Personally I'm very interested by the release of this new consumer camera. I don't plan on buying one, but I'm hoping it bodes well for the future of midrange EOS film gear. I haven't seen one in person yet, but here are my observations based on the stuff online:
<opinionated ramble starts here> - First off, this is the first major redesign in the consumer EOS user interface in many years. Intriguing. - Putting the LCD panel on the back makes for a more easily scratched screen, but also makes room for a lot more information, so on the whole I think it's a win. The camera shows you, for example, what mode (P, M, etc) you're in, which can be a timesaver (the data is in the same plane as the viewfinder so you don't have to move the camera or your head) and very useful in low-light situations. It's also easily viewable when operating. A shame it sticks out and reduces nose clearance, however. - I'm glad to see the illuminated LCD, like the Japan-only Kiss IIIL (a lightly upgraded Rebel 2000) and the D60. Illuminated LCDs are genuinely useful for low-light shooting - I spent last week doing a lot of night photography and was constantly fumbling for my flashlight just so I could see what mode I was in or what metering method was set. This is a great sign and hopefully we'll see all new EOS cameras coming equipped with backlit LCDs. - However, one strangely stupid feature limits the utility of this backlighting somewhat. The function button icons are silkscreened onto the LCD bezel and aren't part of the LCD itself. Instead you get triangular arrows on the LCD pointing to the printed icons. This approach has always struck me as being informationally redundant over simply using icons in the LCD itself, but in the case of a backlit screen it's really stupid UI. If the icons were on the LCD then you switch functions in the dark. Since you can only see backlit triangles you have to memorize icon positions if you want to switch functions in the dark. A minor issue, but a bizarrely unnecessary one. - Making the mode dial thumb-operable looks very convenient. - Canon have finally followed other makers in extending the length and vertical range of the popup flash arm to minimize (very slightly) the risk of redeye. - In terms of aesthetics the new swoopy look should help Canon differentiate the camera from others in the store. I don't like the easily-scratched and very obtrusive silver paint, but of course product longevity and discreet looks aren't the point here - impulse buy marketing is. - Canon are posting the complete manual for the camera online along with the publicity material. Wow. It's great to see a) Canon posting the manual for free and b) tying it with marketing so that people can get genuinely useful data on the product before they buy. This is a great development, particularly for a middle-low consumer product. - The new PIC mode (flash off) is vaguely useful, I suppose. - The optional battery pack looks bulbous and misshapen, as though it were actually designed for a different camera. At least there is one, though. - The metal lens mount, illuminated focus points, 2.5 fps motor drive and dioptric adjustment support clearly position this camera as a big step up from the Rebel 2000/EOS 300. Interesting. So. The new product looks like quite a decent amount of camera - it'll be interesting to see exactly how much it goes for and what price alterations elsewhere in the line will accompany its introduction. It's obviously not very useful as a pro or semi-pro backup camera, thanks to its silver case, lack of rear command dial, no direct control over metering modes and the prewinding motordrive, but as a lightweight consumer camera it looks great. My main hope is that Canon will also fill in the huge gap in the lineup between the Elan 7/EOS 30/33/7 and the EOS 3. Perhaps they won't, as such a camera wouldn't be a big consumer hit. But a camera that fit neatly in that slot, perhaps with some of the user interface changes that the Rebel T/300V bring, would be very attractive to advanced amateurs. (particularly if a brighter finder, a patterned red AF assist light and support for manual-focus lenses were included, of course!) - Neil K. * **** ******* *********************************************************** * For list instructions, including unsubscribe, see: * http://www.a1.nl/phomepag/markerink/eos_list.htm ***********************************************************
