Camera review
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CANON EOS 70D
ISO 100
ISO 200
ISO 400
ISO performance
The EOS 70D o ers a native ISO sensitivity range of 100 12,800, and an expanded top setting of ISO 25,600. Raw images are entirely clean up to and including ISO 800, even without any noise reduction applied in Lightroom. At ISO 1600, slight grain begins to impact on the inest of details, but it takes close scrutiny to see this. From ISO 3200 upwards, image quality begins to degrade, but the biggest problem is colour noise, and Lightroom makes easy work of this. Once that’s removed, ISO 3200 is perfectly acceptable and ISO 6400 still not bad. This performance is signi icantly better than the camera one step down, the EOS 700D, and this is no doubt down to the processor, the same DIGIC 5+, as its full-frame siblings.
ISO 800
ISO 1600
ISO 3200
ISO 6400
ISO 12,800
ISO 25,600
Hands on the Canon G16
The fast frame rate and focusing system of the EOS 70D mean it’s well suited to action photography, andwe tried it out using single point AFmode and top-speed 7fps continuous shooting. The lens was Canon’s 24 70mm f/4L. Over several burst sequences, the EOS 70D’s performance was consistently impressive – only one or two images weren’t sharp in each sequence, with the vast majority either pin sharp or thereabouts. Continuous AF and drive
It’s nearly 15 years since the launch of Canon’s irst G series compact, and before the 16th incarnation of the premium compact hit the shelves, we tried it out at a preview event in Maritime Greenwich. The G16’s highlight is, ironically, its low-light ability. This is down to Canon’s HS system, which now combines a 12.1-megapixel 1/1.7 type CMOS sensor with the very latest DIGIC 6 processor. The ISO sensitivity range is 80 12,800, and during the evening in Greenwich, we needed to push the camera up to ISO 3200 to deal with the lighting conditions. We certainly have no complaints at this level – in JPEGs straight out of the camera, noise was really well controlled. You have the option to shoot Raw too, and with the latest update to version 5.2, Adobe Lightroom now supports the iles. As on the G15, the lens on the G16 is an f/1.8 2.8 zoom lens that provides the 35mm equivalent of 28 140mm. Canon’s Zoom Plus technology now also provides full-resolution images with a digital zoom of up to 10x if you don’t mind a small reduction in image quality. The continuous shooting rate in the G16 is a massive 9.3 frames-per-second (the G15 reached 2.1), and this is after the irst ive frames – until then, it can reach 12.2 frames-per-second. This is only when shooting JPEG though, and when we added Raw iles into the mix, it slowed down considerably. A new addition is Wi-Fi, its irst outing in a G series camera. Unlike the EOS DSLRs with Wi-Fi, this doesn’t let you control the camera remotely, but you can connect the camera to mobile devices and upload images to the Internet.
The verdict
CANON EOS 70D
o ers greater control, lexibility and speed in this respect. The obvious advantage of the EOS 70D is the potential for movie recording and Live View photography, particularly with the vari-angle touch screen and Wi-Fi remote control. That’s not to mention the higher resolution, upgraded processor and extra low-light capability. While the prices are sure to change, deciding which camera is the better buy for now depends on how much you value the bene its of each. But the fact that the EOS 70D is such a close match to Canon’s long- standing APS C lagship is a testimony to what it has to o er.
Considering the length of time it’s taken for Canon to upgrade the EOS 60D, you’d expect a big change, and that’s certainly what you get in the EOS 70D. In every way, this camera is much more advanced and it challenges the camera that technically sits above it in the line-up, the EOS 7D. Dual Pixel AF is a true revolution, in initely improving Live View and Movie functions and maximising the advantages of the vari-angle touch screen. At the time of writing, the EOS 7D and EOS 70D bodies are priced the same – with the potential to cause a buying quandary. While the focusing system in the EOS 70D is a huge upgrade from the EOS 60D, the EOS 7D still
24/25
FEATURES
Plenty to get your teeth into HANDLING
24/25
PROS Focusing in Live View and movies, frame rate, handling CONS Stripped down EOS 7D focusing system A fantastic camera with much to o er any enthusiast Excellent all round PERFORMANCE 24/25 Dual Pixel AF is excellent, and there’s little else to fault VALUE FOR MONEY 22/25 It’s a tough call against the EOS 7D OVERALL 94/100
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