CANON Onslaught

Back (L-R): EF 14 mm F2.8 L II USM, EF-S 55-250 mm IS and EOS 1D Mark III

Front (L-R): EF-S 18-55 mm IS lens, EOS 40D, PowerShot SD870 IS, PowerShot G9

So it's official! After a whirlwind of rumours and a few slip ups from Amazon, Canon recently announced it's next range of cameras that are guaranteed to keep those Canon fans' tongues wagging for a while. Top of the line is the brand new 1Ds Mark III with a whopping 21.1 megapixel full-frame CMOS sensor with DIGIC III technology and a 3-inch wide screen. Yes, that's right. 21.1 MP! Now who on earth would need so much pixels in a camera? Someone with US$7,999 that is. That's like S$12,000? Or 4,800 plates of chicken rice. Enough for a life time or two.



What I am more interested in really, is the much anticipated EOS 40D (above). The previous upgrade to the 20D - the 30D, was kind of a disappointing half-grade.This time round, Canon might just have a winner on its hands! 10.1 Megapixels, 6,5fps, 3-inch screen and Live View! Now, we just have to wait to see how it does on the noise levels. The 40D introduces one very interesting optional accessory - a vertical grip with built in WiFi capability and ethernet and USB ports to boot. And it costs US$1,200? Now that's about how much I bought my 350D for a few years ago!

Also new is the PowerShot G9. Canon has brought back shoot-in-RAW and up the megapixel count to 12.1. Yes, there is also image stabilizer, a 3-inch screen, 6x optical zoom (35-210mm, 35mm equivalent), 25 modes of shooting and face detection technology. It's relatively compact (106.4 x 71.9 x 42.5 mm) and weighs all of 320g. If I had an extra $1,000 to spare, I would sure get this as a compact replacement. All it needs to make it perfect is a wide angle lens. Oh, and I still miss the swivel screen. Then again, that's why we have the PowerShot S5 IS.

Other releases from Canon include the PowerShot SD870 IS (shown above), SD950 IS, SX100 IS, A650 IS, A720 IS and three new lenses - the EF-S 18-55 mm IS, EF-S 55-250 mm IS and EF 14 mm F2.8 L II USM (all three shown above).

Check out Digital Photography Review for more info and pics.