DIGIC V and the GEN 3 Canon VPC (video photography camera)

[pulpfiction007]

Lately I've been thinking about the next generation of Canon video enabled DSLRs and the chances of some of the features being discussed actually appearing - beginning with the 5DMK3 and migrating down to the rest of the line.
All along, since the 7D's release (GEN 2) I've been very skeptical of any serious improvements being implemented on any of the cameras that followed....they all had the same basic processing and sensor. Now, with Digic V having 4 years of development, I'm quite optimistic about what Canon will do next. It's not just the new processor that leads me to this conclusion though. It's also been drawn by Canon's latest advertising and partnerships, not to mention what they have to gain by releasing a really robust video photography camera (VPC). :happy: I'm sick of the Vdslr, Hdslr, Hdvdslr thing! VPC is much easier.
Some will say Canon doesn't care (At first they didn't), that these are stills cameras, etc. I would agree, but they have also created additional sales by accident no less. So to not fully pursue this new market, would be bad business. Here are some features and my take of the percentage chance they'll appear.


4:2:2 Codec (from the XF 100/300) 95%
Cinema Picture Styles 99%
Improvement on aliasing/moire 80% (I hope)
Clean HDMI 99%
RAW 2% (an external option is much more likely)
Some sort of zoom/tele function 99%
XLR 0%
Headphone jack/Improved audio monitoring 25%
Zebra display 45%
Improved AF 99%

Please feel free to add your own, disagree, agree, etc

 

[tnle2]

I don't have a lot of hope that a new DSLR will solve these problems. There are real engineering hurdles inherent in the form factor of a still camera that prevents this from happening. For example, they have to make the chip high rez for still application and to do a real time down scale would require high speed processors that generate too much heat. The body of a DSLR doesn't have the mass or the right heat exchangers to dissipate this energy. But who knows, maybe they will solve this. I'm not sure they have solved it by now, because a camera set to release soon would have been in development last year or the year before.

What they can do is improve some of the software related features like zebra display or Magic Lantern type features.

The real solution is to design a purpose made large sensor video camera. But Canon is grandma-slow when it comes to video camera development. I also have a hunch this won't happen until they figure out their lens situation (do they go with the EF mount or do something else) and they need video optimized lenses ready at launch. Canon is also slow in lens development and they've been having manufacturing setbacks and delays with their new still lenses.

But eventually they're going to do something because we already know they're working on a 4K camera. We just don't know when it will happen and how advance it will be. I think Canon has the tech know-how to make a camera just as good as the Alexa or the F65 if they wanted to, but it might not be in their business plan. The revenue in pro cinema is still peanuts compared to the still photography market.

 

[pulpfiction007]

I agree with many of your points - designing a purpose made large sensor video camera, for one - Canon will no doubt take a while to do this.
As for the engineering - Somehow Panasonic has done a good job with the GH2 (it still has aliasing, but it's minimalized) So all Canon needs to do is match that performance...not create a miracle. As long as they improve it, they can keep their momentum going.
Your final point is actually another reason why I think Canon will place importance on making the video on these cameras much better. Why go through the trouble of developing a pro cinema cam, when you can just sell a ton of stills cameras to photographers, and sell a bunch more of the same exact camera to video/film customers. It's a win/win scenario. No need to make new cinema style bodies with all of the proper tools, development costs, etc.
They really don't have to improve the video to keep sales high, but to send them sky rocketing through space, it wouldn't hurt.