CanonNews / Monday, January 22, 2018

fstoppers: What Canon's Full-Frame Mirrorless System Needs to Be Successful

There has been alot of talk about Canons rumored foray into full frame mirrorless this year will shape up to be.

Reading through this article on fstoppers, I can't say my opinion on the subject differs much.

Looking through all Canon's patents lately I haven't seen anything that screams full frame mirrorless, short registration distance aka .. a new mount. I personally think it will be EF mount for mirrorless. Why? Canon is the leader in stills photography, the EF mount lenses have a large following as well in the cinema world. Why on earth would they move away from that?

People suggest that an EF mount camera could be large, heavy and bulky - similar to today's DSLR's.

This is short sighted. There is nothing and I mean NOTHING stopping Canon from making a full frame mirrorless the size of an SL2 DSLR or even smaller. That also uses the EF mount ( the EF-S variation of it). What differs between that and its larger cousins is really the ergonomics. The SL2 simply doesn't have the same ability to control the camera with haptic controls as does a 5D Mark IV for example.

Imagine a 5D Mark IV styled camera with its ergonomics but now mirrorless. The grip would remain the same, the control layout, AF joystick, controls, buttons would all remain the same. Well, for that to happen - guess what? The camera would be around the same size. There's no getting around that unless you made a smaller camera with tiny fiddly buttons that you don't have a hope in hades of using in cold weather. Coughs, I'm looking at you Sony.

How difficult is it for Canon to make such a camera? In essense, if you lock the mirror up on any current Canon DSLR sans 7D Mark II, you have a credible mirrorless experience without an EVF. The hardest thing about making a full frame mirrorless for Canon is the firmware. You may have not noticed, but the M5 and M6 (two capable Canon mirrorless cameras) are built using Powershot firmware, and not Canon DSLR firmware. There's subtle but distinct differences to how the UI's act between the two. Canon would need to port the Powershot firmware into the DSLR firmware, or finish making the Powershot firmware up to DSLR standards (it's close but not quite there). Building the camera itself is probably the easiest task, as they have already done it with the M5 and M6 (let's face it.. after you build an APS-C mirrorless, building a full frame mirrorless isn't some magical process - it's just a different sensor).

What fstoppers had to say;

"This is now an era when latecomer manufacturers stand to gain." This specific quote from Canon's CEO sums things up pretty well. The stars couldn't have aligned themselves any better. A few key decisions that Canon makes in the next year or so could have a huge impact on the company. I doubt that Canon will be releasing anything earth-shattering, as they are very reserved in many cases, but whether or not they continue with the EF mount may determine their future. Nikon may have a tough road ahead of them when it comes to developing their mirrorless system. This, however, is something they will need to do in order to compete. It may take them up to a decade before they have a fully developed ecosystem, and the amount of investment required puts them at a great disadvantage. Nikon may have to settle for third place. Sony, on the other hand, is growing their mirrorless division very well, and the market sentiment seems to be in their favor. Effectively, this has become a race for two companies, and Canon potentially has the upper hand. Not only does Canon have a significantly larger range of lenses available, they are also cheaper and have better third-party options. The overall sentiment seems to be against Canon; however, the practicalities of their system outweigh the sentiment. Many professionals will simply continue with them. They already hold the number one spot in various key areas, and if they stick with the EF mount, it's going to be very difficult for other companies to compete.

Read the article here..