canon digital camera

The Canon EOS (Electro-Optical System) autofocus 35 mm film and digital SLR camera system was introduced in 1987 with the Canon EOS 650 and is still in production as Canon's current SLR system. The acronym EOS was chosen for Eos, the Titan Goddess of dawn in Greek mythology, and is often pronounced as a word, although some spell out the letters.

It competes primarily with the Nikon F series and its successors, and holds the primary market share in most countries.

At the heart of the system is the EF lens mount, which replaced the previous FD lens mount.

The EF lens mount

Main article: Canon EF lens mount

The bayonet-style EF lens mount is at the center of the EOS camera system. Breaking compatibility with the earlier FD mount, it was designed with no mechanical linkages between moving parts in the lens and in the camera. The aperture and focus are controlled via electrical contacts, with motors in the lens itself. This was a first for Canon, although other manufacturers including Contax (with its G series of interchangeable-lens 35 mm compact cameras) and Olympus (with its Four Thirds digital SLR system) have followed Canon's lead.

EOS flash system

Main article: Canon EOS flash system

The flash system in the EOS cameras has gone through a number of evolutions since its first implementation. The basic EOS flash system was actually developed not for the first EOS camera, but rather for the last high-end FD-mount manual-focus camera, the T90, launched in 1986. This was the first Canon camera with through-the-lens (TTL) flash metering, although other brands had been metering that way for some time. It also introduced the A-TTL (Advanced TTL) system for better flash exposure in program mode, using infrared preflashes to gauge subject distance.

This system was carried over into the early EOS cameras wholesale. A-TTL largely fell out of favor, and was replaced by E-TTL (Evaluative TTL). This used a pre-flash for advanced metering, and used the autofocus system to judge where the main subject was for more accurate exposure. E-TTL II, which was an enhancement in the camera's firmware only, replaced E-TTL from 2004.

Canon Speedlite-brand flashes have evolved alongside the cameras. They are capable of wired and wireless multi-flash setups, the latter using visible or infrared pulses to synchronise.

EOS cameras

As of 2005, Canon has released no fewer than 40 EOS SLR camera models, starting with the introduction of the EOS 650 in 1987. The Canon EOS series helped begin in the digital SLR age with the EOS DCS 3 in 1995, although it was a joint collaborative effort with Kodak. The first digital EOS SLR camera wholly designed and manufactured by Canon is the EOS D30, released in 2000.

Canon has also released two EOS cameras designed to use the APS film format, the EOS IX and the EOS IX Lite.

There is also a manual-focus EOS camera, the EOS EF-M. It comes with all the automatic and manual exposure functions but lacks autofocus. However, it comes equipped with a split-screen/microprism focusing screen for precise manual focusing.

Eye-controlled focusing

Through the tracking of eyeball movements, EOS cameras equipped with eye-controlled focusing (ECF) are able to choose the appropriate autofocus point based on where the user is looking in the viewfinder frame. ECF comes especially useful in sports photography where the subject may shift its position in the frame rapidly.

ECF is a function that is usually loved or hated. Some users feel that it is not reliable enough for common use. Others report that they are able to use it reliably. Much of this depends on the user. Eyeglasses can also reduce its accuracy for some.

EOS cameras equipped with ECF are the EOS A2E (U.S. model names are shown; see the table below for equivalents in other countries), EOS Elan IIE, EOS 3, EOS Elan 7E, and EOS Elan 7NE.

Quick control dial

An ergonomic design, most prosumer and professional level EOS cameras feature a large quick control dial (QCD) on the camera back. Allowing easy operation of the camera using the thumb, the QCD is used for quick access to often-used functions that may otherwise require a more complicated procedure of button-presses and dial-clicks.

Cameras equipped with the QCD can easily be operated with one hand (forefinger on the main dial, thumb on the QCD) without taking the eye off the viewfinder.

Some useful functions that a QCD is programmed to do include setting exposure compensation, setting of aperture in manual exposure mode and scrolling of images and menus in digital EOS cameras.

Multi-point autofocus system

The top-line EOS cameras have the most autofocus (AF) points (up to 45) in their classes, compared to cameras from other manufacturers. This increases the chances of a sharply-focused photograph in situations where the subject travels across the frame at high speeds, e.g. sports, birds.

Having so many AF points also helps relieve the photographer from having to use the 'lock focus and recompose' method of framing a photograph, since the subject will most probably have been picked up by one or more of the AF points. Even though the camera is intelligent enough to select the correct AF point(s) most of the time, EOS cameras equipped with a multi-point AF system will still allow the photographer to manually select an AF point.

EOS 3, EOS 1V, and the EOS 1D family feature a 45-point AF system, while most other EOS cameras in the last 3-5 years feature a seven-point AF system arranged in the shape of a cross. The EOS 20D features a unique nine-point AF system in a diamond-shape formation, and is the first EOS camera to feature this arrangement. The EOS 5D takes this 9-point AF system a step further by introducing six more 'invisible' AF points (i.e. not user-selectable) in helping the camera acquire focus faster during subject tracking.

Model naming scheme

Canon's naming scheme for its EOS cameras has been pretty haphazard, and thus the target market segment of a particular camera is not immediately obvious to a new EOS consumer. The fact that a model is marketed with different names in different parts of the world adds to the confusion. For example, the EOS Rebel 2000 known in the Americas is also known as EOS Kiss III in Japan, and EOS 300 in other parts of the world.

Despite the naming confusion, there is a general guideline to help consumers identify which market segment a particular EOS is targeted at.

There exists an "advanced prosumer" line of EOS A2 (EOS 5) and EOS 3 sharing many features of the EOS 1-series cameras, but is priced more modestly compared to the 1-series, presumably to attract professionals and alikes that do not require the same performance and ruggedness of the EOS 1-series cameras.

Film cameras

This is a list of the 35 mm and APS Canon EOS models in order of introduction:

Digital cameras

Prior to the introduction of the EOS D30 digital SLR, Canon in collaboration with Kodak produced four digital SLRs by modifying the internals of the EOS-1N film SLR. These four digital SLRs had a Canon EOS body and thus can accept EF lenses, while the image sensor and electronics were designed and built by Kodak. The four cameras were:

In addition, Kodak produced the Kodak DCS Pro SLR/c in 2004, which was compatible with most EF lenses but was not produced in collaboration with Canon.

The following digital SLRs, starting from the D30, had bodies and sensors completely designed and manufactured by Canon (except for the Canon EOS-1D, which uses a Panasonic sourced CCD sensor).

Unlike most other digital SLR manufacturers, Canon digital SLRs are equipped with a CMOS sensor (with the exception of EOS-1D that uses a CCD sensor).

Main article: List of Canon EOS digital cameras

See also

Canon

• List of Canon products
• Canon Corporation
• Canon FD
• Canon FL

Single lens reflex

• Single lens reflex
• Digital single lens reflex
• 35 mm film

External links

• EOS Camera Systems homepage at Canon.com
• Canon digital camera in Vietnam
• EF lens specification chart (pdf)
• Information about EOS cameras
• Chronology of EOS cameras
• Advertisement introducing the EOS 650
• Flash Photography with Canon EOS Cameras - Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3
• Canon Camera Museum
• EOS Digital Photographer's Resource index of useful articles
• Il mondo fotografico Canon