Photokina 2012 — at the Canon stand
This is Part 1 of our Photokina 2012 report, featuring impressions from the Canon and Nikon stands. I decided to make the show report a multi-parter, since there is so much to write about and so many pictures to show that cramming it all into one or even two posts would be too much information at once. Part 2 is coming tomorrow and will feature Fujifilm and Samsung. In this article: the Canon G15, EOS 6D and EOS cinema camcorder as well as the Nikon D600 and 1 series 18.5mm f1.8 lens.
Canon
G15 — After introducing the G1 X with its roughly Micro Four Thirds sized sensor, the G15 goes back to the classic G series form factor. However, the lens is now an f1.8-2.8 lens, as opposed to the previous f2.8-4.5, which is a significant improvement. Also noteworthy is that the layout of the main controls on top of the camera has changed (again), and that the screen is no longer tilting and swiveling. Interesting side note: Canon skipped numbers 13 and 14 and went directly to 15 from the previous model, the G12. Check our new post on the G15 here.
EOS 6D — My time with the new EOS 6D was only very brief, which was in part due to the crowds gathering around it, and in part to the fact that I’m not an expert on DSLRs. Anyway, here are some hands-on pictures showing the camera from various angles. For detailed specs, please refer to our news announcement.
EOS C100 — At the canon stand, the full lineup of EOS C camcorders has been on display. Below are some pictures, showing the cameras alone, in combination with various lenses and as full-fledged movie rigs.
EOS C100 with standard EF mount lens
EOS C300 rig with EOS cine lens
Full fledged EOS C500 rig …
… with gears, and stuff.
Various impressions — Despite their compact, DSLR and cinema cameras, Canon showcased their complete EOS lens lineup, as well as some table illustrating various technical aspects of their lens development.
From the smallest, the EF-M lenses …
… all the way up …
… to the big badass L tele zoom lenses.
Canon had a lot more on display, of course, and there were shows going on and all that stuff. Due to my limited time at photokina (I only had two days), I couldn’t spend much more time at the Canon stand due to all the other awesome new stuff that had been announced (and that, frankly, I was more interested in.)
Nikon
Nikon showed several new products on Photokina, but I was most interested in one of the smaller ones: the new 18.5mm f1.8 lens for the 1 system. I’m a sucker for fast prime lenses, and the 18.5mm, being a 50mm-equivalent lens, is the prototypical prime lens that shouldn’t lack in any proper system. Also, our readers requested that I look at the D600. Only so much: not a chance. I would’ve had to wait half an hour to get a chance to take a look at it. The crowds were crazy at the Nikon stand. Also, me not being a DSLR expert, my opinion on it wouldn’t have meant much, anyway. You can read our new post on the D600 here, though, and our very own Peter Walkowiak’s preliminary opinion on it here. There is one picture of he D600 that I got, however:
1 18.5mm f1.8 lens — This is the new fast normal lens for the 1 system, and it’s the first proper lens in the lineup. And by proper I mean prime lens with a fast aperture. A zoom is not a proper lens. (DISCLAIMER: all controversial opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and are not necessarily sanctioned by Chris Gampat or any other member of the staff, for that matter.) Anyway, I think this is a nice addition to the 1 system. Focusing seemed rather snappy, and this lens finally provide some shallow depth of field on the 1 system. I was hoping to be able to take some test shots, but since all cameras were secured by a complicated system of wires and cables that were attached everywhere, there was no way to insert an SD card. So these hands-on pictures will have to suffice.
A Nikon 1 V1 with a Nikon F-mount lens and F->1 adapter attached.
Nikon’s current lens lineup for the 1 system: 10mm f2.8, 18.5mm f1.8, 10-30mm, 30-100mm, 10-100mm. Also in this picture: F->1 adapter.
Agains, as with Canon, there was much more shown, but my time was limited and I was focusing on the stuff that seemed the most worthy of reporting about. Stay tuned for part 2 of our Photokina 2012 report tomorrow!
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