Latest EOS Digital Video Camera is Aimed at Beginning, Budget-Minded Filmmakers; 4K C500 Gets an October Release Date

Update 08/30/12: Canon today amended its press release to swap the availability dates of those two forthcoming zoom lenses. The correct dates are now reflected in the copy below.

Canon today announced the EOS C100 HD camera, the new entry-level unit in its EOS series of video and digital cinema cameras. It's slated to ship in November for an estimated list price of $7999.

The C100 will take its place at the bottom of a line-up that tops out with the forthcoming C500, a 4K camera with uncompressed raw output that's now scheduled to ship in October for an estimated list price of $30,000.

Canon said the new C100 is about 15 percent smaller than the C300 and uses a Super 35mm CMOS sensor that captures R, G and B channels at a resolution of 1920×1080 in each frame. The camera allows interchangeable lenses, but supports EF-mount only. The recording codec is similar to the H.264 compression scheme used in Canon's XA10 camcorder, supporting 4:2:0 HD video at a maximum bit rate of 24 Mbps and two-channel audio in either LPCM (uncompressed) or Dolby Digital formats. (The C100 can also record uncompressed HD via an HDMI output that offers superimposed timecode.) A detachable handle unit includes dual XLR inputs, a built in mic, a bracket for an external mic, and audio level adjustments. 

For more on the C100, see Canon's official press release.

On the glass front, Canon said it is developing two new EF-mount cinema prime lenses, a 14mm T3.1 lens and a 135mm T2.2 lens. The lenses will be engineered for large-format single-sensor 4K and 2K cinematography, but will also work with Super 35, 35mm full frame, APS-H and APS-C image sensors. The two new primes will be shown at IBC next month and are slated to ship in the first half of 2013.

Also formally announced today were two compact lightweight (4.8 pounds each) zoom lenses in both EF- and PL-mount versions for 4K and 2K shooting. The lenses debuted at NAB this year but now have prices and ship dates: the CN-E15.5-47mm T2.8 L S/SP wide-angle zoom is expected to ship in January, and the CN-E30-105mm T2.8 L S/SP telephoto zoom is slated for November. Each of the lenses is expected to list for $24,500.

For more on the Cinema EOS line-up of cameras and lenses, visit Canon's website.