Nikon And Canon Both Confirm There Will Be New Pro D-SLRs
It’s not really
a big surprise, given both these cameras would have been in development when the respective full-35mm mirrorless systems were launched, but both Nikon (first) and Canon have confirmed that there will be a next generation of professional D-SLRs.
Nikon’s announcement was a good few weeks ahead of Canon’s, but neither company is providing much detail right now. Needless to note, these high-end D-SLRs were already niche products even when the D-SLR market was booming, so they still don’t mean very much in terms of the interchangeable lens camera market overall.
Details of the new Nikon are non-existent beyond that the new camera will be called the D6 and the released product photo shows that it will be very similar in size and styling to the D5. What’s likely is that Nikon will have worked on the autofocusing performance – both via the optical viewfinder and in live view – to keep the core audience of sports/action photographers happy. Nikon is calling the D6 “its most advanced digital SLR to date”.
Many sports photographers remain wedded to the D-SLR, not just because of the advantages of the optical viewfinder, but because of significant investments in fast telephoto lenses.
No doubt with the same users chiefly in mind, Nikon has announced it's also developing a new fast telezoom in the F mount: the AF-S Nikkor 120-300mm f2.8E FL ED SR VR. Again details are minimal, but the model designation tells us it will have ‘Vibration Reduction’ optical image stabilisation, at least one fluorite element (to optimise correction for chromatic aberrations), and a number of extra-low dispersion glass elements. The ‘SR’ suffix hasn’t been seen on a Nikkor lens before so this obviously designates a new technology or feature.
As with the Nikon D6, details about the EOS-1D X
Mark III are sketchy, but Canon has outlined a few key elements. It will have a newly-developed CMOS sensor and image processor for higher image quality and faster continuous shooting speeds. It gets more precise autofocusing due to a “newly developed AF sensor and AF algorithm”, and there will be “enhanced data transmission functionality”.