January might be over soon but the forward march of camera manufacturers in providing the best and innovative digital cameras shows no sign of stopping. If anything, 2015 looks like a promising year for us with camera manufacturers promising more pixels, better noise handling, cutting edge sensors, and 4k video handling to match the demand of photographers and videographers as well.
Olympus OMD E-M5 II
Coming this first week of February is Olympus’ OMD E-M5 MkII. According to 4/3 Rumors, Olympus E-M5 MkII might still have the 16-megapixel sensor and a 40 megapixel sensor shift function.It is also rumored that they are stepping up to have better video functionality. Sadly it will not able to record at 4K resolution but can instead record all-intra video at 50mb/s and a clean HDMI-out. Why does this excite us? Well, for one thing, the Olympus OMD series has been one of the go-to micro four thirds systems ever since the first OMD was launched a few years ago. Problem is that it was never known to take good videos. But now, Olympus is stepping up not only to deliver a competitively priced portable camera but a portable camera that can take great videos as well.
(Source: 4/3 Rumors)
Sony A7R Mk II
Sony was often an ignored brand in the world of photography. Not that they offered bad products; people just naturally flock towards Canon or Nikon. Through the years, Sony pushed and pushed the boundaries of their digital cameras (case in point: Translucent Mirror Technology and dual autofocus systems) and suffice to say, it paid off. Now Sony is a highly recognized brand for photography along with the regulars. The highly regarded A7R is about to be upgraded soon and according to Mirrorless Rumors, the improved A7R MkII will be sporting a 50-megapixel sensor. Quite a behemoth for its small frame, I’d say, but it’s a nice step up. I am pretty confident that the A7R MkII has other tricks up its sleeve outside the 50-megapixel sensor.
(Source Mirrorless Rumors)
Canon 5D Mark IV & EOS-1D
Rumors about the 5D MkIV have been flying around and it is said that the new iteration of the 5D series will come in three variations. According to Canon Rumors, there would be 2 EOS 5Ds which will both sport a high megapixel count — one of which will have an AA filter while the other 5Ds won’t. The third iteration of the 5D would still stick to the full frame path without the high megapixel count. Meanwhile it has been told that the new EOS-1D will be sporting a global shutter (also known as electronic shutter which the Fuji X-T1 has from its latest update) that allows capturing 30 frames per second of still images. But what does global shutter mean?
Well, according to Red.com, a global shutter controls incoming light to all photosites simultaneously. At any given point in time, all photosites are therefore either equally closed or equally open. A global shutter can work either by abruptly exposing and then obstructing all photosites at once, in which case it can be thought of as a “hard shutter,” or by doing this more gradually as a “soft shutter.” Since they have no moving parts, these are sometimes also referred to as an “electronic shutter.”
As someone who has been a loyal Canon user, I have been happy for the cool new features and disappointed for the lack of innovation especially with their entry-level cameras. This is because they have this knack of putting previous technologies to smaller and more affordable bodies. While I am still hopeful for that huge leap in innovation in Canon I can safely say that I am still inclined to jump ship to any brand anytime soon.
(Source Canon Rumors: 5D MkIV, EOS-1D)
Nikon D7200
The much awaited DX format camera has been making rounds since late 2014. It has been rumored that the new camera will be taking styling of the D750 body with a tilting screen. Other than that, it will have a 24MP APS-C sensor, an Expeed 4 processor, MultiCAM 3500DX2 autofocus system, 51 AF points, and can capture 6 frames per second. According to Nikon rumors, the D7200 has video functionality but the ability to capture 4k video is still unknown. What is more amazing is that the aperture is adjustable during live view mode. The camera is said to be officially announced soon this year.
(Nikon Rumors)
Other interesting camera rumors you should watch out for:
Fujifilm working on a bigger sensor (Fujirumors)
Nikon whole slew of cameras for CP+ (Nikon Rumors)
Nikon’s fullframe mirrorless camera (The New Camera)
It looks like 2015 will be a treat for photographers who are dreaming about high-resolution images and videos. Hopefully we get to see mind-blowing innovations soon. What do you folks think? Share your thoughts at the comments below!