Lake Success, NY—Canon USA announced its EOS 60D digital SLR, which boasts 18 megapixels of resolution, a 3.0-inch vari-angle LCD screen, Full HD video recording with manual overrides, in-camera functionality for RAW image processing plus creative filters. Aimed at advanced amateurs, the 60D replaces the EOS 50D and provides an array of new features to make it easier to add personal creativity to images.
“The EOS 60D has been designed to offer the image capture and the Full HD video features customers are looking for as they continue to expand their photographic skills. The exciting new features of the EOS 60D make using a DSLR camera more attractive and easier than ever before. We want everyone to experience the great image quality a Canon DSLR can offer with features and functions that they will appreciate and use,” said Yuichi Ishizuka, executive vice president and general manager, Consumer Imaging, Canon USA.
For the first time in the EOS system, the 60D has a vari-angle 3.0-inch Clear View LCD with 1,040,000-dot/VGA resolution plus antireflective and smudge-resistant coatings. Another first for the system is a multi-control dial, which streamlines navigation for vertical as well as horizontal shooting and enables a cleaner camera design than previous models. The 60D also has a locking mode dial, which prevents inadvertent changes to the selected shooting mode.
Yet another first for an EOS camera is the in-camera processing of RAW files, new reduced resolution image copies, and post-processing creative image filters. In-camera RAW image processing functions include picture style, white balance, color space, high-ISO noise reduction, peripheral illumination correction, linear distortion correction and chromatic aberration correction. The in-camera tools allow photographers to optimize images in the field and generate JPEGs at various resolution and compression settings for immediate sharing, without affecting the original RAW data. Lower resolution settings include 1,920x1,280 for display on HDTVs and 720x480 for uploading to social networking and photo-sharing websites.
New creative image filters include: soft focus; grainy black and white, for a nostalgic effect; toy camera, which adds vignetting and color shift for a creative option when shooting a colorful scene; and miniature effect, to make a scene appear like a small-scale model, simulating the look from a tilt-shift lens. The filters can be applied to a captured image in-camera to create a second “filtered” JPEG version, leaving the original RAW or JPEG file unaffected.
Also enhanced is the camera’s live view function, which adds an aspect ratio feature whereby the live view screen can display cropping lines for 1:1, 16:9 or 4:3 aspect ratios in addition to the standard 3:2. And a dedicated button initiates live view for still and video shooting.
Video capture options include Full HD at 1,920x1,080 res with selectable frame rates of cinematic 24p, 25p or 30p, as well as 720p HD at 50p or 60p, and SD video at 50p or 60p. The new movie mode also provides manual controls for exposure and audio levels in 64 steps, much like the firmware update for the EOS 5D Mark II HD-SLR. Canon also added an electronic wind filter to the audio controls within the movie shooting menu and included in-camera movie editing, allowing users to shorten a video by clipping segments from the beginning or the end. The 60D also includes a movie crop mode, which permits users to achieve 7x magnification when shooting SD video.
Other features include: an optical viewfinder; 9-point autofocus; Canon’s iFCL 63-zone metering system (intelligent focus, color, luminance); full-res still capture at 5.3 frames per second; an ISO range from 100-6400 and expandable to 12,800; a pop-up flash with an integrated Speedlite transmitter for control of two groups of off-camera EOS Speedlites without using an external transmitter; and support for extended capacity SDXC memory cards.
The Canon EOS 60D DSLR is scheduled for late September delivery and will be sold in a body-only configuration for $1,099 and as a kit with Canon’s EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS zoom lens for $1,399. The Canon BG-E9 battery grip will retail for $270. usa.canon.com