Canon Rumor: EOS 7D Mark II Announcement not Earlier than September 2013, May Have New Sensor, New Auto-Focus System

[shoplink 337]Canon Rumor[/shoplink]

The Canon EOS 7D
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Latest Canon EOS 7D Mark II rumor. It is said that Canon will not announce the successor of the highly popular, and 4 year old, Canon [shoplink 337]EOS 7D[/shoplink] until the Canon EOS 70D starts to ship regularly. Moreover, if there is no sign of Nikon announcing a D400, it could be that Canon will further delay the announcement until early 2014. The EOS 7D Mark II sensor should have “additional functionality”, and could subsequently be featured on the whole Canon APS-C line-up. This gets me a little puzzled since Canon introduced a new and innovative sensor with the EOS 70D, and it could be hard to top this sensor’s functionality (especially if considering how conservative Canon is regarding the release of new technology).

The most interesting part of the rumour: the EOS 7D Mark II could introduce a new, more advanced Auto-Focus system, and the talk is not about life-view AF. This AF system is said to going to be featured also on the replacement of the Canon [shoplink 4119]EOS-1D X[/shoplink], so it should be a very sophisticated AF system. If Canon will really feature an AF system advanced enough for the EOS-1D X successor on an APS-C DSLR is something I would take with a grain of salt. But then…

[via NL]

Deal: Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS Lens – $699

[shoplink 14361 ebay]EF 24-105mm[/shoplink]

eBay Daily Deals feature: seller bigvalueinc (98.2% positive feedbacks) has the EF 24-105mm f/4L IS lens on sale for just [shoplink 14361 ebay]$699 (click here)[/shoplink]. Free shipping. Regarding the item, the seller writes:

  • This lens is 100% brand new.
  • These are lenses that were originally packaged with Canon Camera Kits. We sold the Canon Kits in a quantity order, and we had simply removed the Lenses and placed them in their own box with all original foam packaging.These Lenses are limited quantity only.
Filter Size 77mm
f/Stop Range 4-22
Minimum Focus Distance 1.48′ (0.45 m)
Magnification 1:4.3
Zoom/Focus Control Two touch
Angle of View 84-23° (with full-frame cameras)
Groups/Elements 13/18
Length 4.2″ (107mm)
Maximum Diameter 3.3″ (83.5mm)
Weight 1.5 lb (670g)
[via dealsrunner]

Rokinon 24mm Tilt-Shift Lens Reviewed (The Phoblographer)

Rokinon 24mm

Rokinon Tilt-Shift 24mm f3.5 ED AS UMC
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  • Fast Wide-Angle Lens
  • Full-Frame Coverage
  • Geared Focus and Aperture Rings
  • “Declicked” Aperture Ring
  • Aspherical Lens Elements
  • UMC Multi-Coating
  • Detachable Petal Shaped Lens Hood

The Phoblographer reviewed the Rokinon/Samyang/Bower [shoplink 13627]Tilt-Shift 24mm f/3.5 ED AS UMC[/shoplink] lens. This inexpensive, manual-focus tilt-shift lens is a good alternative to the brand-products. Optical quality is good, and if you can live with a manual focus lens (not really a problem on a TS lens), then the Rokinon is a valid alternative for those on a budget. They tested the Nikon-mount version, but did it using an [shoplink 254]EOS 5D Mark II[/shoplink] through an adapter.

In the conclusion they write:

What this Rokinon has done is open the floodgates to the world of Perspective Control imagery for photographers that have otherwise avoided these magnificent lenses due to to the sheer cost of them. For instance, Canon’s mkII version of the 24mm f3.5L TS-E costs a whopping $2200, a full $1200 MORE than the Rokinon. When you consider what they have accomplished with their lens and delivered it for under $1k, I find that to be pretty astonishing personally. […]  I have to say though, I am slightly conflicted over this lens. I think that it is a great opportunity for photographers who are new to tilt-shift photography to get into it, and for those of us on a budget it allows us to have a pretty decent lens for the price of entry.

The review comes with lots of sample pictures.

[via The Phoblographer]

Two New EOS M Cameras Before End Of Year?

 

EOS M

After the recent fire sales of the Canon EOS M, things look like as if Canon is trying to empty stocks. Adorama has the EOS M listed as discontinued, same for other online shops. Hence, the latest EOS M rumour fits with what happened last week.

Canon may announce two new EOS M models later this year, a basic upgrade with an 18MP sensor (same of the [shoplink 11240]EOS 100D[/shoplink]), and a more sophisticated model with the new 20MP, dual pixel CMOS AF sensor of the Canon EOS 70D. The EOS M with the 20MP sensor is said to ship not before the EOS 70D (i.e. not before September 2013), the more basic variant should be released earlier. The 20MP model of the the new EOS M is said be aimed at more pro-oriented, full-frame EOS shooters and will have a viewfinder. Finally, Canon may be working on a focal length reducer for EF lenses that should be announced along with the the 20MP, dual pixel AF version of the the EOS M.

The new EF-M 11-22mm f/4-5.6 IS STM lens should be released in a few days.

[via NL]

Zeiss Drops the Carl From Their Brand

Zeiss

Zeiss officially announced they will no longer have the “Carl” on their lenses. To some degree, this is a historical development for a company that used the “Carl Zeiss” mark for a century. On Zeiss Blog they write:

“ZEISS is now taking this development into account in its decision to create consistency across its brand communications.”

All future lenses will be branded just “Zeiss”. For a listing of Zeiss lenses for Canon DSLRs click here.

[via Sonyalpharumors]