Above: Canon’s Masaya Maeda on far right
In line with Nikon, Canon Japan has also now gone on the record about their intentions to create smaller high quality DSLRs. But it’s unlikely to be mirrorless, or as small as the Sony NEX 5.
In an interview with Reuters reporting a 180% jump in profits, Masaya Maeda of Canon’s ‘Image Communication Products’ division in Tokyo said that the company now recognises the need for smaller DSLRs. (Both Canon and Nikon have seen the sales figures from Panasonic, Olympus and Sony)
“It’s not a question of whether or not you have a mirror. There is a consumer need for good-quality cameras to be made smaller, we will meet this need.”
Canon did not explicitly rule out a mirrorless camera but said that a smaller GH1 or even GF1 sized camera could be made without removing the internal mirror and that the company ‘had done this in the past’. I don’t recall Canon’s mini SLR but the mind goes back to the 1970’s Pentax 110 SLR which was a very small none-full-frame camera, using special film and smaller lenses with no built in irises.
The article goes onto quote analysis Kazumasa Kubota who thought Canon’s plan to produce a smaller DSLR with optical view finder would be ‘very positive’.
“Looking directly at something through a viewfinder is different from seeing it indirectly via semiconductors”
That’s amazingly ‘analytical’, isn’t it.
Could Canon have something else planned for video, like a dedicated interchangeable lens EFS camcorder? It certainly seems so, as this latest news seems to put the cosh on a mirrorless DSLR for now with the kind of leap forward in video Canon needs to keep up with the more progressive camera designs from competitors.
Having a mirrorbox, even in a small DSLR diminishes the requirement for Canon to include contrast detect AF, silent lenses and indicates a stronger focus on stills rather than video.
Has Canon recognises one new emerging market only to miss another? We need that video leap soon Canon because your successful DSLR video mode is ageing fast.
Check out an older interview with Canon’s Masaya Maeda at DPReview.com from 2008
