Canon EOS 80D Announced – How Far Behind The Curve Are Our Beloved Trend Setters?

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by Tim FokFebruary 18^th, 2016

Canon has announced a new pro-sumer DSLR, the Canon EOS 80D comes as an update to the 70D bringing us Dual Pixel Auto Focus, 50/60p in 1920X1080 and a new 18-135mm Nano USM kit lens with power zoom adaptor.

The double digit 80D sits beneath the single digit pro-line (1D,5D,7D), but above it’s triple digit smaller brothers and sisters. Equipped with a 24.2MP APS-C sensor and DIGIC 6 processor, video users can expect 1080 50/60p, Dual Pixel AF and a headphone & mic port.

The 3″ display is swivel and touchscreen, it has NSF (near field communication) built-in for instant sharing via WI-FI, and the rest you can pretty much predict if you’ve seen a Canon DSLR before.

Perhaps one of the more interesting aspects on the announcement is the new kit lens and accessories. The new 18-135mm F/3.5-5.6 IS is a nano USM lens:

“This the first Canon lens equipped with Nano USM, a new type of focusing motor that combines the benefits of a ring USM (ultrasonic motor) for high-speed AF during still photo shooting and lead-screw type STM (stepping motor) for smooth and quiet movie AF, and improved AF speeds up to 4.3x (Tele) and 2.5x (Wide) faster than the previous model”

It has an optional adaptor dock adding a handheld servo zoom with speed control.

Canon also offer up a compact stereo shotgun mount, the DM-E1 mount directly to the shoe mount of your DSLR, connecting via the 3.5mm mic port.

For the rest including full spec on the Canon EOS 80D, check out the B&H website.

https://youtu.be/42cpsPiPvLQ

It may seem a little lazy writing half an article on a new product before referring to another site, but there’s very little in this new camera for filmmakers.

Why write the article at all then? In the same month Sony announced the A6300, I think these two announcements are the perfect example of how each manufacture views the market.

As a filmmaking website, I can only assume the reaction of many readers. Why this, when you can get this for less money? Well, aside from the very handy Dual Pixel Auto Focus there’s no a real answer for that.
The Sony a6300 trumps the 80D is almost every feature battle for video. More compact, better codec, 4K, higher framerates, log mode.

To be perfectly honest I’m very reserved about the Sony/Canon divide. I’m a long term user of Canon EOS Cinema cameras and whilst some may consider that as a form of bias, it actually provides more clarity – all my lenses fit Sony and my C100 paid for itself years ago so I have no financial attachment to either, but using the EOS Cinema Line for so long (where to be frank usability is Canons USP) it gives me a good vantage point on properly comparing the two formats.

By specification, Sony will always win. This grasps so many users from the go, comparing two cameras side by side you will never find a Canon that comes out on top. Canon goes the other way and implements robust product lines; late to the punch, price and feature weak but very reliable and ergonomic.

The latter will only get you so far however. And in terms of Canons DSLRs, I think this stopped at the 5D Mark III. Every DSLR since then has been completely and utterly forgettable for video.

And speaking candidly, I don’t really mind the perceived “Canon Video DSLR decline”. I get that Canon have an EOS Cinema Line & lens-reflex-compatible lens line to protect. I understand that our market, the professional & pro-sumer is less in revenue than the consumer.

I get that 1080 50/60p and a stella video auto focus is likely enough for the consumer; the Average Joe won’t actually know what to do with 4K or log mode right now.

But the fundamental problem right now is that Canon is providing us – the professionals & prosumers of the industry with no alternative.

2016 has to be a big year for the EOS Cinema Line. There needs to by a seismic shift with new announcements that gives professionals a reason to stick around.

By all means, cull the bottom end, burn the bridges of photo & video, consumers will get by fine with a Canon XXXD/XXD, professionals will buy multiple bodies.

The fact that Canon are doing nothing in the lower end video DSLR market is not the worry, it’s the fact that they’re not moving fast enough/at all in the professional end of video and cinema.