Canon EOS C100

[Andy Wilkinson]

Philip found this C100 video and posted it elsewhere on the web.

Canon EOS C100 sample - YouTube

There is also another video by this YouTube user (all low light shots of a van) which also went up in the last 24hrs - but I won't bother posting a link to that as I regard that one as being of questionable quality [Amongst other things like flickering it looks like its been poorly Smoothcam or Warp Stabilised in post - not sure what's going on with that one - tried Google translate on the Japanese video info on the YouTube page and none of it made much sense!]

[Philip Lipetz]

I will be at two Canon C100 presentations this weekend in LA. So far I am not blown away, hoping to see some big screen projections that light my fires. Any questions you want asked?

[Paul Cronin]

Same latitude as C300?
Same noise level as C300?

Thanks Philip

Happy with my C300 but would like a nice B-Cam to match with my Nano.

[David Ells]

Does the instant auto-focus and iris work while recording?
Can the internal mic and an XLR-connected mic be used simultaneously?

Yes, thanks, Philip.

[Andy Wilkinson]

CVP here in the UK (one of our major video gear suppliers - and the one I have my pre-order with) are holding a C100/C300/C500 event next Tuesday (23rd) in a central London hotel. The invite came in on e-mail last night.

There will be a 4K screening from the C500 (no mention of any screening from the C100 though). I've just booked on the afternoon session. There is a Q&A session at this event too - just in case Philip does not get all the answers... ;-)

[Philip Lipetz]

Was at Canon USA C100 presentation, really nice guys. My impression:

The Good:

HDMI out signal image quality the same as C300 image quality
very light weight, feels good in hand
button layout better than C300
One button AF works but takes about three seconds to focus indoors
One button WB, and AE
new menu items make it easier to do quick rough adjustments gamma curves
Wide DR nice 709 curve but colorist sitting next to me says it still requires grading
low light same as C300
Independent audio channels so can mix internal and external mics
USA service with three day turnaround, like mid level CPS pro service
Camera balances well on handle
C300 level internal adjustments to gamma curves
Very good build quality
LUT for C log display on LCD
future continuous autofocus with STM lenses, better STM lenses coming


The Bad,

EVF nearly useless for focusing indoors less you use peaking outside not tested
EVF uncomfortable to use, poor ergonomics
LCD just OK, doesn't rotate to face subject
can save six gammas to media card but they disappear when you change media card
Can lock down settings but then one button AE AF WB not work
AVCHD
Only way to adjust iris is on add-on grip or AE button,
Since grip is required, unlike C300, minimum rig is not that light weight
Without handle lighter weight makes some L lenses out of balance on camera
No 60p
No EV compensation

[David Ells]

Very thorough, thanks Philip!

I am thrilled about the LUT for C log (sorely missed on C300) , but disappointed about the EVF.

[Tim Polster]

Thanks for the list. The iris adjustment seems odd. Means you pretty much have to have the add-on to use the camera unless I am reading it incorrectly?

[Philip Lipetz]

Yes, for anything but idiot mode AE you need the grip. There is not even EV compensation.

[Philip Lipetz]

The marking rep seemed shocked that I do not shoot with DSLRs. They see this as a step up camera, not a camera for lateral moves among experienced shooters like Andy is doing. They are blind to this possibility and to the BMCC Indie market. Totally focused on this as a way to move people into first pro camera.

[Steve Kimmel]

Originally Posted by Philip Lipetz

Was at Canon USA C100 presentation, really nice guys. My impression:


The Bad,

EVF nearly useless for focusing indoors less you use peaking outside not tested
EVF uncomfortable to use, poor ergonomics

This is the most concerning to me and in many ways negates the ergonomics of the camera. Not being able to use the EVF means you can't hold the camera up to the eye and given the location of the LCD makes this seems like it will be as much a problem for handheld shooting as a typical DSLR.

[Philip Lipetz]

Was talking to colorists at a post production house, they felt that the C100 C Log plus external recorder was the most inexpensive solution to give them professionally acceptable images for grading. They felt very confident in this recommendation.

[Andy Wilkinson]

Just back from Canon/CVP event in London. Cam looks good. Build quality and ergonomics are excellent but EVF is terrible. LCD positions are more limited than I had hoped. In the hand it's a dream tho - very light. Still no firm date on delivery. All I was told was by the end of the year and that C500s will be delivered before C100s. More tomorrow.

[Jim Giberti]

For a camera they've aimed at the one man production market, it's actually stunning that the EVF is considered so poor by virtually every handler so far. It's the first thing I commented on when I saw a Z-Finder gaffer taped to the back of the one used to do the original promotional film
The ability to comfortably judge exposure and focus on the fly is pretty much the top echelon of mandatories the for shooters they're talking to.

Things like this, and absolutely no avenue for 1080 multiple frame rates on the full featured C cameras really makes me wonder what Canon is doing right now. Because no matter how much we want to buy a pair this tax cycle, they simply aren't giving us some of the essentials we need.

I used to have a real affinity for Canon and a close relationship with them through our business, but it seems by the time they get around to delivering the things that a big chunk of their market needs, we'll have long been invested in new Sony systems.

It's a drag. I love the new sensor and form factors (minus the crippled EVF on the 100) and have three kits of Canon glass. We start into an 18 month film project, over 18 remote locations, in January, I need to equip two units that can cover everything in demanding four season conditions. We saw the new C line as the ideal solution.

Now we wait to see Sony's announcement in a few days and I bet it covers all the bases.

[Andy Wilkinson]

Fair comments from Jim.

Just to add to some information from handling the C100 yesterday at the Soho Hotel event.

The LCD looked pretty good and focus peaking worked very well. The magnify button (on the EXCELLENT hand grip) gave about 2x (guess) to help nail focus if needed. I would have preferred a higher magnification factor than this but I guess time will tell if it's good enough when I eventually take delivery.

Regarding the EVF - Well it seems not much better than the one on my little Panasonic TM900 - probably higher resolution. It was possible to get focus with it (using peaking) but it is something I would use only if pushed to and is FAR from ideal. Me thinks a Zacuto finder designed especially for the C100 is going to be a big seller with this cam - see their promo video for the product that I posted some time ago on this thread. The LCDs mounting seemed pretty robust. I think it will take the extra weight and light pressure that will come from using the C100 this way without breaking anything - usual legal disclaimer now follows.....! ;-)

The LCD can be tilted to a near vertical position for viewing from the right-hand side of the camera (the hand grip side). Although I knew this, it is obviously not ideal as you have to crank your head 90 degrees to see it properly! You cannot flip it so that you can view it (albeit near vertically again) from the left-hand side (where all the control buttons are). See later why this was a blow as far as I am concerned. The image does invert on the LCD if you position it to view from below (e.g. if you had the cam high up on a jib or held above the heads of crowds on a monopod).

The menu system seemed very intuitive and fast/easy to access using the little joystick etc. on the hand grip. I really liked a lot of the button positions on the left side of the C100 body (plus the ability to assign things more or less as desired). I think I'll get familiar with it quickly and will then be able to make changes rapidly - very important for some of the run-n-gun stuff I have to do in my type of work. NDs seemed to work pretty well but I did find I occasionally got one "half across" - probably just something I need to get used to.

Overall the handling was, as mentioned last night, superb. I really like the small form factor (and the build quality). The fully adjustable position and shape of the hand grip makes the camera a joy to hold. Yes you can take it off (with a loss of easy control of menu functions if you do, as mentioned by Philip) but I suspect I'll leave mine on the camera nearly all the time. With that hand grip the C100 just "feels right". There is a central lead and plug in the middle of the handgrip fitting (where it meets the C100 body) and which plugs into a socket in the middle of the cams fitting. I did not actually have time to take the hand grip and its lead off/put it back on - I suspect it's identical to the what's on a C300 which I hope is idiot proof and robust - see further below.

With the (well built) XLR and mic handle removed the C100 is surprisingly small and even lighter. Great for street shooting. I can see me using it like this a lot with my Rode VMP or Rode SVM on it. By the way, the dials to adjust audio levels on the XLR handle were small but usable and the switches all had a good positive feel.

One thing that did concern me a little is the lead that comes out of the XLR handle has a plug on it that fits onto a multi-pin socket incorporated on the top right side of the camera. The many small, fine pins in that socket look fragile/easy to damage if someone was ham-fisted with attaching this connector. In truth, Canon have designed the plug locking ring in a way that should ensure it can only be pushed on the correct way so again time will tell if this is a robust enough design. For sure, removing/attaching the handle is something I'll be doing carefully, not in a big hurry, until I'm much more sure about this.

We also saw 4K screenings from the C500 and EOS 1-DC which were, well, superb. CVP also had the 1-DC there (which I found a heavy brick compared to the C100 and not in the same league handling wise). They also had some of the new Canon Cinema lenses (out of my price range - so I just looked!) as well as several C300 and the C500 plus a 5DMkIII, the new 24-70mm F2.8 lens (much smaller and lighter than the original - felt great on the 5DMkIII) and a few other cameras (full XF series) and useful gear.

Bottom line. I'm very happy I'm early on a pre-order list for the C100. I strongly suspect I'll need a Zacuto or similar finder on the LCD and so circumvent the poor EVF design. I also suspect that circumventing the AVCHD codec with a Atomos Ninja2 (or similar) will give me an additional benefit of having a (albeit small) second LCD screen. That way I can swivel a screen to where I typically am when doing sit down interviews (i.e. on the left side of the tripod mounted camera so I can easily access any of the buttons if things need to be tweaked). Either that or I'll have to make sure I sit more behind the camera (if room permits!) and little to the left if want to view the C100 LCD whilst interviewing.

Can't comment about AVCHD image quality - that'll come when cameras ship and I get quality time to get to know what she'll be capable of. For sure, via the clean HDMI and an external recorder this little cam will be capable of some stunning stuff.