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The Most Exciting Camera Rumors of 2022

By Mike Maher

Published: February 18, 2022 Last Updated: February 22, 2022

We’re rounding up rumors and making some of our own. Let’s see what the year ahead might have in store for camera tech.

Time for another round of juicy camera conjectures. Here’s your officially unofficial 2022 camera rumor roundup! Let’s get to it.

Canon

Canon has more or less announced the death of the DSLR. They are entirely focused on the R-series of mirrorless cameras. Rumors suggest no fewer than three new EOS R cameras in 2022, including an entry-level model that uses the R6 sensor.

The manufacturer already announced the anticipated R5c, but will this be the year we finally hear about the much-talked flagship replacement R1?

Canon R1

According to Canon Rumors, the R1 may appear in Q4 of 2022.

Think of the Canon EOS R1 as a 5D series DSLR, a camera built for pretty much every situation. Quoting a source: “A jack of all trades, and a master of none. Except that it will be a master of everything.”
– Canon Rumors

Rumors also suggest 8K video recording and a new Quad Pixel AF system.

Canon R7

Rumors already suggest that we may hear about a more entry-level R7 as early as March of this year. The R7 is said to be the first RF-mount camera with APS-C sensors, which would allow for a much more budget-friendly price.

TechRadar suggests that the R7 may already have been seen in the wild being tested by photographers and videographers.

The R7 would shoot 4K video up to 60fps 1080 up to 120fps. Rumors suggest a body-only price point just under the $2,000 mark.

Canon Cinema Series

We’re still waiting for updates to the EOS Cinema line. While the Canon C70 already got a firmware update, users still want to hear about updates to the beloved C300, C500, or C700 series.

According to Canon Rumors, we may see updates to all three. One of the big questions is if the Cinema line will also ditch the EF-mount for Canon’s now favored RF-mount like the one on the C70. Keep an eye out for an update closer to NAB, should it not be canceled again.

Canon C300S Rumored Specs

8K Super 35mm
RF-mount
8K/60p, 4K/120p
Quad pixel autofocus
16 stops dynamic range
10ms readout in 8K DGO mode

Canon Cinema EOS C500S Rumored Specs

8K full-frame
RF-mount
8K/60p, 4K/120p in all modes
8K DGO sensor
Dual pixel autofocus
17+ stops dynamic range

Canon Cinema EOS C700DR Rumored Specs

4K full-frame
RF-mount
4K/240p in fast mode, 4K/180p in WDR mode
BSI stacked 9.6um 4K WDR sensor
20+ stops dynamic range in WDR mode
5ms readout in 4K WDR mode

Sony

Sony will probably add the succeeding roman numeral to an existing camera. Honestly, that’s probably it, and it’s expected. They’ll also sell a ton of them.

Sony a9 III

The latest a9 is pretty much a rumored deal in Q4 this year, but we don’t have any final specs yet. The body will have a tiltable screen and record 4K video up to 60fps.

According to The New Camera, expect a price around $4,999.

Sony a7R V

While some rumors early on had a 102MP sensor in the new a7R, expectations have reverted to the current 61MP sensor with some added features. Perhaps related to the global chip shortage or other supply-chain factors, who know what’s truly in store for this update to the popular camera.

TechRadar seems to think the video may get a boost up to 8K resolution and 4K up to 120fps. Expect a price point around $3,999.

Sony CineAlta

The Sony CineAlta line saw its big update with the VENICE II late last year. Something interesting about the build was its swappable sensors, which leaves it open to an expansion on this camera line.

While there isn’t much rumor-wise already, I’d love to see more done with this sensor technology aimed at the Canon Cinema EOS crowd.

While Sony does well with ENG and traditional broadcast television shooters, there’s still plenty of space for them to carve out an audience of documentary filmmakers with the CineAlta tech.

I’d love to see some significant advancements to the FS7 or FS5 line of cameras. The Sony FX3 and FX6 didn’t offer enough to elevate a traditional Sony alpha camera to a cinema camera, so I’d like to see a few more built-in features. Please give us the audio inputs without needing a handle.

Blackmagic

We just saw updates to the URSA G2 Broadcast to see updates to the URSA 12K, or a new variant added to the lineup. Blackmagic is likely bringing their 12K sensor technology to their other cameras. Is this the year of the Pocket Cinema Camera 8K? I want to hope so.

Check out this article for more Blackmagic updates we expect to see.

RED

With the relatively recent additions of the Komodo and V-Raptor to the lineup, we’re still waiting to see RED drop a DSMC3 brain.

There isn’t much to report on, but knowing how RED does things, be prepared for a loud and seemingly random launch at any moment.

Panasonic

Panasonic has already said that two cameras will replace the incredibly popular Panasonic GH5, the Panasonic GH5 II, and the just-announced Panasonic GH6.

It was expected that the GH6 would arrive in 2021, but the company has gone quiet on the subject recently, so it looks like it’ll be 2022.

Lumix GH6

New sensor
New processing engine
Internal 4K DCI/UHD 4:2:2 10-bit up to 60p unlimited recording
4K 120p HFR and VFR
5.7K 10-bit up to 60p
An estimated price of $2,500

More details are to come during the official announcement on February 22nd.

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Cover image via Lumix.