PMA 2007 ended yesterday. Many expensive toys were
unveiled and those which remain as rumor, continues. Canon 1D Mark III and
Sigma grabbed the attention with their 200-500mm f2.8 big-bigma telephoto lens.
Sigma APO 200-500mm F2.8 EX DG
Enough of the confirmed lens and dSLR bodies, here’s what
are rumored remain:
Nikon D3 ( maybe its not called D3) did not show up.
Canon 40D , a replacement for 30D did not show up either.
Pentax 645 medium-format camera remains as a wood block.
This year's PMA, which wrapped up yesterday, was notable not just for
the many innovative products that were introduced (mostly in press
releases that went public as long as six weeks ago) but for the
innovative, amazing products that weren't
introduced. Mold-breaking new cameras from Nikon, Canon, Olympus,
Pentax, Sigma, Panasonic and others were kept mostly under wraps,
although rumors, wooden mockups under glass, and strange press release
announcing "the beginning of development of" these new models were
plentiful.
Olympus led the way by providing a few details about it's yet
unnamed, long-awaited successor to the E-1 pro digital SLR (mock-up
shown; dubbed the "P-1" by a blogger, a name that was quickly picked up
as fact by others.) Pentax showed off a wood block mockup of a digital
645 medium-format camera--the same wood block they showed last year,
but with big difference: this wood block boasted 31.6MP resolution;
last year's wood block had only 18.6MP. They must've used finer-grain
wood.
Rumors were rife that Nikon would introduce a
full-sized-sensor digital SLR at last (as if the D40x and Coolpix P5000
weren't enough), but Nikon didn't oblige. Nor did Canon, despite
predictions that it would replace the 30D. Seems they were too busy
rolling out the EOS-1D Mark III , a 10MP flagship DSLR with a 10fps
burst rate that has sports photographers drooling.
Sony showed off a higher-end Alpha DSLR that should really
excite pros and prosumers--but don't get excited yet. They refused to
take it out from under glass. (Translation: it's another wood mock-up.)
And finally there was the non-news that Leica and Panasonic weren't
introducing but were "launching the development" of a new zoom lens,
accompanying the whisper that Panasonic is planning (but did not
acutally show) a lower-end DSLR.
These announcements, rumors, and whispers were just that.
Until there's a real camera or lens that I can hold in my hand, it's
just vaporware. There were plenty of innovative new products and useful
tools for photographers of every stripe at this year's PMA, so why the
need to talk about all the vapor?
On the other hand, if they were real, this PMA would have been quite a show!
