Canon held its highly anticipated Cinema EOS event in Hollywood, California this afternoon. Chairman and CEO of Canon, Fujio Mitarai took the stage and declared that the company wanted to "leave no story untold". After holding up the EOS C300 camera behind the podium, Mitarai explained that Canon took cues from industry professionals who had already used the 5D Mark II in production.

Canon looks to improve on its relationship with Hollywood and encourage the use and development of better tools for filmmaking. Besides launching the C300, Canon plans to open a technology and support center to bring themselves and their cameras within closer reach. When it comes to the EOS C300, the highlights of this relatively lightweight cinema camera are many.

The C300 will be launched as the C300 and C300 PL. Both cameras are identical except the PL version will feature an Arri Positive Lock PL mount. Mitarai described accurate color reproduction as one of the strengths of the C300, resting on decades of Canon optical technology experience. The C300 is incredibly versatile, largely because of its compact size.

Directors in the promotional video that played at the EOS Cinema event described an excellent signal to noise ratio and an outstanding ability to shoot in natural light as integral to the C300. Scenes are sharp even in low light and the C300 can be used for close up or wide angle recording. Martin Scorsese even made an appearance to vouch for the C300's small form factor and inexpensive price as a boon to filmmakers everywhere.

Specifications include a completely new, designed-for-cinema 8.3MP 2160 x 3840 Super-35 CMOS sensor (4K resolution) alongside the DIGIC DV III processor. Recording to dual compact flash cards is achieved with the Canon XF codec (50Mbps 4:2:2 1080p30 MPEG2 MXF). No priority, autofocus or auto exposure/white balance settings are included; the C300 is a completely manual operation.

The C300 body comes complete with a monitor, power adapter and battery, viewfinder, and modular handles and grips. Several new cinema lenses will also be released, including two zoom lenses available with either EF or PL mounts. Three prime lenses (EF mount only) that resolve to 4K will also be launched. The Canon C300 arrives in January at a list price of $20,000.

Source: DigPhoto

Canon EOS C300 Digital Cinema Camera Pictures

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