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Canon set to shake things up in the video industry

Canon set to shake things up in the video industry

With a … still camera?

Their new EOS 5D Mark II is, of course, a phenomenal digital SLR camera. With a new DiGIC 4 processor, effective ISO 25600 for exceptional low light performance and a full frame 21.1 megapixel sensor, the performance of this camera is unquestionable.

However, what people may not be ready for is the full 1080p HD video capability. Yes, this compact SLR camera can shoot 1920×1080 raw HD footage. 

At first, I thought it was a bit “gimmicky” – usually camera manufacturers ‘tack on’ video as a bonus feature just because they can. You’re not gonna go out and buy a $2700 professional dSLR camera and then turn around and shoot video with it.

Or are you?

Photographer Vincent Lafloret got his hands on a pre-release model and begged Canon USA  to let him use it for a promo piece. They gave him 72 hours. He came up with the video I just linked. All he used was the 5D MK II and an assortment of off-the-shelf Canon lenses to shoot this piece. 

Okay, so this is a game changer. Independent filmmakers’ budgets just got a lot smaller. A would-be film director can now realistically spend under $5000 and have a very high quality HD setup.

I think Icrontic needs one of these to film our upcoming movie (The working title is “Helium Prospectors”).

Comments

  1. UPSLynx
    UPSLynx Wow, that would be GREAT. This would remove the need to carry around my cybershot along with my DSLR for shooting video. I'd pay for that, especially if it shoots HD!

    Be prepped to pack LOTS of flash memory though.
  2. Kwitko
    Kwitko The Nikon D90 does 720p video for less than half the price.
  3. primesuspect
    primesuspect There are many things that do lower quality for cheaper. I'm not sure I see the point.

    The shakeup part occurs because there are filmmakers who will buy this instead of a $10K+ HD video camera. They're not gonna be looking for a 720p camera.
  4. -tk
    -tk I'm just happy they're finally releasing the darn thing. This will be a day long remembered...
  5. Kwitko
    Kwitko The point is that it puts HD recording capability in more hands than a $2700 camera will, regardless of the quality. 720p is still HD and most people have neither 1080p TVs nor can distinguish the difference in quality between 720p and 1080p. The fact that *any* still camera is capable of shooting HD video is revolutionary.
  6. swithdrawn
    swithdrawn The real benefit comes from being able to use the huge array of lenses. You'd have to get an XL body HDV camera from Canon (~ $8,000) to think about doing this with a standard Canon video camera, which makes this new offering a REALLY GOOD value. As a filmmaker, this makes me really giddy.
  7. Nomad
    Nomad This is more of a gimmick than anything.

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