By Dan Chung

Smiles all round - James Velacott and Andy Jackson with the C300

After a long day shooting out on location with a pre-production Canon C300 I invited DOP Andy Jackson, James Velacott of Cherryduck productions and Guardian freelance shooter Felix Clay to discuss their thoughts about the new camera with me. Below is a quickly thrown together video of our discussion.

Dslrnewsshooter C300 discussion from Dan Chung on Vimeo.

As described in my previous post the idea was to try the camera on a ‘real world’ assignment where time was limited and events were beyond our control. After some discussion we chose an idea that James had come up with – Damyns Hall airfield near London where an aviator called Bob Pluck keeps his microlight.

Andy Jackson and myself filming Bob and his microlight

To keep everything realistic we then sent the rushes out to Paul Cope and Adam White of the post production team at Cherryduck for editing and grading. The footage looked very clean and detailed on the monitors in the edit suite, to my eyes far less digital than many other large sensor cameras I have tried.

The end result (bottom) can be seen below alongside a 1080P ungraded version of the edit for comparison. The camera was set in Canon’s C-log gamma curve and frame rate was 25P.

Bob the Aviator- Canon C300 short (ungraded version) from Dan Chung on Vimeo.

Bob the Aviator – Canon C300 short (regraded version) from Dan Chung on Vimeo.

For me the camera is great advance over the Canon DSLRs like the 5DmkII and although it it not cheap it does do almost everything that I need out of the box. I look forward to buying one if I can only find the funds for it.

My new object of desire

By Dan Chung

I’ve been lucky enough to test a pre-production Canon C300 for the past few days. I’m really happy to post this short story collabrative project shot entirely on the camera.

I was joined last Sunday by DOP Andy Jackson who regularly shoots for the BBC, James Velacott of Cherryduck productions and freelance shooter Felix Clay who works mainly for the Guardian.

The idea was to film a mini-documentary in just one day. It was then edited and graded by Cherryduck’s in house team. I’ll be talking about our experiences shortly, but for now I hope you enjoy the results.

By Dan Chung

I’ve been using Mike Tapa’s adapters for 35mm lenses for several years now. I first came across them when trying to mount Nikon long lenses onto my Sony EX3 – a long time before the advent of HDSLRs. Since then his company MTF Services has expanded its range of products to include lens adapters for many popular large sensor cameras such as the Panasonic AF100, Sony F3 and FS100. I took the opportunity of meeting Mike and visiting his London workshop over Christmas.

A Canon B4 mount broadcast lens fitted on the Canon EOS60D using a MTF adapter

His latest two adapters are a B4 broadcast lens to EOS / Sony F3 / FS100 adapter and an electronic EOS to Sony F3 / FS100 / Micro 4/3 lens adapter which offers full aperture control and image stabilising with appropriately equipped lenses.

The B4 lens adapter has been the dream of many DSLR and large sensor camcorder users who might occasionally want the flexibility of a long all-in-one zoom and ENG style lens operation – without the expense or bulk of a proper 2/3 ENG camera. Developed by Mike with cameraman Alistair Chapman (of XDCAM user fame) it physically adapts a 2/3 inch broadcast lens to a Canon EOS mount. At the same time it optically expands the image so that it is large enough to cover a Super35mm sensor size. To do this requires the user to engage the 2x range extender built into many broadcast lenses, which is then combined with extra magnification from the MTF adapter.

This does result in approximately 2.5 stops of light loss, but given the high sensitivity of new cameras this is less of a problem. The depth of field characteristics will remain the same as if you were using the lens on a regular 2/3 inch camcorder – don’t expect super shallow depth of field when using it. The adapter does not power the electric functions of an ENG lens so there is no servo zoom or VTR trigger sadly. If you do want to enable the zoom servo motor there is a possible solution to power it using an adapter cable from Ebay.

Please note that it does not cover the full frame sensor of the Canon 5D mkII or 1D X, but does work with the 7D, 60D, 600D/T3i, 550D/T2i (and should work with the C300 too). The adapter can also be used in combination with a EOS to Sony F3 or Sony NEX adapter to allow the B4 lenses to be used on these cameras. Price is not yet confirmed but should be in the £800 – £900 + tax range.

As you can see from the video above I’ve been testing the B4 adapter on a Sony F3 and also a Canon 60D and so far the results are pretty good, even though I only have access to older standard definition 2/3 lenses at the moment. My old Fujinon A15x8 broadcast lens does show some chromatic aberration and softness at the edges of the image but this is to be expected on a lens that can be bought for less than £500 these days. I would expect much better performance from a newer HD lens. Hopefully I’ll get to try one of those with the adapter soon. The only competing adapter I have seen so far is the HDx35 B4/PL Optical Adapter from Abelcine and costs $5800 US. I have not been able to compare the two.

The MTF EOS electronic lens adapter is the first to actually be available to order for the Sony F3 and NEX. It also works with Micro 4/3 cameras like the Panasonic AF100 where it joins the already available Redrockmicro livelens adapter in offering aperture control, but adds the benefit of image stabilisation. American company Birger Engineering have also been working on a similar adapter for some time now and have even shown it working at the NAB show, but it is still not available to buy.

The MTF adapter consists of two parts – a control box and an interchangeable lens mount in either Sony F3, Sony NEX or Micro 4/3 fit. If you change or add cameras you can simply add another mount part and use the same controller box.

A Canon 17-55 f2.8 IS lens with the MTF EOS adapter on a Sony F3

The control box is metal and powered by 4 AA batteries. It has an illuminated LCD that shows aperture value, focal length and whether stabilisation is on or off. Aperture can be adjusted in 1/8th stop increments using the control dial.

I’ve been testing a pre-production unit and found the aperture control to be quite reliable. A word of warning though – don’t spin the aperture dial too fast or the lens will have trouble keeping up, although the lens will eventually correct itself.

Mike tells me that pretty much all EF lenses work, apart from those few that use fly-by-wire manual focussing. The main lens of this type that doesn’t currently work is the 85mm f1.2L USM lens. Mike says he’s trying to fix this.

In use the adapter does pretty much what it is supposed to and I’m rather happy with it. The only downside is that the control box is a bit on the large side and adds bulk to the camera. The production version of the box has 1/4 20 mounting holes to allow positioning of the adapter on a rig or camera. That said I would rather have a smaller control box without AA batteries inside, running instead from a power tap cable. Maybe we’ll get this in a future version?

The image stabilisation seems to work well on a Sony F3, although I need to do more testing.

The control box is priced at £645 + tax and the matching lens adapters are £350 + tax each. More details soon on the MTF website.

By Pierre Deschamps

Testing the new Canon C300

I am a director, shooter and editor who started working with the Canon 5D mkII in December 2008. I made my first short documentary called “Man of the Soil” in February 2009; it was accepted in more than 20 international film selections. It won an award for Best Short at the IFFF 2011 International Forest Film Festival, Best Editing at the SilaFest International Film Festival and a special motion for Best Cinematography at the Barbados Bridgetown International Film Festival.

Man of the soil – Best short film award IFFF 2011 from Deschamps Pictures Ltd on Vimeo.

I have been always interested in framing – doing still photography from a young age and then doing 8mm filming. It is what I see on my display or viewfinder that moves me even if it isn’t technically perfect – as long as the emotion is there. I am an intuitive shooter who reacts with feelings. Story content combined with quality footage works for me.

When the rumours of the 5D mkII came out I knew it that it was a device for me. I didn’t care about the limitations of the camera compared to professional video cameras. I was pleased with it – it had the Wow effect. Together with the wide range of Canon EF lenses it was a blessing.

My latest work with the 5D mkII is a 52 minute documentary about New Zealand rugby called “Rugby: the Lifeblood of New Zealand”.

It was entirely shot with the 5D mkII combined with lenses from 15mm fisheye to 600mm super tele. I gathered 2.9 TB of footage before it was converted to Apple Prores 422 HQ. Canon Europe was one of the main contributors to this film, together with Zacuto and Kessler Crane.

So far the film has been be broadcasted worldwide on Canal Plus, Discovery Channel, ESPN Classic, TV Globo.

My new Documentary’s trailer by Canal + from Deschamps Pictures Ltd on Vimeo.

Recently I collaborated with Canon Europe at the Visa pour l’Image photo festival in France. When Canon ask me if I wanted to test and create content with the new EOS C300 I was thrilled. It was going to be launched in Hollywood and I was eager to see what it was about. I arranged to shoot with the camera in the seaside town of Brighton.

My test with the new Canon EOS C300 test from Deschamps Pictures Ltd on Vimeo.

On the bumper cars

The C300 with Zacuto rig in action

Coming from using HDSLR I hoped that it would overcome some of the 5D mkII’s shortcomings. In general it does just that. We came up with idea to do a shoot that was basic plug and play. Trying to take the camera straight out of the box, put a battery in, a lens on and rock. I shot it all just over a day due to weather conditions.

Of course this shoot was nothing in comparison to all the big high end Hollywood set-ups films that were shown at the launch on November 3rd, nor the smaller 15 man team of Sébastien Devaud, who also did a great work for the European launch film.

I didn’t have the same goal. My interest was in getting specific answers as a documentary shooter. I was on my own for a day. I wanted to see how this camera would react on a shoot. Would it fit my one-man configuration in my future projects. Would I be able to work with this camera and combine it with a lightweight rig and would all the technical stuff work flawlessly?

The simple answer was yes. To find the built-in ND filters was a joy. The dual XLR audio connections was a relief after using DSLR. The peaking and zebra functions were a real comfort and the magnification button was great.

Using the top mounted display

The bolt-on display is very good and efficient and the built-in viewfinder being in a central position was easy to use. I tested the camera with the top handle as well and found it practical for some shooting situations. The handgrip turned out to be very useful and I made many handheld shots with the EF 70-200mm f2.8L. This combination gave me great pleasure and great stability. Adding in a modified Crossfire rig from Zacuto made it even easier.

The camera responded very well to both highlights and lowlights, from the early morning sun to night-time shots mixing a dark sky and the lights of the Brighton Pier attractions. Pans, wide shots and close-ups all looked fine.

I was very pleased with the picture quality even if it took me some time to get used to it instead of my regular 5D mkII.

Setting up the C300 ready for use

In documentary it is almost impossible to prepare each shot as you would do in fiction – you have to go with the flow and capture the situation as it unfolds. This is exactly what I did on that shoot that day. I had to forget the settings and leave it to the camera at some points just to get the shots.

The Post-production was also a plus for me coming from the 5D mkII. I simply popped the CF card into a card reader on my iMac. The native 50Mbps MPEG-2 MXF recording (4:2:2) footage is rapidly ingested onto Final Cut Pro 7 using log and transfer. Editing was native and the output either native or in Apple ProRes 422 HQ.

I am very pleased so far and look forward to running further tests with this camera. For me it is pleasing to be able to forget about some of the technicalities and focus on creativity instead. Quite a change from DSLR shooting.

I am personally looking forward to working with the PL mount version together with the PL lenses. In future I will also try using the Canon Log and benefit from the dynamic range associated with it, offering greater possibilities in post-production.

In short, the C300 reached my expectations.

You can see more of Pierre’s work on his website.

By Dan Chung

Top shooter Andy Jackson checks out the C300 in Berlin

Two days ago I attended the European launch of the Canon C300 cameras in Berlin. It was aimed very much at the business end of our industry event with major TV broadcasters, dealers, rental houses and some key DOPs in attendance.

Canon chose the event to emphasize their commitment to being a part of the film and TV industry. Ryoichi Bamba, President and CEO of Canon Europe, Middle East and Africa was very keen to make it clear that they are listening to what people are saying and that the C300 is just the start of what he hoped to be a long relationship. To make this point Bamba quoted from Al Jolson in the Jazz Singer – the first ever Hollywood talkie – saying “You ain’t heard nothin’ yet”. Canon are clearly in it for the long haul.

Ryoichi Bamba, President and CEO of Canon Europe, Middle East and Africa

Let me say from the start of this blog post that from now onwards I am talking about this camera in terms of it’s suitability for current affairs, factual and documentary work. I am not going to attempt to compare it to the Red Scarlet, Epic or Arri Alexa as a Hollywood or indie movie camera. That is for others better qualified than me to discuss elsewhere.

The camera price has still not been officially announced but prices in the region of 12,000 to 13,000 Euro are being talked of by dealers. This is lower than the $20K price mentioned at the US launch, although if true sales taxes will probably mean $20K may still be the price you pay in Europe. Canon would not give an official price at the event and I really hope that the street price is much lower.

Old and New: The 5D mkII and C300 side by side

Spiritually the C300 is an EOS, you only have to look at next to the 5DmkII to see that it shares the same basic design but in a bigger shell. It looks and feels like a old medium format SLR camera. I personally love the design and the camera was very comfortable to hold in my hands. I was pleasantly surprised to get pretty good handheld shots with just the C300 and image stabilised lens but no support rig. That said I’d like to see a future version with shoulder mounted shooting more in mind (much in the same way that Sony offer similar specified cameras in slightly different configs) – rigs are great but a camera that works on the shoulder straight off is better.

Handheld shooting is a definite possibility

Canon have kept the body weight down and it’s not much heavier than a pro DSLR body like the EOS-1D X. For me this is critically important – it means I can use the camera in the way I did the 5D mkII before it – as part of my one man band backpack shoot kit. Pretty much all my support and stabilization gear was bought to work with DSLR and Sony EX1 cameras. With the C300 I would be fine using my existing tripod, Pocketdolly, Steadicam, Jib arm, car suction mounts, Shoulder rig etc… (assuming I use stills lenses not the heavier Cine ones). The cost of replacing gear to handle a heavier camera like the Scarlet or Sony F3/external recorder is substantial.

The EOS and PL mount parts of the Canon C300

The camera comes in two versions – PL and EOS mount. I could live with just EOS mount lenses but would much rather it had been an interchangeable EOS/PL mount so you could use a wider range on lenses on the same body. Canon engineers said their needed to be two version to guarantee structural strength with heavy lenses.

The Electronic viewfinder (EVF) in the camera body is great – no real need for an external third party EVF in many cases. It was very easy to see and I felt judging focus was easier on this than competing cameras (I never use the one on the Sony F3). The only thing that I missed was the 10x magnify function of DSLRs when checking precise focus. The C300’s EVF only seems to show actual pixels magnification as I suppose the sensor is not capable of creating the 10x view. The good news is that this magnification can be done when shooting, unlike DSLRs which can only do this before you roll.

Battery life is great, a single BP955 battery is perfect for shooting long stretches. Much better than a DSLR. The custom keys are also great and allow rapid access to many of the camera’s functions with a single button press.

You can still use a minijack mic straight into the camera

Audio is handled by the bolt on XLR/LCD screen module that comes with the camera – personally I’d rather have had all the XLR connections in the body itself. The response Canon gave me was that cinema shooters had said they preferred a smaller body to XLR in camera. There is however a minijack on the C300 which can have audio controlled pretty much the same way as the 5DmkII but with heaphone monitoring. Using some of the lessons learned using minijack gear with DSLR I think I’d be more comfortable running around with a simple top mic or radio mic in many situations simply to avoid having the bulk of the Monitor/audio pack on top of the camera.

Canon have designed the sensor from scratch and it’s not a modified stills sensor. By doing that they were able to optimize it fully for video at every stage. It is a 8.3 megapixel sensor but instead of recording 5K it records 1080P by using the pixels in groups of four (2 green, 1 blue, 1 red) to better achieve better colour sampling like a RGB sensor in a 3 CCD camcorder. This sensor delivers a claimed 1000+ TV lines of resolution with absolutely no trace of moire and little rolling shutter. It has a base sensitivity of ISO 850.

One disappointment for me was to see 50P and 60P frames only supported at 720P and not the full 1080P resolution. For slow motion work this may be a deal breaker for some.

Being Super35 not ‘full frame’ like the 5D mkII or 1D X does mean that it trades a bit of that shallow depth of field magic for the more conventional cinema look. It’s roughly the same size sensor as the 7D or 600D/T3i cameras.

The sensor clearly has excellent dynamic range and Canon claims 12 stops of latitude. That said the competing Sony F3 claims similar if not better range (13.5 stops with S-log upgrade) and Sony FS100 is not far behind. Figures are not everything and what matters is what this looks like in the final image. It will be interesting to see what the images look like when compared.

Peter Yabsley from Canon Europe explains the dynamic range of the C300

What is nice is that the Canon Log gamma is included with the camera (not extra like Sony) although for a lot of my fast turnaround work I would rather use a regular gamma as there is little time to grade. For that their are also 2 non-log Cine gammas which match those on the XF105 and XF305 camcorders and I assume that these will cut together well. There is also an EOS standard gamma like that of the 5D mkII.

The C300‘s aperture control with EOS lenses is on the left side of the camera and not on a rear control dial like the 5D mkII. At first I found this a little confusing and I’d have preferred the option to adjust aperture one handed like Canon DSLRs. Talking of aperture control the camera can control EF lenses in 1/3 stops increments as with the 5D mkII (EDIT – Canon sources have corrected me saying on the C300 there is also a ‘fine’ aperture step, something like 7,8 or 9 increments between f-stops). It is sadly not stepless and this seems to be a limitation of the lenses.

Johnnie Behiri plays with an old ISCO anamorphic on the C300

I tested a couple of old manual lenses – an adapted Leica R lens and a ISCO anamorphic with Nikon mount adapted. Both worked just fine and I don’t see a problem using older third party lenses with this camera.

In terms of image quality we were allowed to see the image from the camera on large monitors but not record anything ourselves. What I saw seemed to verify Canon’s claims of near 1000 TV lines of resolution. They also had a low light area where we could see for ourselves the low noise and excellent colour saturation in a very dark scene.

Sebastien Devaud talks about his C300 short film

Canon showed a couple of the films from the Hollywood launch as well as an impressive short film commissioned from French filmmaker Sebastien Devaud. I was really impressed with the projected image quality on the big screen, especially of Vincent Laforet’s Mobius. It looked incredibly film like and I would be very happy if my footage resembled that technical quality – Vincent tell’s me he and his DP Polly Morgan used Canon Log gamma and good exposure to achieve this. Other footage shown at the event did look more video like to me and I would really like to test the camera myself in different lighting conditions to see what’s possible.

Mobius – 1080p HQ from Vincent Laforet on Vimeo.

The internal recording is 8 Bit 4:2:2 MPEG-2 Long GOP at a max bitrate of 50Mbps. None of the other cameras in it’s class can do this internally and it’s better than Sony’s F3 or FS100. Importantly this camera it likely to meet BBC HD approval standards with ease – Alan Roberts who writes their reports was at the event and should be evaluating it soon. To get this same bitrate with the Sony F3 or FS100 you need dangling cables and an external recorder like the Nanoflash or KiPro Mini.

Better still the C300 records to regular fast Compact Flash (CF) cards and can record to 2 simultaneously for backup. The choice of CF cards makes shooting for extended periods without a laptop or power a possibility. Should I ever have to cover something as terrible as the Iraq war again I would certainly benefit from using lots of CF cards instead of having to dump footage all the time.

Images are recorded using the MXF file format which is perfect for docu, news and other rapid turnaround TV productions – many shooters wanted to see the C300 have RAW files like the Reds and in some fields I think that is a legitimate request. But for fast turnaround or shoots where there are hours of material MXF MPEG-2 format is perfect. It can drop straight into most editing software timelines with no transcode at all. It’s also used by Canon’s XF305 and 105 camcorders and editing these alongside a C300 should be a breeze.

Bryn Balcombe checks out a C300 Cine rig

One thing that many pros have cited as being a negative is that the C300 only captures 8 bit images. Also the C300 is 8 bit all the way through from the sensor so don’t look for a 10 bit firmware fix anytime. That said the sensor combined with 8 bits seems very capable. Canon sources have argued that you are better off with a more perfect original image recorded in 8 bit, than one from a lesser sensor at 10 bit. What I can say is that the images Canon were showing are plenty good enough for any of my current clients and any news, docu or current affairs program I can think of.

Would I have preferred to have the option to record RAW or 10bit to an external recorder? most certainly and I think Canon missed a trick here. Given their ‘You ain’t seen nothing yet’ statement I’m sure that means these things are coming down the line. This is a double edged sword – it reassures us that Canon is serious about creating better cameras, but if I were to buy the C300 I would prefer not be jealously eyeing up a better sister camera in 12 months time. I remember all too well my pain at seeing the Sony EX3 with it’s interchangeable lens come along shortly after I had got an EX1.

Lens choices are plenty - but still an issue

For now I think lenses are the most serious issue Canon has to address for documentary, news and run and gun shooting with this camera. There is no ‘proper’ run and gun lens to match this camera and it’s sensor. The closest Canon gets is the 17-55 f2.8 EF-S lens and that has a pretty bad manual focus ring – certainly not befitting of a camera like the C300. The better built L zoom lenses like the 16-35mm f2.8L and 24-105mm f4L are just too short range or not wide enough for a one lens solution on the Super35mm sensor size. The Cine lenses launched with the camera are wonderful but high priced and their 300 odd degrees of rotation pretty much rule them out for handheld run and gun work.

Sony has the 18-252mm servo zoom lens for it’s F3 so that’s an advantage over Canon (at a price). Like many others my ideal lens would be an f2.8 of f3.5 version of the existing Canon 15-85mm EF-S lens but with better construction and proper manual focus and image stabilizing – lets hope it comes in time.

The C300 price also effects lens choice in another way. To prevent having to change lenses and lose shots I currently to use two 5D mkII bodies at the same time with different lenses on each when shooting – just as I did as a stills shooter. That way I don’t have to swap lenses in dusty conditions and miss fewer shots swapping between wide and long lenses. Now you could of course do this with two C300 cameras but the cost would be way to high for me and most others. You could use a 1D X or a camcorder like the XF305 as a second ‘long lens’ camera instead but it would still add a lot to the cost and by the time you add that to your bag then it’s going to be pretty heavy.

On paper the C300 is the closest thing to being my perfect daily use, shallow depth of field video camera thus far announced – even if it was designed for Hollywood not documentary. It checks more of the boxes on my list than any other camera – although there is always room for improvement.

In reality I will need to test it in the field against it’s closest competitor the Sony PMW-F3, the Sony FS-100, the 1D X and the 5D mkII (or it’s replacement) to see which combo will find a regular place in my kit bag. Specs are fine but it’s handling and image quality that really count. What I can tell you now that it’s size and weight will weigh heavily in the C300’s favour when I come to deciding this.

All through the event I couldn’t help thinking that this camera is far less about Hollywood than it is about daily drama and factual TV production. I’m not sure how many will DOPs will choose the C300 over an Alexa, F65 or an Epic for high end motion picture work, but I can see it fitting right into the much bigger market for indie movies and TV series.

The price point means for many news and docu shooters it will remain a purely aspirational camera, or one that you might rent from time to time for specific assignments. But if your pockets (or that of your bosses) are deep enough then I recommend you take a close look at the C300 when it comes out in January.

British band Scala finishing the night for Canon at the C300 launch

By Dan Chung

So Canon have finally taken the wraps off the C300 large sensor camcorder amid much Hollywood fanfare at the Paramount studio lot. The corporation are clearly taking this market seriously as their global Chairman and CEO Fujio Mitarai personally launched the camera with many of their top brass at the event.

There are two versions of the camera – one with an EOS mount and the other with a cinema PL mount – the two are otherwise identical. There is no autofocus, autoexposure or auto white balance on either version. The body itself is quite compact and features a detachable grip and LCD monitor/XLR audio pack.

Along with the camera several new Cine style lenses were launched – a 14.5-60mm T2.6 and 30-300 T2.95-3.7 in both PL an EOS mounts, along with a set of three primes (24, 50 and 85mm) in EOS mount only.

Inside the camera is a 8.3 megapixel (4K) Super-35 sized CMOS sensor (similar in size to the EOS7D not the 5D mkII or 1D X) but the camera actually records 1080P, not 4K. The extra pixels are used to extract better colour information from the image, not resolution – more later on that.

The sensor is also designed to minimise rolling shutter and should be considerably better than current Canon DSLRs like the 5D mkII. Images can be recorded at 1080/24P (and one assumes 25 and 30P) but only 720P/60 – a slight disappointment.

The images are recorded to CF cards using the same XF codec as Canon’s XF305 and XF105 camcorders. This is 50Mbps 4:2:2 MPEG2 in an MXF wrapper. There are two CF card slots in the camera body as well as a 4:2:2 HD-SDI output for external recording. There is a HDMI output too which is good news for owners of HDMI monitors or EVFs.

It’s worth noting that there is no firewire port on the camera – possibly an issue for news shooters doing live feeds via satphones and Quicklink.

There is an optional wireless module that allows the camera’s exposure and focus to be viewed and controlled from an Ipad or PC – this to my mind is one of the most innovative features. Details are sketchy but this feature alone makes the camera a very attractive proposition to me.

Similar to Canon DSLR’s Picture Profiles there are a choice of gamma settings. Canon LOG gamma gives a flat image designed to be graded later, much like Technicolor Cinestyle. There are also more standard gammas which are designed to give a punchier image straight off.

According to Vincent Laforet there is a built in electronic ND adjustment that goes right to 1/64th and has no loss in image quality. For run and gun shooting this will be a huge bonus if it works.

The hype around these cameras online has been phenomenal but ultimately it’s performance that counts. Canon sources assure me that it does not disappoint and that it scores against competitors specifically in the colour reproduction and skin tone department. The camera has an all new 4K chip, which instead of rendering a 4K output creates a 1080P image with claimed much better colour fidelity. It does this by sampling 2 megapixels each of red and blue and four of green for each image – in other words four pixels are sampled for every one recorded.

Sources at Canon also claim the camera has been seen to out resolve cameras like the competing Sony F3 in initial tests – again I would like to see that for myself before reaching a conclusion.

How this camera works out for news and documentary shooters remains to be seen. On one hand the smaller size and weight compared to a Sony F3 or Red should be a real advantage. On the downside the ergonomics are not designed for run and gun shooting off the shoulder. Luckily rig manufacturers like Redrockmicro, Zacuto and Letus have already had access to camera to build solutions.

Hurlbut Visuals MCS rig with the C300

Canon have today made a very dramatic entrance into the large sensor video camera market today. I for one cannot wait to test the C300.

As with previous Canon products my good friend Vincent Laforet was one of the first to film with the C300 – his results are below with more details over on his blog.

There is also a new Canon website specially dedicated to the camera http://www.canoncinemaeos.com/
At least one dealer is already taking pre-orders for the C300 at just over $16,000 US.