The rumors are true - the Mark III is coming. I’m a bit too sleepy now to write about everything in details. I’ll break everything down in another post, but for now, I’m going to bed. In the meantime, you can enjoy some excerpts from the press release.

Not 22MP, but damn fast!

Canon, the worldwide market leader in digital cameras, celebrates the 20th anniversary of its top-selling EOS single lens reflex camera system by announcing the EOS-1D Mark III Digital SLR, the world’s fastest digital SLR camera. At 10 frames per second, the 10.1 megapixel EOS-1D Mark III digital SLR can fire huge motor-driven bursts of 110 Large JPEGs or 30 RAW files because it employs the new Dual DIGIC III image processor engine, providing enough computational horsepower to do parallel processing at a rate unmatched by any other digital SLR.

Live View shooting now available!

One of the landmark functions of the EOS-1D Mark III Digital SLR is the introduction of a Live View shooting mode, tweaked to meet the needs of professional shooters.

Lots of new features!

Another first for a professional digital SLR of this caliber is a complete dust management solution, called the EOS Integrated Cleaning System. The new CMOS image sensor is designed with a lightweight infrared absorption glass cover that vibrates for 3.5 seconds when the camera is turned on or off.

The brand-new autofocus system in the EOS-1D Mark III Digital SLR represents a complete reconsideration of professional AF.

The DIGIC III image processor replaces the DIGIC II and assists in rendering very fine image detail and natural color reproduction with 50% less shadow noise than previous EOS digital SLRs.

The all new, 10.1 megapixel CMOS sensor… is APS-H size, 28.1 by 18.7mm, significantly larger than the much more commonly found APS-C, usually about 23.5 by 15.5mm. The lens magnification factor is 1.3x, rather than 1.5x or 1.6x. The increased sensor size means that each pixel can be larger for a given resolution.

The EOS-1D Mark III Digital SLR is the product of a “reset to zero” design process; absolutely everything was re-evaluated. The result is a new and exceptionally easy to use set of controls.

The EOS-1D Mark III Digital SLR’s power supply is yet another valuable new feature: The camera now uses a new LC-E4 Lithium-ion battery pack instead of the previous NP-E3 Nickel-Metal Hydride (Ni-MH) type. As a result, the weight of the 1D Mark III Digital SLR with the battery and memory cards installed is approximately 8 oz. lighter than the EOS-1D Mark II N Digital SLR when comparably equipped, and estimated shooting capacity has significantly improved from 1200 shots for the 1D Mark II N Digital SLR to approximately 2200 shots for the EOS-1D Mark III Digital SLR under normal shooting conditions.

Major advances have also been made in recording, storage, and playback. For example, in addition to the RAW and JPEG options found in previous EOS Digital SLRs, the EOS-1D Mark III Digital SLR now offers the “sRAW” recording format. “sRAW” has all the flexibility of standard RAW data recording, but at one quarter the resolution and approximately half the file size of conventional RAW images.

Another breakthrough option is the ability to record to external USB storage devices connected to the camera via the optional WFT-E2A Wireless Transmitter (see below for more information on the WFT-E2A). Yet another new option is automatic switching of recording media; when the current recording medium becomes full, the camera switches to another automatically and continues recording without interruption.

With the EOS-1D Mark III Digital SLR, if the card slot cover is opened during the writing operation, an alarm sounds and a warning message appears on the screen to indicate that writing is in progress. The card writing continues even if the slot cover is opened. Also, if you set the power switch to the “off” position during the card writing process, a message appears on the screen to indicate that writing is in progress. After the writing is completed, the power turns off.

There’s a new L lens too!

A new EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM Lens succeeds the versatile EF16-35mm f/2.8L USM Lens as a high-performance L-series wide-angle zoom lens, specifically designed for improved peripheral image quality. Compatible with all EOS SLRs past and present, it uses three high-precision aspherical lens elements and two Ultra Low Dispersion (UD) lens elements to minimize lateral chromatic aberration and to produce superb image quality with excellent resolution and contrast. New coatings minimize ghosting and flare. It is an internal focus design, so the front element does not rotate during focusing and zooming, a convenience for users of circular polarizer filters. The lens is also fully gasketed and sealed for dust and moisture resistance, and it features an electronic diaphragm with circular blades for natural-looking background blur effects.

To top it all of, there’s a new flash!

The popular Speedlite 580EX Flash is being replaced by the new Speedlite 580EX II Flash, which features a host of improvements, including a metal hot shoe with an improved locking mechanism for added durability, an external metering sensor for non-TTL automatic flash exposure control and a PC socket for use with non-dedicated slave triggers. Fully compatible with all EOS SLRs, the new Speedlite 580EX II is gasketed for dust and moisture resistance, making it possible for users of EOS-1 class digital SLRs and many L-series EF lenses to use flash safely when shooting in dusty or wet environments.

… as for other things mentioned in the rumor…
There was nothing in the press release about the size of the camera - or at least I didn’t notice anything when I skimmed through it. The picture looks a bit smaller, but I really can’t tell.

As for the mount, I was right - they’re sticking with the EF mount. It really wouldn’t be a smart move to switch lens mounts now that they’ve established their line of EF and EF-S lenses.

That’s all I have to say - at least for now. If you still want to, you can read the rest of the press release.

Good night everybody!

Tags: Canon, EOS, DIGIC III, EF, Canon EOS-1D Mark III, Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM, Canon Speedlite 580EX, digital SLR, professional camera, upgrade