New Camera Coming From Big Camera Company!

Is there any more thrilling sound than the trumpets announcing a new camera? We all wake up and look about us, even if we are devotees of a different system.

In this case it is the latest evocation of a full-frame Canon DSLR - it'll be the next in order in the 5D line - the Canon EOS 5D Mk IV.

You may be forgiven for thinking that with the EOS 5D, 5D Mk II, 5D Mk III, 5DS and 5DS R, and now the EOS 5D MkIV that Canon have had more marks than the Spitfire...or Barry Cable...but consider what it means to the working photographer or enthusiast:

1. Any possible teething troubles in the basic body were worked out years ago.

2. Each new evocation has introduced new electronics and new capabilities.

3. The ergonomics were good to start with - they have gotten better. Canon cameras fit everyone's hand.

4. Everything else fits, too. L lenses, transmitters, flashes, accessories---and its you have a fitted case or bag that carried your Canon EOS 5d-series cameras before it'll carry the new one!

5. Everything has gotten better:

30.4 Megapixel CMOS sensor.
100-32,000 ISO boostable to 102.400 ISO.
4k video and flicker free viewing.
Digit 6+ processor.
7FPS and silent single and continuous shooting.
Full iOS and Android WiFi built in.
GPS built in.
Scene Intelligent Auto Mode available as well as standard PASM.
CF and SD-sized slots.
61focus points - dual pixel add system - 1,620,000-dot LCD screen that is touch sensitive.

I can thoroughly endorse the practice of adding another camera to your bag, and choosing one that is the latest of a long line of careful development. I have done so myself, and benefited. You see this in cars, watches, rifles, and many other household appliances - the manufacturer builds upon careful analysis of what has worked rather than blundering wildly out into oddball designs or untried theories - and the wise user can succeed with the gear immediately.

Consider as well the mind of the Canon shooter. If you have used a small-frame Canon camera in the past you are well on your way to knowing the operating pattern of the full-frame one. If you have used any of the EOS 5D series before you are there already - just pick it up, clap on an L series lens, and run!

Oh, pay for it before you do...the staff in the shop are built like antelopes and will catch you before you get half-way down the block...

We'll have a new camera unveiling night for the EOS 5D Mk IV at a bar in Perth at the start of September. That's a very cheery idea. It will be held at the Flour Factory, 16 Queen Street Perth, on Thursday, 1st of September. Starts at 6:00 for a 6:30 start, if that makes sense.

Hugh Brown will be speaking and that makes it a fun night just to begin with, but add a new Canon EOS camera and food and drink into the bargain and the whole thing really sparkles. I shall be there myself. All readers of this column who want to be included in the fun should register at www.cameraelectronic.com.au/events to let us know for catering.

Finally, did you know that there was a famous member of the church who wrote a textbook on artillery and also used Canon 5D cameras? It was commemorated on the maps of Spanish river systems. Go to Google Earth and look for:

Canon Canon cannon canon Cañón.

You're welcome...

Pre-Order the new Canon EOS 5D Mark IV here

Pre-Order the Canon EF 16-35mm f2.8L III USM (arriving mid-October)

Pre-Order the Canon EF 24-105mm f4 IS II USM (arriving mid-October)

The Frame Up Job

At the risk of sounding like a Me-Too blogger, I wish to draw attention to a course being run by the Shoot Workshops next door. It is a workshop on Picture Framing and will be run by Aaron McPolin on Sunday, the 4th of September - not that far into the future.

The workshop costs $139, but this is the sort of thing that just does not come along every day. In fact, I would be prepared to say that in Perth this does not come along ANY day. It is the chance of a lifetime for some of us.

We all make files. We all make images. Some of us make pictures. Few of us make pictures that hang on walls. And damned few of us make pictures that deserve to hang on the walls.

Part of this is the files, part of it is the images. After that a great deal of it is the aesthetic that either supports or condemns the image. Here is where Aaron may be able to offer the insight to help us improve our pictures.

The blurb for the workshop speaks of colour theory, printing for longevity, placement, glazing, and matting. Also lighting, placement, exhibition design, and pricing. Even if you are not trying for " Family Of Man " and would settle for the relatives spread out over the lounge room wall in reasonable order, this workshop is going to help.

I freely admit to not being an artist, and have had this firmly attested to by Perth Artists on Facebook, but I think that this sort of thing will help me to improve my taste and present my work better. I have an ambition to be rejected by a better class of gallery than Facebook, and this may help.

Studio 281
281 Guildford Road, Maylands
Sunday, 4th of September
10AM - 4PM

Contact Shannon at Shoot Photography Workshops to make a booking:

T. 08 9228 8232
E. shannon@shootworkshops.com.au
W. www.shootworkshops.com.au

Getting The Data Wrong

I must apologise to anyone who went along to the Northbridge Hotel tonight looking for Canon EOS 1Dx MkII cameras and free beer - they would have been disappointed by a day and had to buy their own drinks.

I apparently got it wrong in an early version of the post - the event happens tomorrow at 6:00 at the Northbridge. When I dial up the post now it seems to be correct but there must have been a time when it generated confusion. I hope no disasters ensued.

All that said, I am looking forward to seeing this benchmark professional camera and hearing about the use of it.

Uncle Dick

Cameras And The Beer Economy

There has been a great deal of hoo hah recently in the media about Perth's beer economy. Apparently people pay for favours, products, services, and opinions by delivering cartons of beer instead of cartons of money. This is seen as matey and unlikely to attract the attention of the Australian Taxation Department. As it turns out, this is incorrect - everything - attracts the attention of the ATO.

Really, think about it. The ATO workers are in Canberra and Albury, NSW. If there were any two places on earth that would make you think about drinking, it would be Canberra and Albury. I should imagine office workers there think about it constantly, and the idea that they are not getting their share when your local tradie trims your asbestos fence for you with the chain saw( and then puts it through the mulcher ) would be gall to them.

Is it the same, we must ask, with bottles of beer at camera launches? Are we all in danger of little men in a grey sleeveless jumpers popping up at our elbow and handcuffing us as we reach for the Corona? Will we need to arrive at the door half cut beforehand on our own money and just sit down and watch the show.

And what is the sushi position?*

Well, after consulting a beeration expert I can reassure the clients and customers that it is not a federal offence to down one or two at the Camera Electronic promotional nights. The management are paying for the slosh and then reporting it diligently to the ATO as a legitimate business expense, as they do for the ammunition and spare horses, and you are in the clear. Your only obligation is to enjoy yourselves...moderately, please...and to give due consideration to the industry presenters, photograph makers, and video presentations. You are at liberty to fall lifeless from your chair after the first 20 minutes of a Powerpoint presentation and no-one will think ill of you...

It would be nice if you would look carefully at the special offer sheets that generally accompany the product presentations. Both the wholesalers and the shop work closely together to make sure that there are good deals there on the launch night - sometimes with prices and sometimes with added extras. Take advantage of these, and do it right then. Frequently the opportunity is only for that one occasion - this is a good illustration of the advisability of keeping an emergency photo fund somewhere. Somewhere that only you know about...when your time comes, Maitland, know it...

Product launches are fun. The industry reps there really DO know what their stuff does and they are more than happy to tell you all you need to know. It is ever so much more satisfying to get the REAL information from people that actually sell the cameras than rely upon someone at Mum's Basement Camera Rumour Pty Ltd. to tell you fairy tales.

Note: Keep reading the weblog and the CE Facebook site. We've got two dynamite Canon launches coming this month and March and I suspect there will be others from other firms as well. The recent Olympus and Fujifilm nights at the shop were a hoot.

*Rolled up.

So What Goes There?

What indeed.

Come along to the Northbridge Hotel, 210 Lake Street at 6:00 on this Thursday the 25th and see for yourself.

We can give you a few hints:  it is made by the Canon company, it takes pictures, and it has an EOS, a 1, a Dx, and a Mark II in the name. And it is brand spanking new. And fast. And rugged.

But these are just hints...you can eat and drink while we let out more hints on the night...RSVP to the shop to tell us you're coming.

Canon Launches Forth - Part Two

Well it isn't just the big, heavy Canon cameras that are bursting out into new models - Canon Australia will be bringing the new EOS Canon 80D camera to Camera Electronic on March 3rd at 6:00 PM.

The launch will show the new crop-frame Canon EOS body as well as the new 18-135 lens that is set to pair with it. And the whole presentation will be with the expert guidance of Stephen Scourfield.

Stephen is the travel editor of the West Australian and a consummate photo shooter. He's been advising Western Australians for years about the best way to maximise the potential of the digital camera for our memories, and he's had a chance to see just how this new Canon performs.

Of course, being Canon, and being for travel, the video component of the new body has really come to the fore. New Auto Focus performance, new flicker-free shooting, new higher ISO capability extend your video shooting into scenes that were never possible before. Audio pickup facilities have advanced as well.

The night has representatives of Canon Australia, Camera Electronic, and Stephen - it also has food and drink, but you'll be wise to RSVP through to the shop to tell us you're coming so that we can arrange for the beer tankers to get down the side of the building. That and the sushi and sausage roll cars that shunt in on the private railway spur. These things take organising, you know.

There would appear, from the press releases, to be a new 18-135 zoom lens and a power zoom adapter that will be made to assist the videographers. Heaven knows how the latter works but it should all resolve itself when the representatives start the cameras going round the room.

Canon Is Out To Launch - Part One

Plan of Attack Number One:

Northbridge Hotel, 210 Lake Street North Perth.

Thursday the 25th of February, 2016

6:00 PM

Rendezvous with representatives of Canon Australia, Camera Electronic, and Andrew Ritchie.

See launch of new Canon EOS 1DX Mk II camera. Hear Andrew discuss his work and experience with this new equipment. Watch videos. Take notes and price lists.

Eat and drink. Be merry.

Discuss pre-order price with Camera Electronic staff. Loosen wallet. Open it and blow cobwebs off credit card. Put down deposit on new camera. Chortle inwardly.

Go home and plan out new profitable shooting at weddings, sports, fashion, studio, and events. Make sure lenses are cleaned and ready to go. Get extra invoice forms ready for new clients. Stand in front of mirror and practise sneering at other shooters who do not have the new camera. Chortle openly...

Yes, Folks, it is new model time at Canon Australia and the new Canon EOS 1 DX Mk II debuts next Wednesday at the Northbridge. This is the seriously fast and professional new Canon camera that is at the top end of the action and sports list. This is the one the pro agencies require of you. Now that there is a new one, they will soon specify it. Beat them to the punch - order one now and pay a deposit for the best price.

You know who you are and you know why you need this camera...bless you. Come on down and watch the presentation and get a feeling for the gear.

Note RSVP to CE so that they have the refreshments ready....

Night At The Shop - We Pack 'Em In

Do you remember that movie " Night At the Museum" ? I don't - never saw it or the sequels - because I spend my evenings attending product launches at Camera Electronic and I get to see everything I ever wanted to see...

Last night was the presentation of the new Fujifilm X-pr02, the X-70, the X-e2s, and the XF 100-400mm f:4.5-5.6 lens. Plus a talk by a professional photographer who has been using the new gear.

As usual, When Fujifilm wants to let people see the new products they send experts like Warwick to see us - information passes much better when a skilled person is responsible for telling us. He's got a very good line into the thinking of the company and has the opportunity to pass thoughts back to the designers and marketers as well. This open communication channel is part of what makes Fujifilm special as a photographic manufacturer.

The talk and picture show by Adam Ferguson was also a real eye-opener. Adam has followed recent wars and civil troubles from the very front lines - authorised and paid-for as well as just investigating things for his own sake. He's seen some harrowing sights and taken pictures while the bullets and bombs were flying. Some of the work was taken with the Fujifilm cameras in question, and I think we could all see the pictorial results advanced because of it. Certainly the work done in the Northern Territory that he showed was visually gorgeous - and had the advantage of not being quite so deadly as the other places he visited.

Is the new X-Pro2 camera a good deal? Yes. It incorporates a significantly improved sensor and processor  and pumps out finer, faster, more colourful work than the previous models. There are video and viewfinder improvements that make it easier to use. It focuses faster. It shoots more shots per battery charge. It has more film simulation settings  so you never need to move out of the JPEG space. If you got the money, Fujifilm got the camera. You can look the user of any other digital rangefinder camera, from anywhere, right in the eye - and spit in it...

Here's the staff testing out the stuff - or trying to catch each other in compromising positions...

 For my part I was charmed with the X-E2s and the X-70. Now the X-E2s is an improved version of the X-E2 I already use, and does things faster, clearer, etc. as these things always do. I've taken advantage of the Fujifilm company's policy of issuing firmware updates for the camera I own, so I don't need a new one, but I would unhesitatingly recommend the model to anyone wanting into the X-system. It is my go-to studio and dance show camera.

The one that really got my salivary glands going was the X-70. It has the feel of the X-100 I own, and the advantage for me of having a wider focal-length lens as standard. 18mm, as a matter of fact, so the view is equivalent to what we used to see on a 35mm camera with a 28mm lens. There's no optical or EVF but the excellent LCD screen has been hinged to face forward if you want it to. Sel Fie...

The camera will synch to the top if its speed range and you can even put on a slide-in optical viewfinder. There's a supp. lens as well, widening it out to the equivalent of 21mm in old film terms. That's wiiiide and sharp at the same time.

This would be the perfect camera to replace the damned mobile phone camera and to take  out landscape or car show shooting.

And last, but not least, were the cameras with the colourful covers:

The flag, and you can get them with British, New Zealand and presumably American markings.

The green lizard skin.

The strange little soft focus and cross filter lens that you can't get- -available only in Japan.

Like I said, it is as much fun as night in the Museum, but this time you get to see new stuff, not old.  

A Hot Week Weblog Post

Congratulate yourself - you made it to Wednesday with enough energy to turn the computer on. Now if you can get all your messages done before the battery in the laptop makes the case glow with heat, you might be able to get to Thursday.

In the meantime stop in tonight at the shop and see the new Fujifilm gear and mark up your calendar for the Olympus Pen F launch as well - this will be on the 17th of February.

Rod Lawson Kerr will be speaking about this new model and there will be a good chance to try it out. Light refreshments at the Camera Electronic Shop at 6:00 on the night but do RSVP to the shop beforehand so that they can reserve a toothpick for you.

Note: the shop is air-conditioned but it is unnecessary to wear fur coats or heavy parkas to protect yourself from the cold.

A Rewarding Experiment Tomorrow Night With Fujifilm

This is Tuesday the 9th and tomorrow is Wednesday the 10th. It is pretty much as if today was the 24th of December and tomorrow is the 25th, because we get to see the new Fujifilm toys tomorrow.

Not under a tree - in the Camera Electronic shop. There will be a Fujifilm product presentation night with some new items. I can't hint about what one of the items will be because I am officially ignorant, but I will be taking my Fujifilm X-pro1 camera body along just in case there is any new and interesting thing with which to compare it... to paraphrase Sergeant Schultz : I know nothing...officially...".

What I DO know officially because I have just been told is that the Fujifilm 100-400mm lens has already arrived and will be there tomorrow. That is why I popped into the Fujifilm cabinet today and extracted the newest of their standard focal-length lenses and took a test shot. I picked the new 35mm f:2 Fujinon and popped it on the X-T10. The heading shot of this column is the full file in JPEG at 400ISO and Provia setting. Here is a crop of the leafy bit:

I'll do the exact same thing tomorrow with the 100-400mm and post the results in a subsequent column. Then you can judge how well the lens maintains the results achievable with the standard one.

We are used to thinking of the 100-400mm focal length range in terms of zoom lenses from Canon , with a nearly similar range in Nikon or Sigma lenses. In the case of the Nikon or Canon the lenses are of a type that can be mounted on their respective APS-C or full frame camera bodies. They do duty as sports and wildlife lenses and, while they are somewhat large and somewhat heavy, the facility to change the focal length in the field without changing the lens is absolutely invaluable. Now this sort of reach and convenience will come to Fujifilm.

I have experience so far with two other longish Fujinon zooms; the 18-135 and the 55-200. I expect that the new 100-400 will be a faster focus experience, particularly with the newer X-T1 and X-T10 cameras. Heck, the recently re-firmware'd ( A tortured phrase if ever there was one - I shall invent a better one and patent it...) X-E2 will swing a focus like a shot. The zooms are light enough to hold over a long period and precise enough in resolution to do all that may be required up to the considerable capacity of the X-trans sensor.

Do you watch sports? Surf? Airplanes? Birds? Lions and elephants? Race cars? Long-range brides? This may very well be your go-to-and-get-'er-done lens.

Tell us you're coming, come along, enjoy the show, and try out the lens. After work tomorrow at the shop. Talk to me - I'll be gathering titbits for this weblog - tell me a good story I can use...

Finally I Get To Use My Fujifilm Camera For Reporting...

I'm going along to the Camera Electronic premises this Wednesday, the 10th, to learn about the new Fujifilm.

I'm going to take the Fujifilm I already own to do the report photos...the one that I just updated last night, fitted with the lens I already own that was also updated last night. That is the beauty of Fujifilm - whenever the factory thinks it can improve a product  they issue an alert on the internet and then supply you with a free software signal to change your gear.

Essentially I got a brand new camera for nothing. Woo Hoo.

It speaks volumes about a company that monitors the wants of the customers as well as the financial situation in photography. It has always had a reputation for thinking ever so slightly outside of the square...in a very good way. Older photo professionals will remember the Fuji medium format film cameras - both the fixed 6 x 7 and 6 x 9 rangefinder cameras and also the compact folders. Also the Fujifilm studio single lens reflex that combined movements with a system SLR in a way that even other major makers could not duplicate.

I'll leave you to the tender mercies of the " Fuji Rumors " web site to chew and speculate on upcoming cameras or lenses, and you can wander off into any number of posts from people using the current batch of digital cameras. They are as good or bad as their individual writers - you can make your own judgements. I enjoy the thing for what it is, but then I have to admit I also enjoy reading DOKR...Dear Old Ken Rockwell. I enjoy a laugh and the occasional flash of outrage and his posts are always a reliable source of both.

Back to Wednesday. I suspect it would be nice to ring the shop and tell them you're coming. It starts when the day's formal business concludes though in a way business will never cease - they'll be set up to take pre-orders for the new gear. There's to be a Fujifilm expert to present it and the usual refreshments. Probably the usual suspects as well.

You can be one of them, and if you were ever thinking about ditching larger and heavier cameras in favour of the mirror-less systems this is a good place to start looking.

The Anatomy Of A Good Time - Leica SL Night

I flatter myself that I can guess the interests of our readership; photography, cameras, lenses, technology, professional practice, etc...No real surprises there as Camera Electronic deals in just such a  variety of topics throughout the working week. It would be a shock if you turned to this column for a report about grain futures or haberdashery.

Not that we couldn't do it, mind. Camera Electronics loves grain and haberdashery...

But let us concentrate on last night's Leica Event. We were shown the new Leica SL camera with the 24-90mm lens. And in true CE style the event had a number of characteristic features:

1. Food.

2. Drink.

3. Cameras and lenses.

4. Expert advice from a company representative.

5. An enthusiastic professional photographer.

6. An attractive model.

7. Saul and Howard.

8. The Staff...

9. The Clients...

Okay, with a mix like that, and a technologically advanced manufacturer like Leica, something is going to happen worth seeing. And it did, and it was. And next Monday will start a more detailed report of what this reporter saw. His conclusions were different than his preconceptions might have suggested...

Leica Trip - The Travellers Report

Monday night at Shoot Workshops was a fun time for the Leica Club WA. As you'll see from the images they had plenty to eat and drink - always a good idea of an evening - and a chance to get a first-hand report about the opening of the new Leica Manufacturing Centre in Germany.

This is a pretty important year for Leica - a 100th year anniversary of the first of the Leica cameras. Saul and Howard travelled to Wetzlar as guests of Leica to participate in the opening of the industrial park. They were able to meet the heads of the firm and a number of other representatives from other countries as well as see the new facilities. There was ribbon-cutting, and I believe Howard got a bit of it...and there were prestigious presentations of the newest of the Leica products. of course, we've had our own view of the Leica T system here in the shop, and undoubtedly more of this stock will be coming.

Saul and Howard presented images they had taken on the trip - one taken at the spot where Oskar Barnack took his first picture with the first Leica. I'd be willing to bet a lot of the attendees took that same view...

As well, they had an opportunity to speak with a number of world-famous photographers who have used Leica in the past. I believe the conversation with Henri Cartier-Bresson was cut short when the ouija board fell off the table, but up until that decisive moment things went well.

Leica as a brand has the good sense to promote itself well. The unveiling of a new camera or lens is always a special time. and I am sure the various internet rumour forums follow every twist and turn of the story...then twist tighter. It is hard to better the best, however, so the enthusiasts who go to the Leica Club WA do get a chance to experience the new gear as fast as can be practicable. We always look forward with bated breath to what will issue from Wetzlar.

Postnote: In one of the next plog boasts we will be showing some of the photos taken on that trip.