Uncle Bob Talks To Canon Deepthroat About The Canon 1D MkIV And The New Canon Auto Focus System

Alright folks, I just had a long conversation with my source inside the deep dark bowels of the Canon Empire, and I'm pumped.

I think Canon has got their ducks lined up, and their shotgun primed and loaded. That shotgun is a brand new one that'll be coming to a store near you very soon... the totally re-worked Canon 1D MkIV!

Now, as most of you know, your good ol' Uncle Bob has been kinda bummed out with Canon lately. Their auto focus issues have been nothing short of redonkulous, and they're letting Nikon clobber them. It's depressing to see a company like Canon, the company that brought us so many great cameras in the past, letting themselves go. It's like seeing a supermodel you had the hots for as a kid, and barely recognizing her because she now weighs over four hundred pounds.

Uncle Bob knows Canon has it in them to rise again, and Uncle Bob REALLY knows that, now that I've spoken to my Canon insider, Uncle Bob's own Deepthroat.

Now obviously I'm not supposed to tell you any of this, and Deepthroat wasn't supposed to tell your good ol' Uncle Bob any of this, but hey... that's how people find stuff out, right?

It's no secret that Canon's DSLR lineup has had some pretty bad auto focus problems. The Canon 1D Mk3 is probably the most famous for its auto focus boondoggle, but the problem has been prevalent on a lot of the Canon DSLR cameras. The 5D MkII is the latest to be causing a stir about its auto focus issues, but pretty much every Canon DSLR Uncle Bob has shot with has had soft focus and out of focus problems. According to Deepthroat, the new Canon 1D MkIV will put an end to all that.

The Canon 1D MkIV will feature Canon's ALL NEW, rebuilt from the ground up, revolutionary new DSLR auto focus system. Imagine 77 finely tuned auto focus points, working in synchronicity to achieve a focus lock that the Nikon D700X can only dream about! As Vanilla Ice said, the 1D MkIV auto focus will "slice like a ninja, cut like a razorblade."

Low light focus is going to blow your mind! Turn off all the lights, strip down your wife, and watch the Canon 1D MkIV lock in all the good stuff boys! We're talking nipples that are sharp as a tack, and not because you're such a good lookin' fella!

Apparently Canon made some major break throughs in the designing of their new auto focus system that the 1D MkIV sports, and they had a little help doing it. Believe it or not, a few years back the Russians developed some crazy weird new ballistic missile targeting system that never made it out of the prototype stages, and Canon was able to get its hands on one of the prototypes to study.

Turns out Canon was able to use the underlying technology in the Russian missile targeting system to build upon for their revolutionary new DSLR auto focus system. They reverse engineered one specific part of the Russian targeting system, and with a few tweaks and modifications by Canon, the foundation of the 1D MkIV's auto focus system was born.

Who'd a thunk, eh folks! Russian technology ending up in a Japanese DSLR that'll be the joy of American photographers everywhere. Your good ol' Uncle Bob sure wouldn't guessed this one!

But who gives a peanut in a paper cup how Canon came up with the fix to their auto focus problem? Uncle Bob sure doesn't! As long as the new 1D MkIV can nail the shot, Uncle Bob will be a happy camper, as will thousands of other soft focus plagued Canon shooters!

Bring it on Canon! Bring it out! Give us the 1D MkIV! Let us push that golden trigger button and see how sharp our pictures can be. It's ok Canon. We'll forgive you for all the thousands of out of focus shots we've had to live with. That's all in the past. We want to believe! We want to wave the Canon flag with pride again!

On a somewhat lower note, Deepthroat wasn't able to confirm if the coming Canon 7D
will have the new auto focus system. Apparently there's an internal debate on this one within the Canon Empire.

One side wants the 7D to have the new auto focus system. They argue that the faster they can put Canon's auto focus problems in the past, the better it will be for the company, not to mention that loyal Canon shooters deserve a DSLR that can focus.

The other side wants to save the new auto focus system for the release of the new 1D MkIV. They argue that it'll make the hype and ensuing sales of the 1D MkIV that much better. While they probably have a point here, is it fair to put out yet another DSLR with the same smeared poop in a baby diaper auto focus that the 5D MkII has?

In any case, whether it's on the Canon 7D or the 1D Mark IV, we're going to see an end to Canon autofocus problems soon! Let's hope it's on the 7D!

See you next Monday,
Uncle Bob.

Canon EOS 5D MkII Autofocus - Unhappy 5D MkII Users Speak Out

It's no secret that Canon has autofocus problems with it's DSLR digital cameras. Whether it's persistent soft focus, out of focus, or back focus, Canon can't seem to get it's autofocus system to work properly in its DSLR lineup.

We all heard about the Canon 1D MkIII autofocus problems. Rob Galbraith blew the lid off that one, and try as they did, Canon couldn't keep denying that the 1D MkIII had autofocus problems when more and more people were able to replicate Rob's findings.

When the Canon 5D MkII came out, a lot of people were singing it's praises from the get go, but there was another chorus that could be heard singing in the background, and the song was all about 5D MkII autofocus problems, questions, issues, and complaints. Those talking about the problems they were having with the 5D MkII autofocus were initially drowned out by the initial 5D MkII praisers and ravers, a lot of which were a direct result of a great marketing campaign and publicity push by Canon, but the tide is turning and the voice of those having issues with their 5D MkII autofocus is starting to drown out the praisers and ravers.

Peter Gregg, inventor of A Better Bounce Card (my favorite flash modifier), was one of the first to write about the 5D MkII autofocus. In his latest article, Can the coming Canon 1D Mark IV win back those who switched to Nikon?, Peter makes a pointed request of Canon. "I say this respectfully, but I want a focus system that works. No more sloppy soft images." Many a Canon shooter nodded their head respectfully when they read that line in Peter's article, some shed a tear, and others felt the resentment and anger begin to rise again as they thought about all the issues they've been having with their $3,000 5D MkII that can't focus properly.

The Fake Chuck Westfall brought up the 5D MkII autofocus problems in his post, F@#$ed, for the foreseeable Future, and many 5D MkII shooters wrote in to comment. Some were relieved to find out they weren't alone in experiencing autofocus problems with their 5D MkII, and some were glad to realize it wasn't anything they were doing... just a problem with the camera. All could agree that a $3000 5D MkII that couldn't focus properly was unacceptable, and Canon should do something to rectify the situation.

While I haven't had the misfortune of owning a 5D MkII, I have owned and shot the original Canon 5D, the 40D, 30D, 20D, and Digital Rebel XTi. While I did get some fantastic shots with each of my Canon DSLRs, I also got a lot of out of focus and soft shots with each one. I shot a lot more photos when I shot Canon DSLRs because I could never be sure if the focus would be good. Now that I'm back to shooting Nikon, I shoot a lot less photos because I'm not having focus issues anymore.

Don't get me wrong, I liked my Canon DSLRs, but once Nikon came out with it's newer generation of DSLRs (D300, D3, D3X, D700, and soon to be D700X), the balance swung in Nikon's favor. The big advantage with Canon had always been it's high ISO quality. When Nikon released its newer generation of DSLRs, Canon's high ISO advantage disappeared. Nikon took the high ISO crown with the D3 and D700, and all of Nikon's DSLR lineup focuses MUCH better than the Canon DSLR lineup.

When the 5D MkII came out, I considered buying one. It had a lot of things going for it, and I was intrigued. I was also wary though, as my past Canon experience had left me once bitten, twice shy, which, as it turns out, was a good thing. The 5D MkII has the usual Canon autofocus problems as many 5D MkII owners have found out. No matter what else a camera has going for it, if it doesn't focus well, I don't want it. You can have all the megapixels in the world, and they don't mean a thing if your photos are out of focus.

Come on Canon! I can't believe you aren't capable of making a DSLR that focuses as good as the Nikon D3, D3X, D700, or my D300. In fact, I don't see why you can't leapfrog Nikon and come out with an even better autofocus system than the Nikons have. In the immortal words of Peter Gregg, "I say this respectfully, but I want a focus system that works. No more sloppy soft images." And while you're at it, how about fixing your quality control problems too!

Feel free to leave a comment if you've had problems with your 5D MkII or any other Canon DSLR for that matter. If we make our voices heard, Canon will have to start listening!

**Update: Canon EOS 7D - Will We Be Seeing a Canon 7D in September? and Why Most Of The Canon 7D Specs Are Wrong**