Canon announces development of EOS-1D X Mark III, adds two RF lenses
Canon U.S.A. Inc. announced its parent company, Canon Inc. is developing the Canon EOS-1D X Mark III DSLR camera, the successor to the EOS-1D X Mark II and will be aimed at sports and wildlife markets.
“The innovations put forth by the new EOS-1D X Mark III will set the new standard for professional DSLR cameras and further cement Canon’s commitment to its professional photographers,” said Kazuto Ogawa, president and chief operating officer, Canon U.S.A., Inc. “In developing the new camera, Canon listened to extensive user-feedback from professionals out in the field. The result is a camera that has evolved from its predecessor and maintained the overall quality that professional photographers have come to expect from the Canon EOS-1D series.”
The company claimes the Canon EOS-1D X Mark III will be “blisteringly fast – offering exceptional precision, reliability, high-performance autofocus and subject tracking – providing photographers” with a tool that will help to capture the shot they are chasing. The camera’s new autofocus algorithm will improve stability and tracking when using both the Optical Viewfinder and in Live View shooting mode, using Deep Learning Technology and adapting to help facilitate accurate focus tracking for every shot. When using the optical viewfinder the camera will use a new autofocus sensor, with approximately 28 times the resolution in the center of the EOS-1D X Mark II. Offering the ability to autofocus in even brighter and darker situations than before and with greater precision, the camera will have a range of autofocus capabilities, which will enable the photographer to get their shot. In Live View mode, users will be able to make use of 525 AF areas using the Dual Pixel CMOS AF system will cover approximately 90×100 percent of the image sensor. The camera will support significantly faster frame rates with full AF and AE, using either the optical viewfinder (up to approximately 16fps mechanical shutter) or Live View (up to approximately 20fps mechanical or electronic shutter). Additionally, the camera’s dual CFexpress card slots will enable more than five times the RAW burst depth of its predecessor.
The EOS-1D X Mark III will feature built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth low-energy connectivity in addition to GPS technology. To keep pace with ever-shortening deadlines, the camera will transfer data at more than twice the speed of the EOS-1D X Mark II when using the built-in Ethernet connection, or the new optional wireless file transmitter – the WFT-E9, which is also compatible with Canon’s recently launched Cinema EOS C500 Mark II camera. Coupled with simpler network set-up the camera will greatly enhance the professional workflow.
Canon debuts RF 70-200mm F2.8L IS USM lenses
Canon USA also debuted the RF 70-200mm F2.8L IS USM telephoto lens and its first lens to feature Defocus Smoothing lens coating, the Canon RF 85 F1.2L DS. The ninth and tenth lenses in the RF family are both powerful tools for photographers using the EOS R or EOS RP cameras, in particular, those shooting sports or wildlife photography with the RF 70-200mm F2.8L or portrait photography with the RF 85mm F1.2L USM DS.
The new Canon RF 70-200mm F2.8L IS USM lens features a large and bright f/2.8 aperture, which, along with the 70-200mm focal zoom ranges, presents an ideal workhorse lens for professional and amateur photographers shooting sports, wildlife, wedding and event action. The new RF lens is 27 percent shorter and 28 percent lighter than its EF counterpart with a large portion of the lens element arrangement closer to the camera body.
A first for Canon lenses, the company says the new RF 70-200mm F2.8L IS USM features two Nano USM motors providing an even greater level of high-speed autofocus for still image shooting and quiet and smooth autofocus for video shooting. The lens also incorporates a floating focus control, another Canon first, that drives the two lens groups individually while using the two aforementioned Nano USM motors. The floating focus lens element shortens the focusing distance and helps reduce breathing, providing users with fast, consistent and reliable performance.
Additional Features of The Canon RF 70-200mm F2.8 L IS USM Include:
- Customizable control ring that allows photographers to adjust exposure compensation, shutter speed, aperture or ISO
- 17 lens elements in 13 groups including two aspherical lenses, one super UD lens and four UD lenses, that help to reduce chromatic aberration
- CIPA standard five stops of image stabilization (IS) including three IS modes with dual-sensing and combination IS
- 12-pin communication system
- L-Series dust and weather-resistant build with fluorine coating
- Subwavelength Structure Coating (SWC) helps minimize lens flare and ghosting
The new Canon RF 85mm F1.2L USM DS ens ushers in a new lens coating from Canon, Defocus Smoothing, designed to enhance the appearance of bokeh in the images captured with the lens, the company says. DS coating is a vapor-deposited coating technology that is applied to the front and rear surfaces of a specific lens element inside the lens. The coating allows off-axis flux to pass through the periphery of the lens that gradually decreases the transmittance of light, which results in images with beautifully blurred backgrounds.
In addition, the new lens features a bright f/1.2 aperture which, along with the 85mm focal length, encompasses an ideal lens for portrait photographers, the company says.
Additional Features of The Canon RF 85mm F1.2L USM DS Include:
- Minimum focusing distance of 2.79 feet/0.85 meters
- Customizable control ring that allows photographers to adjust exposure compensation, shutter speed, aperture or ISO
- One Aspheric lens and one UD Lens, along with BR optics that help to reduce chromatic aberration
- 12-pin communication system
- L-Series dust and weather-resistant build with fluorine coating
- Air Sphere Coating (ASC) that helps minimize lens flare and ghosting