With support for Full-Frame HD video recording

Sep 17, 2008 07:11 GMT  ·  By

Ever since Canon's EOS 5D arrived on the market back in 2005 and proved its worth, photographers have been waiting to see what its successor would look like and what innovative features it would provide users with. And now, the company has finally decided to put an end to all that waiting and officially announced the EOS 5D, which packs a couple of very attractive functions, the most interesting of them (at least for a good number of consumers) being, probably, the possibility of shooting full-frame, high-definition videos.

Since Nikon has actually established a trend by introducing video recording capabilities in a DSLR, Canon wasn't about to offer anything less impressive. For this reason, the EOS 5D Mark II is capable to carry out 16:9 Full HD video capture at 1920 x 1080 pixels and 30 fps as well as 4:3 standard TV quality (SD) video capture at 640 x 480 pixels and 30 fps. These are actually some pretty big novelties for Canon, since the 5D Mark II is the first of the company's SLR cameras to offer such features.

The camera records clips in .MOV format using an MPEG-4 video compression, while the sound is recorded using linear PCMii without compression. And if you were wondering just how much video you can record, you should know that the EOS 5D Mark II will record video up to 4GB per clip or a maximum continuous movie capture time of 29 minutes and 59 seconds, whichever comes first. However, in practice, the device can record just around 12 minutes of 1080p video, or around 24 minutes in standard definition.

Probably the most important component of the new EOS 5D Mark II is the full-frame 24 x 36mm, 21.1 megapixel CMOS sensor, which offers a maximum level of sensitivity of ISO 25600. Despite the fact that the individual pixel dimensions of the EOS 5D Mark II camera are the same as the 21.1-megapixel CMOS sensor used in the EOS-1Ds Mark III digital SLR, the new sensor incorporates an improved output amplifier and a more advanced color filter that enhances light transmission.

Moreover, by combining the features of this improved sensor with the camera's new DIGIC 4 image processor, the EOS 5D Mark II provides ISO speeds from ISO 100 up to ISO 6400 in 1/3-stop increments, along with two high-speed settings – H1 and H2 – of ISO 12800 and ISO 25600, respectively, as well as a low-speed setting of ISO 50.

The camera includes a 15-point Autofocus (AF) sensor with nine selectable AF points plus six additional Assist AF points (three center AF points sensitive to f/2.8 lenses) with enhanced light source detection and AF micro-adjustment for greater autofocus performance. Like most other modern digital cameras, this one supports Live View shooting, and also comes equipped with a peripheral illumination correction system, as well as an auto lighting optimizer.

The EOS 5D Mark II camera also comes packed with a large, clear 3.0-inch Clear View LCD screen with 920,000 dot/VGA resolution, four times the pixel count of the EOS 5D camera's 2.5-inch screen. It is also equipped with a high-performance, high-magnification optical viewfinder providing 98 percent coverage.

Besides the Mark II, Canon has also introduced a new lens, the EF 24mm f/1.4L II USM Lens, which features a new anti-reflection lens coating called SWC (Sub-Wavelength Structure Coating) to minimize ghosting and flare. A successor to Canon's EF 24mm f/1.4L USM, the new lens will be available in December and will retail separately for around 1,700 US dollars.

The Canon EOS 5D Mark II Digital SLR is scheduled to arrive in stores by November and will be sold in a body-only configuration at an estimated retail price of $2,699 or in a kit version with Canon's EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM zoom lens at an estimated retail price of $3,499.

Photo Gallery (3 Images)

EOS 5D Mark II  - front view
EOS 5D Mark II  - angle viewEOS 5D Mark II  - rear view
Open gallery