Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Canon Legria Mini: a camcorder for the selfie generation

Canon's new video camera is aimed at filmmakers who want to be in front of the lens, not behind it.


Not long ago, video cameras were for filming other people: babies, brides, pets and drunken party guests.
But then the selfie generation came along, with their front-facing iPhone cameras, Skype accounts, video blogs and tedious Vine clips. No one’s happy just being behind the camera any more. Everyone wants to be Woody Allen: writer, director and, most importantly, lead actor.
Canon’s new compact camcorder is therefore the must-have gadget for the self-promoting star-in-the-making. About the size of bulky wallet, its radical design features a tilting 2.7 inch vari-angle touchscreen which controls all of the camera’s main functions, and a super wide-angle lens set at the thin end of the device, like the infrared bit on your TV remote.
There are some clever functions (slow- and fast-motion recording, a few whizzy animated effects, interval recording, and the ability to control everything via your smartphone), but it’s the Legria Mini’s hands-free capabilities that will appeal to the fame-hungry auteur.


Set the stand on the base of the unit to the desired angle (no tripod required), tilt the screen to face the direction of the lens, then it’s ‘Silence, moteur, action!’
Before you know it, you’re self-indulgently performing a Spanish-guitar rendition of Katy Perry’s Roar, knocking up a clearly superior version of Ruby Tandoh’s stem ginger treacle tart, and uploading the results via the built-in Wifi to your woefully underappreciated personal YouTube channel. Couldn’t be simpler.
If this camera isn’t your gateway to global stardom, there’s no justice.


Monday, December 16, 2013

Canon Cameras used in 'Iron Man 3'

Canon has long been known for its high quality, when it comes to taking pictures in the photography field. Recently, however, Canon has also made a name for itself in the world of cinema.

Two years ago Canon launched its Cinema EOS camera system at an event in which cinematographers, press, directors and other invited guests attended. And although the company believes it is still in its beginning stages, the cinematic crew of Iron Man 3 believed in the system enough to use it on the film.

Part of the visual magic behind the action film is created by superimposing computer graphic imagery onto its use of live action stunt footage. The Iron Man 3 visual effects team was able to do this with help from the EOS C300 Cinema cameras.

“The Canon EOS C300 cameras gave us the main things we needed, which were detail, sharpness and resolution,” said Iron Man 3 visual effects supervisor Christopher Townsend, in an interview.

These highly mobile cameras were used as “witness cameras” to capture accurate and up-close stunt actor movements. They were placed on either side of the main picture cameras to capture different angles of what was being recorded.

“Then, using various software programs and hard work, we were able to triangulate exactly where a person was in space at any particular moment, and then overlay a CGI ‘character’ on top of that,” Townsend said of their process.

The Canon cameras also shot some of the scenes that were used in the finished film.

Here, check out the trailer for the film:


Along with a body that weighs a mere three pounds, the Canon EOS C300 also features a removable combination control panel and a four-inch 1.23 megapixel LCD monitor. It can capture images in low light and has a built-in 1.55 megapixel adjustable-angle color electronic viewfinder.