Canon News (Page 6) Report News & Deals

"This is The-Digital-Picture.com's Weekend Recap for the week ending June 1st, 2013
 
In the news...
 
It was an unprecedented week for Canon firmware updates. First off, Canon released firmware updates for the 1D Mark IV, 1Ds Mark III, and 1D Mark III – all firmware updates enabled the center AF point to autofocus when the camera is used with the EF 200-400mm F4L USM lens when used with the internal Extender and an external 1.4x Extender.
 
Second, Canon released a 1D X firmware update that incorporated several bug fixes including slow autofocus when using a speedlite’s AF assist beam.
 
Third, Canon announced a firmware update for the 1D C. Along with a few bug fixes, the new firmware provides support for 25p (PAL format) video recording in 4K resolution. Owners will have to send their cameras into Canon Service in order to update their 1D C’s firmware.
 
And fourth, Canon released an updated firmware for the WFT-E7A Wireless File Transmitter that corrected a couple of issues from previous versions.
 
On Wednesday, Canon celebrated a manufacturing milestone – the production of its 90-millionth EF-series interchangeable lens for EOS cameras. And, just in case you’re curious, the 90-millionth lens produced by Canon was a 24-70mm f/2.8 L II.
 
On Friday, B&H and Adorama started shipping the Canon EF 200-400mm f/4 L IS USM Lens with built-in Extender. We have one headed our way and look forward to putting it through its paces.
 
On Saturday, we posted Adobe’s response to questions regarding Creative Cloud. Adobe notes that many photographers desire a more-tailored program specific to their needs. Adobe is currently exploring photography-specific options. They are also formulating solutions that will allow Creative Cloud customers to access their existing files even after their subscription lapses. Expect more announcements from Adobe soon.
 
In site news and reviews...
 
On Thursday, Bryan posted the image quality results for the Tamron 18-270mm Di II VC PZD Lens and added the lens’s information to the Lens Specifications Tool on the site.
 
On Friday, Bryan tentatively announced a new feature to the site – star ratings for gear reviews. Keep in mind, we realize it’s very difficult to represent all aspects of a lens – image quality, build quality, AF speed, etc. – with a single rating. However, it is a work in progress so please bear with us.
 
On Saturday, Bryan added product images for several lenses to the site’s Lens Product Image Comparison Tool. Check out the tool found in the site’s menu bar for all the site’s lens comparison images.
 
And, for our deal of the week…
 
On Saturday, we posted a deal from DigitalRev where you could get a Canon EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM Lens for $369.00 – more than a 32% savings off the normal retail price of $549.00.
 
This has been the The-Digital-Picture.com’s Weekend Recap. Thanks for listening, and as always, happy shooting!"

• File access. Customers want to be sure that, if their membership to Creative Cloud lapses, they will still have access to their files.
• Photographers, particularly photo-enthusiasts, are looking for a more tailored offering that focuses on their particular needs.
• Some customers are not convinced that Creative Cloud is right for them and would rather continue to purchase desktop applications as before.

We want to start off by reinforcing that we continue to believe that the move to Creative Cloud will benefit the wider creative community because of the constant stream of innovation that we’re able to deliver. Creative Cloud also allows us to explore new areas in mobile apps, helping you collaborate better and build a meaningful worldwide community to share work and find inspiration. Because of this we have no plans to change our focus on Creative Cloud. We understand this is a big change and for customers who are not yet ready to move, we will continue to offer CS6 products through our reseller partners and Adobe.com.
 
For photographers, we are looking at potential offerings that recognize the photography community – because it is so broad – has some unique needs.
 
With regards to file access, Adobe completely agrees that customers should have access to their files if they choose to stop their Creative Cloud membership. Our job is to delight our customers with innovation, but there are a number of options open to us here and we expect to have news around this issue shortly.
 
We sincerely appreciate all the feedback you have given us. We believe that an honest and open dialogue with the community will ensure that, together, we can move the creative process forward.
 
Thanks again for using Creative Cloud. If you have any questions or comments, please post them in our forums, where we are continuing the conversation.
 
- The Creative Cloud Team
 
Adobe is offering Creative Cloud for 60% off for students and CS6 customers; CS3-CS5.5 customers can get Creative Cloud for 40% off.
 
For a perpetual license option, Adorama has Adobe Photoshop CS6 for Windows available for $70.00 off – only $529.95 with free shipping. Regularly $599.95.

• Fits D-SLR Camera, 3-4 Lens Kit
• Fits 17" Laptop Computer
• 840D and 600D Ripstop Nylon Exterior
• High-density Closed-cell Foam Interior
• Padded Carry Handle
• DryFlo Shoulder Harness

• Canon EOS Rebel T3i DSLR Camera
• Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS II Autofocus Lens
• Watson - LP-E8 Lithium-Ion Battery Pack (7.4V, 1100mAh)
• Ruggard - Hunter 25 DSLR Holster Bag
• SanDisk - 16GB SDHC Memory Card Ultra Class 10 UHS-I

"Not content to just turn paint into a power source, revolutionize headphones, suck pollution out of oceans, bestow us with hyper-fast upload times, and pretty much anything else you can dream up, graphene is at it once again. And this time, the supermaterial that keeps on giving is opening the door to better low-light photos in the form of an image sensor that can catch light 1,000 times better than traditional sensors. Oh, and it uses 10 times less energy, too."

Check out the full Gizmodo article for more info.

• Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S Nikkor Lens
• Shur-Line 06572L Easy Reach Extension Pole, 4-6 Feet
• Kacey Pole Adapter
• Nikon SB 910 TTL AF Show Mount Speedlight
• Lastolite Joe McNally Rotate Triflash
• Westcott 7 Feet White Diffusion Parabolic Umbrella

Budget Recommendations:

• Flashpoint 16-Rib 86" Parabolic White Umbrella
• Flashpoint 16-Rib 64" Parabolic White Umbrella
• Interfit Photographic Triple Flash Bracket

Note: I [Sean] have been using the Shur-Line Painter's Pole with a Kacey Pole Adapter for several years. If you have some assistance, it can really make "run-and-gun" off-camera lighting much easier.

• Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4
• Kelby Training - DVD: Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4 Crash Course

1. Improves the speed of the camera’s acquisition of focus when using a Canon Speedlite’s AF-assist beam.
2. Reduces the time it takes to display the metering result on the LCD or Viewfinder when the meter has been activated.
3. Fixes a phenomenon in which a “Caution 02” message is unnecessarily recorded in the camera status log.
4. Fixes a phenomenon in which continuous shooting pauses when using a Canon Speedlite.
5. Fixes a phenomenon, when the Canon GP-E1 is attached, in which the GPS device settings are reset to default settings when the camera has been powered off.

Note: *This phenomenon occurs only with firmware Ver. 1.2.1. After changing the GPS device settings, please be sure to power off the camera before removing the battery. This will ensure that the camera's GPS device settings will be saved.
 
Firmware Version 1.2.4 is for cameras with firmware version 1.2.1 or earlier. If your camera’s firmware is already Version 1.2.4, it is not necessary to update the firmware. When updating your camera’s firmware, please review the instructions thoroughly before you update the firmware.
 
The firmware update takes approximately seven minutes.
 
Download:
 
The new Firmware Version 1.2.4 can be downloaded by clicking here.
 
This information is for residents of the United States and Puerto Rico only. If you do not reside in the USA or Puerto Rico, please contact the Canon Customer Support Center in your region.
 
B&H carries the Canon 1D X DSLR Camera. The Canon Store also has the Refurbished 1D X in stock.