSLR camera. This produces a 20-percent higher transmittance of Hydrogen Alpha line, or Hα wavelength, allowing astronomers to capture crisp, clear images of reddish, diffuse nebulae.
Enhanced Features
Crisp images of the stars and planets can be viewed on the EOS 60Da’s improved 3.0-inch Clear View LCD screen with 1,040,000 dots for detailed focusing. The flip-out Vari-angle screen allows photographers to adjust the screen for easy viewing without straining even while the camera is mounted to a telescope via a third-party T-ring adapter. Optimized for stargazing with friends or in an educational setting, astronomy enthusiasts can connect the camera to a TV with the provided AVC-DC400ST Stereo AV Video Cable and display the night sky on a TV monitor using the camera’s Live View mode. Moreover, the EOS 60Da’s Live View mode is equipped with a Silent Shooting feature that eliminates shutter-induced vibration for maximum camera stability when the camera is mounted to a telescope or super-telephoto EF lens.
Enhanced noise reduction on the EOS 60Da sensor offers photographers the ability to experiment with the wide array of ISO settings and increased ISO speeds up to 6400 expandable to 12800. Other features include an intelligent nine-point autofocus system, full manual controls, and RAW, JPEG, and RAW+JPEG image recording capabilities.
Accessories
The EOS 60Da helps capture the wonders of the night sky with its use of Canon’s award-winning EF and EF-S lenses along with other EOS accessories. Additionally, the EOS 60Da is packaged with Canon’s RA-E3 Remote Controller Adapter, providing the ability to connect a Canon Timer Remote Control such as the TC-80N3 (optional accessory). The TC-80N3 is ideal for controlling time exposures longer than 30 seconds as well as capturing a series of consecutive time exposures that can be composited during post-processing for improved image quality. This is especially useful when the camera body is connected to a telescope or an EF super telephoto lens.
Canon has also included an AC adapter kit with the EOS 60Da, allowing the camera to be powered through an AC wall outlet or a battery-powered inverter, ideal for long exposure image or video capture at home or in the field.
Availability
As a specialized product, the EOS 60Da is only available to order from select authorized dealers. The estimated retail price is $1,499.00 and it is expected to be available this month.
Full specification list:
| IMAGE SENSOR | |
|---|---|
| Type | 22.3mm x 14.9mm CMOS |
| Effective Pixels | Approx. 18.00 megapixels |
| Total Pixels | Approx. 19.00 megapixels |
| Aspect Ratio | 3:2 |
| Low-Pass Filter | Built-in/Fixed with fluorine coating Infrared blocking filter optimised for Hydrogen-alpha (Hα) light (656 nm) transparency. |
| Sensor Cleaning | EOS integrated cleaning system |
| Colour Filter Type | Primary Colour |
| IMAGE PROCESSOR | |
|---|---|
| Type | DIGIC 4 |
| LENS | |
|---|---|
| Lens Mount | EF/EF-S |
| Focal Length | Equivalent to 1.6x the focal length of the lens |
| FOCUSING | |
|---|---|
| Type | TTL-CT-SIR with a CMOS sensor |
| AF System/ Points | 9 cross-type AF points (f/2.8 at centre) |
| AF working range | EV -0.5 – 18 (at 23°C ISO100) |
| AF Modes | AI Focus One Shot AI Servo |
| AF Point Selection | Automatic selection, Manual selection |
| Selected AF point display | Superimposed in viewfinder and indicated on top LCD panel and Quick Control screen |
| Predictive AF | Yes, up to 8m¹ |
| AF Lock | Locked when shutter button is pressed half way in One Shot AF mode or AF-ON button is pressed. |
| AF Assist Beam | Intermittent firing of built-in flash or emitted by optional dedicated Speedlite |
| Manual Focus | Selected on lens, default in Live View Mode |
| EXPOSURE CONTROL | |
|---|---|
| Metering modes | TTL full aperture metering with 63 zone SPC (1) Evaluative metering (linked to all AF point) (2) Partial metering (approx. 6.5% of viewfinder at centre) (3) Spot metering (approx. 2.8% viewfinder at centre) (4) Centre weighted average metering |
| Metering Range | ‘EV 0-20 (at 23°C with 50mm f/1.4 lens ISO100) |
| AE Lock | ‘Auto: In One-shot AF mode with evaluative metering exposure is locked when focus is achieved. Manual: By AE lock button in creative zone modes. |
| Exposure Compensation | ‘+/-5 EV in 1/3 or 1/2 stop increments (can be combined with AEB). |
| AEB | 3 Shots +/-3 EV 1/3 or 1/2 stop increments |
| ISO Sensitivity* | Auto (100-3200), 100-6400 (in 1/3-stop or whole stop increments) ISO can be expanded to H: 12800 |
| SHUTTER | |
|---|---|
| Type | Electronically-controlled focal-plane shutter |
| Speed | 30-1/8000 sec (1/2 or 1/3 stop increments), Bulb (Total shutter speed range. Available range varies by shooting mode) |
| WHITE BALANCE | |
|---|---|
| Type | Auto white balance with the imaging sensor |
| Settings | ‘AWB, Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Tungsten, White Fluorescent light, Flash, Custom, Colour Temperature Setting. White balance compensation: 1. Blue/Amber +/-9 2. Magenta/ Green +/-9. |
| Custom White Balance | Yes, 1 setting can be registered |
| WB Bracketing | +/-3 levels in single level increments 3 bracketed images per shutter release. Selectable Blue/Amber bias or Magenta/ Green bias. |
| VIEWFINDER | |
|---|---|
| Type | Pentaprism |
| Coverage (Vertical/Horizontal) | Approx. 96% |
| Magnification | ‘Approx. 0.95x¹ |
| Eyepoint | Approx. 22mm (from eyepiece lens centre) |
| Dioptre Correction | -3 to +1 m-1 (dioptre) |
| Focusing Screen | Interchangeable (3 types, optional). Standard Focusing Screen Precision Matte Ef-A |
| Mirror | Quick-return half mirror (Transmission: reflection ratio of 40:60, no mirror cut-off with EF600mm f/4 or shorter) |
| Viewfinder Information | AF information: AF points, focus confirmation light. Exposure information: Shutter speed, aperture value, ISO speed (always displayed), AE lock, exposure level/compensation, spot metering circle, exposure warning, AEB. Flash information: Flash ready, high-speed sync, FE lock, flash exposure compensation, red-eye reduction light. Image information: White balance correction, Card information, monochrome shooting, maximum burst (2 digit display), Highlight tone priority (D+). Composition information: Electronic level (Horizontal only), Battery check |
| Depth of field preview | Yes, with Depth of Field preview button. |
| Eyepiece shutter | On strap |
| LCD MONITOR | |
|---|---|
| Type | Vari angle 7.7cm (3.0″) 3:2 Clear View TFT, approx. 1040K dots |
| Coverage | Approx. 100% |
| Viewing Angle (horizontally/vertically) | Approx 160° |
| Coating | Dual Anti-reflection |
| Brightness Adjustment | Adjustable to one of seven levels |
| Display Options | ‘(1) Quick Control Screen (2) Camera settings (3) Electronic Level |
| FLASH | |
|---|---|
| Built-in Flash GN (ISO 100, meters) | 13 |
| Built-in Flash Coverage | up to 17mm focal length (35mm equivalent: 28mm) |
| Built-in Flash recycle time | Approx. 3 seconds |
| Modes | Auto, Manual flash, Integrated Speedlite Transmitter |
| Red-Eye Reduction | ‘Yes |
| X-sync | 1/250sec |
| Flash Exposure Compensation | +/- 3EV in 1/2 or 1/3 increments |
| Flash Exposure Bracketing | Yes, with compatible External Flash |
| Flash Exposure Lock | Yes |
| Second Curtain Synchronisation | Yes |
| HotShoe/ PC terminal | Yes/ No |
| External Flash Compatibility | E-TTL II with EX series Speedlites, wireless multi-flash support |
| External Flash Control | via camera menu screen |
| SHOOTING | |
|---|---|
| Modes | Auto, No Flash, Creative Auto, Portrait, Landscape, Close-up, Sports, Night Portrait, Movie, Program AE , Shutter priority AE, Aperture priority AE, Manual, Custom |
| Picture Styles | Standard, Portrait, Landscape, Neutral, Faithful, Monochrome, User Defined (x3) |
| Colour Space | sRGB and Adobe RGB |
| Image Processing | Highlight Tone Priority Auto Lighting Optimizer (4 settings) Long exposure noise reduction High ISO speed noise reduction (4 settings) Auto Correction of Lens Peripheral illumination Basic+ (Shoot by ambience selection, Shoot by lighting or scene type) Creative filters (Grainy B/W, Soft focus, Toy camera, Minaiture effect) – during image Playback only RAW image processing – during image Playback only Resize to M or S1, S2, S3 |
| Drive modes | Single, Continuous L, Continuous H, Self timer (2s+remote, 10s +remote) |
| Continuous Shooting | Max. Approx. 5.3fps. (speed maintained for minimum of approx 58 images (JPEG)¹ ³, 16 images (RAW)) ² ³ |
| LIVE VIEW MODE | |
|---|---|
| Type | Electronic viewfinder with image sensor |
| Coverage | Approx. 100% (horizontally and vertically) |
| Frame Rate | 30 fps |
| Focusing | Manual Focus (Magnify the image 5x or 10x at any point on screen) Autofocus: Quick mode, Live mode, Live Face detection mode |
| Metering | Real-time evaluative metering with image sensor Active metering time can be changed |
| Display Options | Grid overlay (x2), Histogram, Multi aspect ratios |
| FILE TYPE | |
|---|---|
| Still Image Type | JPEG: Fine, Normal (Exif 2.21 [Exif Print] compliant) / Design rule for Camera File system (2.0), RAW: RAW, M-RAW, S-RAW (14bit, Canon original RAW 2nd edition), Digital Print Order Format [DPOF] Version 1.1 compliant |
| RAW+JPEG simultaneous recording | Yes, any combination of RAW + JPEG, M-RAW + JPEG, S-RAW + JPEG possible. |
| Image Size | JPEG 3:2: (L) 5184×3456, (M) 3456×2304, (S1) 2592×1728, (S2) 1920×1280, (S3) 720×480 JPEG 4:3: (L) 4608×3456, (M) 3072×2304, (S1) 2304×1728, (S2) 1696×1280, (S3) 640×480 JPEG 16:9: (L) 5184×2912, (M) 3456×1944, (S1) 2592×1456 (S2) 1920×1080, (S3) 720×400 JPEG 1:1: (L) 3456×3456, (M) 2304×2304, (S1) 1728×1728, (S2) 1280×1280, (S3) 480×480 RAW: (RAW) 5184×3456, (M-RAW) 3888×2592, (S-RAW) 2592×1728 |
| Movie Type | MOV (Video: H.264, Sound: Linear PCM, recording level can be manually adjusted by user) |
| Movie Size | 1920 x 1080 (29.97, 25, 23.976 fps) 1280 x 720 (59.94, 50 fps) 640 x 480 (59.94, 50 fps) |
| Movie Length | Max duration 29min 59sec, Max file size 4GB |
| Folders | New folders can be manually created and selected |
| File Numbering | (1) Consecutive numbering (2) Auto reset (3) Manual reset |
| OTHER FEATURES | |
|---|---|
| Custom Functions | 20 Custom Functions with 59 settings |
| Metadata Tag | User copyright information (can be set in camera) Image rating (0-5 stars) |
| LCD Panel / Illumination | Yes / Yes |
| Water/ Dust resistance | Yes¹ |
| Sound Memo | – |
| Intelligent Orientation Sensor | Yes |
| Playback zoom | 1.5x – 10x |
| Display Formats | (1) Single image with information (2 levels) (2) Single image (3) 4 image index (4) 9 image index (5) Magnified view |
| Slide Show | Image selection: All images, by Date, by Folder, Movies, Stills, Rating Playback time: 1/2/3/5/10 or 20 seconds Repeat: On/Off |
| Histogram | Brightness: Yes RGB: Yes |
| Highlight Alert | Yes |
| Image Erase/Protection | Erase: Single image, All images in folder, Checkmarked images, unprotected images Protection: Erase protection of one image at a time |
| Menu Categories | (1) Shooting menu (x4) (2) Playback menu (x2) (3) Setup menu (x3) (4) Custom Functions menu (5) My Menu |
| Menu Languages | 25 Languages English, German, French, Dutch, Danish, Portuguese, Finnish, Italian, Norwegian, Swedish, Spanish, Greek, Russian, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Romanian, Ukrainian, Turkish, Arabic, Thai, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Korean and Japanese |
| Firmware Update | Update possible by the user. |
| INTERFACE | |
|---|---|
| Computer | Hi-Speed USB |
| Other | Video output (PAL/ NTSC) (integrated with USB terminal), HDMI mini output (HDMI-CEC compatible), External microphone (3.5mm Stereo mini jack) |
| DIRECT PRINT | |
|---|---|
| Canon Printers | Canon Compact Photo Printers and PIXMA Printers supporting PictBridge |
| PictBridge | Yes |
| STORAGE | |
|---|---|
| Type | SD card, SDHC card or SDXC card |
| SUPPORTED OPERATING SYSTEM | |
|---|---|
| PC Macintosh | Windows XP (SP2/SP3) / Vista inc SP1 (excl. Starter Edition) / 7 (excl. Starter Edition) OS X v10.6-10.7 |
| SOFTWARE | |
|---|---|
| Browsing Printing | ZoomBrowser EX / ImageBrowser |
| Image Processing | Digital Photo Professional |
| Other | PhotoStitch, EOS Utility (inc. Remote Capture), Picture Style Editor |
| POWER SOURCE | |
|---|---|
| Batteries | Rechargeable Li-ion Battery LP-E6 (supplied), built in for date settings |
| Battery life | Approx. 1100 (at 23°C, AE 50%, FE 50%) ¹ Approx. 1000 (at 0°C, AE 50%, FE 50%) |
| Battery Indicator | 6 levels + percentage |
| Power saving | Power turns off after 1, 2, 4, 8, 15 or 30mins. |
| Power Supply Battery Chargers | AC Adapter Kit ACK-E6, Battery charger LC-E6, Car Battery charger CBC-E6 |
| PHYSICAL SPECIFICATIONS | |
|---|---|
| Body Materials | Aluminium and polycarbonate resin with glass fibre |
| Operating Environment | 0 – 40 °C, 85% or less humidity |
| Dimensions (WxHxD) | 144.5 x 105.8 x 78.6mm |
| Weight (body only) | Approx. 755g (CIPA testing standard, including battery and memory card) |
| ACCESSORIES | |
|---|---|
| Viewfinder | Eyecup Eb, E-series Dioptric Adjustment Lens Focusing Screens Ef (with Grid Ef-D, Super Precision Matte Ef-S), Angle Finder C |
| Case | Leather case EH21-L |
| Wireless File Transmitter | Compatible with Eye-Fi cards |
| Lenses | All EF and EF-S lenses |
| Flash | Canon Speedlites (220EX, 270EX, 270EX II, 320EX, 420EX, 430EX, 430EX II, 550EX, 580EX, 580EX II, 600EX, 600EX-RT, Macro-Ring-Lite, MR-14EX, Macro Twin Lite MT-24EX, Speedlite Transmitter ST-E2, Speedlite Transmitter ST-E3-RT) |
| Battery Grip | BG-E9 |
| Remote Controller/ Switch | Remote Switch RS-60E3, Remote Controller RC-6/RC-1/RC-5 (Compatible with N3 type remote controls when used with supplied adapter RA-E3) |
| Other | Hand Strap E2 |
| Predictive AF | ¹ With EF300mm f/2.8L IS USM at 50kph |
| Magnification | ¹ With 50mm lens at infinity, -1m-1 dpt |
| Continuous Shooting | ¹ Large/Fine(Quality 8) resolution ² Based on Canon’s testing conditions, JPEG, ISO 100, Standard Picture Style. Varies depending on the subject, memory card brand and capacity, image recording quality, ISO speed, drive mode, Picture Style, Custom functions etc. ³ Maximum fps and buffer capacity may be reduced depending on the cameras settings and light level |
| Water/ Dust resistance | ¹ Memory card and battery door only |
| Battery life | ¹ Based on the CIPA Standard and using the batteries and memory card format supplied with the camera, except where indicated |
| All data is based on Canon standard testing methods except where indicated. |
| Subject to change without notice. |
| * Recommended Exposure Index |
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