Introduction
The new Canon EOS 70D replaces the Canon EOS 60D, which first appeared in the manufacturer's DSLR lineup way back in August 2010.
As such, the Canon 70D is aimed at keen photographers who want to take their hobby further. These users need a versatile camera that's capable of shooting in a range of conditions and that provides plenty of control.
It also has automatic options to help those who are relatively new to photography but want to develop their skills.
Shortly before the Canon EOS 70D's official announcement we went down to Canon UK's headquarters to tak e a look at a pre-production sample.
One of the most interesting things about the Canon 70D is that the company has finally broken away from using its 18 million effective pixel sensor, and the new camera has a 20.2 million effective pixel CMOS device.
This is coupled with a Digic 5+ processor that enables a maximum continuous shooting rate of 7fps for 16 raw files or 65 JPEGs, and a native sensitivity range of ISO 100-12,800 with an expansion setting of ISO 25,600.
The sensor inside the Canon 70D uses completely new technology, since it is a Dual Pixel CMOS device, which is designed to improve autofocusing in Live View and video mode. Each pixel site on the sensor (strictly speaking pixels don't exist until an i mage is created) has two photodiodes beneath a single micro-lens. Each of these diodes can read light independently, and this enables a form of phase detection autofocusing that drives the lens to focus.
While the diodes are read separately for autofocusing, they are read together to form the image, and this means the Canon 70D creates 20.2 million pixel images
Although every 'pixel' is a dual diode device, only the central 80% are used for auto focusing, because using the outer edges makes the system more prone to errors.
As usual with a DSLR there is also a phase detection autofocus system that is used when images are composed in the viewfinder. This is the same as the AF system inside the Canon 7D, and it has 19 AF points, all of which are cross type.
However, while the Canon 7D has five AF point selection modes, the Canon 70D has just three: Single point AF, Zone AF and 19-Point or Area AF. In 19-Point/Area AF mode the camera selects the appropriate AF point to use, while in Zone AF mode the camera selects which AF point to use from a group selected by the photographer. Meanwhile, Single AF mode enables the photographer to select any one of the 19 AF points.
Another exciting feature of this enthusiast-friendly DSLR is that its 3-inch 1,040,000-dot vari-angle screen is touch-sensitive, and it can be used to make settings adjustments and scroll through image s. This is coupled with the full complement of buttons and dials, so you can decide how to control the camera.
Like the full-frame Canon 6D, the Canon 70D has built-in Wi-Fi connectivity. As well as enabling you to download images wirelessly, this enables you to control the camera remotely using Canon's free EOS Remote app, which is available for Android and iOS devices.
Naturally, the Canon 70D is also capable of recording Full HD (1920 x 1080p) video with a choice of frame rates, including 30, 25 or 24fps and 60 or 50fps at 720p. An internal mic is provided to record stereo sound, but there's also an input for an ex ternal microphone. There's no port for a set of headphones, but settings such as aperture and sensitivity can be controlled and adjusted in manual mode.
Other niceties include a multi-exposure mode, an HDR mode that combines three images to create one with a greater range of tones, and the JPEG-only Creative Filters mode. There's also a built-in Speedlite transmitter, which provides in-camera wireless control over multiple Canon Speedlite EX flashguns.
The Canon 70D is set to go on sale at the end of August and will be priced at £1,079.99 (around US$ 1,645 / AU$ 1,790) body only. Or you'll be able to buy it for £1,199.99 (around US$ 1,830 / AU$ 1,990) with the 18-55mm STM lens or £1,399.99 (around US$ 2,135 / AU$ 2,315) with the 18-135mm STM lens.
Build and handling
Although it has a polycarbonate body, the Canon 70D feels solid and durable, it doesn't creak or squeak when it's squeezed and it has seals to prevent the ingress of dust and mo isture. The grip is also broad and deep, with a well textured covering giving a good purchase in the hand.
While the Canon 60D's 3-inch vari-angle LCD screen has 1,040,000 dots, it isn't touch-sensitive. We have seen with the Canon 650D, Canon 700D and Canon 100D how a touchscreen can really improve the camera's handling and speed up making settings adjustments, so we're really looking forward to properly getting to grips with the Canon 70D in the near future.
We found that the Canon 70D's capacitive touchscreen is very responsive, reacting to a touch of a finger and not requiring a double-touch or a firm press. One downside to a touchscreen, however, is that it is inevitably soon covered in fingerprints, and this can obscure the view.
Although we found that the screen on the Canon 70D provided a nice clear view during the time we were able to use it, we will need to use it more extensively before we pass judgement on its ability to resist fingerprints. Nevertheless, it appears that it doesn't suffer adversely from reflections and ghosting, though (not surprisingly) we had to increase the screen's brightness when using the camera outdoors on a bright day.
Thanks to the increased speed of the Canon 70D's Live View AF system, its touch-shutter mode should also be extremely helpful when shooting at unusual angles, because the AF point can be set, the lens focused and the shutter tripped with just a single touch of the finger on the subject in the LCD screen.
Being a DSLR, the Canon 70D has an optical viewfinder. This is nice and bright, and covers 98% of the frame. Like the Canon 7D, the Canon 70D has an intelligent viewfinder, which has an electronic overlay that displays settings. Three new icons at the top of the viewfinder indicate the AF point selection mode, and these graphics quickly and easily convey which option is active.
The mode is changed by pressing a new button just to the side of the shutter release on the Canon 70D. One press activates the system, while others toggle through the selection mode options. Using the navigation buttons after the first press selects the AF point. We found it very quick and easy-to-use.
The Canon 70D has an electronic level that can be displayed on the LCD screen or in the viewfinder. Unlike Canon's previous electronic levels, however, this doesn't use the AF point display, and there's an icon towards the bottom of the viewfinder that indicates whether you're holding the camera level or not. The advantage of this is that it remains active even when the shutter release button is pressed.
Our experience of the pre-production sample of the camera suggests that this level will take a little bit of getting used to, because it has a limited number of display options, and it will take time to learn how far to correct the camera angle. The level on the LCD, however, is the same as on Canon's other DSLRs, and it has more detail and is easier to use.
Like the Canon 6D, the Canon 70D has Wi-Fi connectivity built in. This enables you to upload images wirelessly to your computer or to Canon's Cloud-based storage and sharing site Project1709 or send them to a smartphone or tablet via an app. From there you can share your images on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter.
Canon's EOS Remote app enables you to control the Canon 70D remotely by phone or tablet. We have used this with the Canon 6D and found that it's relatively easy to use and provides plenty of control over the camera settings.
It's particularly useful for wildlife photographers who want to be able to shoot from a distance so as not to disturb their subjects.
Performance
Naturally we will want to use the Canon 70D in a range of situations before we pass judgement on its autofocusing and metering systems. However, the phase detection system that operates when you compose images in the viewfinder appears to be fast and accurate - just as it is in the Canon 7D.
With 19 points across the frame, there's reasonable coverage, but it's not quite as good as that offered by the likes of the Nikon D5200, which has 39 AF points, and the Nikon D7100, which has 51 points.
Canon claims that the new Dual Pixel AF system that functions in Live View and video mode (ie when the mirror is lifted) is faster than in previous systems. This certainly seems to be the case, and we found that there was no backwards and forwards adjustment visible.
Nevertheless, it doesn't appear to be as fast as the contrast detection system in the Panasonic G6 and Panasonic GF6, for example. However, it's important to remember that this was a pre-production sample, and the focusing speed may be faster in the full production model.
That said, a key test for a Live View AF system is whether it can be used when the camera is handheld, and it seems feasible with the Canon 70D. We look forward to testing its performance with moving subjects at a later date.
Like Canon's other recent DSLRs, the Canon 70D uses the company's 63-zone iFCL metering system. While this does an excellent job in many situations, the weighting that it gives to the brightness of the subject under the active AF point can cause problems in high contrast conditions. If the point is over a particularly bright subject, for example, the image is underexposed, and if the AF point is over a dark object the image is overexposed.
Given that the Canon 70D is aimed at keen photographers, this isn't as much of a problem as it might be in an entry-level camera. Experienced photographers understand the pitfalls of metering systems and take it in their stride.
We have found that Canon's recent DSLRs produce images with nice, vibrant colours and a good level of contrast, which makes them largely print-ready. Their automatic white balance system also performs well, usually managing to retain the atmosphere of the scene and not correcting it to the point that images look 'too neutral'.
Purists, however, may complain that the images sometimes err towards slightly warm tones. Our experience with the Canon 70D so far gives us no reason to suggest that this camera's colour performance will be any different, but naturally we will investigate this fully when we get a final production sample in for full testing.
Because it uses a new sensor, one of the most important questions that needs to be answered about the Canon 70D is how much detail it can resolve and how well it controls noise. We weren't allowed to download and scrutinise any of the images that we shot on the pre-production sample Canon 70D that we used, but the results looked good on the camera's screen.
We're looking forward to testing the camera across its full sensitivity range in the near future.
Sample images
Here are the official Canon sample images, to give you an idea of what the Canon EOS 70D is capable of shooting. We will update this space with our own sample images as soon as we get a full production camera to shoot with.
Initial verdict
While some photographers remain skeptical about the benefits of a touchscreen, we would urge them to try one of the modern systems, because they are far more responsive than some of the first touchscreens that appeared on compact cameras.
As on the Canon 650D, the first DSLR to feature a touchscreen, and its replacement the Canon 70 0D, the manufacturer has backed up the touch controls with the usual array of physical buttons and dials. This means that you can choose how you wish to control the camera, perhaps using touch control for some aspects and physical controls for others.
We suspect that many users will start out using the physical controls, but gradually start using touch control were more often. The touch navigation is particularly useful for changing settings via the Quick Menu and when reviewing images, when you can swipe and pinch-to-zoom to check sharpness.
A vari-angle screen is really helpful when composing images at awkward angles, whether you're shooting landscape or portrait format images. However, to get the best from it you really need a fast autofocusing system, which is something we have seen implemented to great effect with the Panasonic G6 and Panasonic GH3. Canon's new Dual Pixel AF system promises to deliver this kind of performance in a DSLR, and it should help photographers take more creative photographs.
We will have to wait to see a final production sample camera before we know for certain how fast this system is and how it compares with the now highly evolved contrast detection systems in Panasonic, Olympus and Sony compact system cameras.
We have become used to sharing images immediately after capture with smartphones, so it seems like a logical step that we should be able to do this from our DSLRs. While the Canon 70D's Wi-Fi connectivity may not enable such direct image sharing as the Samsung Galaxy NX, it's the next best thing. The Canon's EOS Remote app also affords extensive control over a camera via an Android or iOS phone or tablet, and it could prove a hit with wildlife photographers.
There has been some frustration expressed at Canon's extensive use of its 18 million pixel sensor, and now that we have a 20.2 million pixel sensor we can probably expect to see that spreading to the camera range.
We look forward to investigating the capabilities of the sensor, seeing how it performs in a range of lighting conditions and at different sensitivity settings. Hopefully Canon has at least maintained, if not improved upon, the standards achieved by its 18MP sensor.
Canon has produced what looks to be a very well rounded camera for enthusiast photographers. It has all the specifications that we expect along with a few modern niceties in a body that feels well made and comfortable in the hand. It looks like it could be serious competition for the Nikon D7100. We're really looking forwa rd to testing it for our full review in the near future.
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