Here’s a thought: Last year Canon announced both the 40D (prosumer) and the 1Ds mk3 (pro flagship) on the same exact day, August 20th. Historically, August 20-30 has been the time for Canon to announce cameras. (The 5D was announced on Aug. 22nd back in 2005…)

This doesn’t bode well for those who are HOPING that Canon comes out with the 5D mk2 some time within the next few weeks. Canon did fine introducing the 40D alongside the 1Ds mk3, so why not introduce the 5D mk2 along side the 50D? Maybe they didn’t want to deal with a 5D / 50D name confusion? I doubt it, judging by the smashing success of Nikon’s D3 and D300 one-day announcement.

HOWEVER, back in 2004 Canon DID announce the 20D in August and then the 1Ds mk2 about a month later in September, so there IS hope!!!

Here’s another thought: The Canon 5D is LITERALLY the absolute oldest camera in Canon’s ENTIRE lineup of digital cameras. In fact, the next-youngest camera OVER a year younger, and it’s a P&S camera. All other camera models have been discontinued.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Canon/

All in all, it’s still a wash with both Canon and Nikon. Will the 50D out-perform the D300 and do it at a lower price? Gosh it sure looks like that could be the case. If they can cram a clean ISO 3200 out of 15 megapixels on a cropped sensor, well then I might just buy one.

But then there’s full-frame. If the 50D is so good, what on earth could the 5D mk2 be cooking up? 21 megapixels with ISO 25600 to match the D3? And at what price? I’m still a crop sensor guy because I can get a fully professional DX body for well under $2000, (used D300′s are dropping below $1500, by the way, WOW!!!) …BUT, if Canon’s 5D mk2 were to cost $2000-$2500, well how could you NOT buy one? (Although the D700 is starting to show up for as low as $2600, I think!)

So like I said, it’s a Nikon and Canon free-for-all right now. I’m definitely going to sit tight, hold onto the gear I own, and see what the next ~12 months bring…

=Matt=