C300: C300 Mk III Coming Soon

Varicam LT - which looks like the 95% of the old Varicam but a lot lighter and ~ 50% cheaper ($18,000 body only, $24,000 with a viewfinder) - is another contender in that $20,000 pro range. IMO, if/when C500 MKII is announced at the NAB'16, C300 MKII will see a price drop down to the $13,000 neighborhood.

With Red Raven already available (pre-orders?), this $15,000-$25,000 weight class is getting crowded. Sony surely can't be far behind with their updates and that will compact the entire market even further. Personally, with the Canon habit of holding onto the model for 3-4 years, I don't see C300 MKIII on the horizon. C100 MKIII/C200, on the other hand, is certainly doable.
 
DLD said:
Varicam LT - which looks like the 95% of the old Varicam but a lot lighter and ~ 50% cheaper ($18,000 body only, $24,000 with a viewfinder) - is another contender in that $20,000 pro range. IMO, if/when C500 MKII is announced at the NAB'16, C300 MKII will see a price drop down to the $13,000 neighborhood.

With Red Raven already available (pre-orders?), this $15,000-$25,000 weight class is getting crowded. Sony surely can't be far behind with their updates and that will compact the entire market even further. Personally, with the Canon habit of holding onto the model for 3-4 years, I don't see C300 MKIII on the horizon. C100 MKIII/C200, on the other hand, is certainly doable.
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Frankly speaking VariCam LT price of complete ready to shoot unit would be much higher. body+viewfinder+cards+accessories would push it close to 30K ie. very nearly double that of C300 Mark II. Giving rebates to C300 Mark II 13K and bringing the price to 13k or so like they had done with C300 would be great. Including slow motion (good quality) in 4K would also be a great and prudent move.

C500 had never gained traction in the market, so it would be better to drop the C500 name and bring on a different camera altogether.
 
Of course, I have not shot with the new Varicam LT but I have shot with the existing Varicam and IMHO, this new camera is in a league of it's own if it truly uses the same sensor and processing tech as it's more expensive older brother. The problem Panasonic had with the new Varicam is that it is unfortunately priced old school. Hardly anyone will buy one, it is a Clairmont/Oppenheimer type of camera that productions will rent ($100k + outfitted how most feature or high end TV shows would use it, plus glass rental) whereas this new version will be snapped up by owner operators. I still prefer the Arri skin tones straight from the cameras but this new Varicam LT is going to give the Amira a run for it's money. As far as Canon, who knows what the new C500 will bring but this camera is in a whole other class from the C300 MKII, nothing against the C300 MKII. We went through the original new Varicam with the product development team at Panasonic last year and it is a great camera, that I suspect has not been selling up to Panasonic's expectations because it is priced too high. Not saying it isn't worth it, but it's not 2003 and most people balk at buying truly expensive cameras anymore. This new version is a smart move by Panasonic, it will put them back into the game although I suspect is will kill off sales of the bigger brother.
 
I have never shot with a Varicam. I had loved the first footage of the previous varicam directed by Michael Cioni. https://vimeo.com/105522587 The footage of the Varicam LT released now looks very different as if from an inferior camera with a different colour science and dynamic range. Hope Panasonic is releasing more footage soon.
 
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indiawilds said:
Frankly speaking VariCam LT price of complete ready to shoot unit would be much higher. body+viewfinder+cards+accessories would push it close to 30K ie. very nearly double that of C300 Mark II...
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Mitch has broadly hinted at this but one has to assume - note, he didn't say that - that CD 7Q+ will be able to record some form of a compressed Raw. The price of 7Q+ with the included SSD'scurrently is less than a price of a single p2 card. The VF can be purchased aftermarket too (BMD's would suffice here), making it close to ~ $25,000 ready-to-shoot. C300 MKII is about $20,000 under the similar conditions (the Zacuto C300 MKII rig I see popping up on my Adsense from time to time is $47,000), so the price difference is relatively minor and be worth the price of admission for most.

PS. Here's that Cioni clip in 4K.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LD61Eb03x3U
 
I doubt a C300 MKIII will appear so soon. That isn't like Canon. It's not even been a year for the MKII. Maybe a third model but not a new C300.
 
No chance in hell. C500 2 is at NAB this year. more than 1 new eos cinema camera in a year is a bit of a stretch for a stubborn old dog like Canon.
 
Canon will drop C300 MK2 price a good bit before or at NAB, it cannot compete in the crowded field of 4K Super 35 cameras. Expect to see a C100 MK3 and C500 MK2.
 
For solo camera operators, Canon's PDAF is the Golden Carrot. No one else has this along with ARRI Alexa-level color for skintones (using the default ARRI LUTs in PP CC with the C300 II set up for ARRI compat. looks gorgeous). PDAF and more advanced AF (and assisted MF) are the future. Even expert human focus pullers can't compete, especially for 4K and live/unrehearsed shots. Don't see why Canon would lower the price until perhaps Sony brings PDAF into their pro cameras.
 
Let's look at the release dates for the current and previous models (I pulled from old press releases and tech articles; let me know if any of these were delayed and I will update):

C500
Mark I - Released October, 2012
Mark II - ???

C300
Mark I - Released January, 2012
Mark II - Released September, 2015

C100
Mark I - Released November, 2012
Mark II - Released December, 2014

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And a little speculation:

A C500 update seems like a no-brainer for NAB this year. They really pulled out all the stops with the C300 ii's 4K, so I wonder if it won't offer 6K or 8K acquisition to try to compete with Arri and RED for the high-end cinema market. They've been developing that tech for years now. I think that this will be Canon's big announcement this year.

I highly doubt that there will be a C300 update. By the time NAB hits, it will only have been on the market for seven months. That would be short even for Sony.

If a C100 update is announced at NAB, they probably won't release it until September or October.
 
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