By site editor Dan Chung:
Newsshooter NAB 2015: Canon C300 Mark II First Look from Dan Chung on Vimeo.
Canon were displaying their new C300 Mark II at NAB in Las Vegas. Today we finally got to see the camera in the flesh. My initial impressions overall were very positive. Any user of the original camera will instantly at home with the mark II. Even though the camera is slightly heavier it can still work easily on the shoulder if you use it with the Zacuto Recoil system that Canon were showing the camera rigged with.
Canon today confirmed that the camera will indeed control most aspects of the EOS CN 17-120mm servo zoom lens.
The camera features an all-new 9.84 megapixel Super35 size CMOS sensor (8.85 megapixels is used when 4096 x 2160 shooting resolution and 8.29 megapixels when shooting 3840 x 2160 or 1920 x 1080 resolution). The camera has a claimed 15 stops of dynamic range – greater than the original C300 and also besting the Sony FS7 on paper. When combined with the new Dual Digic DV5 processor it allows 4K capture internally in 4:2:2 at 10-bit depth. The camera can also record 2K or HD resolution at 120fps. Sensor read speed is said to be twice as fast as the original C300. This should lessen the rolling shutter skew effects to the point where most viewers would never notice.
The image is said to be better than the already excellent original, which many shooters love. Canon Log2 replaces the original Canon Log and is in essence a flatter version that allows for more information to be retained in highlights and lowlights. Canon’s WideDR, as found on the C100 mkII, also makes an appearance on the camera – great for shooters who want an image that retains some highlight and shadow detail, while still being usable with minimal grading.
