When Canon introduced the hugely popular EOS C300 camera,
many people saw it as the budget Arri Alexa, and when it released the C100, it
was the budget C300 - using the same large sensor everyone loved, but losing
the ability to record industry-standard 50Mbps video in the camera, although
that was nothing the addition of an Atomos Ninja or similar recorder couldn’t
address.
A lot more cameras have come on to the market, since then,
so Canon had to improve the C100, replace it or abandon it. As you’d expect,
Canon has done what it usually does with a successful camera, and introduced a
Mark II version.
At first sight there isn’t a big difference in the old and
new version. The alterations that have been made are small and incremental if
taken on their own, but added together the changes show that Canon has been
listening to its customers.
One of the most important changes is the addition of higher
quality MP4 recording (to the twin SD card slots) along with the previous
offering of AVCHD only.
You can now record:
AVCHD
|
|
50p
|
28Mbps or 28Mbps LPCM
|
50i
|
28Mbps LPCM, 24, 17 or 7Mbps
|
25pf
|
28Mbps LPCM, 24, 17 or 7Mbps
|
59.94p
|
28Mbps or 28Mbps LPCM
|
59.94i
|
28Mbps LPCM, 24, 17 or 7Mbps
|
29.97pf
|
28Mbps LPCM, 24, 17 or 7Mbps
|
23.98p
|
28Mbps LPCM, 24, 17 or 7Mbps
|
LPCM = Linear Pulse Code Modulation (audio)
MP4 / H.264
|
|
50p
|
35Mbps
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25p
|
17 or 3Mbps
|
59.94p
|
35Mbps
|
29.97p
|
17 or 3Mbps
|
23.98p
|
17 or 3Mbps
|
35Mbps isn’t shabby, but for those needing more megabits per
second and less compression the solution is using the HDMI socket and running
video out to a separate recorder. I do find it surprising that at this price
(£3,600 including VAT) they couldn't have put in an HD-SDI socket –Canon’s own
XF305 (also £3,600 inc VAT) and XF105 (£1,800 inc VAT) both have SDI sockets.
HDMI is just not secure enough to hold onto a cable. Give me a bayonet fitting
any day – once it is plugged in, it stays in.
The camera has kept the same Super 35mm 8.3-megapixel CMOS
sensor found in the original EOS C100, (and the EOS C300). But, its image
processing has had an upgrade to the Digic DV 4.
The Digic DV 4 processor enables the C100 Mark II’s advanced
new debayering algorithm for image processing called Over Sampling HD
Processing. Using this method, the camera captures an Ultra HD image, the red,
green and blue channels are separated into three individual 8-megapixel UHD
signals (compared to 2-megapixels in the
EOS C100), and the UHD RGB signals are then multiplexed and scaled down
internally into the HD (1920x1080) signal that is recorded. This process
results in appreciably improved image
quality.
Disappointingly for many – although the camera captures a
UHD image you cant output a UHD image. I know for some people this is a deal
breaker – but I’m not convinced that many of us need 4K right now. Ask yourself
– how many of your friends have a 4K TV? Even the geeks I know in broadcast
don't have one – they are too expensive. Certainly many of the people I train shoot
video for the web – where UHD is overkill at best. If the client insists on 4K
you can always hire in a suitable camera (or buy the newly released C300 Mk II
or the less expensive, less flexible, XC10).
However, using this over sampling method should not only
offer improved image quality and perceived resolution but also a reduction in
the occurrences of false colours and moiré patterning as well as limiting the
levels of noise at high ISO.
Indeed, the ISO range has increased from 80,000 (i.e. 42dB
of gain) to 102,400 (44dB of gain), although that no longer sounds impressive
when you see video shot by moonlight on the Sony A7s, which can max out at
409,600 ISO.
The dual pixel auto focus isn’t really new, but it does now
come as standard (rather than an upgrade). I know some people will see
autofocus as dumbing down – but we can’t all afford a focus puller and cine
lenses. So, the auto focus will come in handy along with the Auto Focus Lock
button – which prevents focus hunting. The big downside is that the autofocus
is still centre weighted and can’t be moved around the screen as with a DSLR.
I’m also glad to see face detection. Some may see it as a
gimmick – but if you’re a self shooter doing lots of interviews you’ll find it
works well and you’ll have one less thing to worry about. But, do be aware face
detection doesn’t work with all lenses. The review camera didn’t come with a
lens so I used my Canon EF-S 18-135mm lens, which is incompatible with face
detection. So, if you intend to use face detection, push auto iris or auto
aperture you’ll need a compatible lens – at the moment there are only five
listed on the Canon website (all are STM lenses).
EF 24-105mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM
EF-S 55-250mm F4-5.6 IS STM
EF-S 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 IS STM
EF-S 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 IS STM
EF-S 10-18mm F4.5-5.6 IS STM
One of the biggest changes is the screen. The hinge has
moved from the top of the screen to the left hand side. Previously it didn’t
have a lot of flexibility of angles. Now it flips out, up, down and even around
the side of the camera (through 270º). This will make running and gunning with
the camera so much easier. Whether you have the camera low down or above your
head you’ll be able to see what you’re doing. Some people did complain that
their (old) screen was a tad on the blue side. So, they will be pleased to hear
that the screen has also been upgraded from an LCD to a 3.5-inch OLED with more
accurate colour rendition for judging colour temperature. It also has its own
power button – handy for switching it off and saving your battery.
Another useful addition is the vectorscope (previously available
only on the C300 and C500), which is handy for checking skin tone and white
balance is correct.
A further important change is the joystick used to navigate
the menus. In the original C100 it was ergonomically placed on the handgrip
just where your thumb would sit. But, what if you removed the handgrip to use
the camera in a rig – ah well then that made things very tricky until a
firmware upgrade allowed you to assign buttons to the navigation functions. The
good news is that there are now two joysticks. One is still on the handgrip,
but the second one is on the lower left hand edge of the OLED screen.
Definitely an improvement and also freeing up the assignable buttons.
Speaking of which, they have increased in number from 15 to
17, which is great as long as you can remember what they all do, although there
is a Status button to remind you which assignable button does what and more
besides. There are also 14 menu functions you can register and re-order in the ‘My
Menu’ – which saves time rootling through pages of menus. These together make
this a conveniently customisable camera.
The C100 Mk I and II do have a built in microphone on the
handle unit. If you removed the handle then your images were potentially mute,
so Canon has given the Mk II a small microphone on the body of the camera that looks
very similar to the microphone on a 5D. Sometimes you need that bit of scratch
audio in order to sync sound in the edit. Again it's a small addition but a
useful one.
The new WiFi capability will come in handy if you have the
camera in an inaccessible location perhaps on the end of a boom arm. You can
connect it to a network in five different ways – so you’ll probably want to
test this in advance of the shoot to make sure it is all working correctly. But
once it is up and running you can use a browser to control the camera remotely.
Video and photos can also be transferred by FTP – a useful feature if you need
an off site file backup or your images are time sensitive - as long as you can
get a good connection in the local Starbucks.
Conclusion
So, if you have up to £4,000 to spend is the C100 Mk II for
you? The upgrades look good. Canon has listened to its customers and made changes.
The media is cheap (unlike SxS for example), the images are good and it is easy
to use. However, it might have been a good idea to offer 4K (at least as an
upgrade), but then why would people want to pay three times as much for the new
C300 Mk II (which, admittedly, has several excellent new features too,
including up to 15 stops of dynamic range).
The other thing to consider is that the C100 Mk II costs only
a little less than a new C300 (Mk I), which has been reduced in price prior to
the shipping of the C300 Mk II, and the older C300 still has several advantages
over the new C100, including HD-SDI output and built-in 50Mbps recording.
Christina Fox