A year after cancelling its annual CP+ trade show due to then-emerging coronavirus pandemic, the Camera & Imaging Products Association (CIPA) is bringing the show back, in an online-only form, for 2021.
Instead of showing wares in the Yokohama convention center, attendees will view keynote addresses, seminars, and some product presentations on the web—no trip to Japan needed.
Because it’s a virtual, CP+ is free for anyone to attend—registration is open now. The event schedule includes keynote addresses, photography workshops, and discussion panels with engineers, camera, and lens designers. It’s a Japanese-language event, but organizers tell us that some presentations will include English subtitles.
Things officially kick off on Thursday and wrap on Sunday. Some products have already been announced, others have leaked, and we’ve seen one anticipated camera suffer a production delay. We’re here to break down the news and product rumors surrounding the show.
The Worst Kept Secret: Sony FX3
The Sony FX3 leaked on just about every site that reports on rumors well ahead of its official announcement yesterday morning. It’s an exciting model for cinematographers, putting the guts of an FX6 into a smaller package, and adding a cooling fan to handle long days of on-set use.
It supports 4K recording at up to 120fps, offers in-body image stabilization, and is protected from dust and splashes for use in the field. It’s definitely a video camera—there’s no mechanical shutter for stills—and is a better fit for pure cinematographers than Sony’s hybrid video model, the a7S III, and uses the same E-mount lenses. It’s shipping in March for $3,900.
Ricoh Delays Pentax K-3 III SLR
The Pentax K-3 III has been teased over the past year. Engineers from Pentax’s parent company, Ricoh, have been showing prototypes under glass for some time, and have teased some features of the first new APS-C Pentax SLR since 2017’s KP.
With the K-3 III, Pentax has promised something special in the SLR world. It’s teased the camera’s viewfinder and design, and promised to deliver an all-new 101-point autofocus system to go with a 26MP sensor and 5-axis stabilization.
Ricoh had announced its intention to dish more details on the K-3 III at this year’s CP+, but changed its tune last week. In a statement, it cited issues sourcing components, resulting in development delays. It’s unclear as to how much longer Pentaxians will have to wait.
There are some rumors of new lenses. The company announced an updated DA* 16-50mm F2.8 with new optics and HD coating in October. It’s sure to be the go-to zoom for customers waiting for the K-3 III, and we’re curious to see if it will ship ahead of the now-delayed body.
We’re expecting more details on the HD D FA 21mm Limited, also teased in October. The rumor mill is also swirling about updates to a few of the oldest lenses in the Pentax catalog, the FA Limited series. The 31mm, 43mm, and 77mm are expected to receive updated HD coating, but maintain their retro 1990s optical formulas.
Is this it for Pentax? It’s been some time since we’ve seen a new model—and the most recent, 2018’s K-1 Mark II, was barely an update. It’s also sticking to SLRs and optical viewfinders at a time when the rest of the industry has moved to mirrorless. We’ll just have to wait and see how long the delay turns out to be.
New L-Mount Lenses
All three members of the L-Mount Alliance—Leica, Panasonic, and Sigma—have introduced new lenses for the system in the weeks leading up to the show. Leica is based in Germany and doesn’t exhibit at CP+, but still announced the new APO-Summicron-SL 28mm F2 ASPH. late last week. Like others Leica, it’s for high-end photographers, priced at $5,195.
It came a day after Panasonic released a more down-to-earth zoom, the Lumix S 70-300mm F4.5-5.6 Macro O.I.S., for $1,249.99. It’s a relatively compact, full-frame telezoom with a bit more reach than you get from a 70-200mm, ideal for trips to the zoo, backyard birding, and capturing outdoor team sports.
Sigma joins the party with its 28-70mm F2.8 DG DN Contemporary. It’s a compact lens that sacrifices some wide-angle coverage when compared with a 24-70mm, but benefits from a lighter build and more affordable cost. At $899 it’s very appealing to L-mount customers. Sigma is also bringing it to market for Sony E mount cameras, where it competes directly with the Tamron 28-75mm F2.8.
Sigma Delays Full-Frame Foveon
Along with the new lens, Sigma has its own product delay to announce. It has been working on a full-frame version of its unique Foveon sensor design for mirrorless, but the project has suffered a setback. Sigma released a statement last week stating that it’s had to start fresh with image sensor design.
Foveon sensors capture color differently than most other cameras, sampling at color at every pixel without the same type of interpolation favored by widely used Bayer designs. They’ve remained niche, though, due to a lack of video capability and limited usefulness in dim light.
Firmware Updates From Nikon
Nikon is releasing its first set of firmware updates for the Z 6 II and Z 7 II cameras to coincide with CP+. The Z 7 II benefits from improved eye detection, while the Z 6 II gets that feature, along with previously promised 4K60 video capture.
Canon, Fujifilm, and OM Digital
We don’t expect a lot of new gear from Canon or Fujifilm at the show. Canon released a slew of RF lenses in 2020 and is likely taking a breather.
Fujifilm held its X Summit last month, a virtual event where it highlighted the X-E4 and GFX100S cameras and new lenses. It is holding discussion panels with the development teams behind both cameras.
Eyes are certain to be on OM Digital as well. It’s the first major camera summit since the division spun off from Olympus. Micro Four Thirds owners are eager to hear what OM has planned for the system. Olympus has teased some new wares over recent weeks, and we’d expect to hear more details on its promised 8-25mm F4 zoom for Micro Four Thirds cameras soon.
