Photokina Report – Day 1: EOS-1Ds New Canon SLR

September 2002: One of the most exciting announcements on the first day of Photokina has been Canon’s new digital SLR which features a CMOS sensor that has the same area as a 35mm film frame.

This exciting development overcomes one of the major limitations of digital cameras: limited wide-angle coverage. All existing Canon EF lenses can be used on the new EOS-1Ds body and they will have the same effective focal length as they do on a regular film SLR.
But that’s not all! Other noteworthy features of the new EOS-1Ds include its sensor resolution – 11.1 effective megapixels, which means image files with a maximum resolution of 4064 x 2704 pixels. This is almost double the resolution of the EOS D60 (and most current professional digital SLR bodies).
And, despite this high data load, Canon claims a shutter release time lag of only 55 milliseconds and a viewfinder blackout time of just 87 milliseconds, which makes the new model very responsive.
The new EOS-1Ds has some other worthwhile features for pro shooters, including an extended battery life, which results from the use of a CMOS sensor plus specially designed circuitry that ensures power flows preferentially to active components in proportion to their minimum requirements. A fully charged battery pack is good for up to 600 exposures.
Also of note is the camera’s burst shooting speed: 3 fps for up to 10 consecutive frames. This is available even at the highest resolution.
The EOS-1Ds also offers 10 selectable white balance modes – plus white balance bracketing to provide accurate colour rendition under a wide variety of lighting conditions.
In addition, a new Color Matrix function gives photographers a choice of five different colour settings (including Adobe RGB 1998). Subtle adjustments can be made to hue, contrast and sharpness settings via the Parameter controls and a new Tone Curve setting allows customised parameters to be loaded in the menu for later use.
Sensitivity speeds on the EOS-1Ds range from ISO 100 to 1250 and adjustments can be made in 1/3 stop increments. Bracketing of +/- 3 stops in 1/3-stop increments is provided and a Custom Function allows a rating of 50 ISO to be engaged. Dark current countermeasures and noise reduction processing ensure images are captured with minimal noise, even at high sensitivity settings.
Another handy feature is the EOS-1Ds’s ability to capture RAW and JPEG files simultaneously, giving photographers both a “digital negative” with no post-processing and a compressed image for emailing or checking.

An IEE1394 (Firewire) interface is provided for high-speed downloads. Images are stored to a Type II CompactFlash card and the card slot is Microdrive compatible.
Photographic functions of note include a shutter speed range of 30 to 1/8000 second (with X-synch at 1/250 sec.), a new Area AF system with 45 measuring points (plus 45-point, 11-point and 9-point manual settings), 21-zone evaluative metering with six metering options, including three spot metering modes.
The EOS-1Ds features a durable body with a high standard of dust and moisture resistance. It is supplied with Canon’s File Viewer Utility for managing RAW image files. For more information go to www.canon.com.au.