MegaPixel.co.il Interviews with Canon and Nikon at Photokina

While not exactly recent, the two interviews below were published in English only a few days ago. During photokina, Megapixel.co.il interviewed both Canon and Nikon about new products, product differentiation, and product development.

Canon Interview:

Synopsis from MegaPixel.co.il:

• Richard Shepherd explained in a few words in the interview about project 1709 (the name is actually the date of the beta announcement). The project is invitation only at this stage.
• The events in Japan in 2011 had a lot of influence on the actual launch of the 1D-X – Canon used the time to tweak and improve the finished product.
• Regarding the delays in launching some of the long telephoto lenses – Canon states that it was important to reach full production capability as to not cause delays later on.
• For Canon – the 6D is the idea travel camera. Although there might be other target audiences for the 6D – people who travel and like a quality camera they can carry are very high on the list.
• The 6D will not be the only DSLR wit GPS and WIFI but don't expect every model from now on to come with these features.
• Although we asked – we didn't get a direct answer whether or not the EOS-M can be fitted with and external digital viewfinder and if it can – does Canon has any plans to do so.
• According to Canon, Pro photographers do not trust digital viewfinders and so for pro cameras, optical viewfinders are here to stay.
• Adding a focus limiter in the camera is possible technically, however Mike Owen explained that so far Canon did not receive substantial enough request for this feature from its costumers.
• The APS-H format is not necessarily dead – this actually depends on the market and the consumer needs.
• The eye-control-focus technology (used for example in the Canon EOS-3) is gone, but it might return again in the future. In the past some photographers liked it but some didn't so its an open issue.
• Don't expect a road map from Canon for its EOS-M lenses (unlike Sony, Samsung, Fuji, Panasonic etc.). Canon is going to focus on what it feels are the right lenses for this format (i.e. mostly compact lenses).

Nikon Interview:

Things covered in the interview with Dirk Jasper:

• Target markets for the Nikon D600 and D800
• Similarities/differences between the D600 and D800
• Why AF points cannot extend to the edges of viewfinder
• Additional costs of full-frame camera production
• External vs internal GPS and WiFi
• The omission of articulated screens in "pro" cameras
• The possibility of electronic viewfinders in DSLRs
• What Jasper believes is the biggest revolution in photography in the last two years (Nikon 1 system)
• The future of photographic tools in the next two years