Canon press release:

Canon U.S.A. Celebrates The Creativity Of Indie Filmmakers As A Returning Sponsor Of The 2015 Sundance Film Festival

MELVILLE, N.Y., January 22, 2015 – Canon U.S.A. Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, announced today the company will return as a Sustaining Sponsor to the 2015 Sundance Film Festival (January 22 – February 1, 2015). Nestled in the mountains of Park City, Utah, the Sundance Film Festival celebrates the best of independent film; as part of the Festival sponsorship, Canon will offer a special slate of programming dedicated to the filmmakers who push creative boundaries behind the camera.

Canon is pleased to share that at least 52 of the 188 films premiering at this year’s Festival — over 27 percent — were shot using Canon equipment, up from the approximately 20 percent last year. Eli Roth’s Knock Knock, Amy Berg’s Prophet’s Prey, The Overnight, The Wolfpack, Misery Loves Comedy, Cartel Land, Call Me Lucky, Fresh Dressed, How to Dance in Ohio, Most Likely to Succeed, The Hunting Ground, Tig, and The Nightmare are a few of the many shot-on-Canon projects set to screen during the festival.

“We are honored that so many creative filmmakers have chosen our equipment to bring their visions and stories to audiences. We look forward to supporting them and connecting with them at the Sundance Film Festival,” said Yuichi Ishizuka, president and COO, Canon U.S.A., Inc. “Sundance provides us with the opportunity to directly interact and support many up and coming filmmakers, and we are excited to return as Sustaining Sponsors to this year’s festival.”

In 2015, Canon will invite Sundance Film Festival filmmaker attendees to flex their creative muscle at the Canon Creative Studio (427 Main Street; open Saturday, January 24-Monday, January 26, from 11am-6pm). At this daily hub – exclusive for cinematographers, directors, producers, and crew – guests can explore how Canon supports all aspects of filmmaking – from production design, to image capture, through edit and workflow. The space features an equipment demonstration area with on-site staff to walk guests through Canon’s full line of Cinema EOS cameras and lenses, including the new Cinema EOS C100 Mark II.

The Canon Creative Studio also features informal panel discussions with top Sundance filmmakers, including horror-great Eli Roth (Hemlock Grove, Hostel), VFX legend Robert Legato (The Wolf of Wall Street, Hugo), and award-winning cinematographer Rachel Morrison (Cake, Fruitvale Station).

The Canon Live Learning team will offer hands-on workshops with Canon’s latest filmmaking tool,- the EOS C100 Mark II camera with Dual Pixel CMOS Auto Focus – including a demonstration of this camera on a DJI Ronin 3-Axis Stabilized Handheld Gimbal System.

The Canon Creative Studio will serve as host to the Canon Crew Party (details below) on Sunday, January 25. This will mark Canon’s third annual celebration of filmmakers who work behind the lens of the 2015 Sundance Festival films.

Canon’s Festival activities will culminate on Monday, January 26 with a special hosted screening of Bending the Light as part of Canon’s corporate presentation and not an official selection of the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. This documentary honoring the artistry of creating a lens and the visual artists who use them from acclaimed director Michael Apted (The ‘Up’ series, The World is Not Enough, Gorillas in the Mist). The 60-minute film explores the relationship between master craftsmen who shape lenses and the masters of light who use these lenses for image capture – each an artisan in their own right.  Bending the Light features never-before-seen footage from inside Canon’s lens factory in Japan and intimate interviews with award-winning photographers and cinematographers, including Stephen Goldblatt, ASC, BSC (Get on Up, The Help), who will participate in a Q&A immediately following the screening.

Below is the full schedule of events for Canon’s activities at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. All events take place at Canon Creative Studio (427 Main Street) unless otherwise noted.

Tamron officially announced the SP 15-30mm F/2.8 Di VC USD lens. Availability starting from January 30. The lens sells for $1,199 and can be pre-ordered at Adorama (click here).

Release Announcement: The world’s first* full-frame, F/2.8 ultra-wide-angle zoom lens with VC (Vibration Compensation)

SP 15-30mm F/2.8 Di VC USD (Model A012)

Tamron’s state-of-the-art lens design features an XGM (eXpanded Glass Molded Aspherical)*1 lens element and eBAND Coating*2 for outstanding detail and performance from the center to the edges of the frame over the entire zoom range.

Saitama, Japan – Tamron Co., Ltd. (President & CEO: Morio Ono), a leading manufacturer of precision optics, announces the release of a groundbreaking F/2.8 ultra-wide-angle zoom lens for full-frame DSLR cameras.

Since 2012, Tamron has been expanding its lineup of interchangeable lenses for full-frame DSLR cameras. The Tamron SP 24-70mm F/2.8 Di VC USD (Model A007) was the world’s first F/2.8 high-speed standard zoom lens to include image stabilization, followed by the development of the unique SP 70-200mm F/2.8 Di VC USD (Model A009), SP 90mm F/2.8 Di MACRO 1:1 VC USD (Model F004), and SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD (Model A011) lenses, all of which have been highly acclaimed among the photo enthusiasts around the globe. Now, we have developed SP 15-30mm F/2.8 Di VC USD (Model A012) to expand the world of imaging possibilities in the wide-angle range.

Superior, class leading imaging performance using an innovative XGM lens element

With an optical construction consisting of 18 elements in 13 groups, including, for the first time, an XGM (eXpanded Glass Molded Aspherical) lens element placed in the front group, and several Molded-Glass Aspherical elements and LD (Low Dispersion) elements used throughout the optical system, aberrations such as geometrical distortion and lateral color are efficiently corrected enabling the zoom lens to deliver outstanding image quality throughout its entire zoom range from corner to corner.

Enhanced sharpness with exclusive VC image stabilization when shooting handheld in low light or at night

In response to popular demand, Tamron has created the world’s first F/2.8 ultra-wide- angle zoom lens with VC (Vibration Compensation)*4. The VC allows shooting at slow shutter speeds and in low light conditions, and effectively compensates for minor camera shake, whilst maintaining class leading optimal performance.

eBAND Coating provides superior anti-reflection properties

In addition to further optimizing Tamron’s acclaimed BBAR (Broad-Band Anti-Reflection) Coating, the eBAND (Extended Bandwidth & Angular-Dependency) Coating has also been employed in this lens. This combination offers superior anti-reflection properties especially important in ultra-wide-angle lenses which are particularly susceptible to flare and ghosting due to their wide angle of view, and provides superior quality and crystal-clear images by minimizing unwanted light reaching the sensor.

15-30mm zoom covers both ultra-wide and semi-wide-angle focal lengths

At its ultra-wide-angle settings this lens can capture, in a single photograph, broad landscapes that cannot be taken in fully by the human eye. At its semi-wide-angle focal lengths, it’s ideal for travel and street photography. In short, this unique lens utilizes the zoom function to provide maximum shooting flexibility with a wide range of subjects.

Fascinating background “bokeh” throughout the wide-angle range due to its fast constant F/2.8 aperture

Utilizing its shallow depth of field at F/2.8, it enables users to capture beautiful bokeh effects even at wide coverage angles. Its advanced optical formula and 9-bladed circular diaphragm are designed with defocused photography in mind – perfect for creating images where subjects stand out from their natural, blended backgrounds.

Proven fluorine coating utilizing Tamron’s industrial lens expertise is used on the front element

Fluorine coating, with an established track record in Tamron’s industrial lenses, such as those used in automotive cameras, has been applied to the front element. It repels water and dirt, and makes it easier to remove smudges.

Flexible, high-performance focusing with USD

USD (Ultrasonic Silent Drive)*5 delivers high torque, high precision, and virtually silent autofocus action. A full-time manual focus mechanism permits fine focus adjustments instantly without needing to exit AF mode.

Lens hood designed to prevent light from striking lens at all focal lengths

This unique lens hood provides effective shading of the front lens surface over the entire zoom range to minimize flare. It utilizes the unique characteristics of the optical system in which the front lens group recedes as you zoom in from 15 mm to 30 mm.

Double-hood structure provides additional strength

A double-hood structure has been incorporated into the lens design to improve the durability of the zoom mechanism.

Comes with “SILKYPIX Developer Studio for Tamron”, RAW image processing software customized for Tamron SP lenses

The SILKYPIX Developer Studio software can develop high-quality images from RAW data, incorporating adjustments that can express the personal style and taste of the photographer. These include white balance, color, sharpness, and the tonal curves recorded by digital cameras.
The SILKYPIX Developer Studio for Tamron provides a range of functions in addition to the basic adjustment capabilities, such as correcting aberrations (chromatic aberrations, distortion, peripheral light fall-off), based on the optical data. Used in tandem with Tamron’s SP series lenses – renowned for their crisp, high-resolution imaging – this advanced technology efficiently produces images that meet photographers’ most exacting demands.

• *1 The XGM (eXpanded Glass Molded Aspherical) lens element is capable of efficiently correcting aberrations in the angle of view that changes significantly with an ultra-wide-angle zoom lens. Furthermore, it has an especially significant impact on minimizing distortion and enhancing sharpness of the image at its periphery.
• *2 eBAND (Extended Bandwidth&& Angular-Dependency) Coating is a new nanotechnology-based coating technique developed by Tamron to reduce unwanted reflections.
• *3 The Sony mount version does not include VC since Sony digital SLR bodies incorporate built-in image stabilization functionality. The name of the Sony mount model is “SP 15-30mm F/2.8 Di USD” without the VC designation.
• *4 VC (Vibration Compensation) is Tamron’s proprietary image stabilization mechanism.
• *5 USD (Ultrasonic Silent Drive) is Tamron’s proprietary ring-type ultrasonic motor.