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Canon EOS-1D Canon leaps into the professional SLR arena, with the fastest digital SLR on the planet! Select a topic Reference: Datasheet --------------------------------- 1. Overview 2. Specifications 3. Spec Comparison 4. Features: Speed 5. Features: Image Quality 6. Features: General 7. Features: Color 8. Features: Ruggedness 9. Operating Details 10. Summary --------------------------------- Print-Friendly Review Version Additional Resources and Other Links Reader Comments on EOS-1D Review --------------------------------- Digital Camera Comparometer (TM) --------------------------------- <-- Digital Cameras (Home) <-- Digital Camera Reviews Index <<Features: Image Quality :(Previous) | (Next): Features: Color>> Page 6:Features: General Review First Posted: 09/24/2001

Features: General

This is really a catchall category, covering things that didn't fit well into the five other main categories we identified to classify Canon's innovations into. The idea here is that these are areas in which Canon has increased the basic performance of the camera in important ways over that of the earlier EOS-D30. All of the items here affect performance or workflow. We've addressed some performance-related issues in other sections of this preview, so will touch on them only briefly here. Others that haven't been discussed yet will receive a more complete treatment.

Here's a list of the key performance-related enhancements in the EOS-D30:

• 4.1 million effective pixels
• True professional-grade autofocus (sheet six of color brochure)
• Super-fast shutter speeds: 1/16,000 max shutter speed, 1/500 flash sync - no FP distortion
• Dual JPEG/RAW save mode
• Large sensor, only 1.3x focal-length multiplier
• True 100 percent viewfinder coverage
• HUGE battery capacity (19.8 watt-hours)
• "Flash metered manual" exposure function for closeups.
• IPTC data annotation
• Full System Compatibility

4.1 million effective pixels
Not a lot to say about this–clearly a boost from the D-30, but a good bit shy of the roughly six million pixels of the Nikon D1x and Kodak 760. Canon's position on the somewhat lower resolution is that photojournalists and sports photographers for the most part don't need six megapixels of resolution, given the lower-grade print media their photos are being reproduced on. Hmm. Possibly true, but we're sure those users would be happy to have a full six megapixels if other parameters could meet their needs. (We suspect Canon's correct though, in that these uses will probably be happy to trade away 30 percent or so of the resolution, in exchange for an eight frames-per-second frame rate.)

True professional-grade autofocus
As we mentioned before, this was one of the most glaring omissions from the D30's capabilities. Canon is known for advanced autofocus technology in the film world, but the D30 fell woefully short in this respect. With the 1D, Canon has brought over the exceptional autofocus technology of the EOS-1v from the film world, and made it available to digital photographers.

A full discussion of the EOS-1D's autofocus system is probably beyond the scope of this preview, but we'll take a swing at it anyway. It really does seem to offer a significant extension of AF technology for the digicam world.

At the heart of Canon's advanced AF is an unusually large AF frame. (The region over which the AF system can look to determine focus.) As in the EOS-1v, no fewer than 45 autofocus points cover a large portion of the overall field of view. As shown in the diagram at right, seven of these are "cross" sensors, sensitive to both horizontal and vertical detail, while the remaining 38 respond to texture in the horizontal axis only. The EOS-1D can select the specific AF point automatically (based on the closest subject with reliable autofocus characteristics), or the user can select a specific AF point manually. The AI Servo AF system can also track moving subjects anywhere in the AF frame if they're initially locked-in via the central AF area.

 

In the Manual/45-point mode, you can select any one of the 45 AF points manually, and the camera will use that point exclusively in its focus determinations. Selection is made by using both the front and back command dials.

 

No two ways about it, 45 focus points are probably a lot more than you need for manual selection, and choosing just one of them could be more time-consuming than you'd like, particularly in a fast-paced shooting situation. Custom Function menu item 13-2 simplifies the AF choice, reducing the number of available AF points to 11, arranged in a cross pattern. Selection is again made using both front and back command dials.

 

When speed is really the issue, custom function menu option 13-3 further reduces the available AF points to just nine, located around the periphery of the AF frame area. This has the advantage that only the Quick Control dial is needed to select an AF point, rotating the selection point around the edge of the AF area as it is rotated. This makes for a much faster selection, and is useful for situations where the photographer is dealing with an off-center subject.

 

Sometimes, you may want to use more than one focusing point, if your subject is fast-moving, low-contrast, or if you're working in low light conditions. For these situations, Canon has provided the Focus Point Expansion option, available as Custom Function menu items 17-1 and 17-2. In these modes, you still manually select a single focus point, but the camera then looks at up to six surrounding points to determine focus. Only the selected point lights up in the viewfinder, but as many as six other points are used to determine focus.

Overall, the AF technology Canon has brought to bear in the EOS-1D is very impressive. (Basing our opinion at this point on the EOS-1v's much-vaunted implementation of the same technology.) It's both flexible and very fast, well-suited to the demands of sports shooters and photojournalists.

 

Super-fast shutter speeds: 1/16,000-second max shutter speed, 1/500-second flash sync - no FP distortion
We already covered this feature in detail, but mention it again here for clarity. (*Dang* that's fast!)

Dual JPEG/RAW save mode
Many cameras these days offer the choice between fully-processed JPEG images and so-called "Raw" files that capture every bit of information coming from the sensor. Raw files have the advantage of preserving all the original image data, making them ideal for subsequent manipulation. Postprocessing Raw image files can correct for even fairly significant under- or overexposure, and also opens the possibility of applying more sophisticated image processing techniques to enhance detail and resolution. The problem is, you generally have to choose between a Raw or JPEG workflow at the time of exposure. Using Raw files imposes significant penalties of time and complexity on post-exposure processing, while JPEG can be limiting in terms of quality and flexibility.

Canon's solved this problem in the EOS-1D by providing capture modes that record both JPEG and Raw versions of every exposure simultaneously. Their literature doesn't say it, but we suspect there may be some penalty in frame rate associated with this, but the benefits are compelling. You can have the ease of "finished-file" JPEG images, yet always have access to the "digital negative," in the form of the associated Raw file at any time. This looks to us like a really great idea, and is a mode we expect many pros to use as a default. (Memory card manufactures are going to love this one! The storage requirements quickly become prodigious!)

Large sensor, only 1.3x focal-length multiplier
Again, we mentioned this earlier, but included it here for completeness as we suspect this will be a popular characteristic. We've often heard commercial photographers bemoan the difficulty of shooting really wide-angle shots digitally, because the high focal length multipliers of many digital SLRs shift wide-angle lenses toward "normal" focal lengths.

True 100 percent viewfinder coverage
A small point, but an important one for a professional SLR. We're big fans of being able to see *exactly* what we're going to take a picture of. It's hard to imagine why a pro wouldn't want a 100 percent accurate viewfinder.

HUGE battery capacity (19.8 watt-hours)
Wow, this is a lot of power for a digicam battery! 12 volts at 1,650mAh. Canon says it should be good for 350 shots between charges, a figure that actually sounds low to us. Still, that's a lot of photos. Big kudos on this point!

ISO Bracketing
We're less certain of the utility of this feature than some of the others we've described, but the EOS-1D lets you fix both shutter speed and aperture settings and then bracket the exposure by varying the camera's ISO setting.

"Flash metered manual" exposure function for closeups
This strikes us as an interesting option. It amounts to an "exposure lock" option for flash shots. You set the camera in either Manual or Av (Aperture Priority) mode, select your desired lens aperture, select the central AF point, aim the camera at a gray card, and press the FE lock button. The flash fires, the camera measures the flash exposure level required, and locks it into memory. Compose your shot and snap the shutter, and the camera and flash unit will use the previously-computed flash exposure to take the shot. This function will work with the 550EX, MR-14EX Ring Lite, or new Macro Twin Lite MT-24EX speedlights.

IPTC data annotation
Great news for press photographers & photo editors! The International Press Telecommunication Council has standardized the data recorded for photo captions by the newspaper industry. This data usually includes the photographer's name, date, file number, color/black & white, image size, and resolution. In their software utility, Canon includes the ability to set and load this data into the camera, so it will be automatically attached to every image the photographer shoots. Very handy in a busy newsroom, sorting out who shot what and when, after the fact.

Broad compatibility
It probably goes without saying, but deserves noting that the EOS-1D is a full-fledged member of the Canon EOS professional SLR family. As such, it works seamlessly with an incredibly broad range of lenses and accessories. The system chart shown here gives you some idea of the range of what's available. (Click on the image to see a larger view.)