Canon EOS 6D on Photokina

A few hours from today, Photokina the world's largest trade fair for the photographic and imaging industries will again be open. This happens every two years where the biggest brands on the market will exhibits their newest products and will give the consumers an idea what the future holds for industry. Everyone in Germany right now is anticipating lots of product release coming from the likes of Leica, Canon, Nikon and Sony.

Speaking of Canon, I previously read a leaked rumor (now is confirmed) that Adorama mistakenly made a pre-order price for the upcoming EOS 6D later on pulled out. So the September band wagon doesn’t stop last week when Nikon released their D600 worldwide. I just wonder if these two titans are talking to each other secretly and decides who comes first for their release dates, it’s just a week difference. Then again I think Nikons strategy is to jump ahead of the pack by releasing the news earlier before the Photokina event. Look guys September really does have a lot of surprises for photographers and hobbyist this year.

So let’s talk about the anticipated Canon EOS 6D, as far as the leaked specifications I have been reading, it will be the rival of the recently launch D600. The model number itself does resembles the two cameras, if you reverse the model number of Nikon it will look like this 006D. So what are we expecting with Canon this time? Is it better than the from its rival D600? Tell me what you think of the specs sheet that I read:

Body type
Body type	Mid-size SLR
Sensor
Image ratio w:h	3:2
Effective pixels	20.2 megapixels
Sensor size	Full frame (36 x 24 mm)
Sensor type	CMOS
Processor	Digic 5+
Image
ISO	Auto, 100 – 25600 in 1/3 stops, plus 50, 51200, 102400 as option
White balance presets	6
Custom white balance	Yes
Image stabilization	No
Uncompressed format	RAW
JPEG quality levels	Fine, Normal
Optics & Focus
Autofocus	Contrast Detect (sensor) Phase Detect Multi-area Selective single-point Single Continuous Face Detection Live View
Manual focus	Yes
Number of focus points	11
Lens mount	Canon EF mount
Focal length multiplier	1×
Screen / viewfinder
Articulated LCD	Fixed
Screen size	3.2″
Screen dots	102,400
Touch screen	Yes
Screen type	Clear View II TFT LCD
Live view	Yes
Viewfinder type	Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder coverage	97 %
Viewfinder magnification	0.71×
Photography features
Minimum shutter speed	30 sec
Maximum shutter speed	1/8000 sec
Aperture priority	Yes
Shutter priority	Yes
Manual exposure mode	Yes
Subject / scene modes	Yes
Built-in flash	No
External flash	Yes (Hot shoe)
Continuous drive	Yes (4.5 fps)
Self-timer	Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Metering modes	Multi Center-weighted Spot Partial
Exposure compensation	±5 EV (at 1/3 EV, 1/2 EV steps)
AE Bracketing	±3 (3 frames at 1/3 EV, 1/2 EV steps)
WB Bracketing	Yes (3 frames in either blue/amber or magenta/green axis)
Videography features
Format	H.264
Microphone	Mono
Speaker	Mono
Resolutions	1920 x 1080 (29.97, 25, 23.976 fps fps), 1280 x 720 (59.94, 50 fps), 640 x 480 (25, 30 fps)
Videography notes	1080 and 720 intra or inter frame, 480 inter frame
Storage
Storage types	SD/SDHC/SDXC
Connectivity
USB	USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI	Yes (HDMI Mini)
Wireless	BuiltIn
Remote control	Yes (Remote control with N3 type contact, Wireless Controller LC-5, Remote Controller RC-6)
Physical
Environmentally sealed	Yes (Splash and dust resistant)
Battery	Battery Pack
Battery description	Lithium-Ion LP-E6 rechargeable battery & charger
Weight (inc. batteries)	770 g (1.70 lb / 27.16 oz)
Dimensions	145 x 111 x 71 mm (5.71 x 4.37 x 2.8″)
Other features
Orientation sensor	Yes
Timelapse recording	Yes (by cable and PC)
GPS	BuiltIn
GPS notes	Image tagging and tracking modes

(info courtesy of canonrumors)

If this is the official specifications of the soon to be release EOS 6D, personally I think that it didn’t have that knockout punch to lure the consumer on their side. It clearly states that there is a down grade of megapixel count from their previous 5D MKII. The auto focus system looks terrible on writing because they will cater just 11 AF points. Comparing it to previous EOS models, it is 2 AF upgrade on the 5D MKII, 8 AF short from the EOS 7D and far less than the 61 AF of the 5D Mark III. 

Hey Canon please do the math, your nemesis is giving away 39 AF and you’re not even getting the half of it.

I had my EOS 7D before crossing over and it was really a game changer. User believe that it is the future blue print of the upcoming advancement for EOS models. It’s early for me to judge this upcoming camera but I guess that their 7D line will stay longer in the market even it doesn't have a 35mm sensor in its body but it has kick ass performance.

I was expecting Canon to do something better, they made ground breaking moves when they raise the bar of the pixel race and adding the HD video features on the 5D MKII. They strengthen up their line by adding the fastest Semi-pro camera, improved AF system and with a whooping 18mp with their EOS 7D.

What’s happening Canon? Get your act done before it’s too late.

I hope they have a few tricks on their sleeves to entice us after the release. (price)

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..til the next blog post!

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